In mechanical engineering, a shaft is a rotating machine element, usually circular in cross section, which is used to transmit power from one part to another, or from a machine which produces power to a machine which absorbs power.
They are mainly classified into two types.
The material used for ordinary shafts is mild steel. When high strength is required, an alloy steel such as nickel, nickel-chromium or chromium-vanadium steel is used. Shafts are generally formed by hot rolling and finished to size by cold drawing or turning and grinding.[citation needed]
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The standard lengths of the shafts are 5 m, 6 m and 7 m.
Usually 1m to 5m is used.
The following stresses are induced in the shafts.