Strain energy is potential energy stored in a solid when it is deformed and released when it returns to its original shape. The energy is equal to the amount applied to the object, except when it exceeds the plastic strain point, causing permanent change. A simple example is a spring.
Strain energy is a form of potential energy produced by the deformation of a solid. When a solid object is deformed, the energy used to deform the object is stored. This energy is released when the deformed object returns to its original shape. This stored energy is called strain energy to describe the effect that energy has on the solid. This energy is part of a larger class of energy called potential energy; this group consists of stored energy waiting to be used.
When an object is strained, it is forced to do something it shouldn’t be doing. With strain energy, deformation is caused by forcing the object to maintain a different shape or position than it wishes to have. This can be as simple as bending a tree branch or as complex as the deformation that occurs in a fighter jet’s landing gear.
The energy of strain within an object is usually equal to the amount of energy applied to the object that received the strain. This basically means that a solid object will absorb and store energies applied to it. When energy is released, it is usually equal to the amount retained. As a result, energy can be applied to an object, then held until needed, and finally released the total amount of energy into the system without loss.
The only time a leak will occur is when the strain energy approaches or exceeds the plastic strain point of the solid. At this point, the solid will undergo a permanent change into another shape. The energy stored in the object is used to catalyze change. This deformation will slowly eliminate the deformation energy until it is all transformed into heat. If the object is released before the deformation is complete, less energy will be released normally.
The best simple example of strain energy is a simple spring. When a person pushes down on the spring, he is exerting force on the solid spring. This energy goes from the person and into the object. As long as the spring is held down, all that energy simply stays inside the object. When the spring is released, the energy transforms from potential strain energy to kinetic energy. If the spring were held down so long that it changed its shape, then some or all of the energy would be lost due to deformation.
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