STRESSES IN BEAMS DUE TO

BENDING
 DEADLINES:
 Assignment One: 20th October 2020
 Assignment One Sub: 24th November 2020
 Contact details: Mr. Omal Mumuni-Timtey
(o.mumuni-timtey@eastcoast.ac.uk)

Lecture 3
 Stress Due to Bending
Transverse loading causes
bending and bending is a
very severe form of
stressing a structure.
Bending moment give rise
to tensile and compressive
stresses in beams and
cantilevers .

They are found to be

greatest at the upper and
lower surfaces and zero at
the neutral layer.
 GENERAL Bending Formula
The complete formula which describes all aspects of bending is

M  E
 
I y R

NEUTRAL AXIS - This is the axis along the

length of the beam which remains unstressed,
neither compressed nor stretched when it is
bent..
Normally the neutral axis passes through Y is the distance from neutral
the centroid of the cross sectional area. The axis to the point of max stress
position of the centroid is hence important

Consider that the beam is bent into an arc of a circle through angle radians. AB is
on the neutral axis and is the same length before and after bending. The radius of
the neutral axis is R.
 Relationship Between Strain and
Radius of Curvature
There is a layer of material distance y from the
neutral axis and this is stretched because it must
become longer. The radius of the layer is R + y.

This layer is strained and strain () is defined as

 = change in length/original length
DC  AB R  y   R y
  
AB R R
The modulus of Elasticity (E) relates direct stress () and direct strain () for an
elastic material and the definition is as follows.
stress 
E  It follows that stress and strain vary along
strain 
y R E  the length of the beam depending on the
Substitute   and E   radius of curvature.
R y R y
 GENERAL Bending Formula
M  E This is called the bending equation
  and it has 3 parts.
I y R
Provided material is not extended beyond the limit of
proportionality , then the stress acting normal to the cross
sectional of the beam will be

If the stress is required at a given

point along the beam we use
either
This indicates that the stress in a
beam depends on the bending
moment and so the maximum stress
will occur where the bending
moment is a maximum along the
length of the beam.
It also indicates that stress is
related to distance y from the
neutral axis so it varies from
zero to a maximum at the top
or bottom of the section.
 STANDARD SECTIONS
For a given section the value of I may be determined by mathematics.
Where I is the second moment of an area of the beam section
 CENTROIDS AND FIRST MOMENTS OF AREA
In the case of mass and
area, the problem is
deciding the distance
since the mass and area
are not concentrated at
one point.
The point at which we
may assume the mass
concentrated is called the
centre of gravity.
The point at which we
assume the area
concentrated is called the
centroid.
 Work Example
1. A beam has a rectangular cross section 80 mm wide and
100 mm deep. It is subjected to a bending moment of 15
kNm at a certain point along its length. It is made from metal
with a modulus of elasticity of 180 GPa. Calculate the
maximum stress on the section.
SOLUTION
B = 80 mm, D = 100 mm. It follows that the value of y that
gives the maximum stress is 50 mm. Remember all quantities
must be changed to metres in the final calculation.
 Work Example

2. A beam has a hollow circular cross section 40

mm outer diameter and 30 mm inner diameter.
It is made from metal with a modulus of
elasticity of 205 GPa. The maximum tensile
stress in the beam must not exceed 350 MPa.
• Calculate the following.
• (i) the maximum allowable bending moment.
• (ii) the radius of curvature.
• SOLUTION
 Work Example
3. A simply supported beam of a hollow rectangular cross –
section shown below is 120 mm deep and 60 mm wide with a
wall thickness of 10 mm. The beam has a span of 2 m and caries
a concentrated load of 20 kN at its centre. Neglecting the
weight of the beam itself, determine:
•the maximum bending moment,
•the maximum stress in the material,
•the factor of safety in operation against an elastic limit stress of
300 MPa,
•the minimum radius of curvature. Take E = 200GPa.
(Answer 10 kNm, stress 113 MPa, 2.65 and 106 m)
 Work example

• The diagram shows a

simplified cantilever lifting
gantry, 1.8 m long,
designed to raise loads of
up to 3 kN. If the
maximum design stress of
the cantilever beam
material, is 250 MPa. With
a suitable diameter of 76
mm, determine the second
moment of area I of the
bar. Use 2 as a factor of
safety.