Abstract: A roof is structured to support its own weight —the dead load— and the weight of temporary objects resting on it —the live load. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the optimal slope of roof for it to support the most live load. With the use of roof structure models and weights, the ability of the roof to withstand mass was investigated.
Roof structure models of particular slopes —0°, 15°, 30°, 45°, and 60°— were created using thin strips of pinewood and superglue. Sand was added to the plastic bucket that was tied to a nylon string hung over the model until the model broke. The mass of the plastic bucket filled with sand was then measured and recorded as the break mass. The break masses were averaged and converted to psf (pounds per square feet), a widely used unit for live load of real roofs.
According to several articles and academic journals, the maximum live load decreases as the slope of roof decreases, indicating that a flat roof, a roof of slope 0°, is the optimal slope. The hypothesis was partly justified as the experiment failed to show that the flat roof supported the most live load while still managing to justify that maximum live load decreases as slope of the roof increases as the average maximum live load of 15°, 30°, 45°, and 60° decreased respectively. Hence, coming to a conclusion that maximum live load decreases as slope of roof increases after 0°.
Keywords: Break Mass, Dead Load, Slope of Roof, Maximum Live Load, Optimal Slope, and Roof Structure.
Title: Investigating the Relationship between Slopes of Roofs and Maximum Live Load
Author: David J. Kim
International Journal of Civil and Structural Engineering Research
ISSN 2348-7607 (Online)
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