List of top Structural Engineering Questions

The beam shown in the figure is subjected to a uniformly distributed downward load of intensity q between supports A and B.

Considering the upward reactions as positive, the support reactions are

A linearly elastic beam of length 2l with flexural rigidity EI has negligible mass. A massless spring with a spring constant k and a rigid block of mass m are attached to the beam as shown in the figure.

The natural frequency of this system is

Concrete of characteristic strength 30 MPa is required. If 40 specimens of concrete cubes are to be tested, the minimum number of specimens having at least 30 MPa strength should be

The following figure shows the arrangement of formwork for casting a cantilever RC beam.

The correct sequence of removing the Shores/Props is:

A drained triaxial test was conducted on a saturated sand specimen using a stress-path triaxial testing system. The specimen failed when the axial stress reached a value of 100 kN/m² from an initial confining pressure of 300 kN/m².
The angle of shearing plane (in degrees) with respect to horizontal is _______ (rounded off to the nearest integer).

A 3 m long, horizontal, rigid, uniform beam PQ has negligible mass. The beam is subjected to a 3 kN concentrated vertically downward force at 1 m from P, as shown in the figure. The beam is resting on vertical linear springs at the ends P and Q. For the spring at the end P, the spring constant K_p 100 kN/m.

If the beam DOES NOT rotate under the application of the force and displaces only vertically, the value of the spring constant KQ (in kN/m) for the spring at the end Q is

The initial cost of an equipment is Rs. 1,00,000. Its salvage value at the end of accounting life of 5 years is Rs. 10,000. The difference in depreciation (in Rs.) computed using 'double-declining balance method' and 'straight line method' of depreciation in Year-2 is ____ (in positive integer).

For a thin-walled section shown in the figure, points P, Q, and R are located on the major bending axis X - X of the section. Point Q is located on the web whereas point S is located at the intersection of the web and the top flange of the section.

Qualitatively, the shear center of the section lies at

The table shows the activities and their durations and dependencies in a project.

Activity	Duration (Days)	Depends on
A	8	-
B	4	A
C	4	B
D	4	C, L
F	4	A
G	4	F
H	6	G, L
K	10	A
L	6	F, K

The total duration (in days) of the project is ______ (in integer).

An inverted T-shaped concrete beam (B₁) in the figure, with centroidal axis X - X, is subjected to an effective prestressing force of 1000 kN acting at the bottom kern point of the beam cross-section. Also consider an identical concrete beam (B₂) with the same grade of concrete but without any prestressing force.

The additional cracking moment (in kN. m) that can be carried by beam B₁ in comparison to beam B₂ is _____ (rounded off to the nearest integer).

A concrete column section of size 300 mm × 500 mm as shown in the figure is subjected to both axial compression and bending along the major axis. The depth of the neutral axis (X_u) is 1.1 times the depth of the column, as shown.

The maximum compressive strain (ε_c) at highly compressive extreme fiber in concrete, where there is no tension in the section, is ______ × 10^-3(rounded off to 2 decimal places).

The plane frame shown in the figure has fixed support at joint A, hinge support at joint F, and roller support at joint I. In the figure, A to I indicate joints of the frame.

If the axial deformations are neglected, the degree of kinematic indeterminacy is ____ . (in integer).

A critical activity in a project is estimated to take 15 days to complete at a cost of Rs. 30,000. The activity can be expedited to complete in 12 days by spending a total amount of Rs. 54,000. Consider the statements P and Q.
P : It is economically advisable to complete the activity early by crashing, if the indirect cost of the project is Rs. 8,500 per day.
Q : It is economically advisable to complete the activity early by crashing, if the indirect cost of the project is Rs. 10,000 per day.
Which one of the following options is CORRECT ?

A child walks on a level surface from point P to point Q at a bearing of 30°, from point Q to point R at a bearing of 90° and then directly returns to the starting point P at a bearing of 240°. The straight-line paths PQ and QR are 4 m each. Assuming that all bearings are measured from the magnetic north in degrees, the straight-line path length RP (in meters) is ________ (rounded off to the nearest integer).

For the 6 m long horizontal cantilever beam PQR shown in the figure, Q is the midpoint. Segment PQ of the beam has flexural rigidity EI = 2 × 10⁵ kN.m² whereas the segment QR has infinite flexural rigidity. Segment QR is subjected to uniformly, vertically downward load of 5 kN/m.

The magnitude of the vertical displacement (in mm) at point Q is ______ (rounded off to 3 decimal places).

The horizontal beam PQRS shown in the figure has a fixed support at point P, an internal hinge at point Q, and a pin support at point R. A concentrated vertically downward load (V) of 10 kN can act at any point over the entire length of the beam.

The maximum magnitude of the moment reaction (in kN. m) that can act at the support P due to V is _______ (in integer).

A homogeneous, prismatic, linearly elastic steel bar fixed at both the ends has a slenderness ratio (l/r) of 105, where I is the bar length and r is the radius of gyration. The coefficient of thermal expansion of steel is 12 × 10^-6 /°C. Consider the effective length of the steel bar as 0.51 and neglect the self-weight of the bar.
The differential increase in temperature (rounded off to the nearest integer) at which the bar buckles is

The steel angle section shown in the figure has elastic section modulus of 150.92 cm³ about the horizontal X - X axis, which passes through the centroid of the section.

The shape factor of the section is ________ (rounded off to 2 decimal places).

A reinforced concrete pile of 10 m length and 0.7 m diameter is embedded in a saturated pure clay with unit cohesion of 50 kPa. If the adhesion factor is 0.5, the net ultimate uplift pullout capacity (in kN) of the pile is _________ (rounded off to the nearest integer).

Various stresses in jointed plain concrete pavement with slab size of 3.5 m x 4.5 m are denoted as follows :
Wheel load stress at interior = \(S_{wl}^i\)
Wheel load stress at edge = \(S_{wl}^e\)
Wheel load stress at corner = \(S_{wl}^c\)
Warping stress at interior = \(S^i_t\)
Warping stress at edge = \(S_t^e\)
Warping stress at corner = \(S_t^c\)
Frictional stress between slab and supporting layer = \(S_f\)
The critical stress combination in the concrete slab during a summer midnight is

The following figure shows a plot between shear stress and velocity gradient for materials/fluids P, Q, R, S, and T.

Which one of the following options is CORRECT?

Consider the following data for a project of 300 days duration.
Budgeted Cost of Work Scheduled (BCWS) = Rs. 200
Budgeted Cost of Work Performed (BCWP) = Rs. 150
Actual Cost of Work Performed (ACWP) = Rs. 190
The 'schedule variance' for the project is

The structural design method that DOES NOT take into account the safety factors on the design loads is

Consider the statements P and Q.
P : In a Pure project organization, the project manager maintains complete authority and has maximum control over the project.
Q : A Matrix organization structure facilitates quick response to changes, conflicts, and project needs.
Which one of the following options is CORRECT ?

A slab panel with an effective depth of 250 mm is reinforced with 0.2% main reinforcement using 8 mm diameter steel bars. The uniform center-to-center spacing (in mm) at which the 8 mm diameter bars are placed in the slab panel is _____ (rounded off to the nearest integer).