Chapter 12

Beam Behavior – Bending, Shear,

and Deflection
 Behavior of a Beam in
Bending
• When a beam is subjected to vertical
forces it responds by physically deflecting
under that load
• When the same beam is supported at
two ends and a load is placed upon that
beam, then the beam reacts by
compressing along the top side of the
beams and stretching along the bottom
Behavior of a Beam in
Bending (Cont’d)
 Bending Stress Formula
• b = M(c)/I
– = bending stress at the point under
b
consideration on the beam’s cross section
– M = applied bending moment to the cross-
section
– c = distance from the neutral axis to the point on
the cross-section where stress is being
considered
– I = cross-section’s moment of inertia
 Shear Stresses in Beams
• Shear stresses that developed vertically
on a beam element must likewise
develop on perpendicular planes such
that equilibrium is maintained
 Shear Stresses in Beams
(Cont’d)
• Equation 12-8
– v = VQ/Ib
• V = applied shear force at the cross-section
under consideration
• Q = static moment of area with respect to the
centroidal axis
• I = moment of inertia of the beam’s cross
section
• b = width of the beam at the location under
consideration
Shear Stresses in Beams

Shear
stresses in a
beam of
rectangular
cross section
Shear Stresses in Beams
(Cont’d)

Bending of two
separate
beams
Shear Stresses in Beams
(Cont’d)
Shear Stresses in Beams
(Cont’d)

Partial free-body
diagram of sub-element
showing all horizontal
forces
Shear Stresses in Beams
(Cont’d)
Distribution of shear stresses in a
beam of rectangular cross section:
(a) cross section of beam, and
(b) diagram showing the parabolic
distribution of shear stresses over the
height of the beam
Shear Stresses in Beams
(Cont’d)

(a) Simple beam with uniform load,

(b) cross section of beam, and
(c) stress element showing the
normal and shear stresses at point C
The Mechanics of Deflection
The Mechanics of Deflection
(Cont’d)
The Mechanics of Deflection
(Cont’d)

Sign
convention for
curvature
 The Moment-Area Method
• The most common method of
calculating the deflection at any point
along a beam
• Equation 12-14
–
The Moment-Area Method
(Cont’d)

Sign conventions for

bending moment M, shear
force V, and intensity q of
distributed load
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)

Deflections of a
simple beam with
a uniform load
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)

Deflections of
a cantilever
beam with a
uniform load
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)

Deflections of a
simple beam with a
concentrated load
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)

Free-body diagrams
used in determining
the bending
moments
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)

Deflections of a
cantilever beam
with a triangular
load
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)

Deflections of
a beam with
an overhang
The Moment Area Method
(Cont’d)

Simple beam
with two
loads
Standard Deflection Formulas and
Super positioning
Standard Deflection Formulas and
Super positioning (Cont’d)
Standard Deflection Formulas and
Super positioning (Cont’d)
 Deflection Strength Failure:
Ponding
• The retention of water on a flat or semi-
flat roof during periods of heavy rainfall
or snow melt