ABSTRACT
Continuum mechanics deals with deformable bodies, as opposed to rigid bodies. A solid is a deformable body that possesses shear strength, a solid can support shear forces. Fluids, on the other hand, do not sustain shear forces. For the study of the mechanical behavior of solids and fluids these are assumed to be continuous bodies, which mean that the matter fills the entire region of space it occupies, despite the fact that matter is made of atoms, has voids, and is discrete. Stress is a measure of force intensity, either within or on the bounding surface of a body subjected to loads. It should be noted that in continuum mechanics a body is considered stress free if the only forces present are those interatomic forces required to hold the body together. Stresses generated during manufacture of the body to a specific configuration are also excluded when considering stresses in a body.
