Lecture 5:

Shear Force and Bending

Moment Distribution
Aim of this lecture:
• To describe the calculation of longitudinal shear force and bending
moment distribution on a ship structure

At the end of the lecture, you should be able to:

• Analytically derive the shear force distribution from the
weight and buoyancy curves for a ships hull
• Further derive the bending moment distribution
• Interpret typical shear force and bending moment
distributions for a ship
• Relate the diagrams to simple beam bending theory
• We have thought about the equilibrium forces acting on a
ship in still water and when poised on a wave

• We have also thought about the distribution of buoyancy

over the ship length……

• …..and the distribution of mass over the ship length

• Subtracting load from buoyancy produces the load diagram
• Global equilibrium:
• Total area = zero
• Vertical equilibrium
• Moment of area = zero
• i.e. Moment of forces = zero
• Rotational equilibrium
• BUT
• Local load at any point
load  w  b
• Shear force curve:

SF   ( w  b)dx

• Bending moment curve:

BM   SFdx

• What features can you see in the

diagram?
• SF and BM = zero at both ends
• BM = maximum at SF crossing point
• BM inflexion points at SF maxima
• Anything else?
• Integration is simply cumulative addition of area
• Integrations in a tabular format:
• Choose a suitable number of divisions
• Calculate area within each division
• Cumulatively sum together to produce the SF diagram
SF   ( w  b)l  l  ( w  b)
• Repeat to derive the BM diagram from the SF diagram:
BM  l  SFm
• Assumptions:
• Use the stepped curve format
• i.e. take the mean value of SF in each division
• Why might inaccuracies occur?
• Inaccuracies should be small. If they are not:
• Divisions may need to be finer
• There is a mistake in the calculations!
• Relatively small inaccuracies are inevitable
• Correct by linear base line correction
• Area and mass distribution of a 300m ship are given below:

• Plot the shear force and bending moment distribution for this ship
• Method:
• Integrate in tabular form using trapezoidal rule
• Ordinate spacing = 30m
• Weight / metre = M/30*g*1000 (N/m)
• Buoyancy / metre = A*1.026*9.81*1000 = 10,060A (N/m)
Weight/Metre for each section:

Section 10
Wt / m  327  M / 106
 327  5030 / 106
 1.645
Buoyancy Force/Metre for each section:

Section 10
buoy / m  10060  A / 106
 10060  10.5 / 106
 0.105630
Net load = w-b
Shear Force in each section - δSF

SF  ( w  b)  LS
LS =30

For Section 10:

SF  1.539  30
 46.17
Shear Force
Sum up incremental values.

Max. Shear Force = 128.76MN

Values of shear force at
centre of each section.
Section Bending
Moments

δBM=30 x SFMID

Section 10
BM  30  SFMID
 30  22.70
 681
Bending Moment
Sum up incremental values.
Max. BM = 10,220MNm
(from plotting column k)
• Who recognises this equation?
 M E
 
y I R
• What are the terms?
• M is the bending moment at a point along the beam
• I is the 2nd moment of area at the same point along the beam
• R is the radiu of curvature at the same point along the beam
• E is the Young’s modulus
• S is the stress in a fibre of the beam a distance y from the
neutral axis
• Where does this equation come from?
 M E
 
y I R
• Some useful rearrangements of the formula
• Relating curvature, flexural rigidity and bending moment:
• 1/R is equal to the twice differentiated deflection of the beam:
d2y 1

dx 2 R

• Substituting this into the original formula:

d2y
M  EI 2
dx

• EI is known as the flexural rigidity or flexural stiffness of the

beam
These results can be
summarised as follows

Deflection y

dy
Slope 
dx
d2y
Bending moment  EI 2
dx
d3y
Shear Force  EI 3
dx

d4y
Load distribution  EI 4
dx

• If the value of BM at any point on the beam is known in terms of x,

and providing the equation applies along the whole length of the
beam,then integration of the BM equation will provide slope and
deflection at any point.
• Calculate the 2nd
moment of area of the 3
beams:
• For the neutral axis
• For the stated axis