CHAPTER THREE

EQUILIBRIUM

3.1 General
The term "equilibrium" or, more specifically, "static equilibrium" is used to describe
an object at rest. To maintain equilibrium, it is necessary to satisfy Newton's first law
of motion, which requires the resultant force acting on a particle to be equal to zero.
This condition may be stated mathematically as:
"When a body is in equilibrium, the resultant of all forces acting on it is zero" which
leads to:
(Summation of internal and external forces and moments equals to zero)

3.2 Free Body diagram (F.B.D)

To apply the equation of equilibrium, we must account for all the known and unknown forces (F)
which act on the body. The best way to do this is to think of the body as isolated and “free” from its
surroundings .A drawing that shows the particle with all the forces that act on it is called a free-body
diagram (FBD).Before presenting a formal procedure as to how to draw a free-body diagram, we
will first consider three types of supports often encountered in particle equilibrium problems.

1-Spring

F= k x
k = Stiffness of spring (N/m)
x = Distance measured from its unloaded position (m)

2-Smooth Contact
If an object rests on a smooth surface, then the
surface will exert a force on the object that is normal
to the surface at the point of contact.
3- Cables and Pulleys. all cables (or cords) will be assumed to have negligible weight and
they cannot stretch. Also, a cable can support only a tension or “pulling” force, and this force
always acts in the direction of the cable. The tension force developed in a continuous cable which
passes over a frictionless pulley must have a constant magnitude to keep the cable in equilibrium.
Hence, for an angle θ, shown in figure, the cable is subjected to a constant tension T throughout its
length.
Example: Determine the value of P, if the load W= 800 N.
3.2.1 Modeling the Action of Forces in 2D Analysis
3.2.2 Examples of F.B.D
3.2.3 Two- and Three-Force Member
 Two-Force Members.
for any two-force member to be in equilibrium, the two forces acting on the member must have the
same magnitude, act in opposite directions, and have the same line of action, directed along the line
joining the two points where these forces act.

 Three-Force Members.
If a member is subjected to only three forces, it is called a three-force member. Moment equilibrium
can be satisfied only if the three forces form a concurrent (in equilibrium, they should form closed
triangle) or parallel force system.
  The FPD of pin between two members

Example1

Example 2
3.3 Equilibrium conditions

3.3.1 Categories of Equilibrium

3.3.2 Alternative equilibrium Equations
In addition to the three general equilibrium equation there are two other ways to express general
conditions for the equilibrium of forces in two ways dimensions. If ΣMA = 0 and ΣMB = 0, where B
is any point such that the line AB is not perpendicular to the x-direction, we see that R must be zero,
and thus the body is in equilibrium. Therefore, an alternative set of equilibrium equations is
3.4 Constrains and Statical Determinacy
The equilibrium equations developed in this article are both necessary and sufficient conditions to
establish the equilibrium of a body However; they do not necessarily provide all the information
required to calculate all the unknown forces which may act on a body in equilibrium. Whether the
equations are adequate to determine all the unknowns depends on the characteristics of the
constraints against possible movement of the body provided by its supports. By constraint we mean
the restriction of movement.
We must be aware of the nature of the constraints before we attempt to solve an equilibrium
problem. A body can be recognized as statically indeterminate when there are more unknown
external reactions than there are available independent equilibrium equations for the force system
involved. It is always well to count the number of unknown variables on a given body and to be
certain that an equal number of independent equations can be written; otherwise, effort might be
wasted in attempting an impossible solution with the aid of the equilibrium equations only. The
unknown variables may be forces, couples, distances, or angles.

Unknowns No. of Unknowns Equilibrium Eqs. No. of Equilibrium Eqs.

Ax ΣFx=0
Ay 3 ΣFy=0 3
MA ΣMA=0
Example

Solution
There are 3 unknowns and 3 equilibrium Eqs. Therefore, the problem can be solved
Example

Solution