Beam Section dialog box

Type
Type	Lets you select the type of beam section to create. A number of standard beam sections are available, depending on the selected solver.Also available are three methods for creating custom beam sections:User Defined Properties — Lets you define the section by entering the individual properties manually.Face of Solid — Lets you define the section by selecting the planar face of solid geometry.General Geometry — Lets you define the section by selecting a sketch.Note: To use this method, the Sketch Curves option must have been selected in the Geometry Options dialog box when you created the FEM.
Name
NameDescription	Name and description for the section as it will appear in the Beam Section Manager list.
Properties
Illustration	The graphic shows the shape of the cross section and its dimensions.
Dimensions	Lets you define the dimensions of the sections. Refer to the Illustration for the location of each dimension on the section.
Offset Option	Appears when Abaqus is the selected solver, for I-beam and trapezoid sections.Lets you control the placement of the beam section and define offset. At Centroid — Places the beam mesh at the section centroid. In Abaqus, the beam mesh is initially placed at the bottom of the section. When you select At Centroid, the software offsets the beam mesh to place it at the section centroid.User Defined — Lets you define an offset from the bottom of the section. Enter the offset value in the l or d box (depending on the section type).
l	Appears when Abaqus is the selected solver, Offset Option is set to User Defined, and the selected standard section is an I-beam.Lets you offset the beam from the bottom of the beam section. The default value offsets the beam from the bottom of the section to place the mesh at the section centroid.A value of 0 places the beam at the bottom of the section.A negative value places the beam below the bottom of the section.
d	Appears when Abaqus is the selected solver, Offset Option is set to User Defined, and the selected standard section is a trapezoid.Lets you offset the beam from the bottom of the beam section.The default value offsets the beam from the bottom of the section to place the mesh at the section centroid.A value of 0 places the beam at the bottom of the section.A negative value places the beam below the bottom of the section.
Evaluate Section Properties	Displays the section properties in the Information window.
Solid Face
Appears only for Face of Solid section type.
Select Face	Lets you select a planar face from which to create the section. If an appropriate face is not available, you can use the Section Curve command in Modeling and use the resulting curves as a planar face. You can also use the end face of an extruded solid.
Reference Vector
Appears only for Face of Solid section type.
Define Axis	Choose Horizontal or Vertical to define the rotational orientation of the cross section.
Specify Vector	Defines the direction of the horizontal or vertical axis of the section.For more information, see Vector dialog box.
Reverse Direction	Reverses the direction of the vector.
Evaluate Section Properties	Displays a report of the section dimensions, properties (such as moments of inertias and constants), and stress recovery point locations.
Dimensions
Appears only for User Defined Properties section type. For more information, see User Defined Properties below.
Stress Recovery Points
Appears only for User Defined Properties, Face of Solid, and General Geometry section type.
List	Lists each stress recovery point on the section along with the coordinates of each point.
Reset to Defaults	Resets the stress recovery points back to the defaults.
Create Point	(Face of Solid and General Geometry section types) Opens the Cross Section Preview window, where you can select a location for a new stress recovery point.(User Defined Properties section type) Adds a new point in the list, where you must manually enter the Y and Z values to define the point.
Edit Point	Opens the Cross Section Preview window and lets you change the location of the selected stress recovery point.(User Defined Properties section type) Lets you edit a stress recovery point. Click in the cell for the Y or Z value and change the value.
Delete Point	Deletes the selected stress recovery point.
Preview
Preview	Displays a graphical representation of the section with its dimensions in the Cross Section Preview window.

User Defined Properties

This table lists the user defined section properties along with their equivalent names in each solver language.

Description	Nastran	ANSYS	Abaqus	Ideas Unv	LS-DYNA	Thermal/Flow	Samcef
Area of the section.	Area (A)	Area	Area (A)	Area	Area	Solid Area	Area
Moment of inertia about the Y-axis (for bending in plane 2 about the neutral axis).	Iyy (I1)	Iyy	I11	Iy	Is	N/A	IV
Moment of inertia about the Z-axis (for bending in plane 1 about the neutral axis).	Izz (I2)	Izz	I22	Iz	It	N/A	IU
Cross product of inertia.	Izy (I12)	Izy	I12	Izy	Ist	N/A	N/A
Torsional stiffness.	Torsional Stiffness (J)	Torsional constant (J)	Torsional rigidity (J)	K	K	N/A	IT
Shear stiffness factor in Y direction.	Shear Factor Y (K1)	N/A	N/A	Shear Factor Y	Shear Factor s	N/A	N/A
Shear stiffness factor in Z direction.	Shear Factor Z (K2)	N/A	N/A	Shear Factor Z	Shear Factor t	N/A	N/A
Warping coefficient.	Warping Constant (CW)	Warping Constant	Warping Constant (Γw)	CW	CW	N/A	N/A
Shear center Y – centroid Y.	Y eccentricity (-M1)	Y eccentricity	1 eccentricity	Yecc	s eccentricity	N/A	ZC
Shear center Z – centroid Z.	Z eccentricity (-M2)	Z eccentricity	2 eccentricity	Zecc	t eccentricity	N/A	-YC
Perimeter	N/A	N/A	N/A	Perimeter	N/A	N/A	N/A
Fluid area	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Fluid Area	N/A
N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	External Perimeter	N/A
N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Wetted Perimeter	N/A
N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Alpha

How do I

Beam cross section workflow

Create a standard cross section

Create a cross section from the face of a solid

Create a cross section from a sketch

Assign a cross section to a beam mesh

Define cross section orientation

Offset a cross section

Learn more

Creating beam cross sections

Displaying beam cross sections

Displaying results on beam sections

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Beam Section dialog box, Simcenter 3D 2021.1 Series

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