Instructor

Mohammad Jahanshahi
Office: HAMP 4116
Office hours: MW 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm
E-mail: jahansha@purdue.edu

Lyles School of Civil Engineering

CE 297 Basic Mechanics I (Statics)
MWF 12:30-1:20PM, WTHR 104, JAN 12 - MAY 2

Teaching Assistant
Luis Moran Yanez
Office: HAMP G230
Office hours: TTh 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
E-mail: lmoranya@purdue.edu

Prerequisites
PHYS 172 Modern Mechanics
Course Description
This course provides students with the necessary tools to analyze and understand the conditions of
equilibrium. These tools are indispensable in other courses that follow Statics such as Dynamics,
Hydrostatics, Structural Mechanics, Geotechnical Engineering, Structural Analysis, as well as all courses
on structural design.
Upon successful completion of this course the student shall be able to: utilize fundamental vector
mechanics concepts to understand, explain, and describe the behavior of particle and rigid-body
equilibrium; determine centroids and moments of inertia of areas; analyze the behavior of typical
engineering components using force and moment equilibrium.
Textbook
Beer, F.P., Johnston, E.R., Jr., and Mazurek, D., Vector Mechanics for Engineers: Statics, Tenth
Edition, McGraw-Hill, 2013.
Grading
Homework
15%
*
Midterm I
25%
8:00 pm - 9:30 pm, Wednesday, February 25, 2015, MTHW 210
Midterm II*
25%
8:00 pm - 9:30 pm, Thursday, April 2, 2015, MTHW 210
Final Exam
35%
TBA
*
No classes on January 23 and March 13.
Grades will be adjusted to reflect the statistical distribution of scores within the class. The instructor
should be informed about schedule conflicts at least two weeks before the exams. Requests for
changes in exam grades shall be submitted in writing. Make-up exams for absences will not be given
except under extremely unavoidable situations.
Homework
Homework problems will be posted on the blackboard.
Homework will be due at the beginning of class on the due date.
Except in weeks with holidays, homework assigned on Monday is due the following Friday,
homework assigned on Wednesday is due the following Monday, and homework assigned on Friday is
due the following Wednesday. For weeks with holidays, dues dates will be announced in the lecture.
Engineering paper should be used, one side only.
Each problem should begin on a new page.
All problems in a homework set must be completed; random problems will be graded.
The grade will be assigned based on the solution procedure, results, organization, and presentation.
Each solution shall be explained with all the detail and figures necessary for another person to review
your work thoroughly. Diagrams must be drawn neatly using a straight edge. Work should be presented

Lyles School of Civil Engineering

CE 297 Basic Mechanics I (Statics)
MWF 12:30-1:20PM, WTHR 104, JAN 12 - MAY 2

in a logical sequence. If applicable, solutions shall include detailed free-body diagrams. All the relevant
forces shall be shown and identified with a letter in the diagram. The same letter shall be used to
identify each force in the calculations. Partial solutions and explanations shall receive no credit.
Illegible homework solutions and solutions submitted late will receive a grade of zero.
Each set should be stapled and separate from other sets. Folding and tearing the corner to assemble the
pages is not acceptable. All problems from a set must be handed in at the same time.
Fifty percent will be deducted for homework that is one lecture late. No credit will be given for
homework that is more than one lecture late.
Solutions will be posted on the blackboard one lecture after the due date.
The three lowest homework grades will be excluded from the final average assigned to homework
assignments.
Classroom Conduct
Attendance is expected in all lectures.
Cell phones must be silenced. Talking, texting or any other use is not allowed.
Disruptive classroom behavior will not be tolerated. You may be asked to leave (and, in some cases,
never come back). Examples of disruptive behavior includes, but not limited to: talking in class, making
inappropriate comments, engaging in activities not related to class, and sleeping.
Academic Integrity
Homework assignments and exams are to be solved and submitted individually. Statics is a
fundamental course for the future engineer. It is expected that the students will invest effort to master
its contents accordingly. Obtaining solutions from any external source or another students homework or
sharing your homework with another student is absolutely not allowed. Giving and receiving help on
concepts is allowed and encouraged. Dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Students, who has the
authority to include the report in student records.
Purdue prohibits dishonesty in connection with any University activity. Cheating, plagiarism, or
knowingly furnishing false information to the University are examples of dishonesty (Section B.2.a of
the Student Regulations). Furthermore, the University Senate has stipulated that the commitment of acts
of cheating, lying, and deceit in any of their diverse forms (such as the use of ghost-written papers, the
use of substitutes for taking examinations, the use of illegal cribs, plagiarism, and copying during
examinations) is dishonest and must not be tolerated. Moreover, knowingly to aid and abet, directly or
indirectly, other parties in committing dishonest acts is in itself dishonest (University Senate Document
72-18, December 15, 1972).
More info on academic integrity can be found here: https://www.purdue.edu/odos/osrr/academicintegrity-brochure/
Special Needs
If you have any disability-related needs that might affect your performance in this course, please contact
your instructor within the first two weeks of class.
Course outline (This outline may be revised during the semester)
Introduction
1. Basic concepts and fundamental principles (1.1-1.6)
Statics of Particles
2. Addition and resolution of forces (2.1-2.6)

Lyles School of Civil Engineering

CE 297 Basic Mechanics I (Statics)
MWF 12:30-1:20PM, WTHR 104, JAN 12 - MAY 2

3. Rectangular components (2.7-2.8)

4. Equilibrium of a particle (2.9-2.11)
5. Forces in space (2.12-2.14)
6. Equilibrium in space (2.15)
7. Equilibrium in space (2.15)
Rigid bodies. Equivalent Systems of Forces
8. Moment of a force about a point (3.1-3.8)
9. Moment of a force about a point (3.1-3.8)
10. Moment of a force about an axis (3.9-3.11)
11. Couples (3.12-3.16)
12. Equivalent systems of forces (3.17-3.20)
13. Equivalent systems of forces (3.17-3.20)
Equilibrium of Rigid Bodies
14. Equilibrium in two dimensions (4.1-4.4)
15. Equilibrium in two dimensions
16. Indeterminate reactions, partial constraints (4.5)
17. Two- and three-force bodies(4.6-4.7)
18. Equilibrium in three dimensions (4.8-4.9)
19. Equilibrium in three dimensions (4.8-4.9)
20. MIDTERM EXAM (Material through Lecture 13)
Centroids and Centers of Gravity
21. Centroids and first moments of areas and lines (5.1-5.5)
22. Centroids and first moments of areas and lines (5.1-5.5)
23. Centroids by integration (5.6-5.7)
24. Beams and submerged surfaces (5.8-5.9)
25. Beams and submerged surfaces (5.8-5.9)
26. Centroids of volumes (5.10-5.12)
27. Centroids of volumes (5.10-5.12)
Analysis of Structures
28. Trusses by method of joints (6.1-6.4)
29. Trusses by method of joints (6.1-6.4)
30. Trusses by method of section (6.7)
31. MIDTERM EXAM (Material through Lecture 27)
32. Trusses by method of section (6.7)
33. Frames (6.9-6.11)
34. Frames (6.9-6.11)
35. Machines (6.12)
36. Machines (6.12)
Friction
37. Laws of friction and applications (8.1-8.4)
38. Wedges and screws (8.5-8.6)
39. Belt friction (8.10)
40. Belt friction (8.10)
Moments of Inertia
41. Moments of inertia of areas (9.1-9.5)
42. Moments of inertia of areas (9.1-9.5)
43. Composite areas (9.6-9.7)
44. Composite areas (9.6-9.7)