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CHAPTER 8
BENDING STRESS

OVERVIEW
Beams and shafts are important structural and mechanical elements in engineering. In this chapter we
will determine the stress in these members caused by bending. The chapter begins with a discussion
of how to establish the shear and moment diagrams for a beam or shaft. Like the normal-force and
torque diagrams, the shear and moment diagrams provide a useful means for determining the largest
shear and moment in a member, and they specify where these maximums occur. Once the internal
moment at a section is determined, the bending stress can then be calculated. First we will consider
members that are straight, have a symmetric cross section, and are made of homogeneous linear elastic
material. Afterward we will discuss special cases involving unsymmetrical bending and members made
of composite materials.

BEAM
Definition
 Members that are slender and support loadings that are applied perpendicular to their
longitudinal axis.
 In general, beams are long, straight bars having a constant cross-sectional area. Often they
are classified as to how they are supported.
o A simply supported beam is pinned at one end and roller supported at the other.
o A cantilevered beam is fixed at one end and free at the other, and an;
o Overhanging beam has one or both of its ends freely extended over the supports.

simply supported beam

cantilevered beam

overhanging beam

 Beams are considered among the most important of all structural elements. They are used to
support the floor of a building, the deck of a bridge, or the wing of an aircraft. Also, the axle
of an automobile, the boom of a crane, even many of the bones of the body act as beams.

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Because of the applied loadings, beams develop an internal shear force and bending moment that, in
general, vary from point to point along the axis of the beam. In order to properly design a beam it
therefore becomes necessary to determine the maximum shear and moment in the beam. One way to
do this is to express V and M as functions of their arbitrary position x along the beam’s axis. These
shear and moment functions can then be plotted and represented by graphs called shear and moment
diagrams. The maximum values of V and M can then be obtained from these graphs. Also, since the
shear and moment diagrams provide detailed information about the variation of the shear and moment
along the beam’s axis, they are often used by engineers to decide where to place reinforcement
materials within the beam or how to proportion the size of the beam at various points along its length.
In order to formulate V and M in terms of x we must choose the origin and the positive direction for
x. Although the choice is arbitrary, most often the origin is located at the left end of the beam and the
positive direction is to the right.

In general, the internal shear and moment functions of x will be discontinuous, or their slope will be
discontinuous, at points where a distributed load changes or where concentrated forces or couple
moments are applied. Because of this, the shear and moment functions must be determined for each
region of the beam between any two discontinuities of loading.

For example, coordinates x1, x2 and x3 will have to be used to describe the variation of V and M
throughout the length of the beam in the figure shown. . These coordinates will be valid only within
the regions from A to B for x1, from B to C for x2 and from C to D for x3.

Beam Sign Convention 

Before presenting a method for determining the
shear and moment as functions of x and later
plotting these functions (shear and moment
diagrams), it is first necessary to establish a sign
convention so as to define “positive” and “negative”
values for V and M . Although the choice of a sign
convention is arbitrary, here we will use the one
often used in engineering practice as shown.
The positive directions are as follows:
 the distributed load acts upward on the beam;
 the internal shear force causes a clockwise
rotation of the beam segment on which it acts;
 and the internal moment causes compression
in the top fibers of the segment such that it bends
the segment so that it “holds water”. 
Loadings that are opposite to these are considered
negative.

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SHEAR AND MOMENT DIAGRAM

Summarizing the previous discussion will provide the following key points to remember in order to
produce a shear and moment diagram.

The following steps shall be undertaken in doing a shear and moment diagram for a given beam

See next page for examples using the above mentioned procedure for analysis.

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SOLVED PROBLEMS
1.0 Draw the shear and moment diagrams for the beam shown.

Support Reactions. The support reactions are shown as wL/2.

Shear and Moment Functions. A free-body diagram of the left segment of the beam is shown below.
The distributed loading on this segment, wx, is represented by its resultant force only after the segment
is isolated as a free-body diagram. This force acts through the centroid of the area comprising the
distributed loading, a distance of x/2 from the right end. Applying the two equations of equilibrium
yields

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Shear and Moment Diagrams. The shear and moment diagrams shown are obtained by plotting Eqs.1
and 2. The point of zero shear can be found from Eq. 1

NOTE: From the moment diagram, this value of x represents the point on the beam where the
maximum moment occurs, since the slope V = dM/dx = 0. So,

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SOLVED PROBLEMS
2.0 Draw the shear and moment diagrams for the beam shown.

Support Reactions. The distributed load is replaced by its resultant force and the reactions have been
determined as shown.

Shear and Moment Functions. A free-body diagram of a beam segment of length x is shown. Note
that the intensity of the triangular load at the section is found by proportion, that is, w/x = w0/L or
w = w0x/L. With the load intensity known, the resultant of the distributed loading is determined from
the area under the diagram. Thus,

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These results can be checked by applying the equations discussed.

Shear and Moment Diagrams. The graphs of Eqs.1 and 2 are shown as follows:

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SOLVED PROBLEMS
3.0 Draw the shear and moment diagrams for the beam shown.

Support Reactions. The distributed load is divided into triangular and rectangular component loadings
and these loadings are then replaced by their resultant forces. The reactions have been determined as
shown on the beam’s free-body diagram.

Shear and Moment Functions. A free-body diagram of the left segment is shown. As above, the
trapezoidal loading is replaced by rectangular and triangular distributions. Note that the intensity of the
triangular load at the section is found by proportion. The resultant force and the location of each
distributed loading are also shown. Applying the equilibrium equations, we have

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Equation 2 may be checked by noting that dM/dx = V, that is, Eq. 1. Also, w = dV/dx = -2
- 29 x. This equation checks, since when x = 0, w = -2 kip/ft, and when x = 18 ft, w = -6 kip/ft.
Shear and Moment Diagrams. Equations 1 and 2 are plotted. Since the point of maximum moment
occurs when dM/dx = V = 0 then, from Eq. 1;

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Practice Problem: On your own, draw the shear and moment diagrams for the beam shown.

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SHEAR AND MOMENT DIAGRAM – Graphical Method

In cases where a beam is subjected to several different loadings, determining V and M as functions
of x and then plotting these equations can become quite tedious. In this section a simpler method for
constructing the shear and moment diagrams is discussed—a method based on two differential
relations, one that exists between distributed load and shear, and the other between shear and
moment.

Regions of Distributed Load. For purposes of

generality, consider the beam shown Figure (a), which is
subjected to an arbitrary loading. A free-body diagram for
a very small segment Δx of the beam is shown in Figure
(b). Since this segment has been chosen at a position x
where there is no concentrated force or couple moment,
the results to be obtained will not apply at these points of
concentrated loading.

Notice that all the loadings shown on the segment act in their positive directions according to the
established sign convention. Also, both the internal resultant shear and moment, acting on the right
face of the segment, must be changed by a small amount in order to keep the segment in equilibrium.
The distributed load, which is approximately constant over Δx, has been replaced by a resultant force
w(x) Δx that acts at ½ ( Δx ) from the right side. Applying the equations of equilibrium to the
segment, we have

Dividing by Δx and taking the limit as Δx 0, the above two equations become

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Former equations can also be rewritten as dV = w(x)dx
and dM = Vdx. Noting that w(x)dx and Vdx
represent differential areas under the distributed loading
and shear diagram, respectively, we can integrate these
areas between any two points C and D on the beam
and write;

The equation for ΔV states that the change in shear between C and D is equal to the area under
the distributed-loading curve between these two points as shown in the second layer of the graph. In
this case the change is negative since the distributed load acts downward. Similarly, from the equation
of ΔM, the change in moment between C and D, shown in the bottom layer of the graph, is equal to
the area under the shear diagram within the region from C to D. Here the change is positive.

Since the above equations do not apply at points where a concentrated force or couple moment acts,
we will now consider each of these cases.

Regions of Concentrated Force and Moment. A free-body diagram of a small segment of the beam in
the previous discussion is taken from under the force is shown in Figure (a) below. Here it can be seen
that force equilibrium requires;

Thus, when F acts upward on the beam, ΔV is positive so the

shear will “jump” upward. Likewise, if F acts downward, the jump
(ΔV) will be downward.

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When the beam segment includes the couple moment M0,
then moment equilibrium requires the change in moment to
be;

In this case, if M0 is applied clockwise, ΔM is positive

so the moment diagram will “jump” upward. Likewise, when
M0 acts counterclockwise, the jump (ΔM) will be downward.

The following steps shall be undertaken in doing a shear and moment diagram for a given beam in
graphical method.

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See next page for examples using the above mentioned procedure for analysis.

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SOLVED PROBLEMS
1.0 Draw the shear and moment diagrams for the beam shown.

Support Reactions. The reaction at the fixed support is shown on the free-body diagram

Shear Diagram. The shear at each end of

the beam is plotted first. Since there is no
distributed loading on the beam, the slope of
the shear diagram is zero as indicated. Note
how the force P at the center of the beam
causes the shear diagram to jump downward
an amount P, since this force acts downward.

Moment Diagram. The moments at the ends

of the beam are plotted. Here the moment
diagram consists of two sloping lines, one
with a slope of +2 P and the other with a
slope of + P.

The value of the moment in the center of the

beam can be determined by the method of
sections, or from the area under the shear
diagram. If we choose the left half of the
shear diagram,  

 
   

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SOLVED PROBLEMS
2.0 Draw the shear and moment diagrams for the beam shown.

Support Reactions. The reactions are

shown on the free-body diagram

Shear Diagram. The shear at each end is

plotted first. Since there is no distributed
load on the beam, the shear diagram has
zero slope and is therefore a horizontal line.

Moment Diagram. The moment is zero at

each end. The moment diagram has a
constant negative slope of −M0/2 L since
this is the shear in the beam at each point.
Note that the couple moment M0 causes
a jump in the moment diagram at the
beam’s center, but it does not affect the
shear diagram at this point.

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