Continuous Beam Apparatus Experiment

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Introduction Simply supported continuous beams are an important structural element in engineering applications. In order to design a beam effectively, it is important to have an understanding of the variations of the shear and moment along its axis. This is done to find points along the beam where these shear and moment values are a maximum. The Continuous Beam Apparatus experiment was carried out to better understand the aforementioned points. Continuous beams are those that rest over two or more supports, thereby having one or more redundant support reactions. A continuous beam provides resistance to bending when a load is applied to it [1]. Five experiments were carried out on the same specimen, with spring balances measuring the reaction …show more content…

Various reasons could be identified for these errors. The weight, structural composition and geometry of the beam were not considered in any of the calculations made which in fact would have a significant effect on the experimental results such as moment of inertia of the beam. . The variation of results could be due to numerous errors including: Defective apparatus: The springs may have been stretched and damaged and may not indicate the correct force readings Overused apparatus: The beam may have residual deformation from being used extensively over a very long period of time. Due to repeated loaded the beam could be bent therefore when adjusting the springs the final reading will be skewed Error of Parallax: There were two instances where parallax could occur. The demonstrator used a bar to position the mass pieces on the beam accurately according to the Horizontal Ruler above the beam. When the students were adjusting the beam to bring it to equilibrium using the Vertical Ruler on each side of the

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