STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS I

1. What is the difference between the basic action of an arch and a suspension cable?
a) An arch is essentially a compression member which can also take bending moments and shears.
Bending moments and shears will be absent if the arch is parabolic and the loading is uniformly
distributed.
b) Cables are flexible wire-like systems having no flexural (bending) stiffness, and they can carry only
axial tension and no other type of force. Being fully flexible against bending the shape of a cable is
determined by the external forces that are acting on the cable. A suspension bridge will therefore have
a cable and a stiffening girder. The girder will take the bending moment and shears in the bridge and
the cable, only tension. Because of the thrusts in the cables and arches, the bending moments are
considerably reduced. If the load on the girder is uniform, the bridge will have only cable tension and
no bending moment on the girder.
2. What is the difference between two hinged arches and three hinged arches?
Two hinged arches
Statically indeterminate to first
degree

Three hinged arches

Statically determinate

Change temperature causes

temperature stresses

Increase in temperature causes increase in

central rise. No stresses.

Structurally more efficient

Easy to analyse. But in construction, the central

hinge may involve additional expenditure.

Will develop stresses due to sinking

of supports

Since this is determinate, no stresses due to

support sinking.

3. State Maxwell-Betti theorem of Reciprocal Deflection

The reciprocal theorem states that the work done by forces acting through displacement of the
second system is the same as the work done by the second system of forces acting through the
displacements of the first system. Hence, according to reciprocal theorem,
P1A = P2B
OR