The Physics of Bridges essays

The Physics of Bridges essays Bridges are a very important part of everyday life. They can save hours in traveling time each day or connect to pieces of land together. The everyday man may not appreciate them but they are by engineers and fans of physics. Bridges are perfect examples of physics. There are different types of bridges, each with a specific purpose. The ones that we chose to talk about are beam, arches, and suspension bridges. Beam bridges are the cheapest type of bridge to make. They are the most simplest to construct compared to the others. The simplest form of a beam bridge would if you took a board of any size and placed it over two desk that are closer than the boards length. If the gap is to great or too much of a load is added then the board will sag greatly. This may be solved if, the thickness of the board is increased or there are supports that are put in. The arch bridge is one of the oldest forms of a bridge. It is like a inverted suspension bridge, with all the tension replaced by compression, and vice versa. There are differences in the stability of the system. An example would be if you, hung a rope across a gap, and it will return to its original position, after some oscillation. Though you cannot hang it in the shape of an arch, even if it could be done the slightest disturbance would send it flying. One reason that an arch bridge has good support is that the volume between the road and the arches is it is filled with masonry, which adds rigidity. The other is that the arch has substantial thickness, so that even with variation in the load, the line of thrust passes through the voussoirs. Suspension bridges are the light and strong and can span distances of 2,000 to 7,000 feet, which is far longer than any other type. Though they are very good they are the most expensive. What a suspension bridge does it suspends the roadway from huge main cables, which extend from one end ...