What term describes stress in a structural member that tends to stretch or pull it apart?

The term that describes stress in a structural member that tends to stretch or pull it apart is tensile stress. This type of stress occurs when forces are applied in a way that attempts to elongate a material, effectively pulling it in opposite directions. In engineering and physics, tensile stress is a crucial concept as it impacts how materials behave under load. It is essential in determining the strength and integrity of materials used in construction, ensuring they can withstand forces that aim to stretch them.

The other types of stress serve different purposes in structural analysis. Compressive stress, for example, occurs when external forces push on a material, attempting to compress it. Shear stress involves forces that cause areas of a material to slide past each other, typically at an angle to the material's cross-section. Bending stress arises in materials when an external load causes them to bend, leading to tension on one side and compression on the other. Understanding these distinctions is important in the context of material selection and structural design.