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LECTURE33
Macaulay'sMethods
Iftheloadingconditionschangealongthespanofbeam,thereiscorrespondingchangeinmomentequation.This
requiresthataseparatemomentequationbewrittenbetweeneachchangeofloadpointandthattwointegrationbemade
for each such moment equation. Evaluation of the constants introduced by each integration can become very involved.
Fortunately, these complications can be avoided by writing single moment equation in such a way that it becomes
continuousforentirelengthofthebeaminspiteofthediscontinuityofloading.
Note:InMacaulay'smethodsomeauthor'stakethehelpofunitfunctionapproximation(i.e.Laplacetransform)inorderto
illustratethismethod,howeverbothareessentiallythesame.
Forexampleconsiderthebeamshowninfigbelow:
LetuswritethegeneralmomentequationusingthedefinitionM=(M)L ,Whichmeansthatweconsidertheeffectsof
loadslyingontheleftofanexploratorysection.ThemomentequationsfortheportionsAB,BCandCDarewrittenasfollows

ItmaybeobservedthattheequationforMCDwillalsobevalidforbothMABandMBCprovidedthattheterms(x2)and(x
3)2 areneglectedforvaluesofxlessthan2mand3m,respectively.Inotherwords,theterms(x2)and(x3)2 are
nonexistentforvaluesofxforwhichthetermsinparenthesesarenegative.

Asanclearindicationoftheserestrictions,onemayuseanomenclatureinwhichtheusualformofparenthesesisreplaced
bypointedbrackets,namely,.Withthischangeinnomenclature,weobtainasinglemomentequation

Whichisvalidfortheentirebeamifwepostulatethatthetermsbetweenthepointedbracketsdonotexistsfornegative
valuesotherwisethetermistobetreatedlikeanyordinaryexpression.
As an another example, consider the beam as shown in the fig below. Here the distributed load extends only over the
segmentBC.Wecancreatecontinuity,however,byassumingthatthedistributedloadextendsbeyondCandaddingan
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equal upwarddistributed load to cancel its effect beyond C, as shown in the adjacent fig below. The general moment
equation,writtenforthelastsegmentDEinthenewnomenclaturemaybewrittenas:

Itmaybenotedthatinthisequationeffectofload600Nwon'tappearsinceitisjustatthelastendofthebeamsoifwe
assumetheexplorataryjustatsectionatjustthepointofapplicationof600Nthanx=0orelsewewillheretaketheX
sectionbeyond600Nwhichisinvalid.
Proceduretosolvetheproblems
(i).Afterwritingdownthemomentequationwhichisvalidforallvaluesofx'i.e.containingpointedbrackets,
integratethemomentequationlikeanordinaryequation.
(ii).WhileapplyingtheB.C'skeepinmindthenecessarychangestobemaderegardingthepointedbrackets.
llustrativeExamples:
1.Aconcentratedloadof300NisappliedtothesimplysupportedbeamasshowninFig.Determinetheequationsofthe
elasticcurvebetweeneachchangeofloadpointandthemaximumdeflectioninthebeam.

Solution:writingthegeneralmomentequationforthelastportionBCoftheloadedbeam,

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Toevaluatethetwoconstantsofintegration.Letusapplythefollowingboundaryconditions:
1.AtpointAwherex=0,thevalueofdeflectiony=0.SubstitutingthesevaluesinEq.(3)wefindC2 =0.keepin
mindthat<x2>3 istobeneglectedfornegativevalues.

2.Attheothersupportwherex=3m,thevalueofdeflectionyisalsozero.
substitutingthesevaluesinthedeflectionEq.(3),weobtain

Havingdeterminedtheconstantsofintegration,letusmakeuseofEqs.(2)and(3)torewritetheslopeanddeflection
equationsintheconventionalformforthetwoportions.

Continuingthesolution,weassumethatthemaximumdeflectionwilloccurinthesegmentAB.Itslocationmaybefoundby
differentiatingEq.(5)withrespecttoxandsettingthederivativetobeequaltozero,or,whatamountstothesamething,
settingtheslopeequation(4)equaltozeroandsolvingforthepointofzeroslope.
Weobtain
50x2 133=0orx=1.63m(Itmaybekeptinmindthatifthesolutionoftheequationdoesnotyieldavalue<2mthenwe
havetotrytheotherequationswhicharevalidforsegmentBC)
SincethisvalueofxisvalidforsegmentAB,ourassumptionthatthemaximumdeflectionoccursinthisregioniscorrect.
Hence,todeterminethemaximumdeflection,wesubstitutex=1.63minEq(5),whichyields

Thenegativevalueobtainedindicatesthatthedeflectionyisdownwardfromthexaxis.quiteusuallyonlythemagnitudeof
thedeflection,withoutregardtosign,isdesiredthisisdenotedbyd,theuseofymaybereservedtoindicateadirected
valueofdeflection.
ifE=30GpaandI=1.9x106 mm4 =1.9x106 m4 ,Eq.(h)becomes
Then

Example2:
ItisrequiredtodeterminethevalueofEIyatthepositionmidwaybetweenthesupportsandattheoverhangingendforthe
beamshowninfigurebelow.

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Solution:
Writingdownthemomentequationwhichisvalidfortheentirespanofthebeamandapplyingthedifferentialequationofthe
elasticcurve,andintegratingittwice,weobtain

TodeterminethevalueofC2 ,ItmaybenotedthatEIy=0atx=0,whichgivesC2 =0.Notethatthenegativetermsin

thepointedbracketsaretobeignoredNext,letususetheconditionthatEIy=0attherightsupportwherex=6m.Thisgives

Finally,toobtainthemidspandeflection,letussubstitutethevalueofx=3minthedeflectionequationforthe
segmentBCobtainedbyignoringnegativevaluesofthebracketedtermsx44andx63 .Weobtain

Example3:
Asimplysupportedbeamcarriesthetriangularlydistributedloadasshowninfigure.Determinethedeflectionequationand
thevalueofthemaximumdeflection.

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Solution:
Duetosymmetry,thereactionsisonehalfthetotalloadof1/2w0 L,orR1 =R2 =1/4w0 L.Duetotheadvantageofsymmetryto
thedeflectioncurvefromAtoBisthemirrorimageofthatfromCtoB.TheconditionofzerodeflectionatAandofzeroslope
atBdonotrequiretheuseofageneralmomentequation.OnlythemomentequationforsegmentABisneeded,andthis
maybeeasilywrittenwiththeaidoffigure(b).
TakingintoaccountthedifferentialequationoftheelasticcurveforthesegmentABandintegratingtwice,onecanobtain

Inordertoevaluatetheconstantsofintegration,letusapplytheB.C'swenotethatatthesupportA,y=0atx=0.Hencefrom
equation(3),wegetC2 =0.Also,becauseofsymmetry,theslopedy/dx=0atmidspanwherex=L/2.Substitutingthese
conditionsinequation(2)weget

HencethedeflectionequationfromAtoB(andalsofromCtoBbecauseofsymmetry)becomes

Example4:coupleacting
Consider a simply supported beam which is subjected to a couple M at adistance 'a' from the left end. It is required to
determineusingtheMacauley'smethod.

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Todealwithcouples,onlythingtorememberisthatwithinthepointedbracketswehavetotakesomequantityand
thisshouldberaisedtothepowerzero.i.e.Mxa0 .Wehavetakenthepower0(zero)'becauseultimatelythetermMx
a0 Shouldhavethemomentunits.Thuswithintegrationthequantityxabecomeseitherxa1 orxa2
Or

Therefore,writingthegeneralmomentequationweget

Example5:
AsimplysupportedbeamissubjectedtoU.d.lincombinationwithcoupleM.Itisrequiredtodeterminethedeflection.

Thisproblemmaybeattempedinthesomeway.Thegeneralmomentequationmybewrittenas

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Integratetwicetogetthedeflectionoftheloadedbeam.
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