Sections

Sections#

The mento package provides a structured way to model structural sections. This documentation focuses on the foundational Section class and its specialized subclass RectangularSection.

These classes represent the geometric and material properties of structural elements, forming the basis for specific implementations like beams and columns.

Section#

The Section class serves as the base class for all structural sections. It includes core attributes and methods for managing materials, settings, and unique identification for each section.

Key Attributes:

  • id (int): A unique identifier automatically assigned to each section instance.

  • label (String): The label of the section.

  • concrete (Concrete): The concrete material used in the section.

  • steel_bar (SteelBar): The steel reinforcement used in the section.

  • c_c (Quantity): The clear cover of the section.

RectangularSection#

The RectangularSection class extends Section to represent rectangular-shaped structural elements, such as beams or columns. It adds specific geometric attributes and properties relevant to rectangular sections.

Attributes:

  • width (Quantity): The width of the section.

  • height (Quantity): The height of the section.

Properties:

  • A_x (Quantity): Cross-sectional area.

  • I_y (Quantity): Moment of inertia about the Y-axis.

  • I_z (Quantity): Moment of inertia about the Z-axis.

Hierarchy:

RectangularSection inherits all attributes and methods from Section while introducing geometry-specific properties.

Usage Notes#

  • Section and RectangularSection Usage: Since these are base classes, you won’t be using them to create objects per se but to access its atrributes which other classes inherit, like RectangularBeam.

You can access the section properties directly in a RectangularBeam object.

section = RectangularBeam(
    label="101",
    concrete=concrete,
    steel_bar=steel,
    width=20 * cm,
    height=50 * cm,
    c_c = 2.5 * cm
)
print('b =', section.width)
print('h =', section.height)
print('A_x =', section.A_x)
print('I_y =', section.I_y)
print('I_z =', section.I_z)

The Section class is a foundational building block in the mento package. It can serve as the base for specialized structural elements such as:

  • Rectangular Beams: See the RectangularBeam documentation for its extended features like shear and flexural checks.