Axial Loading

Four basic scenarios of loading and deformation are studied in this book. They are axial loading, shear loading, torsional loading, and bending loading. In practical problems, two or more of these basic loading scenarios may exist in combination, in the same member. If the conditions are linear, then the principle of superposition may be applied to combine the individual effects of them. The present chapter concerns axial loading. The main contents of the chapter are the following: Axial loading; use of Saint-Venant’s principle and equivalent loading to simplify the analysis, Determination of axial force diagram, Analysis of axially loaded members having (a) uniform cross-section; (b) continuously varying non-uniform section; (c) multiple segments of uniform cross-section, Application of the principle of superposition (valid when the force–deflection relation is linear), Analysis of statically indeterminate structures (where statics—equilibrium equations—alone are not adequate to solve the problem), Thermal deformation due to temperature change, and associated strains and stresses; application in statically indeterminate problems, and Stress concentration due to geometric non-smoothness and discontinuities.