A 150 meter steel bridge has an expansion joint of 10.0cm at one end at -15°C. At what temperature would the

Question

joint be closed?

Answer 1

The coefficient, a, of linear expansion for carbon steel is 10.8^-6/degree K.

The equation is a = change in length/original length/change in temp.

Thus, change in temp = change in length/original length/a

Doing the calc, the gap will be close when the temp increases to 46.7 degrees C.

Answer 2

You need to know the expansion coeficient of steel. Multily that times teh 150 meter length and you will get the expansion per degree.