Load Effects Away from the Ends

Saint-Venant's principle describes how stress changes in a structural member when a load is applied. It shows that the exact way a load is placed matters most near the point of application. Farther away from that point, the stress pattern becomes much less dependent on how the load was applied.

A...

Consider a member with plates on both ends. When loads are applied centrally on the plates, they move towards each other without rotating, causing the member to shorten with an increase in width and thickness.

A uniform distribution of strains and stresses is achieved by maintaining straight member and plane sections, along with uniform d...