Hibbeler R. C.

“Statics”
The Engineering Handbook.
Ed. Richard C. Dorf
Boca Raton: CRC Press LLC, 2000

© 1998 by CRC PRESS LLC

An understanding of the basic principles of statics is necessary for both the design and construction
phases of the Delaware Memorial Bridge, shown here. The first steel for the nearly half-mile-long
plate girder portion of the west approach is being hoisted into place and set atop 80-foot-high land
piers. Each plate girder is 118 feet long, 9 feet deep, weighing 35 tons. (Photo courtesy of
Bethlehem Steel.)

© 1998 by CRC PRESS LLC

 I
Statics
Russell C. Hibbeler
University of Southwestern Louisiana

1 Force-System Resultants and Equilibrium R. C. Hibbeler

Force-System • Resultants • Equilibrium
2 Centroids and Distributed Forces W. D. Pilkey and L. Kitis
Centroid of a Plane Area • Centroid of a Volume Surface • Forces • Line Forces • Calculation of Surface
Area and Volume of a Body with Rotational Symmetry • Determination of Centroids
3 Moments of Inertia J. L. Meriam
Area Moments of Inertia • Mass Moments of Inertia
STATICS IS THE STUDY of the resultants of force systems and is concerned with problems that
involve the equilibrium of a body. It is a very practical subject of vital importance in the design
and analysis of all structural and mechanical components. For this reason, a fundamental
understanding of statics is imperative if one is to build any structure or perform a force analysis of
linkage, gearing, or the framework for a machine.
The subject of statics is the oldest branch of mechanics, with its beginnings at the time of the
Babylonians and Egyptians. Archimedes recorded how forces act on levers; however, the main
principles of statics were developed by the 17th century, notably from the work of Varignon,
Stevinus, and Newton. These principles are few in number and have been established through
experience and verified by experiment.
The chapters of this section provide a comprehensive review of the many topics covered in
statics, including simplification of concentrated and distributed force systems, the definition of the
moment of a force and couple, the necessary and sufficient conditions for equilibrium, frictional
effects, and a discussion of the geometric properties of an area, namely, the centroid and moment
of inertia. The latter topics are of vital importance in the development of many formulas used in
mechanics of materials and hydrostatics, as will be shown in later sections of this
handbook.

© 1998 by CRC PRESS LLC