Strain vs Pressure: What's the Difference?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the differences between strain and pressure, exploring their definitions, units, and relationships to stress. It includes conceptual clarifications and technical explanations related to materials science and mechanics.

Discussion Character

  • Conceptual clarification, Technical explanation, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants note that strain and pressure have different units, with strain being dimensionless and expressed as a ratio of change in length to original length, while pressure is defined as force per unit area.
  • One participant clarifies that stress and pressure share the same units, which are force divided by area.
  • Another participant introduces the concept of "pressure stress," suggesting a distinction between hydrostatic stress and general stress components.
  • It is mentioned that stress can have any direction, while pressure typically has a predefined direction, such as in the case of air or hydrostatic pressure.
  • A participant expresses gratitude for the clarifications provided in the discussion.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the distinction between strain and pressure, but there are competing views regarding the relationship between stress and pressure, particularly concerning the definitions and applications of "pressure stress."

Contextual Notes

Some assumptions about the definitions of stress and pressure may not be fully explored, and the discussion does not resolve the nuances of how these concepts interact in different contexts.

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What's the difference between strain & pressure? The formulas look the same...
 
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asdf1 said:
What's the difference between strain & pressure? The formulas look the same...
Strain and pressure do not have the same units.

Pressure and stress do have the same units (Force/(unit area).

Strain is a dimensionless quantity which is the (change in length)/(unit length) and has units like in/in, ft/ft, m/m, and is often expressed in terms of percentage.

Strain is (L-Lo)/Lo,

Pressure = F/A and units are N/m2, psi (lbf/in2), . . . .
 
Ahhh! I must be going bonkers... Sorry! I mean stress and pressure...

Stress= Force/Cross-sectional Area
Pressure=Force/Area
 
... are you looking for the difference between "pressure stress" (hydrostatic stress, or well, pressure) and stress (a single component of stress) in general? The former being the average of the 11, 22 and 33 components.
 
Stress in a point placed inside the differential area [tex]\Delta A[/tex] is defined as [tex]\vec{\rho}=\lim_{\Delta A \rightarrow 0} \frac{\Delta \vec{F}}{\Delta A}[/tex]. It can have any direction, while the direction of pressure is predefined mostly; air pressure, wind pressure, hydrostatic pressure, saturation pressure, etc. So, I would say that stress is a more general term.
 
Last edited:
That clears things up. Thank you very much!
 

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