STRUCTURES I

By: Alexander Akhubi

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 0

1.0 Properties of Materials

1.1 Introduction
When an external force acts on a body, the body will tend to undergo some type of deformation. However,
due to the cohesive forces that act between the molecules of the body, the body will tend to resist the
deformation. This resistance is known as strength of material. Different materials have different levels of
strength. Within a certain limit i.e. the elastic stage, the resistance offered by the material is proportional
to the deformation brought out on the material by the external force and the resistance equals the
external force. Beyond the elastic stage, however, the resistance offered by the material is less than the
applied load and therefore the deformation will continue disproportionately until failure takes place.

1.2 Stress and Strain

As an introduction to your first topic in Structures I, we shall begin with the following definitions that shall
be important to your understanding of the properties of the common materials that you shall encounter
in Structural Engineering.

(i) Plasticity: this is the deformation of a material undergoing non-reversible changes of shape in
response to applied forces. Once a material undergoes plastic deformation, it can no longer be
returned to its original state. Plastic deformation is the permanent distortion that occurs when a
material is subjected to tensile, compressive, bending, or torsion stresses that exceed its yield
strength and cause it to elongate, compress, buckle, bend or twist. You can imagine a chewing
gum that can be stretched to many times its original dimensions.
(ii) Elasticity: this is the property of some deformed bodies to recover, at least partially, their initial
form after the withdrawal of the force that caused the deformation. So, elastic deformation is
the temporary distortion that occurs when a material is subjected to tensile, compressive,
bending, or torsional stresses that do not exceed its yield strength. A good example is a rubber
band that is stretched but quickly resumes its original dimensions upon release of the stretching
force.
(iii) Stress (σ): this is the restoring force per unit area. As discussed before, when some external force
acts on a body, different particles of the body will be displaced. These displaced particles will try
to come back to their original positions when the external force is withdrawn. Note that the
reaction set up in the body is equal and opposite to the applied force, so long as no permanent
change is produced in the body. Therefore, the restoring force is equal to the applied force. The
formula for stress is given below:

𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 =
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎

𝑃
𝜎=
𝐴

𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝜎 = 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
𝑃 = 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒
𝐴 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 1

 It would thus follow that the units of stress will be the units of Force (𝑘𝑁, 𝑜𝑟 𝑘𝑖𝑙𝑜𝑁𝑒𝑤𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑠)
divided by the units of Area (𝑚2 ), thus stress, σ, would be denoted in 𝑘𝑁/𝑚2 .
(iv) Strain (ε): this is the ratio of change in length or volume to the original length or volume. Since
strain is a ratio, it has no units. The formula for strain is given below:

𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝐿𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑉𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 = =
𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝐿𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑉𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒

𝛿𝑙 𝛿𝑣
𝜀= =
𝐿 𝑉

𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝜀 = 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛
𝛿𝑙 = 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝐿𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ
𝐿 = 𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝐿𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ
𝛿𝑣 = 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒
𝑉 = 𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑉𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒

(v) Hooke’s Law: Hooke discovered a simple relationship between stress and strain. It states that
stress is proportional to strain within the elastic limits. Mathematically, it can be expressed as:

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑙𝑦 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑜 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝛼 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛

𝑆𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
∴ =𝐸
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛
𝜎
𝑜𝑟, =𝐸
𝜀

The constant of proportionality,𝐸, is called modulus of elasticity or coefficient of elasticity. Its

value depends on the nature of the material. Therefore, different materials have different values
of 𝐸.
(vi) Young’s Modulus (𝑬): this is the ratio of stress to longitudinal strain within the elastic limits. Let
us take a wire of length 𝐿 and let it change by 𝛿𝑙 under an applied load. The force 𝐹 acting on an
area of cross-section, 𝐴. Therefore:
𝛿𝑙
𝐿𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 =
𝐿

𝑃
𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 =
𝐴

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
∴ 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝐸𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦, 𝐸 =
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛

𝑃
= 𝐴
𝛿𝑙
𝐿

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 2

 𝑃𝐿
=
𝐴𝛿𝑙

NB: Young’s Modulus of Elasticity is the same as the general Modulus of Elasticity hence the same
symbol 𝐸 is used for both of them.
(vii) Bulk Modulus: this is the ratio of stress to volumetric strain. If a force is applied normally over the
surface of a body and only change in volume takes place, the strain is called volumetric strain. It
is measured by the change in volume per unit volume.
(viii) Modulus of Rigidity: this is the ratio of the tangential force per unit area to angular deformation
produced in the body.
(ix) Working Stress and Ultimate Stress: safe working stress is the maximum allowable stress that a
material or object will be subjected to when in service. It is always less than the elastic limit. The
ultimate stress is the maximum value of stress that a material can resist.
(x) Factor of Safety: since a material should be working at stresses under its breaking point, the factor
of safety is how much tolerance/allowance is given to a material. It is expressed as follows:

𝑈𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
𝐹𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑆𝑎𝑓𝑒𝑡𝑦 (𝐹𝑆) =
𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠

Within a system, there shall need to be a compromise between a high factor of safety and the
efficiency of the system. The Factor of Safety should be >1 in a safe system.

1.3 The Stress-Strain Curve

When stress is plotted against strain, for a tensile experiment on a ductile material, the typical curve that
is generated is as shown below:

Figure 1.1: Stress-Strain Curve

In Figure 1.1 above, some salient points are indicated by the lettered red points. These are worth
of mention to fully understand the curve.
Proportional Limit (A): From point O to A, the stress is directly proportional to the strain.
Beyond point A, the curve slightly deviates from the straight line. It thus follows that
Hooke’s Law is true for the curve up to point A.
Elastic Limit (B): If the load is increased between points A and B, the material under test
will regain its original shape if the load is removed. This means that the material possesses
elasticity up to point B, which is the elastic limit.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 3

 Upper Yield Point (C): If the material is stressed (loaded) beyond point B, the plastic stage
will be reached and the material will start yielding. The first yield point is known as the
upper yield point indicated in the diagram as point C.
Lower Yield Point (D): Further addition of small loads from point C will cause the curve to
drop to point D. This point is known as the lower yield point.
Ultimate Stress Point (E): After the end of yielding, if the load is increased beyond point
D, there will be an increase in stresses up to a maximum point E. Point E is thus referred
to as the point of ultimate or maximum stress.
Breaking/Fracture Stress Point (F): After the material has reached its maximum stress
point, it will start necking (elongating while reducing in cross-sectional area). Upon further
loading, the material will fracture. This point of breaking or fracturing is called the
breaking or fracture stress point and is indicated by the point F.

1.4 Worked Examples

1. A nylon string has a diameter of 2𝑚𝑚. It is pulled by a force of 100𝑁. Determine the stress
exerted on the string.

𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛: 𝑃 = 100𝑁, 𝑑 = 2𝑚𝑚, 𝑟 = 1𝑚𝑚

𝑃
𝜎=
𝐴

100𝑁
𝜎=
𝜋(1𝑚𝑚)2

𝝈 = 𝟑𝟏. 𝟖𝟑𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

2. A mild steel specimen 10𝑚𝑚 in diameter has an original length of 2𝑚. The specimen is pulled by
a force of 2000𝑁. If the final length of the specimen is 2.02𝑚, determine:
(i) Stress;
(ii) Strain;
(iii) Young’s Modulus of Elasticity.

𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛: 𝑑 = 10𝑚𝑚, 𝑟 = 5𝑚𝑚, 𝑃 = 2000𝑁, 𝐿 = 2𝑚, 𝛿𝑙 = (2.02𝑚 − 2𝑚) = 0.02𝑚

𝑃
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠, 𝜎 =
𝐴

2000𝑁
𝜎=
𝜋(5𝑚𝑚)2

𝝈 = 𝟐𝟓. 𝟒𝟔𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝛿𝑙
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛, 𝜀 =
𝐿

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 4

 0.02𝑚
𝜀=
2𝑚

𝜺 = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟏

𝜎
𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠, 𝐸 =
𝜀

25.46𝑁/𝑚𝑚2
𝐸=
0.01

𝑬 = 𝟐𝟓𝟒𝟔𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐
𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝑬 = 𝟐. 𝟓𝟒𝟔𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

3. A steel specimen has a diameter of 20𝑚𝑚 and an original length of 2𝑚. The specimen is pulled
by a force of 2𝑘𝑁. Determine the change in length of the specimen. Assume the Young’s Modulus
of steel,𝐸, is 5 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 .

𝑁𝑜𝑡𝑒: 𝑊𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑖𝑛

𝑁/𝑚2 . 𝑊𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒, 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒
𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑙𝑠𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑁𝑒𝑤𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠.

𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛: 𝐸 = 5 × 109 , 𝐿 = 2𝑚, 𝑃 = 2𝑘𝑁 = 2000𝑁, 𝑑 = 20𝑚𝑚 = 0.02𝑚, 𝑟 = 0.01𝑚

𝜎
𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠, 𝐸 =
𝜀

𝑃 2000𝑁
𝑊𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝜎 = = = 6.366 × 106 𝑁/𝑚2
𝐴 𝜋(0.01𝑚)2

6.366 × 106 𝑁/𝑚2

∴ 5x109 𝑁/𝑚2 =
𝜀

𝜀 = 0.001273

𝛿𝑙
𝑊𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝜀 =
𝐿

𝛿𝑙
∴ 0.001273 =
2𝑚

𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉, 𝜹𝒍 = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟐𝟓𝒎

4. A mild steel specimen was tested under tension to destruction from which the following data was
collected:
Gauge length = 195𝑚𝑚
Original diameter = 18𝑚𝑚
Final length = 205𝑚𝑚
Diameter at fracture = 16.5𝑚𝑚

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 5

 Extension at an early load of 48𝑘𝑁 = 0.05𝑚𝑚
Yield load = 56𝑘𝑁
Maximum load = 190𝑘𝑁

Determine:
(i) Modulus of Elasticity of the material;
(ii) Yield stress;
(iii) Ultimate stress;
(iv) Percentage elongation;
(v) Percentage reduction in the area;
(vi) Working stress with a Factor of Safety of 1.75 applied to the maximum stress.

𝜎
𝑊𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠, 𝐸 = (𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑙𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑠 − 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑𝑠)
𝜀

𝑃 48𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝜎= = = 0.1886𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2
𝐴 𝜋(9𝑚𝑚)2

𝛿𝑙 0.05𝑚𝑚
𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝜀 = = (𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑙𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑠) = 0.0002564
𝐿 195𝑚𝑚

𝝈 𝟎. 𝟏𝟖𝟖𝟔𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐
𝑺𝒐 𝑬 = = = 𝟕𝟑𝟓. 𝟓𝟒𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐
𝜺 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟎𝟐𝟓𝟔𝟒

𝑃𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑
𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑, ∴ 𝜎𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 =
𝐴

𝟓𝟔𝒌𝑵
𝝈𝒚𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 = = 𝟎. 𝟐𝟐𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐
𝝅(𝟗𝒎𝒎)𝟐

𝑃𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝑈𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑, ∴ 𝜎𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒 =
𝐴𝑓𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒

𝟏𝟗𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝝈𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆 = = 𝟎. 𝟖𝟖𝟖𝟔𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐
𝝅(𝟖. 𝟐𝟓𝒎𝒎)𝟐

100%
% 𝐸𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: × 205𝑚𝑚
195𝑚𝑚

= 105.13%

𝟏𝟎𝟓. 𝟏𝟑% − 𝟏𝟎𝟎% = 𝟓. 𝟏𝟑%

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 6

 100%
% 𝑅𝑒𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎: × 𝜋(8.25𝑚𝑚)2
𝜋(9𝑚𝑚)2

= 84.03%

𝟏𝟎𝟎% − 𝟖𝟒. 𝟎𝟑% = 𝟏𝟓. 𝟗𝟕%

𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
𝐹𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑆𝑎𝑓𝑒𝑡𝑦, 𝐹𝑜𝑆 =
𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠

0.8886𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2
1.75 =
𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠

∴ 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 = 𝟎. 𝟓𝟎𝟕𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

5. A mild steel specimen was tested to destruction under tension and the following results were
obtained:
Length of specimen =380𝑚𝑚
Bar diameter =30𝑚𝑚
Load at yield point =249𝑘𝑁
Extension under load of 60𝑘𝑁 =0.15𝑚𝑚
Maximum load =375𝑘𝑁
Length of the specimen after fracture =446𝑚𝑚
Diameter of cross section at fracture =22.4𝑚

Determine the following:

(i) Young’s Modulus of Elasticity;
(ii) Yield point stress;
(iii) Working stress, if the factor of safety applied to yield stress is 1.5;
(iv) Percentage reduction in area.

𝜎
𝑊𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠, 𝐸 = (𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑙𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑠 − 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑𝑠)
𝜀

𝑃 60𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝜎= = = 0.0849𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2
𝐴 𝜋(15𝑚𝑚)2

𝛿𝑙 0.15𝑚𝑚
𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝜀 = = (𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑙𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑠) = 0.0003947
𝐿 380𝑚𝑚

𝝈 𝟎. 𝟎𝟖𝟒𝟗𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐
𝑺𝒐 𝑬 = = = 𝟐𝟏𝟓. 𝟏𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐
𝜺 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟎𝟑𝟗𝟒𝟕

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 7

 𝑃𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑
𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑, ∴ 𝜎𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 =
𝐴

𝟐𝟒𝟗𝒌𝑵
𝝈𝒚𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 = = 𝟎. 𝟑𝟓𝟐𝟐𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐
𝝅(𝟏𝟓𝒎𝒎)𝟐

𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
𝐹𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑆𝑎𝑓𝑒𝑡𝑦, 𝐹𝑜𝑆 =
𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠

0.3522𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2
1.5 =
𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠

∴ 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 = 𝟎. 𝟐𝟑𝟒𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

100%
% 𝑅𝑒𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎: × 𝜋(11.2𝑚𝑚)2
𝜋(15𝑚𝑚)2

= 55.75%

𝟏𝟎𝟎% − 𝟓𝟓. 𝟕𝟓% = 𝟒𝟒. 𝟐𝟓%

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 8

2.0 Composite Materials

2.1 Introduction
Composite materials are materials that are made from at least two distinct materials that have different
physical and/or chemical properties. When these distinct materials are combined, the resultant composite
material possesses characteristics that are different from its constituent materials. Examples of composite
materials include:
(i) Reinforced concrete (concrete and steel).
(ii) Reinforced concrete and masonry.
(iii) Composite wood e.g. plywood.
(iv) Metal matrix composites.
(v) Ceramic matrix composites.
(vi) Glass fiber reinforced plastics.
(vii) Carbon fiber reinforced plastics.

Figure 2.1: Examples of Composite Materials

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 9

2.2 Advantages of composite materials
(i) Composite materials can be lighter in weight.
(ii) Composite materials can achieve optimal strength.
(iii) Composite materials can have improved fatigue life.
(iv) Composite materials can be corrosion resistant.
(v) Composite materials can have reduced assembly costs due to fewer detail parts.

2.3 Disadvantages of composite materials

(i) Composite materials can have high raw material costs.
(ii) Composite materials can have high fabrication costs.
(iii) Composite materials can be adversely affected by temperature and moisture.
(iv) Composite materials can have high recurring maintenance costs.
(v) Composite materials can have high susceptibility to impact damage.

2.4 Analysis of bars of composite sections (Integrated)

As described in section 2.1, a bar made up of two or more bars of equal lengths but of different materials
rigidly fixed with each other and behaving as one unit for extension or compression when subjected to an
axial tensile or compressive load, is called a composite bar. For a composite bar, the following two points
are important.

Compatibility: The extension or compression in each bar is equal, hence deformation per unit
length i.e. strain in each bar is equal.

Equilibrium: The total external load on the composite bar is equal to the sum of the loads
carried by each different material.

Figure 2.2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 10

Figure 2.2 (a) shows a composite bar, made up of two different materials, 1 and 2, and subjected to
tension as shown in Figure 2.2 (b). Let:
P = Total load on the composite bar.
L = Length of the composite bar which equals the length of the bars of different materials.
𝐴1 = Area of cross-section of bar 1.
𝐴2 = Area of cross-section of bar 2.
𝐸1 = Young’s Modulus of bar 1.
𝐸2 = Young’s Modulus of bar 2.
𝑃1 = Load carried by bar 1.
𝑃2 = Load carried by bar 2.
𝜎1 = Stress induced in bar 1.
𝜎2 = Stress induced in bar 2.

Now, the total load on the composite bar is equal to the sum of the load carried by the two bars.

∴ 𝑃 = 𝑃1 + 𝑃2 … (𝑖)

𝐿𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑏𝑎𝑟 1

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑎𝑟 1 =
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑎𝑟 1

𝑃1
𝜎1 = 𝑜𝑟 𝑃1 = 𝜎1 𝐴1 … (𝑖𝑖)
𝐴1
𝑃2
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑏𝑎𝑟 2, 𝜎2 = 𝑜𝑟 𝑃2 = 𝜎2 𝐴2 … (𝑖𝑖𝑖)
𝐴2

𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑃1 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑃2 𝑖𝑛 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖) 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡:

𝑃 = 𝜎1 𝐴1 + 𝜎2 𝐴2 … (𝑖𝑣) (𝑬𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒖𝒎 𝑬𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏)

Since the ends of the two bars are rigidly connected, each bar will change in length by the same amount.
Also, the length of each bar is the same hence the ratio of change in length to the original length (i.e.
strain) will be the same for each bar.

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑎𝑟 1 𝜎1
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑎𝑟 1 = ′
=
𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑎𝑟 1 𝐸1

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑎𝑟 2 𝜎2
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑎𝑟 2 = =
𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑎𝑟 2 𝐸2

𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑎𝑟 1 = 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑎𝑟 2

𝜎1 𝜎2
∴𝜀= = … (𝑣) (𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑬𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏)
𝐸1 𝐸2

The equations (iv) and (v) will enable us to determine 𝜎1 and 𝜎2 . By substituting values of 𝜎1 and 𝜎2 in
equations (ii) and (iii), the load carried by different materials may be computed.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 11

 𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 (𝑣) 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 (𝑖𝑣):

𝜎1 𝐸2
𝑃 = 𝜎1 𝐴1 + ( ) 𝐴2
𝐸1
𝐸2
∴ 𝑃 = 𝜎1 (𝐴1 + ( ) 𝐴2 )
𝐸1

𝑀𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝜎1 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛,

𝑃
𝜎1 =
𝐸2 𝐴2
𝐴1 + 𝐸
1

𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔,

𝑃𝐸1 𝑃𝐸2
𝜎1 = 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝜎2 = … (𝑣𝑖) (𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒃𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 (𝒊𝒗) 𝒂𝒏𝒅 (𝒗))
𝐴1 𝐸1 + 𝐴2 𝐸2 𝐴1 𝐸1 + 𝐴2 𝐸2

2.5 Modular Ratio

𝐸1
The ratio is called the modular ratio of the first material to the second material. The modular ratio can
𝐸2
also be denoted by the letter ‘m’.

2.6 Analysis of bars of varying sections (Series)

A bar of different lengths and different diameters (and hence of different cross-sectional areas) is as
shown in Figure 2.3 below:

Figure 2.3

Though each section is subjected to the same axial load P, yet the stresses, strains and change in lengths
will be different for each section. The total change in length will be obtained by adding the changes in
length of individual sections. Let:
𝑃 = Axial load acting on the bar.
𝐿1 = Length of section 1.
𝐴1 = Cross-sectional area of section 1.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 12

 𝐿2 = Length of section 2.
𝐴2 = Cross-sectional area of section 2.
𝐿3 = Length of section 3.
𝐴3 = Cross-sectional area of section 3.
𝐸 = Young’s Modulus of the bar (assuming all the sections are of the same material).

𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑛, 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 1,

𝐿𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑃
𝜎1 = =
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 1 𝐴1

𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑦, 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 2 𝑎𝑛𝑑 3 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑠,

𝑃 𝑃
𝜎2 = 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝜎3 =
𝐴2 𝐴3

𝜎1 𝑃
∴ 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 1 𝜀1 = = … (𝑣𝑖𝑖)
𝐸 𝐴1 𝐸

𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 2 𝑎𝑛𝑑 3 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

𝜎2 𝑃 𝜎3 𝑃
𝜀2 = = 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝜀1 = =
𝐸 𝐴2 𝐸 𝐸 𝐴3 𝐸

𝐶ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 1

𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 1 =
𝑂𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 1

𝛿𝑙1
𝜀1 =
𝐿1

𝑃𝐿1
∴ 𝐶ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑜𝑛 1, 𝛿𝑙1 = 𝜀1 𝐿1 = … (𝑣𝑖𝑖𝑖)
𝐴1 𝐸

𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 2 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 3 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑏𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑠:

𝑃𝐿2 𝑃𝐿3
𝛿𝑙2 = 𝜀2 𝐿2 = 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝛿𝑙3 = 𝜀3 𝐿3 =
𝐴2 𝐸 𝐴3 𝐸

∴ 𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑎𝑟 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

𝛿𝑙 = 𝛿𝑙1 + 𝛿𝑙2 + 𝛿𝑙3

𝑃𝐿1 𝑃𝐿2 𝑃𝐿3

𝛿𝑙 = + +
𝐴1 𝐸 𝐴2 𝐸 𝐴3 𝐸

𝑃 𝐿1 𝐿2 𝐿3
𝛿𝑙 = ( + + ) … (𝑖𝑥)
𝐸 𝐴1 𝐴2 𝐴3

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 13

Equation (ix) is used when Young’s Modulus, E, of different sections is the same. If the Young’s Modulus
of different sections is different, (for a composite material), then the total change in length of the bar will
be given by equation (x) below:

𝐿1 𝐿2 𝐿3
𝛿𝑙 = 𝑃 ( + + ) … (𝑥)
𝐸1 𝐴1 𝐸2 𝐴2 𝐸3 𝐴3

2.7 Worked Examples

1. A concrete column, 50𝑐𝑚 square is reinforced with four steel rods, each 2.5𝑐𝑚 in diameter,
embedded in the concrete near the corners of the square. If Young’s Modulus for steel is 200𝐺𝑁/𝑚2
and that of concrete is 14𝐺𝑁/𝑚2, estimate the compressive stresses in the steel and concrete when
the total thrust on the column is 1𝑀𝑁.

𝑆𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑡𝑠 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑦,

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

𝐴𝑆 = 4(𝜋 × (0.0125𝑚)2 ) = 0.001963𝑚2

𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

𝐴𝑐 = (0.5𝑚 × 0.5𝑚) − 𝐴𝑆

= 0.25𝑚2 − 0.001963𝑚2

= 0.248𝑚2

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 (𝑣𝑖),

𝑃𝐸𝑐
𝜎𝑐 =
𝐴𝑐 𝐸𝑐 + 𝐴𝑠 𝐸𝑠

(1 × 106 𝑁 × 14 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 )

=
(0.248𝑚2 × 14 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 ) + (0.001963𝑚2 × 200 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 )

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 14

 = 𝟑. 𝟔𝟐𝟑 × 𝟏𝟎𝟔 𝑵/𝒎𝟐 𝒐𝒓 𝟑. 𝟔𝟐𝟑𝑴𝑵/𝒎𝟐

𝑃𝐸𝑠
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝜎𝑠 =
𝐴𝑠 𝐸𝑠 + 𝐴𝑐 𝐸𝑐

(1 × 106 𝑁 × 200 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 )

=
(0.001963𝑚2 × 200 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 ) + (0.248𝑚2 × 14 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 )

= 𝟓. 𝟏𝟕𝟓 × 𝟏𝟎𝟕 𝑵/𝒎𝟐 𝒐𝒓 𝟓𝟏. 𝟕𝟓𝑴𝑵/𝒎𝟐

2. A short concrete column of 350𝑚𝑚 square section is reinforced with four 20𝑚𝑚 diameter bars. It
carries an axial load of 800𝑘𝑁. Calculate the stresses in steel and concrete. Take 𝐸𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 =
210𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 and 𝐸𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒 = 14𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2.

𝑆𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑡𝑠 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑦,

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

𝐴𝑆 = 4(𝜋 × (10𝑚𝑚)2 ) = 1256.64𝑚𝑚2

𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

𝐴𝑐 = (350𝑚𝑚 × 350𝑚𝑚) − 𝐴𝑆

= 122500𝑚𝑚2 − 1256.64𝑚𝑚2

= 121243.36𝑚𝑚2

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 (𝑣𝑖),

𝑃𝐸𝑐
𝜎𝑐 =
𝐴𝑐 𝐸𝑐 + 𝐴𝑠 𝐸𝑠

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 15

 (800𝑘𝑁 × 14𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 )
=
(121243.36𝑚𝑚2 × 14𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 ) + (1256.64𝑚𝑚2 × 210𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 )

= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟓𝟕𝟏𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝑃𝐸𝑠
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝜎𝑠 =
𝐴𝑠 𝐸𝑠 + 𝐴𝑐 𝐸𝑐

(800𝑘𝑁 × 210𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 )
=
(1256.64𝑚𝑚2 × 210𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 ) + (121243.36𝑚𝑚2 × 14𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 )

= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟖𝟓𝟕𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

3. A uniform beam weighing 500𝑁 is held in a horizontal position by three vertical wires, one attached
to each end of the beam, and one at the mid-length. The outer wires are brass of diameter 0.125𝑐𝑚,
and the central wire is of steel of diameter 0.0625𝑐𝑚. If the beam is rigid and the wires are of the
same length and unstressed before the beam is attached, estimate the stresses in the wires. Young’s
Modulus for brass is 85𝐺𝑁/𝑚2 and for steel is 200𝐺𝑁/𝑚2 .

𝑂𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑠 𝑡𝑜𝑔𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟, 𝑤𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑦 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚 𝑎𝑠 𝑎
𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑓 𝑎 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟.

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝐴𝑆 𝑖𝑠:

𝐴𝑠 = 𝜋(3.125 × 10−4 𝑚)2

= 3.06 × 10−7 𝑚2

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑖𝑠:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 16

 𝐴𝑏 = 2(𝜋 × (6.25 × 10−4 )2 )

2.454 × 10−6 𝑚2

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 (𝑣𝑖),

𝑃𝐸𝑠
𝜎𝑠 =
𝐴𝑠 𝐸𝑠 + 𝐴𝑏 𝐸𝑏

(500𝑁 × 200 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 )

=
(3.06 × 10−7 𝑚2 × 200 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 ) + (2.545 × 10−6 × 85 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 )

= 𝟑. 𝟔𝟎𝟑 × 𝟏𝟎𝟖 𝑵/𝒎𝟐

𝑃𝐸𝑏
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝜎𝑏 =
𝐴𝑏 𝐸𝑏 + 𝐴𝑠 𝐸𝑠

(500𝑁 × 85 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 )

=
(2.545 × 10−6 × 85 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 ) + (3.06 × 10−7 𝑚2 × 200 × 109 𝑁/𝑚2 )

= 𝟏. 𝟓𝟑𝟏 × 𝟏𝟎𝟖 𝑵/𝒎𝟐

4. A concrete column of diameter 400𝑚𝑚 circular section is reinforced with six 20𝑚𝑚 diameter bars.
The column carries an axial load of 1000𝑘𝑁. Calculate the stresses in steel and concrete. Take 𝐸𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 =
210𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 and 𝐸𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒 = 14𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2.

𝑆𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑡𝑠 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑦,

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

𝐴𝑆 = 6(𝜋 × (10𝑚𝑚)2 ) = 1884.96𝑚𝑚2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 17

 𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:
𝐴𝑐 = (𝜋 × (200𝑚𝑚)2 ) − 𝐴𝑆

= 125663.71𝑚𝑚2 − 1884.96𝑚𝑚2

= 123778.75𝑚𝑚2

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 (𝑣𝑖),

𝑃𝐸𝑐
𝜎𝑐 =
𝐴𝑐 𝐸𝑐 + 𝐴𝑠 𝐸𝑠

(1000𝑘𝑁 × 14𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 )
=
(123778.75𝑚𝑚2 × 14𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 ) + (1884.96𝑚𝑚2 × 210𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 )

= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟔𝟓𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝑃𝐸𝑠
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝜎𝑠 =
𝐴𝑠 𝐸𝑠 + 𝐴𝑐 𝐸𝑐

(1000𝑘𝑁 × 210𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 )
=
(1884.96𝑚𝑚2 × 210𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 ) + (123778.75𝑚𝑚2 × 14𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 )

= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟗𝟔𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

5. An axial pull of 35000𝑁 is acting on a bar consisting of three sections as shown in the figure below. If
Young’s Modulus is 2.1 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2, determine the stresses in each section and the total extension
of the bar.

𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛: 𝑃 = 35000𝑁, 𝐿1 = 200𝑚𝑚, 𝐿2 = 250𝑚𝑚, 𝐿3 = 220𝑚𝑚

𝐷1 = 20𝑚𝑚, 𝐷2 = 30𝑚𝑚, 𝐷3 = 50𝑚𝑚

𝑊𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠:

𝐴1 = 𝜋 × (10𝑚𝑚)2 = 314.16𝑚𝑚2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 18

 𝐴2 = 𝜋 × (15𝑚𝑚)2 = 706.86𝑚𝑚2
𝐴3 = 𝜋 × (25𝑚𝑚)2 = 1963.5𝑚𝑚2

𝑃
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 1, 𝜎1 =
𝐴1

35000𝑁
=
314.16𝑚𝑚2

= 𝟏𝟏𝟏. 𝟒𝟏𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝑃
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 2, 𝜎2 =
𝐴2

35000𝑁
=
706.86𝑚𝑚2

= 𝟒𝟗. 𝟓𝟏𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝑃
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 3, 𝜎3 =
𝐴3

35000𝑁
=
1963.5𝑚𝑚2

= 𝟏𝟕. 𝟖𝟑𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑎𝑟, 𝛿𝑙 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑥):

𝑃 𝐿1 𝐿2 𝐿3
𝛿𝑙 = ( + + )
𝐸 𝐴1 𝐴2 𝐴3

35000𝑁 200𝑚𝑚 250𝑚𝑚 220𝑚𝑚

= 5 2
( 2
+ 2
+ )
2.1 × 10 𝑁/𝑚𝑚 314.16𝑚𝑚 706.86𝑚𝑚 1963.5𝑚𝑚2

= 𝟎. 𝟏𝟖𝟒𝒎𝒎

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 19

3.0 Temperature Stresses and Strains

3.1 Introduction
Temperature stresses are the stresses that are induced in a body due to changes in temperature.
Temperature stresses are set up in a body when the temperature of the body is raised or lowered and
the body is not allowed to expand or contract freely. But, if the body is allowed to expand or contract
freely, no stresses will be set up in the body. Consider a body which is heated to a certain temperature,
Let:

𝐿 = Original length of the body

𝑇 = Rise or fall in temperature
𝐸 = Young’s Modulus of Elasticity
𝛼 = Coefficient of linear thermal expansion
𝛿𝑙 = Extension of the rod due to temperature rise

If the rod is free to expand, then extension of the rod will be given by the formula below:

𝛿𝑙 = 𝛼𝑇𝐿

Figure 3.1

This change in length is shown in Figure 3.1 (a) in which AB represents the original length and BB’
represents the increase in length due to a rise in temperature. Now, suppose an external compressive
load P, is applied at B’ so that the rod is decreased in its length from 𝐿 + 𝛼𝑇𝐿 to 𝐿 as shown in Figure 3.1
(b) and (c), then:

𝐷𝑒𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝐿𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ
𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 =
𝑂𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝐿𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ

𝛼𝑇𝐿
=
𝐿 + 𝛼𝑇𝐿

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 20

 𝛼𝑇𝐿
≈ , 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝛼𝑇𝐿 𝑖𝑠 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑖𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑜𝑛 𝑡𝑜 𝐿
𝐿

∴ 𝜀 = 𝛼𝑇 … (𝑖)

𝜎
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝐸 =
𝜀

𝑆𝑜 𝜎 = 𝜀 × 𝐸

∴ 𝜎 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸 … (𝑖𝑖)

𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑜𝑑, 𝑃 = 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 × 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎

𝑃 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸 × 𝐴

𝑃 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸𝐴 … (𝑖𝑖𝑖)
If the ends of the body are fixed to rigid supports, so that its expansion is prevented, then compressive
stress and strain will be set up in the body. These stresses and strains are known as temperature stresses
and temperature strains.

𝐸𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛) 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑

∴ 𝑇𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛, 𝜀𝑇 =
𝑂𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ

𝛿𝑙
=
𝐿

𝛼𝑇𝐿
=
𝐿

𝜀𝑇 = 𝛼𝑇 … (𝑖𝑣)

𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑇𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠, 𝜎𝑇 = 𝑇𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 × 𝐸

= 𝜀𝑇 × 𝐸

𝜎𝑇 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸 … (𝑣)

3.2 Temperature Stress and Strain when the supports yield

If the supports yield by an amount equal to δ, then the actual expansion will be given by:

𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 − 𝛿

= 𝛼𝑇𝐿 − 𝛿

𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝛼𝑇𝐿 − 𝛿

∴ 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 = =
𝑂𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝐿

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 21

 𝐴𝑛𝑑, 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 = 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 × 𝐸

𝛼𝑇𝐿 − 𝛿
=( )𝐸
𝐿

3.3 Application of Temperature Stress and Strain

Temperature stresses and strains are applied in many engineering applications, examples of which are
listed below:
1. In concrete, temperature stresses and strains should be taken into account. Expansion joints
should be designed to prevent thermal stresses and strains which lead to cracking.
2. In linear installations such as railways, bridges and power lines.
3. In materials that undergo a large change in temperature e.g. constructions in Polar Regions.

3.4 Worked Examples

1. A hollow circular copper section of an external diameter 225𝑚𝑚 and thickness 4𝑚𝑚 is to be used as
a strut. It is initially subjected to a pre-compressive force of 175𝑘𝑁 axially. Determine the stress and
hence the thrust against the supports at the ends if it undergoes a change in temperature from 20°𝐶
to 125°𝐶. Take the coefficient of thermal expansion, α, for the material as 11 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟 °𝐶 and 𝐸 =
105𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 .

𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛: α = 11 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶, 𝑇 = 125°𝐶 − 20°𝐶 = 105°𝐶, 𝐸 = 105𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2

𝜎𝑇 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸

= 11 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 × 105°𝐶 × 105𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2

= 0.1213𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2

𝑃
𝑅𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙, 𝜎 =
𝐴

𝑃
𝑠𝑜, 0.1213𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 =
(𝜋 × (112.5𝑚𝑚)2 ) − (𝜋 × (108.5𝑚𝑚)2 )

𝑃
0.1213𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 =
2777.17𝑚𝑚2

𝑃 = 336.87𝑘𝑁

𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑝𝑟𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 175𝑘𝑁,

𝑆𝑜, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑡 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑠 = 336.87𝑘𝑁 − 175𝑘𝑁

= 𝟏𝟔𝟏. 𝟖𝟕𝒌𝑵

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 22

2. A rod is 2𝑚 long at a temperature of 10°𝐶. Find the expansion of the rod when the temperature is
raised to 80°𝐶. If this expansion is prevented, find the stress induced in the material of the rod. Take
𝐸 = 105𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 and 𝛼 = 1.2 × 10−5 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶.

𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛: 𝐿 = 2𝑚 = 2000𝑚𝑚, 𝑇 = 80°𝐶 − 10°𝐶 = 70°𝐶, 𝐸 = 105𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 , 𝛼 = 1.2 × 10−5 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶

𝛿𝑙 = 𝛼𝑇𝐿

= 1.2 × 10−5 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 × 70°𝐶 × 2000𝑚𝑚

= 𝟏. 𝟔𝟖𝒎𝒎

𝜎𝑇 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸

= 1.2 × 10−5 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 × 70°𝐶 × 105𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2

= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟖𝟖𝟐𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

3. A steel rod of 3𝑐𝑚 diameter and 5𝑚 length is connected to two grips and the rod is maintained at a
temperature of 95°𝐶. Determine the stress and pull exerted when the temperature falls to 30°𝐶 if:
(i) The ends do not yield;
(ii) The ends yield by 0.12𝑐𝑚
Take 𝐸 = 200𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 and 𝛼 = 12 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶

𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛: 𝐿 = 5𝑚 = 5000𝑚𝑚, 𝑇 = 95°𝐶 − 30°𝐶 = 65°𝐶, 𝐸 = 200𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 , 𝛼 = 12 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶

𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑑𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑, 𝜎𝑇 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸

= 12 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 × 65°𝐶 × 200𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2

= 𝟎. 𝟏𝟓𝟔𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝑃𝑢𝑙𝑙 (𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒) 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑜𝑑 = 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 × 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎

= 0.156𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × (𝜋 × (15𝑚𝑚)2 )

= 𝟏𝟏𝟎. 𝟐𝟕𝒌𝑵

𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 𝑏𝑦 0.12𝑐𝑚, 𝛿 = 0.12𝑐𝑚 = 1.2𝑚𝑚

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:

𝛼𝑇𝐿 − 𝛿
𝜎𝑇 = ( )𝐸
𝐿

(12 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 × 65°𝐶 × 5000𝑚𝑚) − 1.2𝑚𝑚

=( ) 200𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2
5000𝑚𝑚

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 23

 = 𝟎. 𝟏𝟎𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝑃𝑢𝑙𝑙 (𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒) 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑜𝑑 = 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 × 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎

= 0.108𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 706.86𝑚𝑚2

= 𝟕𝟔. 𝟑𝟒𝒌𝑵

4. A rectangular section of length 200𝑚𝑚 and width 150𝑚𝑚 is held in position at both ends of its length
of 4𝑚. Determine the stress, strain and force exerted at the end supports if the temperature rises
from 25°𝐶 to 100°𝐶. Take 𝛼 = 10 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 and 𝐸 = 102𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 .

𝜎𝑇 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸

= 10 × 10−6 × (100°𝐶 − 25°𝐶) × 102𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2

= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟕𝟔𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝜀𝑇 = 𝛼𝑇

= 10 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 × 75°𝐶

= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟎𝟕𝟓

𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒, 𝑃 = 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 × 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎

= 0.0765𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × (200𝑚𝑚 × 150𝑚𝑚)

= 𝟐𝟐𝟗𝟓𝒌𝑵

5. A circular section of radius 105𝑚𝑚 is fixed in position at a temperature of 100°𝐶 at supports 4𝑚

apart. If the temperature falls by 22°𝐶, find:
(i) The force exerted on the supports;
(ii) The shrinkage length if the section was not fixed at the supports.
Take 𝐸 = 107𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 and 𝛼 = 25 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶.

𝑃 = 𝛼𝑇𝐸𝐴

= 25 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 × 22°𝐶 × 107𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × (𝜋 × (105𝑚𝑚)2 )

= 𝟐𝟎𝟑𝟖. 𝟑𝟑𝒌𝑵

𝛿𝑙 = 𝛼𝑇𝐿

= 25 × 10−6 𝑝𝑒𝑟°𝐶 × 22°𝐶 × 4000𝑚𝑚

= 𝟐. 𝟐𝒎𝒎

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 24

4.0 Types of Supports and Loadings

4.1 Types of Supports

Structural systems transfer their loading through a series of elements to the ground. This is made possible
by designing the joints of the elements at their intersections. Each connection is designed so that it can
transfer, or support, a specific type of load or loading condition.

To be able to analyze a structure, it is important to know the forces that can be resisted and transferred
at each support throughout the structure. Structural systems have either welded or bolted connections.
Precast reinforced concrete systems can be mechanically connected in many ways. Timber systems are
connected mainly by nails, glue or connectors.

The actual behavior of a support or connection can be quite complicated. Therefore, we idealize (imagine)
the supports/connections in order to be able to analyze the structure. The three types of common
connections that join a built structure to its foundation are:

(i) Roller Supports: see examples in Figure 4.1 below.

Figure 4.1: Practical examples of roller supports

(ii) Pinned Supports: see examples in figure 4.2 below.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 25

Figure 4.2: Practical examples of pinned supports

(iii) Fixed Supports: see examples in Figure 4.3 below.

Figure 4.3: Practical examples of fixed supports

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 26

It is necessary to idealize the behavior of a support in order to facilitate its analysis, as earlier stated.
Therefore, friction and mass are often ignored in the consideration of the behavior of a connection or
support.

4.1.1 Roller Supports

Roller supports, as the name suggests, are free to rotate and move along the surface upon which the roller
rests. The surface may be horizontal, vertical or sloped at any angle. Therefore, the resulting reaction
force is always a single force that is perpendicular to and away from the surface. Roller supports are
normally located at one end of long bridges. This enables the bridge structure to expand and contract with
temperature changes, thus avoiding stresses and strains which could fracture the structure.

Practical forms of roller supports are rubber bearings, rockers or a set of gears. A roller support cannot
resist a horizontal force thus practical structures will have other types of supports in addition to roller
supports, to prevent a runaway situation.

We shall be illustrating roller supports and the resultant reactions as shown in Figure 4.4 below.

Figure 4.4: Reaction on a roller support

4.1.2 Pinned Supports

Pinned supports resist both vertical and horizontal forces but not a moment (a turning force). A pinned
support allows a structure to rotate but not move in any direction (horizontal or vertical). A majority of
connections are assumed or taken to be pinned connections even though they might resist a small amount
of moment in reality. It is also true that a pinned connection could allow rotation in only one direction,
providing resistance to rotation in any other direction.

The knee or a human being can be imagined as a connection which allows rotation in only one direction
and provides resistance to lateral movement.

A single pinned connection is usually not sufficient to make a structure stable. Another support must be
provided at some point to prevent rotation of the structure. The representation of a pinned support
includes both horizontal and vertical forces as shown in Figure 4.5

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 27

Figure 4.5: Reactions on a pinned support

4.1.3 Fixed Supports

Fixed supports resist vertical and horizontal forces as well as a moment (a turning force). Since they
restrain both rotation and translation (vertical/horizontal movement), they are also known as rigid
supports. This means that a structure is stable with only one rigid support. A flagpole set into a concrete
base can be a good example of this kind of support.

The representation of a fixed support always includes two forces (horizontal and vertical) and a moment
(a turning force) as shown in Figure 4.6

Figure 4.6: Reactions and moment on a fixed support

4.2 Loading Systems

The loading systems that we are going to analyze at this stage will comprise mainly of beams having a
single or a combination of multiple loads. We will begin by looking at how the loads may be set up on the
beams.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 28

4.2.1 Concentrated or Point Load
A concentrated load is one which is considered to act at a point. Let us denote our concentrated load as
‘P’ and show it action on a beam as shown in Figure 4.7 below:

Figure 4.7: Concentrated/Point load on a beam

4.2.2 Uniformly Distributed Load (udl)

A uniformly distributed load is one which is spread over a beam in such a manner that the rate or loading
‘w’ is uniform along the length (i.e. each unit length is loaded at the same rate) as shown in Figure 4.8.
The rate of loading is expresses as w 𝑁/𝑚.

Figure 4.8: Uniformly distributed load on a beam

For solving numerical problems, the total uniformly distributed load can be converted into a point load
acting at the center of the uniformly distributed load as shown in Figure 4.9.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 29

Figure 4.9: Conversion of a udl into a point load

4.2.3 Varying Load

A varying load is one which is spread over a beam in such a manner that the rate of loading varies from
point to point along the beam as shown in Figure 4.10, in which load is 0 at the left-most end and it
increases uniformly to the right-most end. Such a load can also be referred to as a triangular load.

Figure 4.10: A varying load on a beam

For solving numerical problems, the total load can be calculated as the area of the triangle and this load
2
is assumed to be acting at the center or gravity of the triangle, i.e. at a distance of 3 of the total length of
the beam from the left-most hand (point 0) as illustrated in Figures 4.11 and 4.12 below:

Figure 4.11 Figure 4.12

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 30

4.3 Types of Beams
The following are the most common types of beams.
(i) Simply supported beam.
(ii) Continuous beam.
(iii) Cantilever beam.

We are going to consider each one of them.

4.3.1 Simply Supported Beam

A simply supported beam is a beam that is supported or resting freely on the supports at both of its ends
as shown in Figure 4.13.

Figure 4.13: A simply supported beam

If the end portion of the bam is extended beyond the support, such as beam is known as an overhanging
beam as shown in Figure 4.14.

Figure 4.14: An overhanging beam

4.3.2 Continuous Beam

A continuous beam is a beam which is provided with more than two supports as shown in Figure 4.15.

Figure 4.15: A continuous beam

4.3.3 Cantilever Beam

A cantilever beam is one that is fixed at one end and free at the other end as shown in Figure 4.16 below.

Figure 4.16: A cantilever beam

4.4 Laws of Static Equilibrium

In order to analyze loading systems, we will need to know the following three laws of static equilibrium:

(i) The sum of all moments is equal to 0

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 31

 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑜𝑟;
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠

(ii) The sum of all horizontal forces is equal to 0

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝑜𝑟;
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡

(iii) The sum of vertical forces is equal to 0

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑜𝑟;
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

When a beam is subjected to a load or a system of loads, reactions to the loads form at the supports.
These reactions can be either shear or moment reactions. The above laws of static equilibrium help us to
determine the reactions at the supports.

4.4.1 Sign Conventions for Shear Force and Bending Moment

As a general rule, upward forces, forces pointing to the right and clockwise moments shall be taken as
positive while downward forces, forces pointing to the left and anticlockwise moments shall be taken as
negative. See Figure 4.17 and table below:

Positive (+) Negative (-)

Upward Forces Downward Forces
Clockwise Moments Anticlockwise Moments
Forces pointing to the right Forces pointing to the left

Figure 4.17: Sign conventions of forces and moments acting on a beam

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 32

4.5 Worked Examples
1. Analyze the beam shown below and determine its support reactions.

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,

𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠

20𝑘𝑁 × 2𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 4𝑚
40𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
4𝑚
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 10𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 10𝑘𝑁 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨 = 𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵
2. Analyze the beam shown below and determine its support reactions.

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
20𝑘𝑁 × 3𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 4𝑚

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 33

 60𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
4𝑚
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟏𝟓𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 15𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 15𝑘𝑁 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨 = 𝟓𝒌𝑵
3. Analyze the cantilever shown below and determine its support reactions.

𝑹𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓: 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡ℎ 𝑎 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑎𝑡
𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑖𝑥𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝒏𝒐 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑟 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒.
𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑝𝑢𝑟𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑖𝑥𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑛𝑑, 𝑀𝐴 , 𝑖𝑠
𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒, ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒.
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
𝑀𝐴 + (10𝑘𝑁 × 4𝑚) = 0𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑀𝐴 + 40𝑘𝑁𝑚 = 0𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑴𝑨 = −𝟒𝟎𝒌𝑵𝒎 𝒐𝒓 𝑴𝑨 = 𝟒𝟎𝒌𝑵𝒎 (𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒆)
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑹𝑨 = 𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵

4. Analyze the beam in the figure below and determine its support reactions.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 34

 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝟒. 𝟐. 𝟐 𝑜𝑛 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑙𝑦 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(30𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 3𝑚 × 1.5𝑚) + (10𝑘𝑁 × 5𝑚) = 𝑅𝐵 × 3𝑚
135𝑘𝑁𝑚 + 50𝑘𝑁𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 3𝑚
185𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
3𝑚
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟔𝟏. 𝟔𝟕𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = (30𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 3𝑚) + 10𝑘𝑁

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 90𝑘𝑁 + 10𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 61.67𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 61.67𝑘𝑁 = 100𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨 = 𝟑𝟖. 𝟑𝟑𝒌𝑵

5. Analyze the beam below and determine its support reactions.

𝑆𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎 𝑣𝑎𝑟𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑠𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑠 𝑎𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 35

 (𝑖) 𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚,

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,

𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠

10𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 6𝑚 × 3𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 6𝑚
180𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
6𝑚
𝑅𝐵 = 30𝑘𝑁
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 10𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 6𝑚
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 30𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 30𝑘𝑁 = 60𝑘𝑁
𝑅𝐴 = 30𝑘𝑁
(𝑖𝑖) 𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚,
1
𝐹𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑢𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎 𝑏ℎ
2
1
× 6𝑚 × 60𝑘𝑁 = 180𝑘𝑁
2
2
𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑖𝑠 180𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑖. 𝑒. 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
3
2
× 6𝑚 = 4𝑚
3
∴ 𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 36

 𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
180𝑘𝑁 × 4𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 6𝑚
720𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
6𝑚
𝑅𝐵 = 120𝑘𝑁
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 10𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 6𝑚
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 120𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 120𝑘𝑁 = 180𝑘𝑁
𝑅𝐴 = 60𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝑻𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑹𝑨 = 𝟑𝟎𝒌𝑵 + 𝟔𝟎𝒌𝑵 = 𝟗𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑹𝑩 = 𝟑𝟎𝒌𝑵 + 𝟏𝟐𝟎𝒌𝑵 = 𝟏𝟓𝟎𝒌𝑵

6. Analyze the beam below and determine its support reactions.

𝐻𝑒𝑟𝑒, 𝑤𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵, 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑠 20𝑘𝑁, 𝑠𝑜 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔
𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑀𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅𝐴

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
𝑀𝐴 + (30𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 4𝑚 × 2𝑚) + (30𝑘𝑁 × 6𝑚) + (40𝑘𝑁 × 10𝑚) = 20𝑘𝑁 × 8𝑚

𝑀𝐴 + 240𝑘𝑁𝑚 + 180𝑘𝑁𝑚 + 400𝑘𝑁𝑚 = 160𝑘𝑁𝑚

𝑴𝑨 = −𝟔𝟔𝟎𝒌𝑵𝒎 𝒐𝒓 𝑴𝑨 = 𝟔𝟔𝟎𝒌𝑵𝒎 (𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒆)
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 37

 𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝑅𝐴 + 20𝑘𝑁 = (30𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 4𝑚) + 30𝑘𝑁 + 40𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨 = 𝟏𝟕𝟎𝒌𝑵

7. Analyze the beam below and determine its support reactions.

𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒆: 𝑎 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑎 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑒𝑥𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒.
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(70𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 5𝑚 × 3.5𝑚) = (𝑅𝐶 × 6𝑚) + 65𝑘𝑁𝑚

1225𝑘𝑁𝑚 = (𝑅𝐶 × 6𝑚) + 65𝑘𝑁𝑚

1160𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐶 =
6𝑚
𝑹𝑪 = 𝟏𝟗𝟑. 𝟑𝟑𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒆: 65𝑘𝑁𝑚 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡, 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑎 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑠𝑜 𝑤𝑒 𝑑𝑜𝑛′𝑡 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑙𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑛 ∑𝐹𝑦

𝑅𝐵 + 𝑅𝐶 = (70𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 5𝑚)
𝑅𝐵 + 𝑅𝐶 = 350𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐶 = 193.33𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐵 + 193.33𝑘𝑁 = 350𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟏𝟓𝟔. 𝟔𝟕𝒌𝑵

8. Analyze the beam in the figure below and determine its support reactions.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 38

 𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒆: 𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠.
𝐼𝑛 𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑑𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐 𝑟𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑠.

𝐻𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 20𝑘𝑁 = 20𝑘𝑁 × cos 60° = 10𝑘𝑁 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡
𝑉𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 20𝑘𝑁 = 20𝑘𝑁 × 𝑠𝑖𝑛 60° = 17.32𝑘𝑁 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑𝑠

𝑇ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑎 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡

𝐴 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 (𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡) 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵 (𝑟𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡)𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡 𝑎 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒.

∴ 𝑹𝑨,𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒛𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍 = −𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵 𝒐𝒓; 𝑹𝑨,𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒛𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍 = 𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵 (𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒇𝒕)

𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝟒. 𝟒. 𝟏
𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑛𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑐𝑒𝑑𝑢𝑟𝑒:
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
17.32𝑘𝑁 × 3𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 5𝑚
51.96𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
5𝑚
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟏𝟎. 𝟑𝟗𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 39

 𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 17.32𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 10.39𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 10.39𝑘𝑁 = 17.32𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨,𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 = 𝟔. 𝟗𝟑𝒌𝑵

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 40

5.0 Shear Force and Bending Moment

5.1 Introduction
The algebraic sum of the vertical forces at any section (point) of a beam to the right or left of the section
is known as shear force. It is abbreviated as SF. Similarly, the algebraic sum of the moments of all the
forces acting to the right or left of the section is known as bending moments. It is abbreviated as BM.

5.2 Shear Force and Bending Moment Diagrams

A shear force diagram (SFD) is one which shows the variation of shear force along the length of the beam.
Similarly, a bending moment diagram (BMD) is one which shows the variation of bending moment along
the length of the beam.

5.3 Sign conventions for SFD and BMD

Recall section 4.4.1

5.3.1 Shear Force

Shear forces are the unaligned forces pushing one part of a body in one direction and another part of the
body in the opposite direction. Figure 5.1 shows a simply supported beam AB carrying a load of 10𝑘𝑁 at
its mid-point. The reactions at supports will be equal to 5𝑘𝑁, hence 𝑅𝐴 = 𝑅𝐵 = 5𝑘𝑁. Imagine the beam
to be divided into two portions by the section 𝑥 − 𝑥. The resultant of the load and reaction to the left of
𝑥 − 𝑥 is 5𝑘𝑁 vertically upwards. Note in this case, there is no load acting to the left of section 𝑥 − 𝑥. The
resultant of the load and reaction to the right of section 𝑥 − 𝑥 is 5𝑘𝑁 downwards. The resultant force
action on any one of the parts normal to the axis of the bam is called the shear force at eh section 𝑥 − 𝑥.
Hence, the shear force at section 𝑥 − 𝑥 is 5𝑘𝑁.

Figure 5.1: Illustration of Shear Force

The shear force at a section will be considered positive when the resultant of the forces to the left of the
section is upwards or the right of the section is downwards. Similarly, the shear force at a section will be
considered negative if the resultant of the forces to the left of the section is downwards, or to the right of
the section is upwards. For section 𝑥 − 𝑥, the resultant force to the left of the section is upwards, hence
the shear will be positive.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 41

5.3.2 Bending Moment
Bending moment is the reaction induced in a structural element when a moment is applied to it causing
it to bend. The bending moment at any section is considered positive if the bending moment at that
section is such that it tends to bend the beam to a curvature having concavity (sagging) at the top as
shown in Figure 5.2 (a). Similarly, the bending moment at a section is considered negative if the bending
moment of that section is such that it tends to bend the beam to a curvature having convexity (hogging)
at the top as shown in Figure 5.2 (b).

Figure 5.2: Illustration of Bending Moment

Consider the simply supported beam in Figure 5.3 carrying a load of 10𝑘𝑁 at its mid-point. Reactions 𝑅𝐴
and 𝑅𝐵 are equal and have magnitude of 5𝑘𝑁. Imagine the beam to be divided into two portions by
section 𝑥 − 𝑥 and let 𝑥 − 𝑥 be at a distance of 1𝑚 from A.

Figure 5.3

The moments of all the forces (i.e. load and reaction) to the left of 𝑥 − 𝑥 at the section 𝑥 − 𝑥 is
𝑅𝐴 × 1𝑚 = 5𝑘𝑁𝑚 (𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒). Also, the moments of all forces (i.e. load and reaction) to the right of
𝑥 − 𝑥 at section 𝑥 − 𝑥 is 𝑅𝐵 × 3𝑚 (𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒) − 10𝑘𝑁 × 1𝑚 = 15𝑘𝑁𝑚 − 10𝑘𝑁𝑚 =
5𝑘𝑁𝑚 (𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒). Hence, the tendency of the bending moment at 𝑥 − 𝑥 is to bend the beam so as
to produce concavity (sagging) at the top as shown in Figure 5.4 (a).

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 42

Figure 5.4

The bending moment at a section is the algebraic sum of the moments of forces and reactions acting on
one side of the section. Hence, BM at 𝑥 − 𝑥 is 5𝑘𝑁𝑚. The bending moment will be considered positive
when the moment of the forces and reaction on the left portion is clockwise, and on the right portion is
anticlockwise. In Figure 5.4 (a), the bending moment at section 𝑥 − 𝑥 is positive. Similarly, the BM will be
considered negative when the moment at the forces and reactions on the left portion is anticlockwise and
on the right portion is clockwise as shown in Figure 5.4 (b). In Figure 5.4 (b), the bending moment at
section 𝑥 − 𝑥 is negative.

5.4 Important Points for Drawing SFD and BMD

In 5.2, we mentioned that SFD is one which shows the variation of the shear force along the length of the
beam and BMD shows variation of the bending moment along the length of the beam. In SFD and BMD,
the shear forces or bending moments are represented by y-axis, whereas the beam is represented by the
x-axis. The following are the important points for drawing SFD and BMD:
(i) Consider the left or right portion of the section.
(ii) Add the forces (including reaction) normal to the beam on one of the portions. If the right portion
of the section is chosen, a force on the right portion acting downward is positive while a force
acting upwards is negative. If the left portion of the section is chosen, a force on the left portion
acting upwards is positive while a force acting downwards is negative.
(iii) The positive values of shear force are plotted above the baseline (length of the beam), and the
negative values below the baseline. Conversely, the positive values of bending moment are
plotted below the baseline while the negative values are plotted above the baseline.
(iv) The SFD will increase or decrease suddenly (kink) by a vertical straight line at a section where
there is a vertical point load.
(v) The shear force between any two vertical loads will be constant hence the SFD diagram between
two vertical loads will be horizontal.
(vi) The bending moment at the two supports of a simply supported beam and at the free end of a
cantilever will be 0.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 43

5.5 SFD and BMD Summary

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 44

Figure 5.5: Summary of SFD and BMD Diagrams for various loading cases

5.5.1 Points to note from SFD and BMD Summary

(i) If SFD is constant, BMD will be linearly varying.
(ii) If SFD is linearly varying, BMD will be parabolic.
(iii) If SFD is 0, BMD will be constant.
(iv) A positive SFD causes a positive BMD and a negative SFD causes a negative BMD.
(v) BMD at salient (important) points can be easily calculated by calculating the area under the SDF.
(vi) Points of contra flexure are points on the BMD where the BMD crosses the baseline. (i.e. where
the BMD is 0).
(vii) SFD at salient point can be calculated by taking area under the reaction diagram.

5.6 Worked Examples

1. Analyze the beam shown below and determine its support reactions, hence draw its Shear Force
and Bending Moment diagrams.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 45

 𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
20𝑘𝑁 × 2𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 4𝑚
40𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
4𝑚
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 10𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 10𝑘𝑁 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨 = 𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑔𝑜 𝑎ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑆𝐹𝐷 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑀𝐷

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 46

2. Analyze the beam shown below and determine its support reactions, hence draw its Shear Force
and Bending Moment diagrams.

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 47

 𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
20𝑘𝑁 × 3𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 4𝑚
60𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
4𝑚
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟏𝟓𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 15𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 15𝑘𝑁 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨 = 𝟓𝒌𝑵

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑔𝑜 𝑎ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑆𝐹𝐷 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑀𝐷

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 48

3. Analyze the cantilever shown below and determine its support reactions, hence draw its Shear
Force and Bending Moment diagrams.

𝑹𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓: 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡ℎ 𝑎 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑎𝑡
𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑖𝑥𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝒏𝒐 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑟 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒.
𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑝𝑢𝑟𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑖𝑥𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑛𝑑, 𝑀𝐴 , 𝑖𝑠
𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒, ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒.
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
𝑀𝐴 + (10𝑘𝑁 × 4𝑚) = 0𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑀𝐴 + 40𝑘𝑁𝑚 = 0𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑴𝑨 = −𝟒𝟎𝒌𝑵𝒎 𝒐𝒓 𝑴𝑨 = 𝟒𝟎𝒌𝑵𝒎 (𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒆)
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑹𝑨 = 𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑔𝑜 𝑎ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑆𝐹𝐷 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑀𝐷

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 49

4. Analyze the beam in the figure below and determine its support reactions, hence draw its Shear
Force and Bending Moment diagrams. Indicate all the important points.

𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝟒. 𝟐. 𝟐 𝑜𝑛 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑙𝑦 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 50

 𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(30𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 3𝑚 × 1.5𝑚) + (10𝑘𝑁 × 5𝑚) = 𝑅𝐵 × 3𝑚
135𝑘𝑁𝑚 + 50𝑘𝑁𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 3𝑚
185𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
3𝑚
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟔𝟏. 𝟔𝟕𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = (30𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 3𝑚) + 10𝑘𝑁
𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 90𝑘𝑁 + 10𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 61.67𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 61.67𝑘𝑁 = 100𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨 = 𝟑𝟖. 𝟑𝟑𝒌𝑵

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑔𝑜 𝑎ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑆𝐹𝐷 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑀𝐷

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 51

5. Analyze the beam below and determine its support reactions.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 52

𝐻𝑒𝑟𝑒, 𝑤𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵, 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑠 20𝑘𝑁, 𝑠𝑜 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔
𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑀𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅𝐴

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,

𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠

𝑀𝐴 + (30𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 4𝑚 × 2𝑚) + (30𝑘𝑁 × 6𝑚) + (40𝑘𝑁 × 10𝑚) = 20𝑘𝑁 × 8𝑚
𝑀𝐴 + 240𝑘𝑁𝑚 + 180𝑘𝑁𝑚 + 400𝑘𝑁𝑚 = 160𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑴𝑨 = −𝟔𝟔𝟎𝒌𝑵𝒎 𝒐𝒓 𝑴𝑨 = 𝟔𝟔𝟎𝒌𝑵𝒎 (𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒆)
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 20𝑘𝑁 = (30𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 4𝑚) + 30𝑘𝑁 + 40𝑘𝑁

𝑹𝑨 = 𝟏𝟕𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑔𝑜 𝑎ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑆𝐹𝐷 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑀𝐷

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 53

6. Analyze the beam below and determine its support reactions, hence draw its Shear Force and
Bending Moment diagrams and indicate all the important points.

𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒆: 𝑎 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑎 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑒𝑥𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒.
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(70𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 5𝑚 × 3.5𝑚) = (𝑅𝐶 × 6𝑚) + 65𝑘𝑁𝑚
1225𝑘𝑁𝑚 = (𝑅𝐶 × 6𝑚) + 65𝑘𝑁𝑚
1160𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐶 =
6𝑚
𝑹𝑪 = 𝟏𝟗𝟑. 𝟑𝟑𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒆: 65𝑘𝑁𝑚 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡, 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑎 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑠𝑜 𝑤𝑒 𝑑𝑜𝑛′𝑡 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑙𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑛 ∑𝐹𝑦

𝑅𝐵 + 𝑅𝐶 = (70𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 5𝑚)

𝑅𝐵 + 𝑅𝐶 = 350𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐶 = 193.33𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐵 + 193.33𝑘𝑁 = 350𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑩 = 𝟏𝟓𝟔. 𝟔𝟕𝒌𝑵

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑔𝑜 𝑎ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑆𝐹𝐷 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑀𝐷

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 54

7. Analyze the beam below and determine its support reactions, hence draw its Shear Force and
Bending Moment diagrams.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 55

 𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝑀 = 0
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴,
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(10𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 4𝑚 × 2𝑚) + (10𝑘𝑁 × 2𝑚) = 𝑅𝐵 × 4𝑚
100𝑘𝑁𝑚 = 𝑅𝐵 × 4𝑚
100𝑘𝑁𝑚
𝑅𝐵 =
4𝑚
𝑹𝑪 = 𝟐𝟓𝒌𝑵
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0

𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = (10𝑘𝑁/𝑚 × 4𝑚) + 10𝑘𝑁
𝑅𝐴 + 𝑅𝐵 = 50𝑘𝑁
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑅𝐵 = 25𝑘𝑁 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒,
𝑠𝑜, 𝑅𝐴 + 25𝑘𝑁 = 50𝑘𝑁
𝑹𝑨 = 𝟐𝟓𝒌𝑵

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑔𝑜 𝑎ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑆𝐹𝐷 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑀𝐷

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 56

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 57
6.0 Properties of Sections

6.1 Introduction
The strength of a structural component is dependent on the geometrical properties of its cross-section in
addition to its material and other properties. For example, a beam with a large cross-section will,
generally, be able to resist a bending moment more readily than a beam with a smaller cross-section.
Typical cross-sections of structural members are shown in Figure 6.1 below.

Figure 6.1: Typical cross-sections of structural components

The cross-section of Figure 6.1 (c) is used extensively in structural engineering. It is quite common to make
cross-sections of metal structural members in the form of the cross-sections in Figure 6.1 (c), (d), and (e)
because these cross-sections are structurally more efficient in bending than cross-sections in Figure 6.1
(a) and (b).

Wooden beams are usually rectangular cross-section because they have grain and will have lines of
weakness along their grain if constructed in the other shapes as shown in Figure 6.1 (c), (d) and (e).

6.2 Centre of Gravity

The centre of gravity (CoG) of a body is the point through which the whole weight of the body acts. A
body has only one centre of gravity for all positions of the body.

6.3 Centroid
The centroid is the point at which the total area of a plane figure (e.g. rectangle, square, triangle, circle
etc.) is assumed to be concentrated. The centroid is also represented as CoG or simply G. it is important
to note that the centroid and the centre of gravity are at the same point.

6.4 Centroid or centre of gravity of simple plane figures

(i) CoG of a uniform rod lies at its middle point.
(ii) CoG of a triangle lies at the point where the three medians of the triangle meet.
(iii) CoG of a rectangle or of a parallelogram is at the point where its diagonals meet each other. It is
also the point of intersection of the lines joining the middle points of the opposite sides.
(iv) CoG of a circle is at its centre.

6.5 Centroid/Centre of gravity of areas of plane figures by Method of Moments

Figure 6.2 shows a plane figure of total area A whose centre of gravity is to be determined. Let A be
composed of a number of small areas 𝑎1 , 𝑎2 , 𝑎3 , 𝑎4 … 𝑒𝑡𝑐

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 58

Figure 6.2

𝑠𝑜, 𝐴 = 𝑎1 + 𝑎2 + 𝑎3 + 𝑎4 + ⋯
𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑥1 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎1 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝑥2 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎2 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝑥3 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎3 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝑥4 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎4 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
… 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑜 𝑜𝑛
The moments of all small areas about the y-axis will be given by:

𝑎1 𝑥1 + 𝑎2 𝑥2 + 𝑎3 𝑥3 + 𝑎4 𝑥4 + ⋯ (𝑖)
Let CoG be the centre of gravity of the total area A whose distance from y-axis is 𝑥̅ .

𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 = 𝐴𝑥̅ … (𝑖𝑖)

The moments of all small areas about y-axis must be equal to the moment of total areas about the same
axis. Hence equating (i) and (ii) we get:

𝑎1 𝑥1 + 𝑎2 𝑥2 + 𝑎3 𝑥3 + 𝑎4 𝑥4 + ⋯ = 𝐴𝑥̅

𝑎1 𝑥1 + 𝑎2 𝑥2 + 𝑎3 𝑥3 + 𝑎4 𝑥4 + ⋯
∴ 𝑥̅ = … (𝑖𝑖𝑖)
𝐴

𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴 = 𝑎1 + 𝑎2 + 𝑎3 + 𝑎4 + ⋯

Similarly, taking moments about the x-axis and also the moment of total area about x-axis, we will get:

𝑎1 𝑦1 + 𝑎2 𝑦2 + 𝑎3 𝑦3 + 𝑎4 𝑦4 + ⋯
𝑦̅ = … (𝑖𝑣)
𝐴

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 59

 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑡𝑜 𝑥 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝑦1 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎1 𝑡𝑜 𝑥 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝑦2 , 𝑦3 , 𝑦4 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎2 , 𝑎3 , 𝑎4 𝑡𝑜 𝑥 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑦

6.6 Important Points

(i) The axis, about which moments of areas are taken, is known as the axis of reference e.g. y-axis or
x-axis.
(ii) The axis of reference, or plane figures is generally taken as the lowest line of the figure for
determining 𝑦̅, and the left-most line of the figure for calculating 𝑥̅ .
(iii) If the given section is symmetrical about the x-x- axis or the y-y axis, then the CoG of the section
will lie on the axis of symmetry.
(iv) The centre of gravity of composite bodies or section like T-section, I-section, L-section etc. are
obtained by splitting the respective figures into rectangular components then equations (iii) and
(iv) are applied.

6.7 Area Moment of Inertia

Consider a thin lamina (plate) of area A as shown in Figure 6.3 below:

Figure 6.3

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑥 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝐴 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠

𝑦 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝐴 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑥 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠

The moment of area about the y-axis will be equal to:

𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 × 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠

= 𝐴𝑥 … (𝑣)

Equation (v) is known as the first moment of area about y-axis. This first moment of area is used to
determine the centre of gravity of the area. If the moment of area given by equation (v) is again multiplied
by the perpendicular distance between CoG and y-axis (i.e. distance 𝑥), then the quantity (𝐴𝑥)𝑥 = 𝐴𝑥 2 is

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 60

known as moment of the moment of area or second moment of area or area moment of inertia about
the y-axis. This second moment of area is used in the study of mechanics of fluids and mechanics of solids.

Similarly, the first moment of area about the x-axis is 𝐴𝑦, and the second moment of area (area moment
of inertia) about x-axis is 𝐴𝑦 2 .

If instead of area, the mass (m), of the body is considered, then the second moment is known as second
moment of mass. This second moment is also known as mass moment of inertia. Hence, moment of
inertia when mass is taken into account Is given by 𝑚𝑥 2 or 𝑚𝑦 2 about the y-axis and x-axis respectively.

Hence, the product of the area/mass and the square of the distance of the CoG of the area/mass from
an axis is known as moment of inertia of the area/mass about that axis.

Moment of inertia is represented by 𝐼, hence moment of inertial about the x-axis is represented by 𝐼𝑥𝑥 ,
whereas the moment of inertial about the y-axis is represented by 𝐼𝑦𝑦 .

Consider a plane area which is split into small areas 𝑎1 , 𝑎2 , 𝑎3 … 𝑒𝑡𝑐. Let CoG of small areas from a given
axis by at a distance of 𝑟1 , 𝑟2 , 𝑟3 … 𝑒𝑡𝑐 as shown in Figure 6.4. Then, the moment of inertia of the plane
area about the given axis is given by:

𝐼 = 𝑎1 𝑟1 2 + 𝑎2 𝑟2 2 + 𝑎3 𝑟3 2 + ⋯ (𝑣𝑖)
𝑜𝑟 𝐼 = ∑𝑎𝑟 2 … (𝑣𝑖𝑖)

Figure 6.4

6.8 Theorem of Parallel Axes

The theorem of parallel axes states that if the moment of inertia of a plane area about an axis in the plane
of area through the CoG of the plane is represented by 𝐼𝐺 , then the moment of inertia of the given plane
area about a parallel axis AB in the plane of area at a distance h from CoG of the area is given by:

𝐼𝐴𝐵 = 𝐼𝐺 + 𝐴ℎ2 … (𝑣𝑖𝑖𝑖)

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 61

 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐼𝐴𝐵 = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝐴𝐵
𝐼𝐺 = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝐶𝑜𝐺
𝐴 = 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
ℎ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝐴𝐵

Figure 6.5

Thus, if the moment of inertia of an area with respect to an axis in the plane of area (and passing through
CoG of the area) is known, then the moment of inertia with respect to any parallel axis in the plane may
be determined by using the equation (viii) above.

6.9 Determination of Area Moment of Inertia

We shall determine the area moment of inertia of a rectangular section by the method of integration.

Figure 6.6

Figure 6.6 shows a rectangular section ABCD having width b and depth d. Let x-x be a horizontal axis
passing through the CoG of the rectangular section. We want to determine the moment of inertia of the
rectangular section about x-x axis. The moment of inertia of the given section about the x-x axis is

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 62

represented by 𝐼𝑥𝑥 . Consider a rectangular elementary strip of thickness 𝑑𝑦 at a distance 𝑦 from the x-x
axis as shown in Figure 6.6.

𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝 = 𝑏 ⋅ 𝑑𝑦
𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑥 − 𝑥 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 = 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝 × 𝑦 2
= (𝑏 ⋅ 𝑑𝑦) × 𝑦 2
= 𝑏𝑦 2 𝑑𝑦

Therefore, moment of inertia of the whole section will be found by integrating the above equation
𝑑 𝑑
between the limits − 2 to 2

𝑑
2

𝐼𝑥𝑥 = ∫ 𝑏𝑦 2 𝑑𝑦
𝑑
−
2

𝑑
2

= 𝑏 ∫ 𝑦 2 𝑑𝑦
𝑑
−
2

𝑑
𝑦3 2
= 𝑏[ ]
3 −𝑑
2

𝑏 𝑑 3 𝑑 3
= [( ) − (− ) ]
3 2 2

𝑏 𝑑3 𝑑3
= ⌈ + ⌉
3 8 8

𝑏𝑑3
𝐼𝑥𝑥 = … (𝑖𝑥)
12

Similarly, 𝐼𝑦𝑦 through the section’s CoG will be given by:

𝑑𝑏 3
𝐼𝑦𝑦 = … (𝑥)
12

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 63

Figure 6.7

Consider Figure 6.7,

𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝 𝑑𝐴 = 𝑑 × 𝑑𝑥

𝐼𝑦𝑦 = 𝑑𝐴 × 𝑥 2
= 𝑑 × 𝑑𝑥 × 𝑥 2

𝑏
2

𝐼𝑦𝑦 = ∫ 𝑑 × 𝑥 2 × 𝑑𝑥
𝑏
−
2

𝑏
𝑥3 2
= 𝑑⌈ ⌉
3 −𝑏
2

𝑑 𝑏 3 𝑏 3
⌈( ) − (− ) ⌉
3 2 2

𝑑 𝑏3 𝑏3
[ + ]
3 8 8

𝑑 𝑏3
×
3 4
STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 64
 𝑑𝑏 3
12

6.10 Radius of Gyration (r)

The radius of gyration of a body/lamina about an axis is a distance such that its square multiplied by the
area gives moment of inertia of the area about the given axis. For Figure 6.4, the moment of inertia about
the given axis is given by equation (vi) as:

𝐼 = 𝑎1 𝑟1 2 + 𝑎2 𝑟2 2 + 𝑎3 𝑟3 2 + ⋯

Let the whole mass/area of the body be concentrated at a distance 𝑟 from the axis of reference, then the
moment of inertia of the whole area about the given axis will equal to 𝐴𝑟 2 .

𝐼𝑓 𝐴𝑟 2 = 𝐼, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑟 𝑖𝑠 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑎𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑦𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 axis

𝐼
∴ 𝑟 = √ … (𝑥𝑖)
𝐴

𝐼 𝐼
Thus, 𝑟𝑦𝑦 = √ 𝑦𝑦
𝐴
and similarly, 𝑟𝑥𝑥 = √ 𝑥𝑥
𝐴

6.11 Section Modulus (z)

The section modulus of a given section is a geometric property used for designing beams and flexural
members. It can be defined as the ratio of moment of inertia to a distance from the centroidal axis to a
point of consideration. Mathematically, it can be represented as:

𝐼𝑥𝑥 𝐼𝑦𝑦
𝑧𝑥𝑥 = 𝑜𝑟 𝑧𝑦𝑦 = … (𝑥𝑖𝑖)
𝑦 𝑥

𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝑧𝑥𝑥 = 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑎 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑥 − 𝑥 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠

𝑧𝑦𝑦 = 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑎 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑦 − 𝑦 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑥 − 𝑥 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝐼𝑦𝑦 = 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑦 − 𝑦 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝑦 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑥 − 𝑥 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝑥 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑦 − 𝑦 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

6.12 Summary of Centroids and Moment of Inertia of Common Shapes

Section Area ̅
𝒙 ̅
𝒚 𝑰𝒙𝒙 𝑰𝒚𝒚
Rectangle 𝑏𝑑 𝑏 𝑑 𝑏𝑑3 𝑑𝑏 3
2 2 12 12
Circle 𝜋𝑟 2 𝑟 𝑟 𝜋𝑑4 𝜋𝑑4
64 64

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 65

 Triangle 𝑏ℎ 𝑏 ℎ 𝑏ℎ3
𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑒 −
2 2 3 3
𝑏ℎ3
𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑛𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠
36

Figure 6.8

6.13 Worked Examples

1. Find the centre of gravity of the T-section shown below.

Solution: The T-section is split into two rectangles ABCD and EFGH. The given T-section is symmetrical
about the y-y axis, hence the CoG of the section will lie on this axis. The lowest line of the figure is line GF.
Hence the moments of areas are taken about this line GF, which is the axis of reference in this case.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 66

 𝐿𝑒𝑡: 𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑇 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐺𝐹
𝑎1 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐵𝐶𝐷 = 12𝑐𝑚 × 3𝑐𝑚 = 36𝑐𝑚2
𝑦1 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎1 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐺𝐹 = 10𝑐𝑚 + 1.5𝑐𝑚 = 11.5𝑐𝑚
𝑎2 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐸𝐹𝐺𝐻 = 10𝑐𝑚 × 3𝑐𝑚 = 30𝑐𝑚2
𝑦2 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎2 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐺𝐹 = 5𝑐𝑚

𝑎1 𝑦1 + 𝑎2 𝑦2
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑣), 𝑦̅ =
𝐴
𝑎1 𝑦1 + 𝑎2 𝑦2
=
𝑎1 + 𝑎2

(36𝑐𝑚2 × 11.5𝑐𝑚) + (30𝑐𝑚2 × 5𝑐𝑚)

=
(36𝑐𝑚2 + 30𝑐𝑚2 )

̅ = 𝟖. 𝟓𝟓𝒄𝒎
𝒚

2. Find the centre of gravity of the I-section shown in the figure below.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 67

Solution: The I-section is split into 3 rectangles ABCD, EFGH and JKLM as shown below. The given I section
is symmetrical about the y-y axis hence the CoG of the section will lie on this axis. Let us take ML as our
axis of reference and take moment of areas about this line.

𝐿𝑒𝑡: 𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝐼 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑀𝐿

𝑎1 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐵𝐶𝐷 = 10𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 20𝑐𝑚2
𝑦1 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐵𝐶𝐷 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑀𝐿 = 2𝑐𝑚 + 15𝑐𝑚 + 1𝑐𝑚 = 18𝑐𝑚
𝑎2 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐸𝐹𝐺𝐻 = 15𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 30𝑐𝑚2
𝑦2 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝐸𝐹𝐺𝐻 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑀𝐿 = 2𝑐𝑚 + 7.5𝑐𝑚 = 9.5𝑐𝑚
𝑎3 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐽𝐾𝐿𝑀 = 20𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 40𝑐𝑚2
𝑦3 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝐽𝐾𝐿𝑀 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑀𝐿 = 1𝑐𝑚

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 68

 (20𝑐𝑚2 × 18𝑐𝑚) + (30𝑐𝑚2 × 9.5𝑐𝑚) + (40𝑐𝑚2 × 1𝑐𝑚)
𝐴𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑣), 𝑦̅ =
(20𝑐𝑚2 + 30𝑐𝑚2 + 40𝑐𝑚2 )

̅ = 𝟕. 𝟔𝟏𝒄𝒎
𝒚

3. Find the CoG of the L-section shown in the figure below.

Solution: The given L-section is not symmetrical about any axis. Therefore, there will be two axes of
reference. The lowest line, i.e. line GF will be taken as the axis of reference in calculating 𝑦̅ and the
leftmost line, i.e. line AG will be taken as the axis of reference for calculating 𝑥̅ . The given section is divided
into two rectangles ABCD and DEFG as shown in the figure below.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 69

 𝑇𝑜 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑦̅,
𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐺𝐹
𝑎1 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐵𝐶𝐷 = 10𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 20𝑐𝑚2
𝑦1 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎1 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐺𝐹 = 2𝑐𝑚 + 5𝑐𝑚 = 7𝑐𝑚
𝑎2 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐷𝐸𝐹𝐺 = 8𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 16𝑐𝑚2
𝑦2 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎2 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐺𝐹 = 1𝑐𝑚

(20𝑐𝑚2 × 7𝑐𝑚) + (16𝑐𝑚2 × 1𝑐𝑚)

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑣), 𝑦̅ =
(20𝑐𝑚2 + 16𝑐𝑚2 )

̅ = 𝟕. 𝟔𝟏𝒄𝒎
𝒚

𝑇𝑜 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑥̅ ,
𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑥̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐴𝐺
𝑎1 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐵𝐶𝐷 = 10𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 20𝑐𝑚2
𝑥1 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎1 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐴𝐺 = 1𝑐𝑚
𝑎2 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐷𝐸𝐹𝐺 = 8𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 16𝑐𝑚2
𝑥2 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎2 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐴𝐺 = 4𝑐𝑚

(20𝑐𝑚2 × 1𝑐𝑚) + (16𝑐𝑚2 × 4𝑐𝑚)

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑖𝑖), 𝑥̅ =
(20𝑐𝑚2 + 16𝑐𝑚2 )

̅ = 𝟐. 𝟑𝟑𝒄𝒎
𝒙

∴ 𝑪𝒐𝑮 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳 − 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝟒. 𝟑𝟑𝒄𝒎 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒕𝒐𝒎 𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝑮𝑭

𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝟐. 𝟑𝟑𝒄𝒎 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒇𝒕 𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝑨𝑮.

4. The figure below shows a T-section of dimensions 10𝑐𝑚 × 10𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚. Determine the moment of
inertia of the section about the horizontal and vertical axes passing through the CoG of the section.
Also find the respective radii of gyration and 𝑧𝑦𝑦𝐵 and 𝑧𝑥𝑥𝐹 .

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 70

Solution: First of all, find location of the CoG of the given T-section. The given section is symmetrical about
the y-y axis hence the CoG of the section will lie on the y-y axis. The given section is split up into two
rectangles ABCD and EFGH for finding CoG of the section.

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐺𝐹

𝑎1 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐵𝐶𝐷 = 10𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 20𝑐𝑚2
𝑦1 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎1 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐺𝐹 = 8𝑐𝑚 + 1𝑐𝑚 = 9𝑐𝑚
𝑎2 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐸𝐹𝐺𝐻 = 8𝑐𝑚 × 2𝑐𝑚 = 16𝑐𝑚2
𝑦2 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎2 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐺𝐹 = 4𝑐𝑚

(20𝑐𝑚2 × 9𝑐𝑚) + (16𝑐𝑚2 × 4𝑐𝑚)

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑣), 𝑦̅ =
(20𝑐𝑚2 + 16𝑐𝑚2 )

𝑦̅ = 6.78𝑐𝑚

𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝑔 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 6.78𝑐𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐺𝐹.

𝑁𝑜𝑤, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎, 𝐼, 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝐼𝐺1 = 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑎1 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝐶𝑜𝐺
𝐼𝐺2 = 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑎2 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝐶𝑜𝐺
ℎ1 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎1 = 𝑦1 − 𝑦̅ = 9𝑐𝑚 − 6.78𝑐𝑚 = 2.22𝑐𝑚
ℎ2 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎2 = 𝑦̅ − 𝑦2 = 6.78𝑐𝑚 − 4𝑐𝑚 = 2.78𝑐𝑚

𝑏𝑑3
𝑁𝑜𝑤 𝐼𝐺1 = (𝑠𝑒𝑒 𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖𝑥))
12
10𝑐𝑚 × (2𝑐𝑚)3
=
12
= 6.67𝑐𝑚4

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 71

 𝑏𝑑 3
𝐼𝐺2 =
12
2𝑐𝑚 × (8𝑐𝑚)3
=
12
= 85.33𝑐𝑚4

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑒𝑠, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 1 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙
𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:

𝐼𝐺1 + 𝑎1 ℎ1 2
= 6.68𝑐𝑚4 + (20𝑐𝑚2 × (2.22𝑐𝑚)2 )
= 105.25𝑐𝑚4

𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 2 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ
𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

𝐼𝐺2 + 𝑎2 ℎ2 2
= 85.33𝑐𝑚4 + (16𝑐𝑚2 × (2.78𝑐𝑚)2 )
= 208.98𝑐𝑚4

∴ 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ
𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛:

𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 105.25𝑐𝑚4 + 208.98𝑐𝑚4

= 𝟑𝟏𝟒. 𝟐𝟑𝒄𝒎𝟒

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓
𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒:

2𝑐𝑚 × (10𝑐𝑚)3 8𝑐𝑚 × (2𝑐𝑚)3

𝐼𝑦𝑦 = +
12 12
= 𝟏𝟕𝟐𝒄𝒎𝟒

𝐼𝑥𝑥
𝑟𝑥𝑥 = √
𝐴

314.23𝑐𝑚4
=√
36𝑐𝑚2

= 𝟐. 𝟗𝟓𝒄𝒎

𝐼𝑦𝑦
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝑟𝑦𝑦 = √
𝐴

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 72

 172𝑐𝑚4
=√
36𝑐𝑚2

= 𝟐. 𝟏𝟗𝒄𝒎

𝐼𝑦𝑦
𝑧𝑦𝑦𝐵 =
ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵

172𝑐𝑚4
=
5𝑐𝑚

= 𝟑𝟒. 𝟒𝒄𝒎𝟑

𝐼𝑥𝑥
𝑧𝑥𝑥𝐹 =
𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐹

314.23𝑐𝑚4
=
6.78𝑐𝑚

= 𝟒𝟔. 𝟑𝟓𝒄𝒎𝟑

5. For the figure shown below, determine 𝐼𝑥𝑥 , 𝐼𝑦𝑦 , 𝑟𝑥𝑥 , 𝑟𝑦𝑦 , 𝑧𝑥𝑥𝐴 , 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑧𝑦𝑦𝐵 .

Solution: Let us first find the CoG of the given I-section. It is symmetrical about the vertical axis, hence its
CoG will lie on this axis.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 73

 𝑁𝑜𝑤, 𝑎1 = 80𝑐𝑚 × 12𝑐𝑚 = 960𝑐𝑚2
𝑎2 = 128𝑐𝑚 × 12𝑐𝑚 = 1536𝑐𝑚2
𝑎3 = 120𝑐𝑚 × 10𝑐𝑚 = 1200𝑐𝑚2

𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐾𝐿 𝑎𝑠 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒,

𝑦1 = 144𝑐𝑚
𝑦2 = 74𝑐𝑚
𝑦3 = 5𝑐𝑚

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑜𝑏𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖𝑣):

𝑎1 𝑦1 + 𝑎2 𝑦2 + 𝑎3 𝑦3
𝑦̅ =
𝑎1 + 𝑎2 + 𝑎3

(960𝑐𝑚2 × 144𝑐𝑚) + (1536𝑐𝑚2 × 74𝑐𝑚) + (1200𝑐𝑚2 × 5𝑐𝑚)

=
960𝑐𝑚2 + 1536𝑐𝑚2 + 1200𝑐𝑚2

= 69.78𝑐𝑚

∴ 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑖𝑑 𝑖𝑠 69.78𝑐𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐾𝐿

𝐼𝑥𝑥1 = 𝐼𝐺1𝑥 + 𝑎1 (𝑦1 − 𝑦̅)2

80𝑐𝑚 × (12𝑐𝑚)3
= + 960𝑐𝑚2 (144𝑐𝑚 − 69.78𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 5299784.1𝑐𝑚4
𝐼𝑥𝑥2 = 𝐼𝐺2𝑥 + 𝑎2 (𝑦2 − 𝑦̅)2
12𝑐𝑚 × (128𝑐𝑚)3
= + 1536𝑐𝑚2 (74𝑐𝑚 − 69.78𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 2124505.7𝑐𝑚4

𝐼𝑥𝑥3 = 𝐼𝐺3𝑥 + 𝑎3 (𝑦3 − 𝑦̅)2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 74

 120𝑐𝑚 × (10𝑐𝑚)3
= + 1200𝑐𝑚2 (5𝑐𝑚 − 69.78𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 5045738.1𝑐𝑚4

∴ 𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 𝐼𝑥𝑥1 + 𝐼𝑥𝑥2 + 𝐼𝑥𝑥3

= 5299784.1𝑐𝑚4 + 2124505.7𝑐𝑚4 + 5045738.1𝑐𝑚4
= 𝟏𝟐𝟒𝟕𝟎𝟎𝟐𝟕. 𝟗𝒄𝒎𝟒

𝐼𝒚𝒚 = 𝐼𝒚𝒚𝟏 + 𝐼𝒚𝒚𝟐 + 𝐼𝒚𝒚𝟑

3
12𝑐𝑚 × (80𝑐𝑚) 128𝑐𝑚 × (12𝑐𝑚)3 10𝑐𝑚 × (120𝑐𝑚)3
= + +
12 12 12
𝟒
= 𝟏𝟗𝟕𝟎𝟒𝟑𝟐𝒄𝒎

𝐼𝑥𝑥
𝑟𝑥𝑥 = √
𝐴

12470027.9𝑐𝑚4
=√
3696𝑐𝑚4

= 𝟓𝟖. 𝟎𝟗𝒄𝒎

𝐼𝑦𝑦
𝑟𝑦𝑦 = √
𝐴

1970432𝑐𝑚4
=√
3696𝑐𝑚4

= 𝟐𝟑. 𝟎𝟗𝒄𝒎

𝐼𝑥𝑥
𝑧𝑥𝑥𝐴 =
𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐴 𝑡𝑜 𝐶𝑜𝐺

12470027.9𝑐𝑚4
𝑧𝑥𝑥𝐴 =
40𝑐𝑚

= 𝟑𝟏𝟏𝟕𝟓𝟎. 𝟕𝒄𝒎𝟑

𝐼𝑦𝑦
𝑧𝑦𝑦𝐵 =
ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐵 𝑡𝑜 𝐶𝑜𝐺

1970432𝑐𝑚4
𝑧𝑥𝑥𝐴 =
80.22𝑐𝑚

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 75

 = 𝟐𝟒𝟓𝟔𝟐. 𝟗𝒄𝒎𝟑

6. For the figure below, determine 𝐼𝑥𝑥 and 𝐼𝑦𝑦 .

Solution: First, we shall need to determine the CoG or centroid of the given figure.

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑎1 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝐴𝐻𝐸𝐹

= 15𝑐𝑚 × 10𝑐𝑚
= 150𝑐𝑚2

𝑎2 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝐵𝐻𝐷𝐶

= 10𝑐𝑚 × 5𝑐𝑚
= 50𝑐𝑚2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 76

 𝑎1 𝑥1 − 𝑎2 𝑥2
𝑥̅ =
𝑎1 − 𝑎2

(150𝑐𝑚2 × 7.5𝑐𝑚) − (50𝑐𝑚2 × 10𝑐𝑚)

𝑥̅ =
150𝑐𝑚2 − 50𝑐𝑚2

= 6.25𝑐𝑚

𝑎1 𝑦1 − 𝑎2 𝑦2
𝑦̅ =
𝑎1 − 𝑎2

(150𝑐𝑚2 × 5𝑐𝑚) − (50𝑐𝑚2 × 7.5𝑐𝑚)

𝑦̅ =
150𝑐𝑚2 − 50𝑐𝑚2

= 3.75𝑐𝑚

𝐼𝑥𝑥1 = 𝐼𝐺1𝑥 + 𝑎1 (𝑦1 − 𝑦̅)2

15𝑐𝑚 × (10𝑐𝑚)3
= + 150𝑐𝑚2 (5𝑐𝑚 − 3.75𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 1484.4𝑐𝑚4

𝐼𝑥𝑥2 = 𝐼𝐺2𝑥 + 𝑎2 (𝑦2 − 𝑦̅)2

10𝑐𝑚 × (5𝑐𝑚)3
= + 50𝑐𝑚2 (7.5𝑐𝑚 − 3.75𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 807.3𝑐𝑚4

∴ 𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 𝐼𝑥𝑥1 − 𝐼𝑥𝑥2

= 1484.4𝑐𝑚4 − 807.3𝑐𝑚4
= 𝟔𝟕𝟕. 𝟏𝒄𝒎𝟒

𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦: 𝐼𝑦𝑦1 = 𝐼𝐺1𝑦 + 𝑎1 (𝑥1 − 𝑥̅ )2

10𝑐𝑚 × (15𝑐𝑚)3
= + 150𝑐𝑚2 (7.5𝑐𝑚 − 6.25𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 3046.9𝑐𝑚4

𝐼𝑦𝑦2 = 𝐼𝐺2𝑦 + 𝑎2 (𝑥2 − 𝑥̅ )2

5𝑐𝑚 × (10𝑐𝑚)3
= + 50𝑐𝑚2 (10𝑐𝑚 − 6.25𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 1119.8𝑐𝑚4

∴ 𝐼𝑦𝑦 = 𝐼𝑦𝑦1 − 𝐼𝑦𝑦2

= 3046.9𝑐𝑚4 − 1119.8𝑐𝑚4
= 𝟏𝟗𝟐𝟕. 𝟏𝒄𝒎𝟒

7. For the section shown in the figure below, determine: 𝐼𝑦𝑦 , 𝑟𝑦𝑦 , 𝑧𝑦𝑦𝐵 .

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 77

Solution: The figure is not symmetrical about any axis, therefore we shall divide it into workable areas i.e.
rectangles in this case. Since we are determining 𝐼𝑦𝑦 , we shall be interested in calculating for 𝑥̅ only.

𝑎1 = 200𝑐𝑚 × 25𝑐𝑚 = 5000𝑐𝑚2 ; 𝑥1 = 100𝑐𝑚

𝑎2 = 300𝑐𝑚 × 20𝑐𝑚 = 6000𝑐𝑚2 ; 𝑥2 = 100𝑐𝑚
𝑎3 = 110𝑐𝑚 × 50𝑐𝑚 = 5500𝑐𝑚2 ; 𝑥3 = 145𝑐𝑚

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 78

 𝑎1 𝑥1 + 𝑎2 𝑥2 + 𝑎3 𝑥3
∴ 𝑥̅ =
𝑎1 + 𝑎2 + 𝑎3

(5000𝑐𝑚2 × 100𝑐𝑚) + (6000𝑐𝑚2 × 100𝑐𝑚) + (5500𝑐𝑚2 × 145𝑐𝑚)

𝑥̅ =
5000𝑐𝑚2 + 6000𝑐𝑚2 + 5500𝑐𝑚2

= 115𝑐𝑚

𝐼𝑦𝑦1 = 𝐼𝐺1𝑦 + 𝑎1 (𝑥1 − 𝑥̅ )2

25𝑐𝑚 × (200𝑐𝑚)3
= + 5000𝑐𝑚2 (100𝑐𝑚 − 115𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 17791666.7𝑐𝑚4

𝐼𝑦𝑦2 = 𝐼𝐺2𝑦 + 𝑎2 (𝑥2 − 𝑥̅ )2

300𝑐𝑚 × (20𝑐𝑚)3
= + 6000𝑐𝑚2 (100𝑐𝑚 − 115𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 1550000𝑐𝑚4

𝐼𝑦𝑦3 = 𝐼𝐺3𝑦 + 𝑎3 (𝑥3 − 𝑥̅ )2

50𝑐𝑚 × (110𝑐𝑚)3
= + 5500𝑐𝑚2 (145𝑐𝑚 − 115𝑐𝑚)2
12
= 10495833.3𝑐𝑚4
∴ 𝐼𝑦𝑦 = 𝐼𝑦𝑦1 + 𝐼𝑦𝑦2 + 𝐼𝑦𝑦3
= 17791666.7𝑐𝑚4 + 1550000𝑐𝑚4 + 10495833.3𝑐𝑚4
= 𝟐𝟗𝟖𝟑𝟕𝟓𝟎𝟎𝒄𝒎𝟒

𝐼𝑦𝑦
𝑟𝑦𝑦 = √
𝐴

29837500𝑐𝑚4
=√
16500𝑐𝑚2

= √1808.3𝑐𝑚2

= 𝟒𝟐. 𝟓𝟐𝒄𝒎

𝐼𝑦𝑦
𝑧𝑦𝑦𝐵 =
ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝐵 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶𝑜𝐺

29837500𝑐𝑚4
=
85𝑐𝑚

= 𝟑𝟓𝟏𝟎𝟐𝟗. 𝟒𝒄𝒎𝟑

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 79

7.0 Theory of Simple Bending

7.1 Introduction
When an external load acts on a beam, shear forces and bending moments are set up at all sections of the
beam. Due to the shear forces and bending moments, the beam undergoes certain deformations. The
material of the beam will offer resistance or stresses against these deformations. These stresses, with
certain assumptions, can be calculated. The stresses introduced by bending moment are known as
bending stresses.

7.2 Pure Bending/Simple Bending

If a length of beam is subjected to a constant bending moment and no shear force (i.e. 0 shear force), then
the stresses will be set up in that length of beam due to bending moments only and that length of beam
is said to be in pure bending or simple bending. The stresses set up in that length of beam are known as
bending stresses.

Figure 7.1

In Figure 7.1 (a), a beam is simply supported at A and B and overhanging by the same length at each
support. A point load P, is applied at each end of the overhanging portion. The shear force diagram and
bending moment diagram for the beam are drawn in Figure 7.1 (b) and (c) respectively. From these
diagrams, it is clear that there is no shear force between A and B but the bending moment between A and
B is constant. This implies that between A and B. the bean is subjected to a constant bending moment
only. This condition for the beam between A and B is known as pure bending or simple bending.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 80

7.3 Assumptions made in the Theory of Simple Bending
The following assumptions are made in the theory of simple bending:
(i) The material of the beam is homogeneous and isotropic. Homogeneous meaning that it is of the
same kind of material throughout and isotropic meaning that it has equal elastic properties in all
directions.
(ii) The value of Young’s Modulus of elasticity, E, is the same in tension and compression.
(iii) The transverse sections which were plane before bending remain plane after bending.
(iv) The beam is initially straight and all longitudinal filaments bend into circular arcs with a common
centre of curvature.
(v) The radius of curvature is very large compared to the dimensions of the cross-section.
(vi) Each layer of the beam is free to expand or contract, independently of the layer above or below
it.

Figure 7.2

Figure 7.2 (a) shows a part of a beam subjected to simple bending. Consider a small length 𝛿𝑥 of this part
of beam. Consider two sections AB and CD which are normal to the axis of the beam N-N. Due to the
action of bending moment, the part of length 𝛿𝑥 will be deformed as shown in Figure 7.2 (b). From this
figure, it is clear that all layers of the beam, which were originally of the same length, do not remain of
the same length any more. The top layer AC has deformed into A’C’. This layer has been shortened in its
length. The bottom layer BD has been deformed to B’D’. This layer has been elongated.

From Figure 7.2 (b), it is clear that some of the layers have been shortened and others elongated. At a
level between the top and bottom of the beam, there will be a layer which is neither shortened nor
elongated. This layer is known as neutral layer or neutral surface. This layer in Figure 7.2 (a) is shown by
N-N and in Figure 7.2 (b) by N’-N’. The line of intersection of the neutral layer on a cross-section of a beam
is known as neutral axis written as N.A.

The layers above N-N (or N’-N’) have been shortened and those below have been elongated. Due to
decrease in lengths of the layers above N-N, these layers will be subjected to compressive stresses. Due
to increase in the lengths of layers below N-N, these layers will be subjected to tensile stresses. Also, note
that the top layer has been shortened maximum. As we proceed towards the layer N-N, the decrease in
length of the layers decreases. At layer N-N, there is no change in length. This means that the compressive
stresses will be maximum at the top layer.

Similarly, the increases in length will be maximum in the bottom layer. As we proceed from the bottom
layer towards N-N, the increase in length of the layers decreases. Hence, the amount by which a layer

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 81

increases or decreases in length, depends upon the position of the layer with respect to N-N. This theory
of bending is known as theory of simple bending.

7.4 Expression for Bending Stress

Consider Figure 7.3 below:

Figure 7.3

In Figure 7.3 (a), a small length 𝛿𝑥 of a beam is subjected to simple bending. Due to the action of bending,
the part of length 𝛿𝑥 will be deformed as shown in Figure 7.3 (b). let A’B’ and C’D’ meet at O.

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑅 = 𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑛𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝑁 ′ 𝑁′

𝜃 = 𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑂 𝑏𝑦 𝐴′ 𝐵′ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶 ′ 𝐷 ′ 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑑

7.4.1 Strain Variation along Depth of Beam

Consider layer EF at a distance 𝑦 below the neutral layer NN. After bending, this layer will be elongated
to E’F’. It is important to note that after bending, the length of neutral layer N’N’ will remain unchanged
but the length of the elongated layer E’F’ will increase.

𝑂𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝐸𝐹 = 𝛿𝑥

𝐴𝑙𝑠𝑜, 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑛𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝑁𝑁 = 𝛿𝑥
𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒, 𝑁 ′ 𝑁 ′ = 𝑁𝑁 = 𝛿𝑥

𝑁𝑜𝑤, 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝐹𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑒 3 (𝑏), 𝑁 ′ 𝑁 ′ = 𝑅 × 𝜃

𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐸 ′ 𝐹 ′ = (𝑅 + 𝑦) × 𝜃

𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑁 ′ 𝑁 ′ = 𝑁𝑁 = 𝛿𝑥
𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒, 𝛿𝑥 = 𝑅 × 𝜃

∴ 𝐼𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝐸𝐹

= 𝐸 ′ 𝐹 ′ − 𝐸𝐹 = (𝑅 + 𝑦)𝜃 − 𝑅𝜃
= 𝑦𝜃

∴ 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝐸𝐹
𝐼𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ
=
𝑂𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝐿𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 82

 𝑦𝜃
=
𝐸𝐹

𝑦𝜃
=
𝑅𝜃
𝑦
=
𝑅

As 𝑅 is a constant, hence the strain in a layer is proportional to its distance from the neutral axis. The
above equation shown the variation of strain along the depth of the beam. The variation of strain is linear.

7.4.2 Stress Variation along Depth of Beam

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝜎 = 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝐸𝐹

𝐸 = 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝐸𝐹
𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝐸 =
𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝐸𝐹

𝜎
𝑦
(𝑅 )

𝑦 𝐸
∴𝜎=𝐸× = × 𝑦 … (𝑖)
𝑅 𝑅

Since E and R are constant, therefore stress in any layer is directly proportional to the distance of the layer
from the neutral layer. The equation (i) shows the variation of stress along the depth of the beam. This
variation is linear as illustrated in Figure 7.3 (c). In the above case, all layers below the neutral layer are
subjected to tensile stresses whereas the layers above the neutral layer are subjected to compressive
stresses. Equation (i) can also be rewritten as:

𝜎 𝐸
= … (𝑖𝑖)
𝑦 𝑅

7.5 Neutral Axis and Moment of Resistance

The neutral axis of any transverse section of a beam is defined as the line of intersection of the neutral
layer with the transverse section. In section 7.4, we saw that if a section is subjected to a pure sagging
moment, then the stresses will be compressive at any point above the neutral axis and tensile below the
neutral axis. There is no stress at the neutral axis. The stress at a distance 𝑦 from the neutral axis is given
by equation (i) as:

𝐸
𝜎= ×𝑦
𝑅

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 83

Figure 7.4

Figure 7.4 shows the cross-section of a beam. Let the neutral axis of the section be abbreviated as NA.
Consider a small layer at a distance 𝑦 from NA.

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑑𝐴 = 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟

𝑁𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 = 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 × 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟
= 𝜎 × 𝑑𝐴
𝐸
= × 𝑦 × 𝑑𝐴 … (𝑖𝑖𝑖)
𝑅

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑜𝑏𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑖𝑖)

∴ 𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

𝐸
= ∫ × 𝑦 × 𝑑𝐴
𝑅

𝐸
= ∫ 𝑦 ⋅ 𝑑𝐴
𝑅

𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑝𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑛𝑜 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 (𝑜𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑖𝑠 0)

𝐸
∴ ∫ 𝑦 ⋅ 𝑑𝐴 = 0
𝑅

𝐸
𝑜𝑟 ∫ 𝑦 ⋅ 𝑑𝐴 = 0 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒 ≠0
𝑅

𝑦 ⋅ 𝑑𝐴 represents the moment of area dA about the neutral axis. Hence, ∫ 𝑦 ⋅ 𝑑𝐴 will represent the
moment of the entire area of the section about the neutral axis. But we know that the moment of any
area about an axis passing through its centroid is also equal to 0. Hence, the neutral axis coincides with
the centroidal axis. Thus, the centroidal axis of a section also gives the position of the neutral axis.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 84

7.5.1 Moment of Resistance
Due to pure bending, the layers above the NA are compressed while the layers below the NA are tensed.
Due to these stresses, some forces will be acting on the layers. These forces will have moment about the
NA. The total moment of these forces about the NA for a section is known as the moment of resistance
of that section. The force on the layer at a distance 𝑦 from the NA in figure 7.4 is given by equation (iii),
as:
𝐸
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 = × 𝑦 × 𝑑𝐴
𝑅

𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁𝐴 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑦𝑎𝑒𝑟 × 𝑦

𝐸
= × 𝑦 × 𝑑𝐴 × 𝑦
𝑅

𝐸
= × 𝑦 2 × 𝑑𝐴
𝑅

𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 (𝑜𝑟 𝑴𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆)

𝐸
= ∫ × 𝑦 2 × 𝑑𝐴
𝑅

𝐸
= ∫ 𝑦 2 × 𝑑𝐴
𝑅

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑀 = 𝐸𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑏𝑟𝑖𝑢𝑚, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓
𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡.

𝐸
∴𝑀= ∫ 𝑦 2 × 𝑑𝐴
𝑅

𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 (∫ 𝑦 2 × 𝑑𝐴) 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎, 𝐼, 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒
𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠.

𝐸
∴𝑀= ×𝐼
𝑅

𝑀 𝐸
𝑜𝑟 = … (𝑖𝑣)
𝐼 𝑅

𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑖) 𝑤𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒:

𝜎 𝐸
=
𝑦 𝑅

𝑴 𝝈 𝑬
∴ = = … (𝒗) [𝑩𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑬𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏]
𝑰 𝒚 𝑹

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 85

7.5.2 Condition of Simple Bending
Equation (v) is applicable to a member which is subjected to a constant bending moment and the member
is absolutely free from shear force. But in actual practice, a member is subjected to varying bending
moments and also the shear force is not 0. But we can recall that shear force is 0 at a section of maximum
bending moment. Hence, the condition of simple bending may be assumed to be satisfied in such as
section. Hence, stresses produced due to maximum bending moment are obtained from equation (v) as
the shear forces at these sections are generally 0.

Therefore, the theory and equations discussed above are quite sufficient and give results enabling
engineers to design beams and structures and calculate their stresses and strains with a reasonable
degree of approximation where the bending moment is maximum.

7.6 Bending Stresses in Symmetrical Sections

𝑑
The NA of symmetrical sections (such as circular, rectangular of square) lies at a distance 2 from the
outermost layer of the section where 𝑑 is diameter (for a circular section) or depth (for a rectangular or
square section). Recall that there are no stresses at NA. The maximum stress takes place at the outermost
layer. For a simply supported beam, there is a compressive stress above the neutral axis and a tensile
stress below it. If we plot these stresses, we will get a diagram similar to Figure 7.5 below:

Figure 7.5
7.7 Bending Stresses in Unsymmetrical Sections
In unsymmetrical sections (such as angle sections and T-sections), the NA does not pass through the
geometric centre of the section. Hence, the value of 𝑦 for the topmost layer or bottom layer of the section
from the NA will not be the same. For finding the bending stresses in the beam, the bigger value of 𝑦
(worst-case scenario) is used. As the NA passes through the centre of gravity of the section, hence in
unsymmetrical section, first the centre of gravity is calculated. Refer to Chapter 6.0.

7.8 Worked Examples

1. A steel plate of with 120𝑚𝑚 and thickness 20𝑚𝑚 is bent into a circular arc of radius 10𝑚.
Determine the maximum stress induced and the bending moment which will produce the
maximum stress. Take 𝐸 = 2 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 86

 𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏 = 120𝑚𝑚, 𝑡 = 20𝑚𝑚
𝑏𝑡 3 120𝑚𝑚 × (20𝑚𝑚)3
∴ 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝐼 = = = 80000𝑚𝑚4
12 12

𝑅𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑅 = 10𝑚 = 10000𝑚𝑚

𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔′ 𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝐸 = 2 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝜎𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑒𝑑

𝑀 = 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡

𝜎 𝐸
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖𝑖): =
𝑦 𝑅

𝐸𝑦
∴𝜎= {𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑒𝑞𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑦 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁𝐴}
𝑅

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑦𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑎𝑡 𝑡𝑜𝑝 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑟 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟

𝑡 20𝑚𝑚
∴ 𝑦𝑚𝑎𝑥 = = = 10𝑚𝑚
2 2

𝐸𝑦𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝑠𝑜 𝜎𝑚𝑎𝑥 =
𝑅

2 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 10𝑚𝑚

=
10000𝑚𝑚

= 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖𝑣), 𝑤𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒:

𝑀 𝐸
=
𝐼 𝑅

𝐸𝐼
∴𝑀=
𝑅
2 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 80000𝑚𝑚4
=
10000𝑚𝑚

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 87

 = 𝟏𝟔𝟎𝟎𝟎𝟎𝟎𝑵𝒎𝒎
2. A cast iron bracket is subjected to bending. It has the cross-section of an I-form with unequal
flanges. The dimensions of the section are shown in the figure below. Find the position of the
neutral axis and the moment of inertia of the section about the neutral axis. If the maximum
bending moment on the section is 40𝑀𝑁𝑚𝑚, determine the maximum bending stress. What is
the nature (or sense) of the stress?

𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑀𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 40𝑀𝑁𝑚𝑚 = 40 × 106 𝑁𝑚𝑚

𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑦̅ 𝑏𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒.
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑦̅ 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑.

𝑎1 𝑦1 + 𝑎2 𝑦2 + 𝑎3 𝑦3
𝑦̅ =
𝑎1 + 𝑎2 + 𝑎3

(200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × 275𝑚𝑚) + (200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × 150𝑚𝑚) + (130𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × 25𝑚𝑚)

=
(200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚) + (200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚) + (130𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚)

= 𝟏𝟔𝟔. 𝟓𝟏𝒎𝒎, 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝑵𝑨 𝒊𝒔 𝟏𝟔𝟔. 𝟓𝟏𝒎𝒎 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒕𝒐𝒎

𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝐼𝑥𝑥 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁𝐴:

𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 𝐼𝑥𝑥1 + 𝐼𝑥𝑥2 + 𝐼𝑥𝑥3

200𝑚𝑚 × (50𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥1 = + 50𝑚𝑚 × 200𝑚𝑚(275𝑚𝑚 − 166.51𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 119784134.3𝑚𝑚4

50𝑚𝑚 × (200𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥2 = + 50𝑚𝑚 × 200𝑚𝑚(150𝑚𝑚 − 166.51𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 36059134.3𝑚𝑚4

130𝑚𝑚 × (50𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥3 = + 130𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚(25𝑚𝑚 − 166.51𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 131517187.3𝑚𝑚4

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 88

 ∴ 𝑰𝒙𝒙 = 𝟏𝟏𝟗𝟕𝟖𝟒𝟏𝟑𝟒. 𝟑𝒎𝒎𝟒 + 𝟑𝟔𝟎𝟓𝟗𝟏𝟑𝟒. 𝟑𝒎𝒎𝟒 + 𝟏𝟑𝟏𝟓𝟏𝟕𝟏𝟖𝟕. 𝟑𝒎𝒎𝟒
= 𝟐𝟖𝟕𝟑𝟔𝟎𝟒𝟓𝟓. 𝟗𝒎𝒎𝟒

𝑁𝑜𝑤, 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡𝑜𝑝 − 𝑚𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑓𝑖𝑏𝑟𝑒 = 300𝑚𝑚 − 𝑦̅ = 300𝑚𝑚 − 166.51𝑚𝑚
= 133.49𝑚𝑚

𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 − 𝑚𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑓𝑖𝑏𝑟𝑒 = 166.51𝑚𝑚

∴ 𝑊𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑦 = 166.51𝑚𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 − 𝑚𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑓𝑖𝑏𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑜𝑏𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛
𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠.

𝑀 𝜎
𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: =
𝐼 𝑦

𝑀𝑦
∴𝜎=
𝐼

40 × 106 𝑁𝑚𝑚 × 166.51𝑚𝑚

=
287360455.9𝑚𝑚4

= 𝟐𝟑. 𝟏𝟖𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒆: 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆. 𝑰𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒄𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒋𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅
𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔, 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏.

3. A cast iron beam of I-section is shown in the figure below. The beam is simply supported on a span
of 5𝑚. If the tensile stress is not to exceed 20𝑁/𝑚𝑚2, find the safe uniformly distributed load
which the beam can carry. Find also, the maximum compressive stress.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 89

 𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡, 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑦̅ 𝑏𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚
𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒. 𝐴𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑦 − 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒
𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑦̅.

𝑎1 𝑦1 + 𝑎2 𝑦2 + 𝑎3 𝑦3
𝑦̅ =
𝑎1 + 𝑎2 + 𝑎3

(80𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚 × 250𝑚𝑚) + (20𝑚𝑚 × 200𝑚𝑚 × 140𝑚𝑚) + (160𝑚𝑚 × 40𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚)

=
(80𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚) + (20𝑚𝑚 × 200𝑚𝑚) + (160𝑚𝑚 × 40𝑚𝑚)

= 90.67𝑚𝑚, ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑁𝐴 𝑖𝑠 90.67𝑚𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑜𝑟 169.33𝑚𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑝.

𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝐼𝑥𝑥 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁𝐴:

𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 𝐼𝑥𝑥1 + 𝐼𝑥𝑥2 + 𝐼𝑥𝑥3

80𝑚𝑚 × (20𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥1 = + 80𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚(250𝑚𝑚 − 90.67𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 40671011.6𝑚𝑚4

20𝑚𝑚 × (200𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥2 = + 20𝑚𝑚 × 200𝑚𝑚(140𝑚𝑚 − 90.67𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 23067128.9𝑚𝑚4

160𝑚𝑚 × (40𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥3 = + 160𝑚𝑚 × 40𝑚𝑚(20𝑚𝑚 − 90.67𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 32816526.3𝑚𝑚4

∴ 𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 40671011.6𝑚𝑚4 + 23067128.9𝑚𝑚4 + 32816526.3𝑚𝑚4

= 96554666.8𝑚𝑚4

𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑦 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚, 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑝.

𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 = 20𝑁/𝑚𝑚2

𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒, 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑦 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 90.67𝑚𝑚

𝑀 𝜎
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, =
𝐼 𝑦
𝜎𝐼
∴𝑀=
𝑦

20𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 96554666.8𝑚𝑚4
=
90.67𝑚𝑚

= 21298040.5𝑁𝑚𝑚

𝐿𝑒𝑡 ′𝑤 ′ 𝑏𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑙𝑦 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑁/𝑚 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑦 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚.
𝑤𝑙 2
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑜 . {𝑅𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 5.5}
8

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 90

 𝑤 × 52 𝑤 × 25 × 1000
𝑀= 𝑁𝑚 = 𝑁𝑚𝑚
8 8
= 3125𝑤 𝑁𝑚𝑚

𝐸𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑀𝑠:

3125𝑤 𝑁𝑚𝑚 = 21298040.5𝑁𝑚𝑚

21298040.5
∴𝑤=
3125

= 6815.4𝑁/𝑚

≈ 𝟔. 𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎

𝐼𝑛 𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑦 𝑎𝑠 169.33𝑚𝑚.

𝑀 𝜎
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: =
𝐼 𝑦
𝑀𝑦
∴𝜎=
𝐼

21298040.5𝑁𝑚𝑚 × 169.33𝑚𝑚
=
96554666.8𝑚𝑚4

= 𝟑𝟕. 𝟑𝟓𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

4. The figure below shows the cross-section of a beam carrying a point load, ‘P’, at mid-span.
Calculate the value of the maximum safe load, ‘P’, which the beam can carry. Take: modular ratio
𝑚 = 20; permissible bending in steel = 150𝑁/𝑚𝑚2; permissible bending in timber = 7𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 .

Solution: This is a problem that combines composite materials with simple bending. Since the beam is
made up of two materials – timber and steel, we shall need to transform it into its equivalent timber and
steel sections using the given modular ratio.

(𝑖) 𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 91

 𝑦̅ = 120𝑚𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚

3000𝑚𝑚 × (20𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥1 = + 3000𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚(230𝑚𝑚 − 120𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 728000000𝑚𝑚4

150𝑚𝑚 × (200𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥2 = + 150𝑚𝑚 × 200𝑚𝑚(120𝑚𝑚 − 120𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 100000000𝑚𝑚4

3000𝑚𝑚 × (20𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥3 = + 3000𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚(10𝑚𝑚 − 120𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 728000000𝑚𝑚4

∴ 𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 728000000𝑚𝑚4 + 100000000𝑚𝑚4 + 728000000𝑚𝑚4

= 1556000000𝑚𝑚4

𝑀⋅𝑦
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝜎 =
𝐼

𝑀 × 120𝑚𝑚
7𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 =
1556000000𝑚𝑚4

∴ 𝑀 = 90766666.7𝑁𝑚𝑚

𝑊𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑦 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑎 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑, 𝑃, 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑒,
𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑀 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:

𝑃𝐿
𝑀= {𝑅𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 5.5 𝑜𝑓 𝐶ℎ𝑎𝑝𝑡𝑒𝑟 5}
4

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 92

 𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑀 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡
𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝑊𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑓𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑃 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:

𝑃 × 4000𝑚𝑚
90766666.7𝑁𝑚𝑚 =
4

∴ 𝑃 = 90766.7𝑁 𝑜𝑟 90.77𝑘𝑁
𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑓𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑦.

(𝑖𝑖) 𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛:

𝑦̅ = 120𝑚𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚

150𝑚𝑚 × (20𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥1 = + 150𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚(230𝑚𝑚 − 120𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 36400000𝑚𝑚4

7.5𝑚𝑚 × (200𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥2 = + 7.5𝑚𝑚 × 200𝑚𝑚(120𝑚𝑚 − 120𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 5000000𝑚𝑚4

150𝑚𝑚 × (20𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼𝑥𝑥3 = + 150𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚(10𝑚𝑚 − 120𝑚𝑚)2
12
= 36400000𝑚𝑚4

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 93

 ∴ 𝐼𝑥𝑥 = 36400000𝑚𝑚4 + 5000000𝑚𝑚4 + 36400000𝑚𝑚4
= 77800000𝑚𝑚4

𝑀⋅𝑦
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝜎 =
𝐼

𝑀 × 120𝑚𝑚
150𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 =
77800000𝑚𝑚4

∴ 𝑀 = 97250000𝑁𝑚𝑚

𝐴𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑓𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑃 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:

𝑃 × 4000𝑚𝑚
97250000𝑁𝑚𝑚 =
4

∴ 𝑃 = 97250𝑁 𝑜𝑟 97.25𝑘𝑁
𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑓𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑦.

𝐹𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑓𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑑
𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑎𝑠 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑠𝑎𝑓𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟
𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚.

∴ 𝑺𝒂𝒇𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕 𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒎 = 𝟗𝟎. 𝟕𝟕𝒌𝑵

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 94

8.0 Analysis of Structural Frames/Trusses

8.1 Introduction
A structure having several bars/members riveted or welded together is known as a frame or a truss. If the
frame has sufficient members to keep it in equilibrium when the frame is supporting an external load,
then the frame is known as a perfect frame. Though in actual practice the members are welded or riveted
together at their joints, for calculation purposes, the joints are assumed to be hinged or pin-jointed. See
Figure 8.1 for practical examples of frames and Figure 8.2 for the common joints found in frames.

Figure 8.1: Practical examples of frames/trusses

Figure 8.2: Joints on members of a frame/truss

8.2 Types of Frames

The different types of frames are:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 95

 (i) Perfect Frames
(ii) Imperfect Frames

8.2.1 Perfect Frames

A frame which is composed of such members which are just sufficient to keep the frame in equilibrium
when it is supporting an external load is known as a perfect frame. The simplest perfect frame is a triangle
as shown in Figure 8.3. A triangle consists of 3 members and 3 joints.

Figure 8.3

The three members are AB, BC and AC whereas the three joints are A, B and C. this frame can easily be
analysed by the conditions of equilibrium. Supposing we add two members CD and BD and a joint D to
the triangle ABC, we get frame ABCD as shown in Figure 8.4 (a). This frame can also be analysed the
condition of equilibrium. This frame is also known as a perfect frame. Suppose we add a set of two
members and a joint again, we get a perfect frame as shown in Figure 8.4 (b). Hence, for a perfect frame,
the number of joints and number of members is given by:

𝑛 = 2𝑗 − 3
𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝑛 = 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑠
𝑗 = 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑠

Figure 8.4

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 96

8.2.2 Imperfect Frames
For an imperfect frame, the number of members will either be more or less than (2𝑗 − 3). Hence for an
imperfect frame, the following equation will apply:

𝑛 ≠ 2𝑗 − 3
(𝑖) 𝐼𝑓 𝑛 < 2𝑗 − 3, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝒅𝒆𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕
(𝑖𝑖) 𝐼𝑓 𝑛 > 2𝑗 − 3, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒕

8.3 Assumptions made in determining forces in Frames

(i) The frame is assumed to be a perfect frame.
(ii) The frame is assumed to carry loads only at its joints and not on its members.
(iii) All the members of the frame are assumed to be pin-jointed.

8.4 Reactions of supports of a Frame

Frames are generally simply supported, i.e. having a pinned support on one end and a roller support on
the other end. The line of action of the reaction forces in the frame are illustrated in Figure 8.5 below:

Figure 8.5

The reactions at the supports of a frame are determined by the conditions of equilibrium. The external
load on the frame and the reactions at the supports must form a system of equilibrium.

8.5 Analysis of a Frame

The analysis of a frame consists of the following two steps:
(i) Determination of the reactions at the supports.
(ii) Determination of the forces in the members of the frame.
In order to determine the reactions at the supports, we will make use of equilibrium conditions.
Determination of the forces in the members of the frame will be on condition that every joint should be
in equilibrium and therefore, the forces acting on every joint should form a system of equilibrium. The
following are the methods of analysing frames:
(i) Method of joints.
(ii) Method of sections.
(iii) Method of tension coefficients.
(iv) Graphical method.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 97

8.5.1 Method of Joints
In this method, after determining the reactions at the supports, the equilibrium of every joint is
considered. This means that the sum of all vertical forces as well as horizontal forces actin on a join will
be equated to 0. The joint should be selected such that at any one time, there will be only two members
with unknown forces. The force in the member will be compressive if the member pushes into the joint
to which it is connected and it will be tensile if the member pulls away from the joint as illustrated in
Figure 8.6.

Figure 8.6

8.5.2 Method of Sections

When the forces in a few members of a truss are to be determined, then the method of sections is mostly
used. This method is very quick as it does not involve the solution of other joins of the truss. In this
method, a section line is passed through the members in which forces are to be determined as shown in
Figure 8.7. The section line should be drawn in such a way that it does not cut more than three members
in which the forces are unknown. The part of the truss, on any one section of the section line is treated as
a free body in equilibrium under the action of external forces on that part and in the members cut by the
section line. The unknown forces in the members are then determined by using equations of equilibrium
(∑𝐹𝑥 = 0 ; ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0 ; ∑𝑀 = 0).

Figure 8.7

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 98

If the magnitude of the forces in the members cut by a section line is positive, then the assumed direction
is correct; if the magnitude is negative, then we shall reverse the direction of the force.

8.5.3 Method of Tension Coefficients

This is a systematic presentation of the method of joints and it is especially helpful for a space frame (3D).
This method is valid for a perfect frame. The tension coefficient for a member of a frame is defined as the
pull or tension in that member divided by its length:

𝑇
𝑡=
𝐿

𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝑡 = 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑒𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟

𝑇 = 𝑝𝑢𝑙𝑙 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 (𝑝𝑢𝑠ℎ 𝑖𝑠 − 𝑣𝑒)
𝐿 = 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟

8.5.4 Graphical Method

The force in a perfect frame can also be determined graphically. The analytical methods (such as method
of joints and method of sections) give absolutely correct results but sometimes it is not possible to get
results from analytical methods. This is where the graphical method comes into play. The naming of
various members of a frame is done according to Bow’s notation. In this notation, force is designated by
two capital letters which are written on either side of the line of action of the force. A force with letters A
and B on either side of the line of action is shown in Figure 8.8. This force will be called AB. The following
are the steps necessary for obtaining graphical solution of a frame:
(i) Making a space diagram.
(ii) Constructing a vector diagram.
(iii) Preparing a force table.

Figure 8.8

8.5.4.1 Making a Space Diagram

The given truss/frame is drawn accurately according to some linear scale. The loads and support reactions
in magnitude and directions are also shown on the frame. Then the various members are named according
to Bow’s notation.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 99

Figure 8.9

8.5.4.2 Constructing a Vector Diagram

Consider Figure 8.9 (c) above which is drawn as outlined below:
(i) Take any point p and draw pq parallel to PQ vertically downwards. Cut pq=4kN to some scale.
(ii) Now from q, draw qr parallel to QR vertically upwards and cut qr=2kN to same scale.
(iii) From r, draw rp parallel to RP vertically upwards and cut rp=2kN to same scale.
(iv) From p, draw line ps parallel to PS; from r, draw a line rs parallel to RS meeting the first line at s.
This will be the vector diagram for joint A. Similarly, the vector diagrams for joints B and C can be drawn.

8.5.4.3 Preparing a Force Table

The magnitude of a force in a member is known by the length of the vector diagram for the corresponding
member, i.e. length ps of the vector diagram will give the magnitude of the force in member PS of the
frame. The nature of the force (tensile or compressive) is determined according to the following
procedure:
(i) In the space diagram, consider any joint. Move around that joint in a clockwise direction. Note
the order of two capital letters by which the members are named. For example, the members at
joint A in the space diagram in Figure 8.9 (b) are named PS, SR and RP.
(ii) Now consider the vector diagram. Move on the vector diagram in the order of the letters (i.e. ps,
sr and rp).
(iii) Now mark the arrows on the members of the space diagram of that joint (here joint A).
(iv) Similarly, all joints can be considered and arrows marked.
(v) If the arrow is pointing towards the joint, then the force in the member will be compressive
whereas if the arrow is pointing away from the joint, then the force in that member will be tensile.

8.6 Worked Examples

1. Find the forces in the members AB, AC and BC of the truss shown in the figure below using method
of joints.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 100

Solution: First we shall determine the reactions 𝑅𝐵 and 𝑅𝐶 . The line of action of load 20𝑘𝑁 acting at A is
vertical. Let us find distance AB so that we determine the distance of the line of action of the 20𝑘𝑁 load
from point B.

𝐴𝐵 = 𝐵𝐶 cos 60°
= 5𝑚 × cos 60°
= 2.5𝑚

∴ 𝐵𝑥 = 𝐴𝐵 cos 60°
= 2.5𝑚 × cos 60°
= 1.25𝑚

𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵:

∑𝑀𝐵 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
20𝑘𝑁 × 1.25𝑚 = 𝑅𝐶 × 5𝑚
25𝑘𝑁𝑚
∴ 𝑅𝐶 =
5𝑚
𝑅𝐶 = 5𝑘𝑁

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝑅𝐵 + 5𝑘𝑁 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝑅𝐵 = 15𝑘𝑁

𝑁𝑜𝑤 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑏𝑟𝑖𝑢𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑠:

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 101

 𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
15𝑘𝑁 + 𝐹𝐴𝐵 sin 60° = 0
∴ 𝑭𝑨𝑩 = −𝟏𝟕. 𝟑𝟐𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝑩 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
𝐹𝐵𝐶 + (−17.32𝑘𝑁 cos 60°) = 0
∴ 𝑭𝑩𝑪 = 𝟖. 𝟔𝟔𝒌𝑵
𝑺𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑩𝑪 𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆, 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐶:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 102

 𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
5𝑘𝑁 + 𝐹𝐴𝐶 sin 30° = 0
∴ 𝑭𝑨𝑪 = −𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝑪 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:
Member Force (𝒌𝑵) Sense/Nature
AB 17.32 Compressive
AC 10 Compressive
BC 8.66 Tensile

2. Determine the forces in all the members of a cantilever truss shown in the figure below using
method of joints.

Solution: In the case of cantilever trusses, it is not necessary to determine the support reactions. The
forces in the members of the cantilever truss can be obtained by starting calculations from the free end
of the cantilever. In this case we can begin our calculations from joint C.

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐶:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 103

 𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝐹𝐶𝐷 sin 60° = 10𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝑭𝑪𝑫 = 𝟏𝟏. 𝟓𝟓𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑪𝑫 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
0 = 𝐹𝐴𝐶 + 11.55𝑘𝑁 cos 60°
∴ 𝑭𝑨𝑪 = −𝟓. 𝟕𝟖𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝑪 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐷:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 104

 𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
0 = 𝐹𝐴𝐷 cos 30° + 11.55𝑘𝑁 cos 30°
∴ 𝑭𝑨𝑫 = −𝟏𝟏. 𝟓𝟓𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝑫 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 ∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
11.55𝑘𝑁 sin 30° = 𝐹𝐵𝐷 + (−11.55𝑘𝑁 cos 60°)
∴ 𝑭𝑩𝑫 = 𝟏𝟏. 𝟓𝟓𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑩𝑫 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:
Member Force (𝒌𝑵) Sense/Nature
AC 5.78 Compressive
AD 11.55 Compressive
BD 11.55 Tensile
CD 11.55 Tensile

3. Using the method of joint resolution, determine the magnitude and nature of forces in each
member of the truss shown below.

𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑅𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅𝐵

∑𝑀𝐴 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(6𝑘𝑁 × 3𝑚) + (3𝑘𝑁 × 6𝑚) = 𝑅𝐵 × 9𝑚
∴ 𝑅𝐵 = 4𝑘𝑁

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝑅𝐴 + 4𝑘𝑁 = 6𝑘𝑁 + 3𝑘𝑁

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 105

 ∴ 𝑅𝐴 = 5𝑘𝑁

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴:

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
5𝑘𝑁 + 𝐹𝐴𝐶 sin 60° = 0
∴ 𝑭𝑨𝑪 = −𝟓. 𝟕𝟕𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝑪 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
𝐹𝐴𝐷 + (−5.77𝑘𝑁 cos 60°) = 0
∴ 𝐹𝐴𝐷 = 2.89𝑘𝑁
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝑫 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐶:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 106

 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
0 = 𝐹𝐶𝐷 cos 30° + (−5.77𝑘𝑁 cos 30°)
∴ 𝑭𝑪𝑫 = 𝟓. 𝟕𝟕𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑪𝑫 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
𝐹𝐶𝐸 + 5.77𝑘𝑁 cos 60° = (−5.77𝑘𝑁 cos 60°)
∴ 𝑭𝑪𝑬 = −𝟓. 𝟕𝟕𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑪𝑬 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐷:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 107

 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
5.77𝑘𝑁 cos 30° +𝐹𝐷𝐸 cos 30° = 6𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝑭𝑫𝑬 = 𝟏. 𝟏𝟔𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝑬 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
𝐹𝐷𝐹 + 1.16𝑘𝑁 cos 60° = 2.89𝑘𝑁 + 5.77𝑘𝑁 cos 60°
∴ 𝑭𝑫𝑭 = 𝟓. 𝟐𝟎𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝑭 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐸:

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
0 = 1.16𝑘𝑁 cos 30° + 𝐹𝐸𝐹 cos 30°
∴ 𝑭𝑬𝑭 = −𝟏. 𝟏𝟔𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑬𝑭 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
𝐹𝐸𝐺 + (−1.16𝑘𝑁 cos 60°) = −5.77𝑘𝑁 + 1.16𝑘𝑁 cos 60°
∴ 𝑭𝑬𝑮 = −𝟒. 𝟔𝟏𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑬𝑮 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐹:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 108

 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝐹𝐹𝐺 cos 30° + (−1.16𝑘𝑁 cos 30°) = 3𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝑭𝑭𝑮 = 𝟒. 𝟔𝟐𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑭𝑮 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
𝐹𝐹𝐵 + 4.62𝑘𝑁 cos 60° = 5.20𝑘𝑁 + (−1.16𝑘𝑁 cos 60°)
∴ 𝑭𝑭𝑩 = 𝟐. 𝟑𝟏𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑭𝑩 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 109

 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
4𝑘𝑁 + 𝐹𝐵𝐺 sin 60° = 0
∴ 𝑭𝑩𝑮 = −𝟒. 𝟔𝟐𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑩𝑮 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆
𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:
Member Force (𝒌𝑵) Sense/Nature
AC 5.77 Compressive
AD 2.89 Tensile
CD 5.77 Tensile
CE 5.77 Compressive
DE 1.16 Tensile
DF 5.20 Tensile
EG 4.61 Compressive
EF 1.16 Compressive
FG 4.62 Tensile
FB 2.31 Tensile
BG 4.62 Compressive

4. Find forces in members AB and AC of the truss shown in the figure below using method of
sections.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 110

 𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑅𝐵 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅𝐶 .
∑𝑀𝐵 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
20𝑘𝑁 × 1.25𝑚 = 𝑅𝐶 × 5𝑚
𝑅𝐶 = 5𝑘𝑁

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝑅𝐵 + 5𝑘𝑁 = 20𝑘𝑁
𝑅𝐵 = 15𝑘𝑁

𝑁𝑜𝑤 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑎 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑥 − 𝑥 𝑐𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝐴𝐵 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐴𝐶 𝑤ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒
𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑. 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑏𝑟𝑖𝑢𝑚 𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 111

 ∑𝑀𝐶 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(15𝑘𝑁 × 5𝑚) + (𝐹𝐴𝐵 × 4.33𝑚) = 0
{4.33𝑚 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ⊥ 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝐹𝐴𝐵 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶. }
∴ 𝑭𝑨𝑩 = −𝟏𝟕. 𝟑𝟐𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝑩 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

∑𝑀𝐴 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
𝟏𝟓𝒌𝑵 × 𝟏. 𝟐𝟓𝒎 = 𝑭𝑩𝑪 × 𝟐. 𝟏𝟕𝒎
∴ 𝑭𝑩𝑪 = 𝟖. 𝟔𝟒𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑩𝑪 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:
Member Force (𝒌𝑵) Sense/Nature
AB 17.32 Compressive
BC 8.64 Tensile

5. A truss of span 9𝑚 is loaded as shown in the figure below. Find the reactions and forces in the
members marked 1, 2 and 3 using method of sections.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 112

 𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑅𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅𝐵

∑𝑀𝐴 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(9𝑘𝑁 × 3𝑚) + (12𝑘𝑁 × 6𝑚) = (𝑅𝐵 × 9𝑚)
∴ 𝑹𝑩 = 𝟏𝟏𝒌𝑵

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝑅𝐴 + 11𝑘𝑁 = 9𝑘𝑁 + 12𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝑹𝑨 = 𝟏𝟎𝒌𝑵

𝑁𝑜𝑤 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑎 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑥 − 𝑥 𝑐𝑢𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑠 1,2 𝑎𝑛𝑑 3 𝑖𝑛 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒
𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑. 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑏𝑟𝑖𝑢𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑠 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑟,
ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑖𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 113

 𝑁𝑜𝑤 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑠𝑠, 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐷:

∑𝑀𝐷 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
10𝑘𝑁 × 3𝑚 = 𝐹3 × 4𝑚
∴ 𝑭𝟑 = 𝟕. 𝟓𝒌𝑵
𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝟑 𝒊𝒔 + 𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆

∑𝑀𝐺 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(10𝑘𝑁 × 3𝑚) + (𝐹1 × 4𝑚) = 0
∴ 𝑭𝟏 = −𝟕. 𝟓𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝟏 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

∑𝑀𝐴 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(−7.5𝑘𝑁 × 4𝑚) + (9𝑘𝑁 × 3𝑚) = 𝐹2 × 3𝑚
∴ 𝑭𝟐 = −𝟏𝒌𝑵
𝑻𝒉𝒆 − 𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝟐 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:
Member Force (𝒌𝑵) Sense/Nature
1 7.5 Compressive
2 1 Compressive

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 114

 3 7.5 Tensile

6. Find the forces in all the members of the truss shown below using the method of tension
coefficients.

𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑅𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅𝐸

∑𝑀𝐴 = 0
𝐶𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
(5𝑘𝑁 × 2𝑚) + (10𝑘𝑁 × 2𝑚) = 𝑅𝐸 × 4𝑚
∴ 𝑅𝐸 = 7.5𝑘𝑁

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑈𝑝𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 = 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝑅𝐴 + 7.5𝑘𝑁 = 10𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝑅𝐴 = 2.5𝑘𝑁

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 = 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡
5𝑘𝑁 = 𝑅𝐸,ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙
∴ 𝑅𝐸,ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 = 5𝑘𝑁 {𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡}

𝑁𝑒𝑥𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜 − 𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑠, 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴 𝑎𝑠 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛:
Joint Co-ordinates (𝒙, 𝒚) {𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔}
A (0,0)
B (0,2)

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 115

 C (2,0)
D (2,2)
E (4,0)
F (4,2)

𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑏𝑟𝑖𝑢𝑚 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 (∑𝐹𝑥 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ∑𝐹𝑦 ) 𝑖𝑛 𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑠:

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐴:

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝑡𝐴𝐶 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝐴𝐵 (0𝑚 − 0𝑚) = 0
∴ 𝒕𝑨𝑪 = 𝟎

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
2.5𝑘𝑁 + 𝑡𝐴𝐶 (0𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝐴𝐵 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝐴𝐶 = 0,
2.5𝑘𝑁 + (0)(0𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝐴𝐵 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) = 0
∴ 𝒕𝑨𝑩 = −𝟏. 𝟐𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐵:

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
5𝑘𝑁 + 𝑡𝐵𝐴 (0𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝐵𝐶 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝐵𝐷 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝐵𝐴 = −1.25𝑘𝑁/𝑚, {𝑁𝑜𝑡𝑒: 𝑡𝐵𝐴 = 𝑡𝐴𝐵 }
5𝑘𝑁 + (−1.25𝑘𝑁/𝑚)(0𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝐵𝐶 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝐵𝐷 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔:
2𝑡𝐵𝐶 𝑚 + 2𝑡𝐵𝐷 𝑚 = −5𝑘𝑁 … (𝑖)

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 116

 ∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑡𝐵𝐴 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝐵𝐶 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝐵𝐷 (2𝑚 − 2𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝐵𝐴 = −1.25𝑘𝑁/𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔:
(−1.25𝑘𝑁/𝑚)(0𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝐵𝐶 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 0 = 0
∴ 𝒕𝑩𝑪 = 𝟏. 𝟐𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎

𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝐵𝐶 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖):

2.5𝑘𝑁 + 2𝑡𝐵𝐷 𝑚 = −5𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝒕𝑩𝑫 = −𝟑. 𝟕𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐷:

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝑡𝑫𝑩 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝑫𝑭 (4𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝑫𝑪 (2𝑚 − 2𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝑫𝑩 = −3.75𝑘𝑁/𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔:
7.5𝑘𝑁 + 2𝑡𝑫𝑭 𝑚 + 0 = 0
∴ 𝒕𝑫𝑭 = −𝟑. 𝟕𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
−10𝑘𝑁 + 𝑡𝑫𝑩 (2𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝑫𝑭 (2𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝑫𝑪 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔:
−2𝑡𝑫𝑪 𝑚 = 10𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝒕𝑫𝑪 = −𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐶:

∑𝐹𝑥 = 0
𝑡𝑪𝑨 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝑪𝑩 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝑪𝑫 (2𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝑪𝑭 (4𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝑪𝑬 (4𝑚 − 2𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝑪𝑨 = 0, 𝑡𝑪𝑩 = 1.25𝑘𝑁/𝑚, 𝑡𝑪𝑫 = −5𝑘𝑁/𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔:
0 − 2.5𝑘𝑁 + 0 + 2𝑡𝑪𝑭 𝑚 + 2𝑡𝑪𝑬 𝑚 = 0
2𝑡𝑪𝑭 𝑚 + 2𝑡𝑪𝑬 𝑚 = 2.5𝑘𝑁 … (𝑖)

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑡𝑪𝑨 (0𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝑪𝑩 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝑪𝑫 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝑪𝑭 (2𝑚 − 0𝑚) + 𝑡𝑪𝑬 (0𝑚 − 0𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝑪𝑨 = 0, 𝑡𝑪𝑩 = 1.25𝑘𝑁/𝑚, 𝑡𝑪𝑫 = −5𝑘𝑁/𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔:
0 + 2.5𝑘𝑁 − 10𝑘𝑁 + 2𝑡𝑪𝑭 𝑚 + 0 = 0
∴ 𝒕𝑪𝑭 = 𝟑. 𝟕𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎

𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝐶𝐹 = 3.75𝑘𝑁/𝑚 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖):

7.5𝑘𝑁 + 2𝑡𝑪𝑬 𝑚 = 2.5𝑘𝑁
∴ 𝒕𝑪𝑬 = −𝟐. 𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎

𝐴𝑡 𝑗𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝐹:

∑𝐹𝑦 = 0
𝑡𝐹𝐷 (2𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝐹𝐶 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) + 𝑡𝐹𝐸 (0𝑚 − 2𝑚) = 0
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝐹𝐷 = −3.75𝑘𝑁/𝑚 , 𝑡𝐹𝐶 = 3.75𝑘𝑁/𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔:
0 − 7.5𝑘𝑁 − 2𝑡𝐹𝐸 𝑚 = 0

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 117

 ∴ 𝒕𝑭𝑬 = −𝟑. 𝟕𝟓𝒌𝑵/𝒎

𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑒𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑢𝑟
𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:
𝑁𝑜𝑡𝑒: 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑝𝑙𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ𝑠.
Member 𝒕𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 (𝒌𝑵/𝒎) Length (𝒎) Force (𝒌𝑵) Sense/Nature
AC 0 2 0 −
AB −1.25 2 −2.5 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒
BC 1.25 2.83 3.54 𝑇𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑒
BD −3.75 2 −7.5 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒
CF 3.75 2.83 10.61 𝑇𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑒
CE −2.5 2 −5 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒
CD −5 2 −10 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒
DF −3.75 2 −7.5 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒
EF −3.75 2 −7.5 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 118

9.0 Horizontal Shear Stresses in Beams

9.1 Introduction
In Chapter 7.0, we saw that when part of a beam is subjected to a constant bending moment and 0 Shear
Force, there will be only bending stresses in the beam. The shear stress will be 0 as shear stress is equal
to Shear Force divided by Area. As shear force is zero, shear stress will also be 0. In actual practice,
however, a beam is subjected to a bending moment which varies from section to section, and also the
shear force acting on the beam is not zero; and it also varies from section to section.

Due to these shear forces, the beam will be subjected to shear stresses. These shear stresses will be acting
across transverse sections of the beam. These transverse shear stresses will in turn produce
complimentary horizontal shear stresses which will be acting on longitudinal layers of the beam hence the
beam will be subjected to horizontal shear stresses.

9.2 Stress at a Section

Figure 9.1 (a) shows a simply supported beam carrying a uniformly distributed load. For a uniformly
distributed load, the shear force and bending moment will vary along the length of the beam. Consider
two sections AB and CD of this beam at a distance 𝑑𝑥 apart.

Figure 9.1

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝐴𝐵: 𝐹 = 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒; 𝑀 = 𝐵𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡

𝑎𝑡 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝐶𝐷: 𝐹 + 𝑑𝐹 = 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒; 𝑀 + 𝑑𝑀 = 𝐵𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡
𝐼 = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 119

It is required to find the shear stress at the section AB at a distance 𝑦 from the neutral axis. Figure 9.1 (c)
shows the cross-section of the beam. On the cross-section, let EF be a line at a distance 𝑦1 from the Neutral
Axis. Now consider the part of the beam above level EF and between sections AB and CD. This part of the
beam may be taken to constitute or consist of an infinite number of elemental cylinders each of area 𝑑𝐴
and length 𝑑𝑥. Consider one such elemental cylinder at distance 𝑦 from the Neutral Axis:

𝑑𝐴 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 (𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙)𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟.

𝑑𝑥 = 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟.
𝑦 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠.
𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝜎 = 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝐴𝐵
𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑛𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛.
𝜎 + 𝑑𝜎 = 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝐶𝐷.

The bending stress at distance 𝑦 from the neutral axis is given by the equation:

𝑀 𝜎
=
𝐼 𝑦

𝑀𝑦
𝜎=
𝐼

For a given beam, the bending stress is a function of bending moment and the distance 𝑦 from the neutral
axis. Let us find the bending stress on the end of the elemental cylinder at the section AB and also at the
section CD. Therefore, the bending stress on the end of elemental cylinder on the section AB (where
bending moment is 𝑀) will be:

𝑀𝑦
𝜎=
𝐼

Similarly, bending stress on the end of elemental cylinder on the section CD (where bending moment is
𝑀 + 𝑑𝑀) will be:

(𝑀 + 𝑑𝑀)𝑦
𝜎 + 𝑑𝜎 =
𝐼

Now let us find the forces on the two ends of the elemental cylinder:

𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝐴𝐵 = 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 × 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟

= 𝜎 × 𝑑𝐴
𝑀𝑦
= × 𝑑𝐴
𝐼
𝑆𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝐶𝐷 = (𝜎 + 𝑑𝜎)𝑑𝐴
(𝑀 + 𝑑𝑀)𝑦
= × 𝑑𝐴
𝐼

At the two ends of the elemental cylinder, the forces are different. They are acting along the same line
but are in opposite directions. Hence, there will be an unbalanced force on the elemental cylinder.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 120

 ∴ 𝑁𝑒𝑡 𝑢𝑛𝑏𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟
(𝑀 + 𝑑𝑀)𝑦 𝑀𝑦
=( × 𝑑𝐴) − ( × 𝑑𝐴)
𝐼 𝐼
𝑑𝑀 ⋅ 𝑦
= × 𝑑𝐴 … (𝑖)
𝐼

The total unbalanced force above level EF and between the two sections AB and CD may be found out by
considering all the elemental cylinders between sections AB and CD and above level EF (i.e. by integrating
the eqn (i))

∴ 𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑢𝑛𝑏𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒

𝑑𝑀 ⋅ 𝑦
=∫ × 𝑑𝐴
𝐼
𝑑𝑀
= ∫ 𝑦 ⋅ 𝑑𝐴
𝐼
𝑑𝑀
= × 𝐴 × 𝑦̅ {𝑅𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙: ∫ 𝑦 ⋅ 𝑑𝐴 = 𝐴 × 𝑦̅}
𝐼
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝐴 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝐸𝐹 (𝑜𝑟 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑦1 )
= 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝐸𝐹𝐺𝐻 (𝐹𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑒 9.1 (𝑐))
𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐹 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝐴 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠

Due to the total unbalanced force acting on the part of the beam above level EF and between sections AB
and CD as shown in Figure 9.2 (a), the beam may fail due to shear. Hence, to prevent failure by shear, the
horizontal section of the beam at level EF must offer shear resistance. This shear resistance must at least
be equal (and opposite) to the total unbalanced force to avoid failure due to shear.

Figure 9.2

∴ 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 (𝑜𝑟 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒)𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝐸𝐹

= 𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑢𝑛𝑏𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒
𝑑𝑀
= × 𝐴 × 𝑦̅ … (𝑖𝑖)
𝐼

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝜏 = 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑧𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝐸𝐹 (𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠)

𝑏 = 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝐸𝐹
∴ 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑛 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝜏 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 = 𝑏 × 𝑑𝑥
∴ 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝜏 = 𝜏 × 𝑏 × 𝑑𝑥 … (𝑖𝑖𝑖)

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 121

 𝐸𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦 (𝑖𝑖) 𝑎𝑛𝑑 (𝑖𝑖𝑖), 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡:
𝑑𝑀
𝜏 × 𝑏 × 𝑑𝑥 = × 𝐴 × 𝑦̅
𝐼
𝑑𝑀 𝐴 × 𝑦̅
𝜏= ×
𝐼 𝑏 × 𝑑𝑥
𝑑𝑀 𝐴𝑦̅
= ×
𝑑𝑥 𝐼𝑏
𝐴𝑦̅ 𝑑𝑀
=𝐹× … (𝑖𝑣) { = 𝐹 = 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒}
𝐼𝑏 𝑑𝑥

The Shear Force given by eqn. (iv) is the horizontal shear stress at the distance 𝑦1 from the Neutral Axis.
But by the principle of complimentary shear, the horizontal shear stress is accompanied by a vertical
shear stress, τ, of the same quantity. Sometimes, 𝐴 × 𝑦̅ is also expressed as the moment of area A about
the neutral axis. Also note that in eqn (iv), 𝑏 is the actual width at level EF (though here 𝑏 is the same at
all levels, in many cases, 𝑏 may not be the same at all levels e.g. in I-sections and in T-sections) and 𝐼 is
the total moment of inertia of the section about the Neutral Axis.

9.3 Shear Stress Distribution for Different Sections

The following are the important sections over which the shear stress distribution is to be obtained:
(i) Rectangular section
(ii) I-section
(iii) T-section
(iv) Miscellaneous section

9.3.1 Rectangular Section

Figure 9.3 shows a rectangular section of a beam of width 𝑏 and depth 𝑑. Let 𝐹 be the shear force acting
at the section. Consider level EF at a distance 𝑦 from the neutral axis. The shear stress at this level is given
by equation (iv) as:

𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏=𝐹×
𝐼𝑏
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝐴 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑦 𝑖. 𝑒. 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝐴𝐵𝐹𝐸
𝑑
𝐴 = ( − 𝑦) × 𝑏
2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 122

Figure 9.3
𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐹 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝐴 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠
1 𝑑
= 𝑦 + ( − 𝑦)
2 2
𝑑 𝑦
=𝑦+ −
4 2
𝑦 𝑑
= +
2 4
1 𝑑
= (𝑦 + )
2 2
𝑏 = 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝐸𝐹
𝐼 = 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑜𝑓 𝑤ℎ𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠

𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑒𝑞𝑛. (𝑖𝑣), 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡:

𝑑 1 𝑑
𝐹 (2 − 𝑦) × 𝑏 × 2 (𝑦 + 2 )
𝜏=
𝑏×𝐼
𝐹 𝑑2
= ( − 𝑦 2 ) … (𝑖𝑣)
2𝐼 4

From eqn. (iv) we see that 𝜏 increases as 𝑦 decreases. Also the variation of 𝜏 with respect to 𝑦 is parabolic.
𝑑
Figure 9.3 (b) shows the variation of shear stress across the section. At the topmost edge, 𝑦 = 2 hence:

𝐹 𝑑2 𝑑 2
𝜏 = ( −( ) )
2𝐼 4 2
𝐹
= ×0=0
2𝐼

𝐴𝑡 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠, 𝑦 = 0 ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒:

𝐹 𝑑2
𝜏 = ( − 0)
2𝐼 4
𝐹 𝑑2
= ×
2𝐼 4

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 123

 𝐹𝑑2
=
8𝐼
𝐹𝑑2 𝑏𝑑3
= {𝑅𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙: 𝐼𝑥𝑥, 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 = }
𝑏𝑑3 12
8 × 12
12 𝐹
= ×
8 𝑏𝑑
𝐹
= 1.5 … (𝑣𝑖)
𝑏𝑑

𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒
𝑁𝑜𝑤, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝜏𝑎𝑣𝑔 =
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑆𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝐹
=
𝑏𝑑
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑣𝑖) 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡:
𝜏 = 1.5 × 𝜏𝑎𝑣𝑔 … (𝑣𝑖𝑖)

𝐸𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑣𝑖𝑖) 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑦 = 0. 𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒
𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠.

∴ 𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 1.5𝜏𝑎𝑣𝑔 … (𝑣𝑖𝑖𝑖)

𝐴𝑦̅
From eqn (iv), 𝜏 = 𝐹 ⋅ 𝐼𝑏
. In this equation, the value of 𝐴𝑦̅ can also be calculated as given below:

𝐴𝑦̅ = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝐹𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑒 9.3(𝑎) 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠

Consider a strip of thickness 𝑑𝑦 at a distance 𝑦 from the Neutral Axis. Let 𝑑𝐴 be the area of this strip.

𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑑𝐴 = 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝 = 𝑏 × 𝑑𝑦

𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑑𝐴 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠 = 𝑑𝐴 × 𝑦, 𝑜𝑟 𝑦 × 𝑑𝐴
= 𝑦 × 𝑏𝑑𝑦 {𝑅𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙: 𝑑𝐴 = 𝑏 × 𝑑𝑦}

The moment of the shaded area about the Neutral Axis is obtained by integrating the above equation
𝑑
between the limits of 𝑦 to .
2

∴ 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠

𝑑
2

= ∫ 𝑦 × 𝑏 × 𝑑𝑦
𝑦
𝑑
2

= 𝑏 ∫ 𝑦 × 𝑑𝑦
𝑦
𝑑
𝑦2 2
= 𝑏[ ]
2 𝑦

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 124

 𝑏 𝑑 2
= [( ) − 𝑦 2 ]
2 2
𝑏 𝑑2
= ( − 𝑦2)
2 4
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑜 𝐴𝑦̅
𝑏 𝑑2
∴ 𝐴𝑦̅ = ( − 𝑦 2 )
2 4
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝑦̅ 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖𝑣), 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡:
𝑏 𝑑2
𝐹 × 2 ( 4 − 𝑦2)
𝜏=
𝐼×𝑏
𝐹 𝑑2
= ( − 𝑦 2 ) {𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑠 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑣)}
2𝐼 4

9.3.2 I-section
Figure 9.4 shows the I-section of a beam.

Figure 9.4

𝐿𝑒𝑡: 𝐵 = 𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

𝐷 = 𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑑𝑒𝑝𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝑏 = 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑐𝑘𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏
𝑑 = 𝑑𝑒𝑝𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏

𝐴𝑦̅
The shear stress at a distance 𝑦 from the Neutral Axis is given by eqn (iv) as 𝜏 = 𝐹 ⋅ 𝐼𝑏 . In this case, the
shear force in the web and the shear force in the flange are to be calculated separately. Let us first
consider the shear stress distribution in the flange.
(𝑖) 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒
𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑎 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑎 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑦 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝐹𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑒 9.5 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 125

Figure 9.5

𝑊𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 = 𝐵
𝐷
𝑆ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒, 𝐴 = 𝐵 ( − 𝑦)
2
𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑠:
1 𝐷
𝑦̅ = 𝑦 + ( − 𝑦)
2 2
𝐷 𝑦
=𝑦+ −
4 2
𝐷 𝑦
= +
4 2
1 𝐷
= ( + 𝑦)
2 2

𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑠,

𝐹 × 𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏= {𝐻𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ = 𝐵}
𝐼𝐵
𝐷 1 𝐷
𝐹 × 𝐵 ( − 𝑦) × ( + 𝑦)
𝜏= 2 2 2
𝐼𝐵
𝐹 𝑑 2
= [( ) − 𝑦 2 ]
2𝐼 2
𝐹 𝐷2
= ( − 𝑦 2 ) … (𝑖𝑥)
2𝐼 2

Hence, the variation of the shear stress τ with respect to 𝑦 in the flange is parabolic. It is also clear from
eqn. (ix) that an increase in 𝑦 will decrease the shear stress.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 126

 (𝑎)𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑒𝑑𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒,
𝐷
𝑦=
2
𝐹 𝐷2 𝐷 2
𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠, 𝜏 = ( − ( ) )
2𝐼 4 2
=0

(𝑏)𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑒𝑑𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒,

𝑑
𝑦=
2
𝐹 𝐷2 𝑑 2
𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠, 𝜏 = ( − ( ) )
2𝐼 4 2
𝐹 𝐷2 𝑑2
= ( − )
2𝐼 4 4
𝐹
= (𝐷 2 − 𝑑2 ) … (𝑥)
8𝐼

(𝑖𝑖)𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏

𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑎 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑦 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑎𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝐹𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑒 9.5
𝑊𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 = 𝑏
𝐻𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴𝑦̅ 𝑖𝑠 𝑚𝑎𝑑𝑒 𝑢𝑝 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑠, 𝑖. 𝑒. 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑝𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓
𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁. 𝐴.

∴ 𝐴𝑦̅ = [𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴] + [𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴]

𝐷 𝑑 1 𝐷 𝑑 𝑑 1 𝑑
= [𝐵 ( − ) × ( + )] + [𝑏 ( − 𝑦) × ( + 𝑦)]
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
2
𝐵 2 𝑏 𝑑
= (𝐷 − 𝑑2 ) + ( − 𝑦 2 )
8 2 4

𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑠:

𝐹 × 𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏=
𝐼𝑏
𝐹 𝐵 2 𝑏 𝑑2
= [ (𝐷 − 𝑑 ) + ( − 𝑦 2 )] … (𝑥𝑖)
2
𝐼𝑏 8 2 4

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑥𝑖), 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑐𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑣𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝜏 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒄 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜, 𝑎𝑛
𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑦 𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝜏.
𝐴𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑦 = 0 ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚

𝐹 𝐵 2 𝑏 𝑑2
∴ 𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 =[ (𝐷 − 𝑑 2 ) + ( × )]
𝐼𝑏 8 2 4
2 2 2
𝐹 𝐵(𝐷 − 𝑑 ) 𝑏𝑑
= [ + ] … (𝑥𝑖𝑖)
𝐼𝑏 8 8

𝐴𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑝 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒,
𝑑
𝑦=
2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 127

 𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:
𝐹 𝐵 2 2
𝑏 𝑑2 𝑑 2
𝜏 = [ (𝐷 − 𝑑 ) + ( − ( ) )]
𝐼𝑏 8 2 4 2
𝐹 × 𝐵 × (𝐷 2 − 𝑑 2 )
= … (𝑥𝑖𝑖𝑖)
8𝐼 × 𝑏

The shear stress distribution for the web and flange is shown in Figure 9.4 (b). The shear stress at the
junction of the flange and the web changes abruptly. The equation (x) gives the stress at the junction of
the flange and web when stress distribution is considered in the flange. But equation (xiii) gives the stress
at the junction when stress distribution is considered in the web. From these two equations, it is clear
𝐹 𝐵 𝐹
that the stress changes abruptly from 8𝐼 (𝐷 2 − 𝑑2 ) to 𝑏 × 8𝐼 (𝐷 2 − 𝑑2 ). Therefore, we need to remember
that the abrupt change in shear stress is caused by the abrupt change in the with i.e. 𝐵 to 𝑏.

9.3.3 T-Section
The stress distribution over a T-section is obtained in the same manner as in the I-section as discussed in
9.3.2. In the case of a T-section, however, the position of the Neutral Axis (i.e. position of the CoG) is to
be obtained first as the section is not symmetrical about the x-x axis. The shear force diagram will also be
asymmetrical as illustrated in Figure 9.6.

Figure 9.6

9.3.4
For a miscellaneous section, the shear stress distribution is obtained in the same manner as the I-section,
only that the position of the Neutral Axis will have to be determined first, just as in the case with the T-
section.

9.4 Worked Examples

1. A beam 100𝑚𝑚 wide and 150𝑚𝑚 deep is simply supported over a span of 4𝑚. If the shear force
at a section of the beam is 4.5𝑘𝑁, find the shear stress at a distance of 25𝑚𝑚 above the Neutral
Axis.

𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏 = 100𝑚𝑚, 𝑑 = 150𝑚𝑚, 𝐹 = 4.5𝑘𝑁

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 128

 𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝜏 𝑏𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑎 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 25𝑚𝑚 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠
𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖𝑣) 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡
𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏=𝐹⋅ {𝐴 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑦1 = 100𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 = 5000𝑚𝑚2 }
𝐼𝑏
50𝑚𝑚
𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝐴 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴 = 25𝑚𝑚 + = 50𝑚𝑚
2

𝐼 = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝐼𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

𝑏𝑑3 100𝑚𝑚 × (150𝑚𝑚)3
= =
12 12
= 28125000𝑚𝑚4
𝑏 = 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑦1 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴 = 100𝑚𝑚
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖𝑣) 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡
4.5𝑘𝑁 × 5000𝑚𝑚2 × 50𝑚𝑚
𝜏=
28125000 × 100𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟎𝟒𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐 𝒐𝒓 𝟒. 𝟎 × 𝟏𝟎−𝟒 𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

2. A rectangular beam 100𝑚𝑚 wide and 250𝑚𝑚 deep is subjected to a maximum shear force of
50𝑘𝑁. Determine:
(i) The average shear stress;
(ii) The maximum shear stress;
(iii) Shear stress at a distance of 25mm above the neutral axis.

𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏 = 100𝑚𝑚, 𝑑 = 250𝑚𝑚, 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒, 𝐹 = 50𝑘𝑁

𝐹 50𝑘𝑁
(𝑖) 𝜏𝑎𝑣𝑔 = =
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 100𝑚𝑚 × 250𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟐𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 129

 (𝑖𝑖) 𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑣𝑖𝑖𝑖)
𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝜏𝑎𝑣𝑔 × 1.5
= 0.002𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 1.5
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟑𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

(𝑖𝑖𝑖) 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑎 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 25𝑚𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦 𝑒𝑞𝑛 (𝑖𝑣)

𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏=𝐹⋅
𝐼𝑏

100𝑚𝑚
𝐹 = 50𝑘𝑁, 𝐴 = 100𝑚 × 100𝑚𝑚 = 10000𝑚𝑚2 , 𝑦̅ = 25𝑚𝑚 + = 75𝑚𝑚, 𝑏 = 100𝑚𝑚
2
𝑏𝑑3 100𝑚𝑚 × (250𝑚𝑚)3
𝐼= = = 130208333.3𝑚𝑚4
12 12

50𝑘𝑁 × 10000𝑚𝑚2 × 75𝑚𝑚

∴𝜏=
130208333.3𝑚𝑚4 × 100𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟐𝟖𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 130

 3. An I-section beam 350𝑚𝑚 by 150𝑚𝑚 has a web thickness of 10𝑚𝑚 and a flange thickness of
20𝑚𝑚. If the shear force acting on the section is 40𝑘𝑁, find the maximum shear stress developed
in the I-section.

𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑑 = 350𝑚𝑚, 𝐵 = 150𝑚𝑚, 𝑏 = 10𝑚𝑚, 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑐𝑘𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠 = 20𝑚𝑚

𝑑 = 350𝑚𝑚 − 20𝑚𝑚 − 20𝑚𝑚 = 310𝑚𝑚, 𝐹 = 40𝑘𝑁

𝑏𝑑3 150𝑚𝑚 × (350𝑚𝑚)3 140𝑚𝑚 × (310𝑚𝑚)3

𝐼 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴 = =[ ]−[ ]
12 12 12
= 188375833.3𝑚𝑚4

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑑𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐼 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠.
𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:
𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝐹 ⋅
𝐼𝑏
𝐹 = 40𝑘𝑁
𝐴𝑦̅ = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴
= 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 × 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴 + 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑒𝑏
𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑁. 𝐴 × 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴
310𝑚𝑚 20𝑚𝑚 310𝑚𝑚 310𝑚𝑚 1
= [150𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚 × ( + )] + [( × 10𝑚𝑚) × ( × )]
2 2 2 2 2
= 615125𝑚𝑚3

𝐼 = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑤ℎ𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴

= 188375833.3𝑚𝑚4

𝑏 = 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴 = 10𝑚𝑚

40𝑘𝑁 × 615125𝑚𝑚3
𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 =
188375833.3𝑚𝑚4 × 10𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟏𝟑𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

4. The shear force acting on a beam at an I-section with unequal flanges is 50𝑘𝑁. The section is
shown in the figure below. The moment of inertia of the section about the N.A is 2.849 ×
108 𝑚𝑚4 . Calculate the shear stress at the N.A and also sketch the shear stress distribution
diagram over the depth of the entire section.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 131

 𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝐺𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝐹 = 50𝑘𝑁, 𝐼 = 2.849 × 108 𝑚𝑚4
𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑁. 𝐴. 𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑦 ∗ 𝑏𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒
𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛:
𝑎1 𝑦1 + 𝑎2 𝑦2 + 𝑎3 𝑦3
𝑦∗ =
𝑎1 + 𝑎2 + 𝑎3
(200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × 275𝑚𝑚) + (200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × 150𝑚𝑚) + (130𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × 25𝑚𝑚)
𝑦∗ =
(200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚) + (200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚) + (130𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚)
= 166.51𝑚𝑚

𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑎 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 166.51𝑚𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚.

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛:
(𝑖) 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑑𝑔𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝟎
(𝑖𝑖) 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑖𝑠
𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:
𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏=𝐹⋅
𝐼𝑏
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴𝑦̅ = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴
= 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 × 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴
= 200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × (133.49𝑚𝑚 − 25𝑚𝑚)
= 1084900𝑚𝑚3
𝑏 = 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒
= 200𝑚𝑚

50𝑘𝑁 × 1084900𝑚𝑚3
∴𝜏=
2.849 × 108 𝑚𝑚4 × 200𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟎𝟗𝟓𝟐𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

(𝑖𝑖𝑖) 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑖𝑤𝑙𝑙
𝐵
𝑠𝑢𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟
𝑏

200𝑚𝑚
= 0.000952𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 ×
50𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟑𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

(𝑖𝑣) 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑎𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴. 𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:
𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝐹 ⋅
𝐼𝑏
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴𝑦̅ = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴
= 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴 + 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴
(133.49 − 50)
= [200𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × (133.49𝑚𝑚 − 25𝑚𝑚)] + [(133.49𝑚𝑚 − 50𝑚𝑚) × 50𝑚𝑚 × ]
2
= 1259164.5𝑚𝑚3
𝑏 = 50𝑚𝑚
𝐴𝑦̅
∴ 𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝐹 ⋅
𝐼𝑏
50𝑘𝑁 × 1259164.5𝑚𝑚3
=
2.849 × 108 𝑚𝑚4 × 50𝑚𝑚

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 132

 = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟒𝟒𝟐𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

(𝑣) 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑
𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:
𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏=𝐹⋅
𝐼𝑏
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴𝑦̅ = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴
= 130𝑚𝑚 × 50𝑚𝑚 × (166.51𝑚𝑚 − 25𝑚𝑚)
= 919815𝑚𝑚3
𝑏 = 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒
= 130𝑚𝑚

50𝑘𝑁 × 919815𝑚𝑚3
∴𝜏=
2.849 × 108 𝑚𝑚4 × 130𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟏𝟐𝟒 𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

(𝑣𝑖) 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒
𝐵
𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑠𝑢𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟
𝑏
2
130𝑚𝑚
= 0.00124𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚 ×
50𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟑𝟐𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

5. The T-section shown below is subjected to a shear force of 80kN at a section. Find the maximum
shear stress in the section and sketch the variation of the shear stress.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 133

 𝑊𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐼𝑥𝑥 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡
𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑦 − 𝑦 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠. 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒𝑠, 1 𝑎𝑛𝑑 2.

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑦 ∗ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒

𝑎1 = 120𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚 = 2400𝑚𝑚2
𝑦1 = 130𝑚𝑚
𝑎2 = 120𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚 = 2400𝑚𝑚2
𝑦2 = 60𝑚𝑚

𝑎1 𝑦1 + 𝑎2 𝑦2
∴ 𝑦∗ =
𝑎1 + 𝑎2
(2400𝑚𝑚 × 130𝑚𝑚) + (2400𝑚𝑚2 × 60𝑚𝑚)
2
=
2400𝑚𝑚2 + 2400𝑚𝑚2
= 95𝑚𝑚

𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑖𝑠 95𝑚𝑚 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚. 𝑁𝑜𝑤 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔
𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑃𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑙 𝐴𝑥𝑒𝑠

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝐼𝐺1 = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 1 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴

𝐼𝐺2 = 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎 𝑜𝑓 2 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴
20𝑚𝑚
ℎ1 = 45𝑚𝑚 − = 35𝑚𝑚
2
ℎ2 = 95𝑚𝑚 − 60𝑚𝑚 = 35𝑚𝑚

∴ 𝐼𝑥𝑥 = (𝐼𝐺1 + 𝑎1 ℎ1 2 ) + (𝐼𝐺2 + 𝑎2 ℎ2 2 )

120𝑚𝑚 × (20𝑚𝑚)3
=[ + 2400𝑚𝑚2 × (35𝑚𝑚)2 ]
12
20𝑚𝑚 × (120𝑚𝑚)3
+[ + 2400𝑚𝑚2 × (35𝑚𝑚)2 ]
12
= 3020000𝑚𝑚4 + 5820000𝑚𝑚4
= 8840000𝑚𝑚4

𝑁𝑒𝑥𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 134

 (𝑖) 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑝 𝑒𝑑𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑖𝑠 0. 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛
𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦:

𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏=𝐹⋅
𝐼𝑏
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴 = 120𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚 = 2400𝑚𝑚2
𝑦̅ = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑜𝐺 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑁. 𝐴
20𝑚𝑚
= 45𝑚𝑚 −
2
= 35𝑚𝑚
𝑏 = 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 = 120𝑚𝑚

80𝑘𝑁 × 2400𝑚𝑚2 × 35𝑚𝑚

∴𝜏=
8840000𝑚𝑚4 × 120𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟔𝟑𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

(𝑖𝑖) 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙
𝐵
𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟
𝑏
2
120𝑚𝑚
= 0.0063𝑘𝑁/𝑚𝑚 ×
20𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟑𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

(𝑖𝑖𝑖) 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑎𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴 ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑏𝑦

𝐴𝑦̅
𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝐹 ⋅
𝐼𝑏
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴𝑦̅ = 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴
= 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴 + 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑒𝑏 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑁. 𝐴 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁. 𝐴
20𝑚𝑚 45𝑚𝑚 − 20𝑚𝑚
= [120𝑚𝑚 × 20𝑚𝑚 × (45𝑚𝑚 − )] + [20𝑚𝑚 × (45𝑚𝑚 − 20𝑚𝑚) × ( )]
2 2
= 84000𝑚𝑚3 + 6250𝑚𝑚3
= 90250𝑚𝑚3
𝑏 = 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑒𝑏 = 20𝑚𝑚
80𝑘𝑁 × 90250𝑚𝑚3
∴ 𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 =
8840000𝑚𝑚4 × 20𝑚𝑚
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟒𝟎𝟖𝒌𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 135

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 136
10.0 Columns and Struts

10.1 Introduction
A column or strut is a structural member subjected to axial compressive loads. If the member is vertical
with both of its ends fixed rigidly, it is known as a column. If the member is not vertical and one or both
of its ends are hinged or pin-jointed, the bar is known as a strut. We can find examples of struts in
compression members of a truss. Examples of columns and struts are as shown in Figure 10.1 below:

Figure 10.1: (a) Columns in an RC building (b) A strut in a truss

10.2 Failure of a column

Failure of a column occurs due to any one of the following stresses set up in the column:
(i) Direct compressive stresses;
(ii) Buckling stresses;
(iii) Combination of direct compressive and buckling stresses.

10.2.1 Failure of a short column

A short column is one whose ration of effective length to its least lateral dimension is less than or equal
to 12. Consider a short column of uniform cross-sectional area 𝐴 subjected to an axial compressive load
𝑃, in Figure 10.2 below:

Figure 10.2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 137

The compressive stress induced is given by:
𝑃
𝜎=
𝐴
If the compressive load on the short column is gradually increased, a stage will reach when the column
will be on the point of failure by crushing. The stress induced in the column corresponding to this load is
known as crushing stress and the load is known as crushing load. All short columns fail by crushing.

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑃𝑐 = 𝑐𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑

𝜎𝑐 = 𝑐𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
𝐴 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

𝑃𝑐
𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑛, 𝜎𝑐 =
𝐴

Figure 10.3 shows a column that has failed by crushing.

Figure 10.3

10.2.2 Failure of a long column

A long column is one whose ratio of its effective length to its least lateral dimension is greater than 12.
Consider a long column of uniform cross-sectional area 𝐴 and length 𝑙 as shown in Figure 10.4 (a):

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 138

Figure 10.4 (a) Figure 10.4 (b)

A long column will not fail by crushing alone but also by bending (or buckling) as shown in Figure 10.4
(b). The load at which the column just buckles is known as buckling load/critical load/crippling load.
The buckling load is less than the crushing load for a long column. We can say that the value of buckling
load for a long column is low and for a short column is very high.

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑙 = 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑛

𝑃 = 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑛 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑏𝑢𝑐𝑘𝑙𝑒𝑑
𝐴 = 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑛
𝑒 = 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑒
𝑃
𝜎0 = 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑑𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 =
𝐴
𝑃×𝑒
𝜎𝑏 = 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑛 =
𝑍
𝑍 = 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔

The extreme stresses on the mid-section are given by:

𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 = 𝜎0 + 𝜎𝑏
𝑀𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 = 𝜎0 − 𝜎𝑏

The column will fail when maximum stress (𝜎0 + 𝜎𝑏 ) is more than the crushing stress (𝜎𝑐 ). But in the
case of long columns, the direct compressive stresses are negligible as compared to buckling stresses.
Hence, very long columns are subjected to buckling stresses only.

10.3 Assumptions made in Euler’s Column Theory

(i) The column is initially perfectly straight and the load is applied axially.

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 139

 (ii) The cross-section of the column is uniform throughout the length of the column.
(iii) The material of the column is perfectly elastic, homogeneous and isotropic, and it obeys Hooke’s
Law.
(iv) The length of the column is very large in comparison to its lateral dimension.
(v) The direct stress is very small in comparison to the bending stress.
(vi) The column will fail by buckling alone.
(vii) The self-weight of the column is negligible.

10.4 End Conditions for Long Columns

Failure of long columns is entirely by buckling or bending. The following are the important end condition
types of the columns:
(i) Both ends of the column are pinned/hinged.
(ii) One end of the column is fixed and the other free.
(iii) Both ends of the column are fixed.
(iv) One end of the column is free, the other end is pinned.

For a hinged end, the deflection is zero while for a fixed end, the deflection and slope are zero. For a
free end deflection is not zero.

10.4.1 Sign Conventions

The following sign conventions for the bending of columns will be used:
(i) A moment which will bend the column with its convexity towards tis initial centre line as shown
in Figure 10.5 (a) is taken as positive.
(ii) A moment which will tend to bend the column with its concavity towards its initial centre line as
shown in Figure 10.5 (b) is taken as negative.

Figure 10.5

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 140

10.5 Effective Length/Equivalent Length of Column
The effective length of a given column with given end conditions is the length of an equivalent column of
the same material and cross-section with hinged ends, and having the value of the critical load equal to
that of the given column

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑙𝑒 = 𝑒𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑛

𝑙 = 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑛
𝑃 = 𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 (𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙) 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑛

Then the critical load for any type of end condition is given by the equation below:

𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼
𝑃= … (𝑖)
𝑙𝑒 2

The critical load in terms of actual length and effective length and also the relation between effective
length and actual length are given in the table below:

End Condition of Column Crippling load in terms of: Relationship

Actual Length Effective Length between Effective
length and Actual
length
Both ends hinged 𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝐿𝑒 = 𝑙
𝑙2 𝐿𝑒 2

One end fixed; one 𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝐿𝑒 = 2𝑙

end free 4𝑙 2 𝐿𝑒 2

Both ends fixed 4𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝑙

𝐿𝑒 =
𝑙2 𝐿𝑒 2 2

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 141

 One end fixed; one 4𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝑙
𝐿𝑒 =
end hinged 𝑙2 𝐿𝑒 2
√2

10.5.1 Crippling stress in terms of Effective length and Radius of Gyration

The moment of inertia 𝐼 can be expressed in terms of the radius of gyration (r) as:

𝐼 = 𝐴𝑟 2
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

As 𝐼 is the least value of the moment of inertia, then 𝑟=least radius of gyration of the column section.
The crippling load 𝑃 in terms of the effective length will be given by:

𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼 𝜋 2 𝐸 × 𝐴𝑟 2
𝑃= =
𝐿𝑒 2 𝐿𝑒 2

𝜋2𝐸 × 𝐴
=
𝐿𝑒 2
𝑟2

𝜋2𝐸 × 𝐴
= … (𝑖𝑖)
𝐿 2
( 𝑒)
𝑟

And stress corresponding to the crippling load will be given by:

𝐶𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐿𝑜𝑎𝑑
𝐶𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 =
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎
𝑃
=
𝐴
𝜋2𝐸 × 𝐴
=
𝐿 2
𝐴 ( 𝑟𝑒 )
𝜋2𝐸
= … (𝑖𝑖𝑖)
𝐿 2
( 𝑟𝑒 )

10.5.2 Slenderness Ratio

Slenderness ratio is defined as the ratio of the effective length of a column to its least radius of gyration.
It is expressed as:

𝐸𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ
𝑆𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 =
𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑦𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 142

 𝐿𝑒
= … (𝑖𝑣)
𝑟

10.6 Rankine-Gordon Formula

𝜋2 𝐸
Euler’s Formula (𝜎𝑐 = 𝐿 2
) gives correct results only for very long columns. But what happens when
( 𝑒)
𝑟
the column is short or not very long? On the basis of results of experiments performed by Rankine, he
established an empirical (experimentation) formula that is applicable to all columns whether they are
long or short. This formula is known as Rankine’s formula and is given as:

1 1 1
= + … (𝑣)
𝑃 𝑃𝑐 𝑃𝐸
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒: 𝑃 = 𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑅𝑎𝑛𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑒 ′ 𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎
𝑃𝑐 = 𝑐𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 = 𝜎𝑐 × 𝐴
𝜎𝑐 = 𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
𝐴 = 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼
𝑃𝐸 = 𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝐸𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑟 ′ 𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎 =
𝐿𝑒 2

For a given column material, crushing stress 𝜎𝑐 is constant, hence the crushing load 𝑃𝑐 = 𝜎𝑐 × 𝐴 will also
be constant for a given cross-sectional area of the column. In eqn. (v) 𝑃𝑐 is constant and hence the value
of 𝑃 depends upon the value of 𝑃𝐸 . But for a given column material, and given cross-sectional area, the
value of 𝑃𝐸 depends upon the effective length of the column.

1
If the column is short, 𝐿𝑒 is very small then the value of 𝑃𝐸 will be large, hence the value of will be
𝑃𝐸
1 1
small enough and will be negligible as compared to the value of 𝑃 . Neglecting the value of 𝑃𝐸
in eqn. (v),
𝑐
we get:
1 1
→ 𝑜𝑟 𝑃 → 𝑃𝑐
𝑃 𝑃𝑐
Hence the critical load/crippling load by Rankine’s formula for a short column is approximately equal to
the crushing load. In section 10.2.1 we also saw that short columns fail due to crushing.

1
If the column is long, 𝐿𝑒 is large. Then the value of 𝑃𝐸 will be small and the value of will be large
𝑃𝐸
1 1
enough compared to the value of 𝑃 . Hence the value of 𝑃𝑐
may be neglected in eqn. (v) for long
𝑐
columns.
1 1
→ 𝑜𝑟 𝑃 → 𝑃𝐸
𝑃 𝑃𝐸
Hence the critical/crippling load by Rankine’s formula for long columns is approximately equal to the
crippling load given by Euler’s formula. The Rankine’s formula therefore given satisfactory results for all
lengths of columns ranging from short to long columns. Now, the Rankine’s formula is:

1 1 1 𝑃𝐸 + 𝑃𝑐
= + =
𝑃 𝑃𝑐 𝑃𝐸 𝑃𝑐 𝑃𝐸
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑏𝑜𝑡ℎ 𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑠 𝑤𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒:

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 143

 𝑃𝑐 𝑃𝐸
𝑃=
𝑃𝐸 + 𝑃𝑐

𝑃𝑐
=
𝑃
1 + 𝑃𝑐
𝐸

𝜎𝑐 × 𝐴
=
𝜎𝐴
1 + 2𝑐
𝜋 𝐸𝐼
( 2)
𝐿𝑒
𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝐼 = 𝐴𝑟 2 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑟 = 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑦𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑠:
𝜎𝑐 × 𝐴
𝑃=
𝜎 𝐴𝐿 2
1 + 2𝑐 𝑒 2
𝜋 𝐸𝐴𝑟

𝜎𝑐 𝐴
=
𝜎𝑐 𝐿𝑒 2
1+ ( )
𝜋 2𝐸 𝑟

𝜎𝑐 𝐴
= … (𝑣𝑖)
𝐿𝑒 2
1+𝛼(𝑟 )
𝜎𝑐
𝛼= 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑠 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑎𝑠 𝑅𝑎𝑛𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑒 ′ 𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡
𝜋2𝐸

Equation (vi) gives the crippling load by Rankine’s formula. As the formula is empirical, the value of α is
taken from results of experiments and is not calculated from values of 𝜎𝑐 and 𝐸. Some values of α for
different column materials are given in the table below:

Material 𝝈𝒄 (𝑵/𝒎𝒎𝟐 ) Α
Wrought iron 250 1
9000
Cast iron 550 1
1600
Mild steel 320 1
7500
Timber 50 1
750

10.7 Worked Examples

1. A solid round bar 3𝑚 long and 5𝑚 in diameter is used as a strut with both ends pinned.
𝜋
Determine the critical load (crippling load). Take 𝐸 = 2.0 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 and 𝐼 = 64 ×
(50𝑚𝑚)4 = 306796.2𝑚𝑚4.

𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛: 𝑙𝑒 = 3𝑚 = 𝑙

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 144

 𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼
𝑃=
𝐿𝑒 2

𝜋 2 × 2.0 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 306796.2𝑚𝑚4

=
(3000𝑚𝑚)2

= 𝟔𝟕. 𝟐𝟗𝒌𝑵

2. For question 1 above, determine the critical load, when the given strut is used with the
following end conditions:
(i) One end fixed, the other end free;
(ii) Both ends fixed;
(iii) One end fixed, the other end pinned.

𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑖): 𝑙𝑒 = 2𝑙 = 2 × 3𝑚 = 6𝑚

𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼
𝑃=
𝐿𝑒 2

𝜋 2 × 2.0 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 306796.2𝑚𝑚4

=
(6000𝑚𝑚)2

= 𝟏𝟔. 𝟖𝟐𝒌𝑵

𝑙 3𝑚
(𝑖𝑖): 𝑙𝑒 = = = 1.5𝑚
2 2

𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼
𝑃=
𝐿𝑒 2

𝜋 2 × 2.0 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 306796.2𝑚𝑚4

=
(1500𝑚𝑚)2

= 𝟐𝟔𝟗. 𝟏𝟓𝒌𝑵

𝑙 3𝑚
(𝑖𝑖𝑖): 𝑙𝑒 = = = 2.121𝑚
√2 √2

𝜋 2 𝐸𝐼
𝑃=
𝐿𝑒 2

𝜋 2 × 2.0 × 105 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 × 306796.2𝑚𝑚4

=
(2121𝑚𝑚)2

= 𝟏𝟑𝟒. 𝟔𝟐𝒌𝑵

STRUCTURES I: By Alexander Akhubi 145