Section modulus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Section modulus is a geometric property for a given cross-section used in the design of beams or
flexural members. Other geometric properties used in design include area for tension, radius of
gyration for compression, and moment of inertia for stiffness. Any relationship between these
properties is highly dependent on the shape in question. Equations for the section moduli of common
shapes are given below. There are two types of section moduli, the elastic section modulus (S) and
the plastic section modulus (Z).
Contents
1 Notation
2 Elastic section modulus
3 Plastic section modulus
4 Use in structural engineering
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
Notation
North American and British/Australian convention reverse the usage of S & Z. Elastic modulus is S in
North America,
[1]
but Z in Britain/Australia,
[2]
and vice versa for the plastic modulus. Eurocode 3 (EN
1993 - Steel Design) resolves this by using W for both, but distinguishes between them by the use of
subscripts - W
el
and W
pl
.
Elastic section modulus
For general design, the elastic section modulus is used, applying up to the yield point for most
metals and other common materials.
The elastic section modulus is defined as S = I / y, where I is the second moment of area (or moment
of inertia) and y is the distance from the neutral axis to any given fibre.
[3]
It is often reported using y =
c, where c is the distance from the neutral axis to the most extreme fibre, as seen in the table below.
It is also often used to determine the yield moment (M
y
) such that M
y
= S
y
, where
y
is the yield
strength of the material.
[3]
Section modulus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_modulus
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Section modulus equations
[4]
Cross-sectional
shape
Figure Equation Comment
Rectangle
Solid arrow
represents
neutral axis
doubly
symmetric
I-section (strong
axis)
NA indicates
neutral axis
doubly
symmetric
I-section (weak
axis)
NA indicates
neutral axis
Circle
[4]
Solid arrow
represents
neutral axis
Circular tube
Solid arrow
represents
neutral axis
Rectangular tube
NA indicates
neutral axis
Section modulus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_modulus
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Diamond
NA indicates
neutral axis
C-channel
NA indicates
neutral axis
Plastic section modulus
The Plastic section modulus is used for materials where (irreversible) plastic behaviour is dominant.
The majority of designs do not intentionally encounter this behaviour.
The plastic section modulus depends on the location of the plastic neutral axis (PNA). The PNA is
defined as the axis that splits the cross section such that the compression force from the area in
compression equals the tension force from the area in tension. So, for sections with constant yielding
stress, the area above and below the PNA will be equal, but for composite sections, this is not
necessarily the case.
The plastic section modulus is then the sum of the areas of the cross section on each side of the
PNA (which may or may not be equal) multiplied by the distance from the local centroids of the two
areas to the PNA:
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3 6 10/09/2014 07:47
Description Figure Equation Comment
Rectangular
section
Hollow
rectangular
section
where:
b=width,
h=height,
t=wall
thickness
For the two
flanges of
an I-beam
with the
web
excluded
,
[5]
where:
=width,
=thickness,
are
the
distances
from the
neutral axis
to the
centroids of
the flanges
respectively.
For an I
Beam
including
the web
[6]
For an I
Beam (weak
axis)
Solid Circle
Hollow
Circle
The plastic section modulus is used to calculate the plastic moment, M
p
, or full capacity of a cross-
section. The two terms are related by the yield strength of the material in question, F
y
, by M
p
=F
y
*S.
Sometimes Z and S are related by defining a 'k' factor which is something of an indication of capacity
beyond first yield. k=S/Z
Therefore for a rectangular section, k=1.5
Use in structural engineering
Though generally section modulus is calculated for the extreme tensile or compressive fibres in a
bending beam, often compression is the most critical case due to onset of flexural torsional buckling.
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Generally (except for brittle materials like concrete) tensile extreme fibres have a higher allowable
stress or capacity than compressive fibres.
In the case of T-sections if you have tensile fibres at the bottom of the T they may still be more critical
than the compressive fibres at the top due to a generally much larger distance from the neutral axis
so despite having a higher allowable the elastic section modulus is also lower. In this case F/T
buckling must still be assessed as the beam length and restraints may result in reduced compressive
member bending allowable stress or capacity.
There may also be a number of different critical cases that require consideration, such as there being
different values for orthogonal and principal axes and in the case of unequal angle sections in the
principal axes there is a section modulus for each corner.
For a conservative (safe) design, civil structural engineers are often concerned with the combination
of the highest load (tensile or compressive) and lowest elastic section modulus for a given section
station along a beam, although if the loading is well understood you can take advantage of different
section modulus for tension and compression to get more out of the design. For aeronautical and
space applications where designs must be much less conservative for weight saving, structural
testing is often required to ensure safety as reliance on structural analysis alone is more difficult (and
expensive) to justify.
See also
Beam theory
List of area moments of inertia
Second moment of area
References
^ Specification for Structural Steel Buildings (http://www.aisc.org/2010spec). Chicago, Illinois: American
Institute of Steel Construction, Inc. 2010. p. 16.1xxxiv.
1.
^ AS4100 - Steel Structures (http://www.standards.org.au). Sydney, Australia: Standards Australia. 1998.
p. 21.
2.
^
a

b
Kulak, G.L. and Grondin, G.Y., 2006, Limit States Design in Structural Steel 8th Ed., Canadian Institute
of Steel Construction.
3.
^
a

b
Gere, J. M. and Timoshenko, S., 1997, Mechanics of Materials 4th Ed., PWS Publishing Co. 4.
^ American Institute of Steel Construction: Load and Resistance Factor Design, 3rd Edition, pp. 17-34. 5.
^ Megson, T H G (2005). Structural and stress analysis (http://books.google.co.uk
/books?id=N2WyMxutXK4C&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false). elsever. pp. 598 EQ (iv).
6.
External links
http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/american-wide-flange-steel-beams-d_1318.html - List of
section moduli for common beam shapes
http://www.novanumeric.com/samples.php?CalcName=SectionModulus - Online Calculation for
Section Modulus
http://academics.triton.edu/faculty/fheitzman/propertiesofsections.html - Properties of Sections
From Triton college
Section modulus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_modulus
5 6 10/09/2014 07:47
http://www.amesweb.info/SectionalPropertiesTabs/SectionalPropertiesHollowCircle.aspx -
SECTIONAL PROPERTIES CALCULATOR - HOLLOW CIRCLE
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Categories: Structural analysis
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