Jimma University Civil Engineering Department

3. Torsion
3.1 Introduction
Torsion refers to the twisting of a structural member when it is loaded by couples that produce rotation about
its longitudinal axis. Torsional loading is pictured in Fig. 3.1, which shows a straight bar supported at one end
and loaded two pairs of forces. Each pair of forces form a couple that tends to twist the bar about its
longitudinal axis.
The moment of a couple is equal to the product of one of the forces and the perpendicular distance between
the lines of action of the forces; thus the first couple has a moment T1 = P1d1 and the second has a moment T 2
= P 2d 2.

Fig. 3.1 Bar subjected to torsion by twisting couples T 1 and T2.

Couples can also be represented by curved arrows or double-headed vector following the right-hand screw
sign convention.
Couples that produce twisting of a bar, such as couples T 1 and T2 in Fig. 3.1, are called torques, twisting
couples, or twisting moments.
Torque 1 in Fig 3.1 above can be represented as Similarly for Torque 2

= =

Discuss on section method of determining internal torques with an example.

3.2 Torsion of circular shafts

Basic assumptions for circular members

To establish a relation between the internal torque and the stresses it sets up in members with circular solid
and tabular cross-sections, it is necessary to make the following assumptions.
1. Plane circular cross sections, perpendicular to the axis of the bar, remain plane after the application of
a torque; points in a given plane remain in that plane after twisting. Further more, expansion or
contraction of a cross section does not occur nor does a shortening or lengthening of the bar. Thus all
normal strains are zero. (applies only for circular cross-sections)
2. In a circular member subjected to torque, shear strains  varies linearly from the central axis reaching
max at the periphery. (applies only for circular cross-sections)
3. If attention is confined to the linearly elastic material, Hooke’s law applies, and it follows that shear
stress is proportional to shear strain.
Consider a bar or shaft of circular cross-section twisted by couples T acting at the ends (Fig. 3.2a). A bar
loaded in this manner is said to be in pure Torsion. The cross-sections of the circular bar rotate as rigid bodies
about the longitudinal axis, with radii remaining straight and the cross-sections remaining plane and circular.
Also, if the total angle of twist of the bar is small, neither the length of the bar nor its radius will change.

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Strength of Material Lecture Note, chapter four
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Fig. 3.2 Circular bar in pure torsion.

During twisting the right hand end of the bar will rotate through a small angle ø with respect to the left hand
end (Fig. 3.2a). The angle ø is known as the angle of twist. Because of this rotation, a longitudinal line mn on
the surface of the bar will rotate through a small angle to position mn’.
Consider an element of the bar between two cross-sections that are distance dx apart (Fig. 3.2a). This volume
element is isolated in Fig. 3.2b. On the outer surface identify a small element abcd, with sides ab and cd that
are parallel to the longitudinal axis. During twisting of the bar, points b and c move to b’ and c’, respectively.
The lengths of the sides of the element do not change during this rotation, but the angles at the corners are no
longer equal to 900. The element is in a state of pure shear, and the magnitude of the shear strain  is equal to
the decrease in the angle at a. This decrease in angle is
bb'
 
ab

But bb’ = rdø and ab = dx

r – radius of the cross section
dø - angle of twist between the two ends of the small element.
The expression for shear strain becomes,
rd 
 
dx
The quantity dØ/dx represents the rate of change of the angle of twist Ø.
d
Let   angle of twist per unit length.
dx
rd 
Then,    r (3.1)
dx

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In general, both ø and θ are functions of x. However, in the special case of pure torsion the angle of twist per
unit length is constant along the length L of the bar, because every cross-section is subjected to the same

torque. Therefore,  
L


Shear strain,   r  r , for pure torsion. (3.2)
L
Finally, it can be observed that the preceding equations are based only upon geometric concepts, and
therefore they are valid for any circular bar, regardless of whether the material behaves elastically or
inelastically, linearly or nonlinearly.
The shear stresses τ in the circular bar act on an element in the directions shown in Fig.3.2. For a linearly
elastic material, the shear stresses, are related to the shear strains by Hooke’s law in shear; therefore,
Shear stress,   G  Gr (3.3)
Where, G is the shear modulus of elasticity. Equations (3.1) and (3.3) relate the strains and stresses for an
element at the surface of the bar to the angle of twist pet unit length.
Following the same procedure as for an element at the surface of an interior cylinder of radius ρ (Fig. 3.2d)

     G (3.4 a,b)

These equations show that the shear strains and stresses in a circular bar vary linearly with the radial distance
ρ from the center, with the maximum values occurring at the outer surface (Fig. 3.2d).
The shear stresses acting on a cross-sectional plane are accompanied by shear stresses of the same magnitude
acting on longitudinal planes (Fig. 3.3’). This conclusion follows from the fact that equal sheat stresses
always exist on mutually perpendicular planes.

Fig. 3.3 Longitudinal shear stresses in a circular bar.

The relationship between the applied torque T and the angle of twist Ø (Fig. 3.2a) may now be determined
from the condition that the resultant couple of the shear stresses acting over the cross section (Fig. 3.2d) must
be statically equivalent to the applied torque T.
To determine the resultant couple, consider a ring shaped element of area having radius ρ and thickness dρ
(Fig. 3.2d). With in this element take another element (labeled dA in the figure) that extends over a small
length of arc.
The elemental shear force acting on an element of area dA is equal to τdA, where τ is the shear stress at
radius ρ. The moment of this force about the axis of the bar is τρdA.
But,   G
 dT  G . .dA  G 2 .dA
Therefore, the total torque,
T   dT   G 2 dA
A

 G   2dA
 G I p (3.5)

Where I p    2dA - is the polar moment of inertia of the circular cross-section.

dA  2 .d and ρ runs from 0 to r(d/2)

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r
r r
   r 4 4
 I p   2 3 .d  2   3 .d  2   
0 0  4 0 2
d 4
or I p 
32
T
 (3.6)
GI p
Equation (3.6) shows θ, the angle of twist per unit length, is directly proportional to the torque T and inversely
proportional to the product GIp, known as the torsional rigidity of the shaft.
The total angle of twist, ø, equal to θL, is
TL
 (3.7)
GI p
Where ø is in radian
In SI units; T is in N-m, L in m, G in Pascals & Ip = m4
The quantity GIp/L, called the torsional stiffness, is the torque required to produce a unit angle of rotation of
one end of the bar with respect to the other.
The torsinal flexibility is defined as the reciprocal of the stiffness,or L/GIp, which is the angle of rotation
produced by a unit torque.
These expressions are analogous to those for axial stiffness EA/L and axial flexibility L/EA.
Tr
For circular bars  max  =16T/πd3 (3.8)
Ip
Equation (3.8) is known as the torsion formula.
Shear stress at distance ρ from the center is
T
  (3.9)
Ip
the above equations are applicable to circular tubes. It is necessary, however, to modify I p. for a tube as may
be seen in Fig. 3.3, the limits of integration for polar moment of inertia extend from r1 to r2.

 Ip 

2
r 2
4
 r1 
4
 
32
d 2
4
 d1
4


Fig. 3.3 Hollow circular tube.

For very thin tubes, if r1 is nearly equal to r2 and r2 - r1 = t the thickness of the tube, Ip reduces to a simple
approximate expression:
I p  2r 3t Where r is the average radius.
Hollow bars or tubes are much more efficient in resisting torsional loads than are solid bars. As explained in
the preceding paragraphs, the shear stresses in a solid circular bar are maximum at the outer boundary of
cross section and zero at the center. Therefore, most of the material in a solid shaft is stressed significantly
below the maximum shear stress.

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Strength of Material Lecture Note, chapter four
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3.3 Non-uniform torsion

Pure torsion refers to torsion of prismatic bar subjected to torques acting only at the ends. Nonuniform torsion
differs from pure torsion in that the bar need not be prismatic and the applied torques may vary along the
length.
The figure below shows a bar made of two segments of different diameters and torques applied at several
cross-sections. Each region of the bar between applied loads or between changes in cross-section is in pure
torsion, and therefore the formulas derived in the preceding section may be applied to each part separately.
For this purpose, it is necessary to determine the magnitude and direction of the internal torque in each
region. Then knowing the internal torque, we can calculate the angle of twist and maximum shear stress for
each part from Eqns. (3.7) and (3.8).

Fig. 3.4 Bar in nonuniform torsion.

The total angle of twist of one end of the bar with respect to the other is obtained by summation, using the
general formula:
n
Ti Li
  (3.10)
i 1 Gi I pi

Where
i- is the numbering index for various parts of the bar
n- is the total number of parts
Ti –the internal torque in the ith part
Li- the length of the ith part
Gi- the shear modulus of the ith part
Ipi- the polar moment of inertia of the ith part
The expression TiLi/GiIpi gives the angle of twist øi for part i.
Another case of nonuniform torsion occurs when either the torque or the cross section changes continuously
along the axis of the bar as shown in the fig. below.

(a) (b)
Fig. 3.5 Bar with varying cross section and varying torque.
The figure shows a tapered bar subjected to a torque of intensity q per unit distance along the axis of the bar.
The differential angle of rotation dø for an element of length dx (Fig. 3.5a) is
T ( x)d ( x)
d 
GI p ( x)

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Strength of Material Lecture Note, chapter four
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Where T(x)- the torque at cross-section x distance from one end.
Ip(x)- the polar moment of inertia of the cross-section at x-distance from one end.
The total angle of twist between the ends of the bar is
L
T ( x)dx
   d   (3.11)
0 GI p ( x)
The above equations can be used for either solid or hollow bars having circular cross sections.

3.4 Transmission of power by circular shafts

The most important use of circular shafts is to transmit mechanical power from one device or machine to
another.
Consider a motor-driven shaft (Fig. 3.6) rotating at an angular speed ω, measured in radian per second
(rad/sec). The shaft is transmitting the torque T to a machine that is performing useful work.

Fig. 3.6 Shaft transmitting a torque T at an angular speed ω

In general, the work W done by any torque of constant magnitude T is equal to the product of the torque and
the angle through which it rotates. i.e.

W  T

Where  is the angular rotation in radian. Power is the time rate at which work is done, or

dW Td
P 
dt dt
Where P is power
t is time
The rate of change d/dt of the angular displacement  is the angular speed ω, and
Therefore the preceding equation becomes,
P= T.ω
This formula gives the power transmitted by a rotating shaft.
If angular speed is expressed as the frequency of rotation,
ω =2f
Then P=2fT (f=Hz=S-1)

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Examples:

1. Find the maximum torque, that can be applied safety to a shaft of diameter.
The permissible angle of twist is in a length of and shearing
stress is not to exceed . Take .
Solution:

 Based on maximum allowable shearing stress:

 Based on maximum allowable angle of twist:

Use the smaller torque,

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2. If a twisting moment of is impressed upon a diameter shaft, what
is the maximum shearing stress developed? Also, what is the angle of twist in a
length of the shaft? The material is steel for which

Solution:

 Circular shaft subjected to twisting moment the torsional shearing stress at a

distance from the center of the shaft is

 The polar moment of inertia of the cross section area is

 The torsional shearing stress at any distance from the center of the shaft is given the above
equation. The maximum shear stresses developed at the outer fibers. Where ,
:

 The shear stress varies linearly from zero at the center of the shaft to 65.8Mpa at the
outer fibers, as shown in figure.

3. A hollow long steel shaft must transmit a torque of . The total angle of
twist in this length is not to exceed and the allowable shearing stress is .
Determine the inside and outside diameters of the shaft if

Given:

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Solution:
 Let design the outer and inside diameters of the shaft, respectively.
The angle of twist is

We have

 The maximum shearing stress occurs at the outer fibers where, these point
from

 Comparison of the right –hand sides of Eqn (1) and (2) indicates that

And thus substitution of this value into either of the equation (1)

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= 126mm

4. A solid brass bar of diameter is subjected to torques , as shown in Fig.6

(a). The allowable shear stress in the brass is .
(a) What is the maximum permissible value of the torques
(b) If a hole of diameter is drilled longitudinally through the bar, as shown in
figure 6 (b), what is the maximum permissible value of the torques
(c) What is the percent decrease in torque and the percent decrease in weight due to the
hole?

Fig. 6
Solution: Brass bar in Torsion
a) Solid bar:

Find maximum torque,

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b) Bar with in hole:

c) Percent decrease in torque

 Percent decrease in weight

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Therefore, the hollow bar weight less than the solid bar with only
decrease in strength.
1) An aluminum shaft with a constant diameter of is loaded by torques applied to
gears attached to it as shown in Fig 3. Using , determine the relative angle
of twist of gear relative to gear .

Fig.3

Solution:

Section 1-1: member AB

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Section 2-2: member BC

Section 3-3: member CD

2) A solid steel shaft (Fig.4) having

diameter turns freely in bearings at points . The shaft is driven by a
gear at , which applies a torque in the direction shown in the fig.4.

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Strength of Material Lecture Note, chapter four
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Gears at are driven by the shaft and have resisting
torques , respectively, acting in the opposite
direction to the torque . Segments have lengths
respectively, and the shear
modulus Determine the maximum shear stress in each part of the shaft and
the angle of twist between gears

Fig. 4.
Solution:
Each segment of the bar is prismatic and subjected to a constant torque (Case 1). Therefore,
the first step in the analysis is to determine the torques acting in the segments, after which
we can find the shear stresses and angles of twist.
Torques acting in the segments. The torques in the end segments (AB and DE) are zero
since we are disregarding any friction in the bearings at the supports. Therefore, the end
segments have no stresses and no angles of twist.

(a) Segment CD

(b) Segment AB

Using equilibrium equation

Segment CD:
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The torque in segment BC is found in a similar manner, using the free-body

diagram of Fig. 3.4.4b:

Shear stresses. The maximum shear stresses in segments are

Angles of twist. The angle of twist between gears B and D is the algebraic
sum of the angles of twist for the intervening segments of the bar.

When calculating the individual angles of twist, we need the moment of inertia
of the cross section:

Now we can determine the angles of twist, as follows:

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3) A tapered bar of solid circular cross section is twisted by torques applied at the
ends (Fig.5). The diameter of the bar varies linearly from at the left hand end to at
the right-hand end, with assumed to be greater than
a) Determine the maximum shear stress in the bar.
b) Derive a formula for the angle of twist of the bar.

Fig.5
Solution:
(a) Shear stresses. Since the maximum shear stress at any cross section in a solid bar is
given by the modified torsion formula (Eq. 3-12), we know immediately that the
maximum shear stress occurs at the cross section having the smallest diameter, that is,
at end A(see Fig.5):

(b) Angle of twist. Because the torque is constant and the polar moment of inertia varies
continuously with the distance from end (Case 2), we will use Eq. (3.21) to
determine the angle of twist. We begin by setting up an expression for the diameter
at distance from end A:

in which is the length of the bar. We can now write an expression for the
polar moment of inertia:

Substituting this expression into Eq. (3-21), we get a formula for the angle
of twist:

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To evaluate the integral in this equation, we note that it is of the form

In which

This integral is evaluated in our case by substituting for the limits and and
substituting for and the expressions in Eqs. (e) and (f). Thus, the integral in Eq.
(3.26) equals

Replacing the integral in Eq. (3.26) with this expression, we obtain

Which is the desired equation for the angle of twist of the tapered bar.
A convenient form in which to write the preceding equation is

in which

The quantity is the ratio of end diameters and is the polar moment of inertia at
end .

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In the special case of a prismatic bar, we have and Eq. (3.28) gives
, as expected. For values of greater than 1, the angle of rotation decreases because the
larger diameter at end produces an increase in the torsional stiffness (as compared to a
prismatic bar).

1) A motor drives a shaft at and delivers of power (see figure).

(a) If the shaft has a diameter of , what is the maximum shear stress in the
shaft?
(b) If the maximum allowable shear stress is , what is the minimum permissible
diameter of the shaft?

Solution: Motor-driven shaft

Torque

a) Maximum shear stress

b) Minimum diameter

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2) What is the maximum power that can be delivered by a hollow propeller shaft (outside
diameter , inside diameter , and shear modulus of elasticity
turning at if the allowable shear stress is and the allowable rate of
twist is ?

Solution: Hollow propeller shaft

 Based upon allowable shear stress

 Based upon allowable rate of twist

Shears stress governs

Maximum power

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Strength of Material Lecture Note, chapter four