STR5

Bending Stress in a
Beam:
Student Guide

© TecQuipment Ltd 2014

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PE/AD/db/0614
 Contents
Section Page

1 INTRODUCTION AND DESCRIPTION 1

Introduction 1
Description 1
How to Set up the Equipment 2

2 EXPERIMENTS 5

Experiment 1: Bending Stress in a Beam 5

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SECTION 1.0 INTRODUCTION AND DESCRIPTION

Figure 1 Bending stress in a beam experiment

Introduction

This guide describes how to set up and perform Bending Stress in a Beam experiments. The equipment clearly
demonstrates the principles involved and gives practical support to your studies.

Description

Figure 1 shows the Bending Stress in a Beam experiment. It consists of an inverted aluminium T- beam, with strain
gauges fixed on the section (the front panel shows the exact positions).

The panel assembly and Load Cell apply load to the top of the beam at two positions each side of the strain gauges.
Loading the beam in this way (rather than loading the beam at just one point) has two main advantages:

• It allows a gauge to be placed on the top of the beam.

• The constant bending moment area it creates gives better strain gauge performance and avoids stress concentration
close to the gauge positions.

Strain gauges are sensors that experience a change in electrical resistance when stretched or compressed.

Strain gauges are made from a metal foil formed in a zigzag pattern. They are only a few microns thick so they are
mounted on a backing sheet. The backing sheet electrically insulates the zigzag element and supports it so it does not
collapse when handled.

The T-beam has strain gauges bonded to it. These stretch and compress the same amount as the beam, so measure strain
in the beam. If you look carefully at the equipment you will notice there is another set of strain gauges. These are called

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TecQuipment Bending Stress in a Beam: Student Guide

dummy gauges. The dummy gauges, and how the way they are connected in the electrical circuit, help reduce inaccurate
readings caused by temperature changes and thermal expansion.

The Digital Strain Display converts the change in electrical resistance of the strain gauges to show it as displacement
(strain). It shows all the strains sensed by the strain gauges, reading in microstrain.

Look at the reference information on the unit. It is useful and you may need it to complete the experiments in this guide.

How to Set up the Equipment

The Bending Stress in a Beam experiment fits into a Test Frame. Figure 2 shows the Bending Stress in a Beam
experiment in the Frame.

Before setting up and using the equipment, always:

• Visually inspect all parts, including electrical leads, for damage or wear.

• Check electrical connections are correct and secure.

• Check all components are secure and fastenings are sufficiently tight.

• Position the Test Frame safely. Make sure it is on a solid, level surface, is steady, and easily accessible.

Never apply excessive loads to any part of the equipment.

The following instructions may already have been completed for you.

1. Place an assembled Test Frame (refer to the separate instructions supplied with the Test Frame if necessary) on a
workbench. Make sure the ‘window’ of the Test Frame is easily accessible.

2. There are two securing nuts in each of the side members of the frame (on the inner track). Move one securing nut
from each side to the outer track (see STR1 instruction sheet). Slide them to about the positions shown in Figure 2.
Fix the two supports on to the frame in the same position.

3. Slide two nuts into position to hold the load cell. Fix the load cell leaving the screws slightly loose.

4. Lift the beam into position and level the ends of the beam with the frame.

5. Position the load cell so the hole in the fork reaches the hole of the loading position, and it is vertical. Tighten the
load cell using the 6 mm A/F hexagonal key. Secure the fork using a pin.

6. Make sure the Digital Force Display is ‘on’. Connect the mini DIN lead from ‘Force Input 1’ on the Digital Force
Display to the socket marked ‘Force Output’ on the left-hand side of the load cell.

7. With no load on the load cell (the pin should turn), use the control on the front of the load cell to set the reading to
around zero.

8. Make sure the Digital Strain Display is ‘on’ and set to gauge configuration 1. Matching the number on the lead to
the number on the socket, connect the strain gauges to the strain display. Leave the gauges for five minutes to warm
up and reach a steady state.

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 TecQuipment Bending Stress in a Beam: Student Guide

Figure 2 Bending stress in a beam experiment in the structures frame

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TecQuipment Bending Stress in a Beam: Student Guide

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SECTION 2.0 EXPERIMENTS

Experiment 1: Bending Stress in a Beam

Figure 3 Beam set-up and schematic

As well as the information given on the unit you will need the following formulae:

σ
E = ---
ε

Where:

σ = Stress (Nm-2)
ε = Strain
E = Young’s modulus for the beam material (Nm–2)

(Typically 69 x 109 Nm-2 or 69 GPa)

and

----- = σ
M ---
I y
(The bending equation)
where:
M = Bending moment (Nm)
I = Second moment of area of the section (m4)
σ = Stress (Nm-2)
y = Distance from the neutral axis (m)

Ensure the beam and Load Cell are properly aligned. Turn the thumbwheel on the Load Cell to apply a positive (down-
ward) preload to the beam of about 100 N. Zero the Load Cell using the control.

Take the nine zero strain readings by choosing the number with the selector switch. Fill in Table 1 with the zero force
values.

Increase the load to 100 N and note all nine of the strain readings. Repeat the procedure in 100 N increments to 500 N.
Finally; gradually release the load and preload.

Correct the strain reading values for zero (be careful with your signs!) and convert the load to a bending moment then
fill in Table 2.

From your results, plot a graph of strain against bending moment for all nine gauges (on the same graph).

• What is the relationship between the bending moment and the strain at the various positions?

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TecQuipment Bending Stress in a Beam: Student Guide

• What do you notice about the strain gauge readings on opposite sides of the section? Should they be identical?

• If the readings are not identical, give two reasons why.

Gauge Load (N)

number 0 100 200 300 400 500

Table 1 Results for Experiment 1 (uncorrected)

Gauge Bending moment (Nm)

Number 0 17.5 35 52.5 70 87.5

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

6 0

7 0

8 0

9 0

Table 2 Results for Experiment 1 (corrected)

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 TecQuipment Bending Stress in a Beam: Student Guide

Gauge Nominal Actual Bending moment (Nm)

Number Vertical Vertical

position position
(mm) (mm)

1 0

2,3 8

4,5 23

6,7 31.7

8,9 38.1

Table 3 Averaged strain readings for Experiment 1

Calculate the average strains from the pairs of gauges and enter your results in Table 3 (disregard the zero values).
Carefully measure the actual strain gauge positions and enter the values into Table 3. Plot the strain against the relative
vertical position of the strain gauge pairs on the same graph for each value of bending moment. Take the top of the beam
as the datum.

Calculate the second moment of area and position of the neutral axis for the section (use a vernier to measure the exact
size of the section) and add the position of the neutral axis to the plot.

• What is the value of strain at the neutral axis?

• Calculate the maximum stress in the section by turning the strains into stress values (at the maximum load).
Compare this to the theoretical value.

• Does the bending equation accurately predict the stress in the beam?

The charts generated by the optional Structures Software may not look exactly like
NOTE those that you have drawn by hand. This is usually because the horizontal or vertical
axes data has been turned around or swapped to make the chart process easier and
clearer.

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TecQuipment Bending Stress in a Beam: Student Guide

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