Handout: Strength of Materials Theory and Solved Problems
Date
2026
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Université Mohamed El Bachir El Ibrahimi bordj bou arreridj
Abstract
This handout is intended for students of the second year of engineering, in civil engineering,
and even for LMD (civil engineering, mechanical engineering) students. It is a fundamental
concept in science and engineering that studies the behavior of deformable materials. The
resistance of materials (RDM) is a fundamental module that goes into the training of future civil
engineering engineers; without the knowledge and application of these assumptions, it is
impossible to design safe structures.
As a future engineer, the student must predict how the structure reacts to lateral forces (wind),
inertial forces (earthquake), temperature changes (expansion)... etc. The primary purpose of this
handout is to clarify for students the simple phenomena, deformations, and the main parameters
that govern the mechanical behavior of solids in the reversible (elastic) perturbation zone., to
design and analyze the structures in the various stages of development, under the assumptions of
small perturbations (HPP) and the notion of elastic limit, which constitutes the acceptance end of
the material to have reversible deformations.
This Strength of Materials handout, taught by the author to second-year civil engineering
students, is the result of 10 years of experience in technical high schools and universities. The
course is simplified to achieve the following objectives:
Give students the principles of of strength of materials in simple and understandable forms.
• Understand the main demands and their manifestations in the structures.
• Introduce students to the pre-sizing of elements (conditions of resistance, rigidity, and the
phenomenon of stress concentration).
This handout is divided into eight chapters (07) which deal with the main solicitations and
their influences on the structures.
Finally, I hope this work will help students broaden their knowledge and serve as a support
for preparations for classes and tutorials.