Structural analysis is fundamental to all civil engineering designs. It involves extensive studying and testing of different components of structural systems such as buildings, bridges, towers, tanks, vehicles, flyovers, and the like. Minute and structural analysis is crucial to understanding different stresses acting & the resultant strains, points of failures, the right construction materials, and even determining maintenance schedules, among other things. Simply put, every civil engineer NEEDS to master the principles of structural analysis.
Experts at MyAssignmentHelp, the largest civil engineering assignment help service in the UK, provide a quick overview of the key concepts of structural analysis. Read on and revise the essentials.
What is Structural Analysis?
Structures in civil engineering are generally interconnected components or systems that support external loads. Through structural analysis, civil engineers estimate, measure, and predict the response of a structure to random, arbitrary external loads.
Preliminary design stages involve near-accurate estimation of a system's potential external load/s. These calculations and estimations aid in refining the design. The structural analysis allows engineers and architects to relate a structural member's expected or entire range of external load/s and the corresponding internal stresses & strains/displacements produced in that structural member when it is in service.
Careful structural analysis is critical to ensure operations & usage within safety limits and determine proper servicing & maintenance requirements. In any structural or civil engineering project, analysis comes right after planning and enables proper design & construction.
Key Concepts of Structural Analysis
Structural analysis investigates and determines the responses/reactions, internal forces, and most probable deformations at specific points in a system due to external loads. Structural analysis can be conducted on every kind of structural system, such as tension, & compression structures, beam & frame structures, and surface structures.
In all cases, engineers use analytical processes to determine limit states, failure points, and serviceability limit states. The process begins with the development of structural models.
Design of Structural Models
- You need to use mathematical models to develop idealized visualizations of the geometry of structures, the actions & reactions, and the support conditions.
- Structural models must also reflect the stiffness conditions of all possible cross-sections, member components, joints, ground interactions, etc.
- Models must also consider the myriad effects of all possible movements and deformations at all parts of the structures. They should also look into second and if applicable, higher-order effects of movements & deformations.
- Structural analysis models should also incorporate stiffness conditions and stress-induced responses, including à
- Non-linear response of structural models/components beyond their elastic limits
- Effect of shear lag
- Effects of local buckling
- Effects of displacements of structures supported with cables
- Shear deformability
- Stiffness of joints
- Structure-ground interactions
Designing accurate and informative models requires a good hand in engineering drawing. If you are struggling with model designs and drawings, connect with MyAssignmmnetHelp.com, the Internet's most trusted all assignment help service.
Determining Equilibrium Conditions
Civil engineering structures are supposed to be at rest when acted upon by external forces or subject to external loads. A key part of structural analysis is, thus, to investigate appropriate equilibrium conditions, that is, conditions that lead to resultant forces & moments on the model to be zero.
Compatibility of Displacement
A structural system's parts must remain compatible with one another in case of any deformation or displacement. Members of a structural system need to remain connected without any void or hole under the application of any external load.
Compatibility of displacement is a vital aspect of structural analysis as it allows engineers to determine the effect of unknown redundant forces on stable but indeterminate structures.
Principle of Superposition
This is another major principle used to sum up the individual effects of multiple loads on a linear elastic structure. By this principle, the displacement/deformation/stress on a structure due to multiple loads on a linear elastic structure equals the summation of displacement/stress due to individual loads.
Work-Energy & Virtual Work Principles
The work-energy principle is another powerful pillar in structural analysis procedures. The principle determines the amount of work done by a structural system or its components due to the application of a force.
The virtual work principle is yet another powerful analytical tool. It is defined as the work done by an imaginary force on a deformable body displaced through a real distance. It can also be defined as the work done by a real force on a deformable body by displacing it virtually.
Structural Idealization
Structural idealization is where simpler models replace an actual structure and all the loads acting upon it. Civil engineering structures are generally very complex and require minute & rigorous analysis. Structural idealization allows for rigorous analysis while simplifying the overall design.
The right model choice is important as the predictive analysis must closely reflect the loads and structural behaviour of the actual structure.
And that's about it for this write-up. Hope it was an informative read for everyone. If you need expert help with your civil engineering assignments, connect with MyAssignmentHelp.com today!
No comments yet