Pipe ___________ breakage may occur when a force exerted on a pipe exceeds the materials ___________ or _____________ strength.

• A. Shear; tensile; flexural
• B. Bending; compressive; shear
• C. Torsion; ductile; brittle
• D. Impact; yield; fatigue

Answer: (A)

Pipe shear breakage occurs when a force on the pipe causes stresses that slip planes within the material, i.e., shear stresses, to exceed what the material can resist. The best fit uses “shear” for the type of breakage and “tensile” or “flexural” strength as the limits that can be exceeded by the applied load. Tensile strength is the resistance to being pulled apart, while flexural (bending) strength is the resistance to bending. If the force on the pipe causes enough tension or bending to surpass those strengths, failure will occur. The other options mix failure modes and material properties in ways that don’t align with this description: bending breakage with compressive or shear strength, torsion with ductile or brittle strength, or impact with yield or fatigue strength.