Analytical study of bending behavior for beams

Table of contents

1-Theory of beams

1.1 Approximate nature of the beam theory

1.2 Assumptions of the modelisation
1.3 Deformation and flexural stresses
1.4 Simply supported beam
1.5 Cantilevered beam

2-digital resolution

Introduction

The bending beams problem is often faced in mechanics of materials.In general a beam is a member
subjected to loads applied transverse to the long dimension, the word bending refers to the
behavior of a slender structural element subjected to an external load applied perpendicularly to a
longitudinal axis of the element.

Some simple patterns in the beam theory enables us to calculate analytically the displacements and
the flexural stresses .In this theory we consider that the slope of the deflection curve is small and
also that the plane sections remains plane during the deformation.The aim of this project is to study
some particular cases theoretically and to compare both experimental and digital results.

This report contains two sections ,the first one discusses the major equations that are proven in the
theory of beams and classifies some of the various types of beams encountered in practice, while
the second one illustrates a digital method called “finite element method” to solve the “moment-
curvature equation” , and its application using Fortran 90
Assumptions of the modelisation

Before starting the modeling process of the beam, it is important to state the assumptions of the
study. It is assumed that the beam is continuous, homogeneous and isotropic. The hypothesis of
continuity places the study of the material on a macroscopic scale where details smaller than 0.01
mm can not be seen. Mathematically, this hypothesis makes it possible to consider that the spatial
functions are continuous. The homogeneity theory assumes that all macroscopic pieces of the beam
have the same mechanical characteristics.

It is assumed that the beam has a linear elastic behavior in the context of small displacements and
small deformations. The Saint Venant and the Bernoulli hypothesis which states that a straight
section initially flat and normal to the mean line of the beam remains plane and normal to the
deformed mean line during the deformation ; are also taken into consideration. Far away from the
point of application of the forces, the stresses and deformations do not depend on the manner in
which the forces are applied but only on their reduction elements at this point.

The beam is straight with a rectangular section, it’s length is L, width b and height h.

Simply supported beam

Let (……) be an orthonormal frame. A so-called simple bending problem consists of a straight beam of
length L recessed at one end and undergoing a force ….. at the other end (look at Figure 1).

Figure 1 Simply supported beam

The torsor of cohesion in every point x of the beam is

The vectors … and … are oriented as in Figure 1.

Thus, the displacement u at any point x of the beam is:

digital resolution

The mechanical study of the bending showed that the displacement u made it possible to determine
later the tensor of the stresses and that of the deformations. The displacement is a function of space
variables and access to its second derivative is possible. However, determining the exact solution can
be complicated or impossible to achieve. This is why we need to discretize the problem and to look
for an approximation of the solution. This discretization can be done through the finite element
method.

Finite element method

Finite element method (FEM) is one of the most used methods in mathematics. It was originally
developed for solving problems in solid-state mechanics (plate-bending problems to be more
precise), but it has since found wide application in all areas of computational physics and
engineering, as well as in CFD. FEM is by far the most flexible method of all methods we have studied
so far, and it can be adapted to a wide range of numerical problems. This makes FEM a universal tool
for solving differential equations numerically.
The basic concept of FEM can be thought of as splitting the computational domain into individual
small patches and finding local solutions that satisfy the differential equation within the boundary of
this patch. By stitching the individual solutions on these patches back together, a global solution can
be obtained. [1]
[1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/finite-element-method

Bibliographical references