normaalijännitykset

Normaalijännitykset refers to the stress component that acts perpendicular to a surface. When a material is subjected to external forces, internal stresses develop within it. These stresses can be resolved into components acting parallel and perpendicular to any given plane within the material. The component acting perpendicular to the plane is the normal stress. It is typically denoted by the Greek letter sigma (σ). Normal stresses can be either tensile, meaning they tend to pull the material apart, or compressive, meaning they tend to push the material together.

Tensile normal stresses are positive, while compressive normal stresses are negative. The magnitude of the normal stress is calculated by dividing the force acting perpendicular to the surface by the area of that surface. For example, if a rod is pulled with a force F, and its cross-sectional area is A, the tensile normal stress in the rod is σ = F/A. Similarly, if the rod is pushed, it experiences a compressive normal stress. Understanding normal stresses is fundamental in fields like mechanical engineering and materials science for predicting material behavior under load and designing safe structures.