CONCEPT OF BRACING IN STRUCTURAL SYSTEM

We have note in the earlier lecture that our body itself is a structural system and is subjected to vertical loads and occasionally horizontal loads. Any structural system is also subjected vertical loads and horizo ntal loads and is interesting to know how our body resist horizontal loads to be stable. It is very important to understand logic as the mathematical formulae are basically representation of the logical flow of loads. Most of us have played the game of tug of war in our childhood. A rope is pulled by team A and B in opposite direction and who ever applies more horizontal pull on the rope wins. Now look at your posture during the game. 1) Our hands are in line with the rope. 2) We are bent forward at waist height and the upper part is almost aligned to the rope. 3) front leg is forward and bent and back leg is backward and diagonally straight if we are pulled 4) front leg is forward and straight and back leg is backward and bent if we are pulling the other team. Now let us look at logic A) The hands on rope (application of horizontal load is as close as possible to ground to minimise toppling effect.( overturning moment) B) The distance between the legs is as wide as possible so that the body is stable during the application of horizontal load. ( the CG of vertical load and horizontal load should pass through the base. C) The pulling load is resisted best by positioning the legs diagonally.( ie the bracing system of the body) d) Reversal of role of legs when pulled or being pulled ( tension or compression in bracing)

If we draw the free body diagram of the loads in the game of tug of war based on the posture it would be very easy to understand the concept and role of bracing in a structural system.

CONCEPT OF DIAPHRAGM IN STRUCTURAL SYSTEM

Most of us must have used slate in our preschool days. It is a simple thin stone plate approximately 12 x 9 inches fitted in notch of wooden frame surrounding it. This is a basic structural system. If we apply equal and opposite forces on the parallel edges of the wooden frame (Torsion) the frame does not get distorted unless 1) The notch is wider than the thickness of slate 2) The slate is broken. The slabs in any building or vertical wall panels have same role as the slate in the wooden frame. If the joints between wall panels and adjoining framing members are weak, or the joints between wall panel and the slabs are weak the building gets distorted particularly during earthquakes (predominantly horizontal equivalent static loads in any random direction)

Manohar Kanade Civil/Structural consultant flat no 302 Kumar Pushkar 840 Sadashiv Peth Pune 411030 Cell no +919823338004