Beam Deflection Under The Snow In Florida

by Dmitrii Karpenko

Submitted : Fall 2016

The main purpose of the project is to investigate the maximum deflection of a rectangular 16 x 8 inches beam, supported on both ends under uniform loading stress in case Tampa experiences snow fall. The required information for the project is the material of the beam and its dimensions, measurement of the area of the roof that would accumulate snow, and calculations of the Moment of Inertia and Uniform Distributed Load for the beam. The maximum deflection of the beam can be calculated using the information above.

The outcome of the research shows that the roof construction of the University of South Florida Marshall Student Center stage, can withstand all of Florida’s potential weather conditions, even in rare weather cases like the snowfall of March 6, 1954 when Florida experienced 4 inches of snow. The maximum deflection of the beam in this case is 0.639 inches, which is below the maximum allowable value of 1.2 inches for the 9144 mm spans according to AS 1170.1 Minimum design loads on structures.

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