ABSTRACT
The behaviour of solids is of particular interest to construction engineers for the obvious reason that these are used to produce load-bearing structures. This chapter defines the properties and rules used to quantify the behaviour of solids when loaded. It includes some examples of the behaviour of construction materials, all of the definitions and explanations are applicable to any materials being used by engineers of any discipline. Clearly, the deformation from loading on an element or test specimen will depend on both its size and the properties of the material from which it is made. Eventually, of course the material breaks, which may occur at the end of either the elastic or the plastic region, sometimes after an apparent reduction of stress. The form of the failure in uniaxial tension depends on whether a material is brittle or ductile.
