Structural Engineering
Assignment – 1
Q 1. Define force. Explain it with the help of suitable example.
Ans. A force is any interaction that, when unopposed, will change the
motion of an object. A force can cause an object with mass to change its
velocity and shape, i.e., to accelerate or deform. Force can also be
described intuitively as a push or a pull. A force has both magnitude and
direction, making it a vector quantity.
The pulling of a roller on a field is an example of pulling which is one of
the simplest kind of force.
Q 2. How can you estimate the force that would act on concrete cube
of 150 mm size? Compute the value of the force and discuss its source.
Ans. A concrete cube of 150mm can three types of forces at the same time
which are:-
a. Vertical force (may be upwards or downward or both).
b. Horizontal force (may be one directional or both).
c. Moment (not a fundamentally a force as it has different unit, but it
can cause motion to the objet to which it is applied).
Now, in the above problem if no external forces are applied or mentioned
on the question the 150mm cube will be exposed to only one force due to
its self-weight, which will be exactly the product of the volume of the cube
(V)with its mass density(ρ) and acceleration due to gravity(g).
Force on the cube = 1503 ∗ ρ ∗ 9.8 ∗ 10−9 N
= 0.033075ρ N
This force is a complete action from the gravity of the earth.
Q 3. A force of 10 kN is applied over some object. List all possible ways
the object would move under the influence of this force.
Ans. The object can move in many directions some of those are listed:-
a. If the force is applied vertically upwards then it will move
downwards until it is opposed by some other force.
b. If the force is applied vertically downwards then it will move
upwards until it is opposed by some other force.
c. If the force is applied horizontally left to right then it will move right
to left until it is opposed by some other force.
d. If the force is applied horizontally right to left then it will move left
to right until it is opposed by some other force.
e. If the force is applied at an angle to the surface then it will cause a
2d motion.
f. If the force is applied to a corner then it will tend to shear.
Q 4. Differentiate load and force.
[Link]. Force Load
1. It is related to motion It is related to statics
2. It causes change in state It causes deformation
3. It can act in any direction Only acts downwards
4. F = mass * acceleration Load = mass * acceleration due
to gravity
Q 5. Differentiate translation and rotation.
Ans. Translational Motion: Translational motion is motion that involves
the sliding of an object in one or more of the three dimensions: x, y or z.
But an object can still be moving even when it's just sitting at a particular
x-, y- and z-coordinate, it can still spin.
Rotational Motion: Rotational motion is where an object spins around an
internal axis in a continuous way. An ice-skater can do this by spinning on
the spot. She will give herself rotational energy. And because energy is
always conserved and a smaller object must spin faster to have the same
energy, when she moves her arms in towards her body, her rotation speed
will increase - the spinning will get faster and faster.
