= Elastic strain
{title2=$e^{\rm e}=e-e^{\rm p}-e^{\rm th}$}
Elastic strain is the reversible part of <strain> that determines stress through the elastic <constitutive equation>. In a small-strain model with plastic and thermal effects, subtract the <plastic strain> and <thermal strain> from total strain to obtain it. A stress-free heated body can therefore have nonzero total strain but zero elastic strain; after plastic loading, unloading can likewise remove elastic strain while leaving permanent deformation.
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