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First Moment of Area

 

First Moment of Area Formula

\(  Q  \;=\;  A \cdot \bar y  \)     ( First Moment Area)

\(  A  \;=\;  \dfrac{ Q }{ \bar y }  \)

\(  \bar y  \;=\;    \dfrac{ Q }{ A }  \)

Symbol English Metric
\( Q \) = First Moment of Area \(lbm \;/\; in^2 - sec\) \(kg \;/\; mm^2\)
\( A \) = Area Cross-section \(in^2\) \(mm^2\)
\( \bar y \) = Distance from Centroid of the Area to the reference Axis  \(in\) \(mm\)
First moment of area, abbreviated as Q, also called first moment of inertia, is the measurement of a shape's area cross-section relative to an axis, located in space.  In practical terms and of relavance to this site, the shape is generally a beam or piece of pipe.  It is the resistance of an object to bend around a certain axis.  It can be used to determine the location of the centroid, which is the point where the sum of all moments of inertia are equal.

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