How much weight could a cube made of empty soda...?

Question

How much weight could a cube made of empty soda cans hold? The cube is 5 cans wide, 7 cans long, and 3 cans high. If a board of 3-4 pounds was placed on top (like a table top) how much weight could be placed on it without damaging the cube?

I'm not certain, they are different brands of soda. For safety sake, I'd err on the side of .006 for the equation. I'm sorry I don't have a lot of detail on this.

The cans are quite strongly superglued together, but for the sake of weight, and manuoverability are empty.

Frankly, my roommate and I consume a lot of soda. So we began gluing the cans together as an art project. We then realized that we could build a low table so we could work/eat on the floor in front of our TV. Our room is only along the lines of 14X12 so we have very little furniture.

Answer 1

How are the cans attached to each other? A healthy amount of epoxy between the cans would be good.

Each can should support at least 20 pounds of evenly distributed weight, so a 5 X 7 pattern could easily hold 350 pounds IF the weight is evenly distributed. If you want to, step on a can and estimate the amount of weight one can can hold.

If you were to fill the cans with concrete, they would hold a lot of weight. If the cans were full of soda and unopened, it would also carry a lot of weight.

Since someone will load up one side of the table at some point, you should limit the weight of the load on the table to the weight four cans can support. It should be no problem to take 4 cans and put them through a destructive test (a test where you add weight until they fail). Put four cans, attached together, on a scale and step on them. Or add weights until they collapse. That will give you a really good idea of the weight it can handle.

You could put plaster in the cans, too. A little lighter than concrete, but still much stronger than aluminum only.

PS If you hid four 1" dowels between the cans and added a board on the bottom, you could add eight screws into the ends of the dowels (or use glue) and significantly increase the strength of the table. Or you could fill the area in between the cans with plaster, concrete or a tube of caulk to increase the strength without adding much weight.

Have fun with it!

Answer 2

Empty soda cans can hold quite a bit of weights. Try this: after emptying out a can carefully (so there are no bends or creases in the aluminum), place it on a flat floor, and put a foot on it. Then SLOWLY and EVENLY, put more and more weight on it. You should be able to stand on it. Now here's the interesting part: have your roommate hold your hand as she touches the can with her foot. She doesn't need to kick it, just bend it a little bit. If your reflexes are good, you won't fall to the ground, but you will notice how quickly the strength of the can is gone.

What gives a can that strength is its shape. A cylinder is a very strong shape, which is why columns are made that way. If you were to put something in the can (such as plaster or concrete which is easy to pour but then hardens) the can will retain its shape and stay strong. It would also work if you pressurized a liquid or gas and sealed it into the can, much like the soda itself. Try standing on a full can. Your roommate could kick the can from underneath you and it would still retain its shape.

If you end up with a really cool art project, put up some pictures and let us know.

Answer 3

An empty can in perfect condition, loaded vertically, can take a 100 lb load. Try to stand on one can on a flat surface. It takes quite a bit of force to crush a can in the long direction. A 5x7 array should be able to easily handle 2000 lbs.

Answer 4

wall thickness of the cans? .oo6 or .oo8?