Orthotropic Material

An orthotropic material has two or three mutually orthogonal twofold axes of rotational symmetry so that its mechanical properties are, in general, different along each axis. Orthotropic materials are thus anisotropic; their properties depend on the direction in which they are measured. An isotropic material, in contrast, has the same properties in every direction.

One common example of an orthotropic material with two axis of symmetry would be a polymer reinforced by parallel glass or graphite fibers. The strength and stiffness of such a composite material will usually be greater in a direction parallel to the fibers than in the transverse direction. Another example would be a biological membrane, in which the properties in the plane of the membrane will be different from those in the perpendicular direction. Such materials are sometimes called transverse isotropic.

A familiar example of an orthotropic material with three mutually perpendicular axis is wood, in which the properties (such as strength and stiffness) along its grain and in each of the two perpendicular directions are different. Hankinson's equation provides a means to quantify the difference in strength in different directions. Another example is a metal which has been rolled to form a sheet; the properties in the rolling direction and each of the two transverse directions will be different due to the anisotropic structure that develops during rolling.

It is important to keep in mind that a material which is anisotropic on one length scale may be isotropic on another (usually larger) length scale. For instance, most metals are polycrystalline with very small grains. Each of the individual grains may be anisotropic, but if the material as a whole comprises many randomly oriented grains, then its measured mechanical properties will be an average of the properties over all possible orientations of the individual grains.