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Glossary » Beams » Simply Supported » Uniformly Distributed Load » Single Span » Wide Flange Steel I Beam » W5 × 16
Wide Flange Steel I Beam | Single Span | Two Equal Spans | Three Equal Spans | Four Equal Spans

For a simply supported beam in a single span, the maximum displacement w_max and the maximum normal stress stress_max occur at the center of the beam.
The tabulated data listed in this page are calculated based on the area moment of inertia (Ixx = 21.3 in4) for the W5 × 16 Wide Flange Steel I Beam and the typical Young's modulus (E = 3.046 × 107 psi) of steels. Note that the typical yielding stress Yield of steels can range from 1.015 × 104 to 2.970 × 105 psi. The purpose of this page is to give a rough estimation of the load-bearing capacity of this particular beam, rather than a guideline for designing actual building structures. Please check your local building codes for regulatory requirements.
Note: The weight of the beam itself is not included in the calculation.
L = 3 ft
L = 5 ft
L = 10 ft
L = 15 ft
L = 20 ft
L = 25 ft
L = 30 ft
L = 40 ft
L = 50 ft
   
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 3.00 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 4.49 × 10-5 25.4
20.0 5.62 × 10-5 31.8
30.0 8.43 × 10-5 47.6
40.0 1.12 × 10-4 63.5
50.0 1.40 × 10-4 79.4
60.0 1.69 × 10-4 95.3
70.0 1.97 × 10-4 111
80.0 2.25 × 10-4 127
90.0 2.53 × 10-4 143
100 2.81 × 10-4 159
200 5.62 × 10-4 318
300 8.43 × 10-4 476
400 0.00112 635
500 0.00140 794
600 0.00169 953
700 0.00197 1110
800 0.00225 1270
900 0.00253 1430
1000 0.00281 1590
2000 0.00562 3180
3000 0.00843 4760
4000 0.0112 6350
5000 0.0140 7940
6000 0.0169 9530
7000 0.0197 1.11 × 104
8000 0.0225 1.27 × 104
9000 0.0253 1.43 × 104
1.00 × 104 0.0281 1.59 × 104
2.00 × 104 0.0562 3.18 × 104
3.00 × 104 0.0843 4.76 × 104
4.00 × 104 0.112 6.35 × 104
5.00 × 104 0.140 7.94 × 104
6.00 × 104 0.169 9.53 × 104
7.00 × 104 0.197 1.11 × 105
8.00 × 104 0.225 1.27 × 105
9.00 × 104 0.253 1.43 × 105
1.00 × 105 0.281 1.59 × 105
1.87 × 105 0.526 2.97 × 105
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 5.00 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 3.47 × 10-4 70.6
20.0 4.34 × 10-4 88.2
30.0 6.50 × 10-4 132
40.0 8.67 × 10-4 176
50.0 0.00108 221
60.0 0.00130 265
70.0 0.00152 309
80.0 0.00173 353
90.0 0.00195 397
100 0.00217 441
200 0.00434 882
300 0.00650 1320
400 0.00867 1760
500 0.0108 2210
600 0.0130 2650
700 0.0152 3090
800 0.0173 3530
900 0.0195 3970
1000 0.0217 4410
2000 0.0434 8820
3000 0.0650 1.32 × 104
4000 0.0867 1.76 × 104
5000 0.108 2.21 × 104
6000 0.130 2.65 × 104
7000 0.152 3.09 × 104
8000 0.173 3.53 × 104
9000 0.195 3.97 × 104
1.00 × 104 0.217 4.41 × 104
2.00 × 104 0.434 8.82 × 104
3.00 × 104 0.650 1.32 × 105
4.00 × 104 0.867 1.76 × 105
5.00 × 104 1.08 2.21 × 105
6.00 × 104 1.30 2.65 × 105
6.74 × 104 1.46 2.97 × 105
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 10.0 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 0.00555 282
20.0 0.00694 353
30.0 0.0104 529
40.0 0.0139 706
50.0 0.0173 882
60.0 0.0208 1060
70.0 0.0243 1230
80.0 0.0277 1410
90.0 0.0312 1590
100 0.0347 1760
200 0.0694 3530
300 0.104 5290
400 0.139 7060
500 0.173 8820
600 0.208 1.06 × 104
700 0.243 1.23 × 104
800 0.277 1.41 × 104
900 0.312 1.59 × 104
1000 0.347 1.76 × 104
2000 0.694 3.53 × 104
3000 1.04 5.29 × 104
4000 1.39 7.06 × 104
5000 1.73 8.82 × 104
6000 2.08 1.06 × 105
7000 2.43 1.23 × 105
8000 2.77 1.41 × 105
9000 3.12 1.59 × 105
1.00 × 104 3.47 1.76 × 105
1.68 × 104 5.84 2.97 × 105
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 15.0 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 0.0281 635
20.0 0.0351 794
30.0 0.0527 1190
40.0 0.0702 1590
50.0 0.0878 1980
60.0 0.105 2380
70.0 0.123 2780
80.0 0.140 3180
90.0 0.158 3570
100 0.176 3970
200 0.351 7940
300 0.527 1.19 × 104
400 0.702 1.59 × 104
500 0.878 1.98 × 104
600 1.05 2.38 × 104
700 1.23 2.78 × 104
800 1.40 3.18 × 104
900 1.58 3.57 × 104
1000 1.76 3.97 × 104
2000 3.51 7.94 × 104
2850 5.01 1.13 × 105
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 20.0 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 0.0888 1130
20.0 0.111 1410
30.0 0.166 2120
40.0 0.222 2820
50.0 0.277 3530
60.0 0.333 4230
70.0 0.388 4940
80.0 0.444 5650
90.0 0.499 6350
100 0.555 7060
200 1.11 1.41 × 104
300 1.66 2.12 × 104
400 2.22 2.82 × 104
500 2.77 3.53 × 104
600 3.33 4.23 × 104
700 3.88 4.94 × 104
800 4.44 5.65 × 104
900 4.99 6.35 × 104
903 5.01 6.37 × 104
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 25.0 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 0.217 1760
20.0 0.271 2210
30.0 0.406 3310
40.0 0.542 4410
50.0 0.677 5510
60.0 0.813 6620
70.0 0.948 7720
80.0 1.08 8820
90.0 1.22 9920
100 1.35 1.10 × 104
200 2.71 2.21 × 104
300 4.06 3.31 × 104
370 5.01 4.08 × 104
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 30.0 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 0.449 2540
20.0 0.562 3180
30.0 0.843 4760
40.0 1.12 6350
50.0 1.40 7940
60.0 1.69 9530
70.0 1.97 1.11 × 104
80.0 2.25 1.27 × 104
90.0 2.53 1.43 × 104
100 2.81 1.59 × 104
178 5.01 2.83 × 104
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 40.0 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 1.42 4520
20.0 1.78 5650
30.0 2.66 8470
40.0 3.55 1.13 × 104
50.0 4.44 1.41 × 104
56.4 5.01 1.59 × 104
Steel I Beam: W5 × 16 (Wide Flange 5 inch tall × 16 lbf/ft)
L = 50.0 ft
P (lbf/ft) w_max (in) stress_max (psi)
16.0 3.47 7060
20.0 4.34 8820
23.1 5.01 1.02 × 104
Additional Information
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Discover how to choose the right 3D printer for your needs and the key performance attributes to consider.

STEM Career Outlook

Wages, employment opportunities, and growth projections for STEM jobs.

CNC Machining Design Guide

Optimize your designs, reduce machining time, and lower your costs.

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A white paper to assist in the evaluation of 3D scanning hardware solutions.

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