,,design ,,of ,a ,,steel ,,railroad ,,warehouse ,,by ,,louis ,,liston ,,tallyn ,,thesis ,,for ,,degree ,,of ,,bachelor ,,of ,,science ,,in ,,civil ,,engineering ,,college ,,of ,,engineering ,,university ,,of ,,illinois #aija ,,university ,,of ,,illinois ,may #bi1 #aija ,,this ,,is ,,to ,,certify ,,that ,,the ,,thesis ,,prepared ,,under ,,my ,,supervision ,,by ,louis ,liston ,tallyn ,,entitled ,design of a ,steel ,railroad ,warehouse ,,is ,,approved ,,by ,,me ,,as ,,fulfilling ,,this ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,requirements ,,for ,,the ,,degree ,,of ,bachelor of ,science in ,civil ,engineering4 ,illustration3 ,ira ,o ,baker4 ,,head ,,of ,,department ,,of ,civil ,engineering4 ,,design ,,of ,a ,,steel ,,railroad ,,warehouse ,,introduction ,in choosing a thesis subject ,i have endeavored to select one that would be of practical use to one in the work that is to follow the college training4 ,i have decided to present the design of a steel railroad warehouse at ,new ,orleans for the ,illinois ,central ,railroad as ,i am greatly interested in railroad work and intend to make that my speciality and because the design of warehouses has so far received only little consideration1 but chiefly because a careful study of such a subject will give a knowledge of steel structural work4 ,,principles ,,applicable ,,in ,,the ,,design ,,of ,,railroad ,,warehouses ,nearly all railroad warehouses are of wood1 but if a warehouse were to be built today it is certain that1 except for small buildings and in localities where timber is exceptionally cheap1 a wooden warehouse would not be considered4 ,at present steel seems to be the material which most nearly approaches the ideal for such structures4 ,this use of steel is due to the increase in the cost of timber and to the decrease in the price of structural steel1 which now makes it possible to build a much stronger1 a better looking1 and more economical structure than would have been possible ten years ago4 ,with a steel structure a settlement of a couple of inches would not in the least impair its efficiency1 as the members would adjust themselves by flexure to meet the new condition4 ,this property of a steel structure is of great advantage where the foundations must be located in soil saturated more or less with water1 as would be the case near the sea or a large river4 ,where brick or stonework is built on such foundations1 the masonry would be quite likely to crack4 ,large freight houses have in the past fifteen years generally been built with a wooden frame covered with sheathing or corrugated iron1 and with wooden or combination roof trusses covered with gravel1 tin1 iron or some form of patent roofing-felt which is supposed to be fireproof4 ,to cheapen the construction1 a flat roof is frequently used2 but this style of roof is very hard to make absolutely water-tight4 ,again1 where corrugated iron is used as a roof covering the wind has a tendency to drive the rain up under the iron4 ,it is claimed that tin or iron when used on a building near salt water1 deteriorate rapidly and that a gravel roof would be much better2 but if the iron or tin is kept well painted1 there is little danger of its being attacked in that way4 ,when tin or corrugated iron is used as a roof1 the trusses may be built much lighter than when gravel is used4 ,freight houses are often built very long1 for example1 the ,illinois ,central banana sheds at ,cairo1 ,illinois4 ,here1 as at all long warehouses1 the length of train standing on the track becomes excessive1 and in switching the work of the 8banana hands0 is often interrupted1 while if a train is made up by loading successive cars1 they are sometimes detained longer than is advisable4 ,fifteen hundred feet is probably as long as a warehouse should be4 ,freight houses should probably not be more than two hundred feet wide1 since otherwise freight taken directly from the cars to the vessels must be trucked too far4 ,on the other hand1 where package conveyors are used1 this would matter little2 and the wide warehouse would have greater floor space for the same cost of construction4 ,if a large amount of freight is loaded direct from the cars to the vessels1 it may be well to run a track between the freight house and the pier2 but at most docks1 unless space is very valuable1 such freight will be handled at a pier independent of the warehouse4 ,where ground space is valuable1 a second story is added4 ,this gives a good space for long-storage freight1 where it will be out of the way4 ,when the value of barrel and package elevators come to be properly appreciated1 two-story warehouses will be built to a greater extent than now4 ,doors are introduced in the sides of the building at intervals to allow the freight to be taken in and out4 ,where the doors are too close1 a great deal of space is occupied by passageways1 and is therefore rendered useless for the storage of goods4 ,on the other hand1 where the distance between the doors is great1 the number of berths for vessels is diminished4 ,in single story warehouses1 windows in the sides of the building are usually omitted1 and light and ventilation is obtained by skylights in the roof1 or sometimes only by transoms over the doors4 ,in double story houses the upper floor is often extended across the track-pit so as to utilize the entire ground space for storage1 in which case it is necessary to locate windows in the sides of the lower story4 ,where this is done the windows must be set so high as not to be blocked by freight piled along the sides of the building4 ,a better design is to omit the floor over the track-pit1 which reduces the storage space1 but also secures an abundance of light and ventilation for the lower story as well as avoids a costly girder construction over the track-pit4 ,,description ,,of ,,some ,,warehouses ,before considering the details of the proposed design1 a short description of some railroad warehouses will be given4 ,these are not all sea-board warehouses1 but they are good examples of current practice4 ,the descriptions are taken from blue prints sent by the railroads4 ,michigan ,central ,freight ,house1 ,grand ,rapids1 ,michigan4 ,this is a single story structure1 #dhj ft4 long1 and #dh ft4 wide sheathed on the sides with galvanized iron1 and roofed with tin4 ,the clear height of the building is #aa ft4 #i in4 ,the bents are #ae ft4 by #af ft4 ,the #ab #ab in4 wooden columns are supported on stone foundations #d ft4 square1 having a depth below the ground of #h ft4 ,at the north end1 #cf ft4 of the structure is two-storied the second story being used for offices1 toilet rooms etc4 ,one peculiar thing about this warehouse is that it has what may be called a continuous door system by which an opening may be made at any point along the side of the building4 ,union ,pacific ,railroad ,standard4 ,the standard freight house for this road is a one-story structure built of brick laid in lime mortar4 ,the foundation is of rubble laid in cement mortar4 ,above the ground the masonry is range work with -in4 joints4 ,the masonry is built up to the underside of the roof boards between the rafters4 ,the door jams are formed of cast iron columns1 on which are placed two nine-inch ,i beams with cast iron separators1 on which the wall is continued to the roof4 ,in the office portion the walls are covered with -in4 -in4 furring strips4 ,the building is covered with a combination roofing-felt4 ,chicago ,st4 ,paul ,minneapolis ,omaha ,railroad4 ,the warehouse at ,allouez ,bay ,docks is #aejj ft4 long by #hj ft4 wide4 ,the sides are covered with ,no4 #bd corrugated iron1 and the roof with tin4 ,the entire building is founded on #aj-;in4 oak piling1 with the exception of the fifteen feet towards the bay1 which is built upon #ab #ab-;inch cribwork4 ,just inside the doors of the warehouse are six platform scales1 three on the west or receiving platform and three on the east or delivery side4 ,the doors are white-pine frames covered with ,no4 #bf corrugated iron4 ,the warehouse of the same road at ,duluth is of the same general type1 the main difference being that along the sides of the pier movable inclines or gangways are provided which follow the rise and fall of the water and which can be adjusted to suit any boat whether floating high or low in the water4 ,the principal material used in these buildings is creosoted yellow pine1 the caps and stringers being #ab #ab-;inch1 and the posts #aj #aj-;inch4 ,the roof trusses are of white pine4 ,atchison ,topeka ,santa ,fe ,railroad4 ,the freight houses of this road are much the same as those of the ,chicago1 ,st4 ,paul1 ,minneapolis and ,omaha railroad1 except that more pains have been taken with the appearances of the structures4 ,mobile and ,ohio ,railroad4 ,the standard freight house of this road is a double-story frame structure1 #efj ft4 long by #hj ft4 wide1 sheathed on the outside with galvanized iron1 and roofed with a composition roofing-felt4 ,two tracks enter the building1 one near the side and one in the middle4 ,the former is for freight which requires no storage4 ,by the use of iron joists and girders1 the floor of the second story is continued without a break across the track-pit4 ,freight is transferred from and to the upper story by package elevators4 ,,the ,,writer',s ,,design ,the site for the warehouse has been taken at ,new ,orleans1 ,louisiana1 on the property of the ,illinois ,central fronting the gulf known as ,stuyvesant ,docks4 ,the design1 however1 is adapted to any sea-board town where a great deal of heavy freight is received from railroads for shipment by water1 or vice versa4 ,it might also with a few variations be suitable for an inland town4 ,the warehouse will be #fjj ft4 long4 ,this length is chosen because it represents the length of wharf available for that purpose4 ,the width of the building will be #adh ft41 of which #bj ft4 in the center will be occupied by two tracks spaced fifteen feet center to center1 which allows an ample passage-way between the tracks and also between the floor and the track4 ,load4 ,the size of warehouse having been decided upon1 the next thing is to select the proper floor load to be allowed for4 ,this depends upon the class of freight to be expected and also upon the manner of storing it4 ,passage-ways will at most times be left in the freight for accessibility1 which will make some difference in the loading2 but as the passageways are likely to be omitted at some time1 the unit load should be on the side of safety and cover all contingencies4 ,a load of #bej lbs per4 sq4 ft4 on both the upper and lower floor has been taken in this design1 which it is believed will be ample as iron ore1 lead1 etc41 will not be stored here4 ,support of ,upper ,floor4 ,the columns will be spaced #bj ft4 apart in the direction of the length of the building1 and #ae ft4 in the other direction4 ,the girders will run parallel to the length of the building and therefore the girders will be #bj ft4 long and the joists #ae4 ,the economic length of the girder is somewhat less than #bj ft4 but by this spacing of the columns more clear room will be obtained1 which is a thing worthy of some consideration4 ,roof ,trusses4 ,the vertical load on the roof will be taken as #ce lbs4 per4 sq4 ft4 of horizontal projection1 of which #bj lbs4 is supposed to cover the weight of the roof itself1 and #ae a possible load due to wind4 ,the horizontal effect of the wind is taken as #cj lbs4 per4 sq4 ft4 of the vertical projection4 ,a design was first made in which it was intended to span #fj ft4 with one ,fink truss1 but this required such heavy construction in the truss members1 that the span of the trusses was reduced to #cj ft4 and a column was projected up through the second story to carry one end of the trusses4 ,for an elevation of the trusses see ,plate ,,iii1 page #bc4 ,the stresses in the several members of the trusses were found by graphical resolution4 ,in many cases a stress was found smaller than would be safely carried by a #b #b-;inch angle1 but on account of riveting a smaller section could not be used4 ,for details of the trusses see ,plate ,,iii1 page #bc4 ,purlins4 ,the purlins are spaced #g ft4 apart and have a span of #bj feet4 ,this requires rather a heavy purlin1 and on account of the length there will be more or less deflection in it2 but this will not be in the least detrimental4 ,five-inch nine-pound channels will be used1 and on these will be bolted the nailing pieces4 ,roof ,covering4 ,over the purlins will be laid #a-;inch fine sheathing covered with tin4 ,tin is used in preference to corrugated iron1 as it may be soldered so as to be absolutely water-tight4 ,on the underside of the sheathing will be nailed a layer of asbestos to prevent sparks from the engines below setting fire to the woodwork4 ,flooring4 ,the flooring for the upper story will be #c-;inch well-seasoned long leaf yellow pine surfaced to a thickness and laid with square joints4 ,the floor can safely carry the required load with a span of #d feet1 and therefore the joists will be spaced #d feet center to center4 ,the joists will be supported by girders which are in turn supported by the columns4 ,the joists will be #ae-;inch #db lb4 ,i beams1 and the girders #bj-;inch #fe-lb4 ,i beams4 ,columns4 ,only two columns will be designed3 one having only a part of the roof to support1 and one that supports this column and the load on the upper floor4 ,the first is designated ,a on ,plate ,,iii1 page #bc1 and the second ,b4 ,column ,a4 ,the load due to the weight of truss1 wind and snow is #bdjjj lbs4 ,a column composed of #d angles #c #b #caf-;in4 and #b -in4 lacing will be used4 ,the cross-section is shown in the figure ,illustration3 ,a ,b 4 ,the moment of inertia about the axis ,,ab #bj4d #d #ha4f inches1 and the distance ,c1 from the center of gravity of the cross section to the most extreme fibre1 #d4 ,the bending moment1 ,m1 caused by the wind on the roof #a1ddb1jjj inch pounds4 ,substituting these values in the formula ,m ,,si ,c and solving for ,s1 we obtain a value of #gajj lbs4 per4 sq4 in4 ,the stress per4 sq4 in4 due to the weight of the trusses #ccjj lbs4 ,therefore the total stress #gajj #ccjj #ajdjj lbs4 per4 sq4 in4 ,the allowable stress #afjjj 7#de lv74 lv #ac4g4 ,therefore the allowable stress #aadjj lbs4 per4 sq4 in4 ,column ,b4 ,the dead load caused by column ,a is #ab tons1 and the load on the column due to the second floor is #da4e tons1 making a total of #ec4e tons4 ,the length of column is #ab ft4 ,try a column composed of four #c in4 ,z bars laced4 ,half of the wind pressure on the windward side above the floor is transmitted by the roof and the lateral bracing to the columns on the leeward side of the building1 and half is carried directly by the columns on the windward side4 ,the wind pressure to be resisted by #aj columns #df #cj #bj #bg1fjj lbs4 ,the columns being fixed at the base1 the total moment of the wind #bg1fjj #ab #f #a1ihg1bjj in4 lbs4 and the moment resisted by one column #aih1gbj in4 lbs4 ,i ,c for this column #ce4a4 ,by substitution in the equation ,m ,,si ,c1 ,s #bcjj lbs4 per sq4 in 7approx474 ,the area of the column #i4ca sq4 in42 and the stress in the column due to the dead load #hcjjj #i4ca #hijj lbs4 per4 sq4 in4 ,the other columns will be stressed less than this one2 but this section will be used throughout for the columns on the lower floor4 ,wind ,bracing4 ,only the method of designing member ,,ad 7see ,plate ,,iii1 page #bc7 will be explained4 ,the wind pressure to be transmitted #dhjj lbs4 ,the secant of the angle of inclination #a4jf4 ,therefore the stress in ,,ad #dhjj #a4jf #eajj lbs4 ,a -in4 round rod will be used4 ,in the same way the sizes of the members ,,ce1 ,,ef1 and ,,fg are determined4 ,foundation4 ,the maximum load for the column is about #ee tons4 ,the foundation will be built on piling1 as experiments made by ,f4 ,j4 ,llewellyn--,engineering ,news1 ,may #aa #ahii--show that the safe load for the soil at ,new ,orleans is only about #gjj lbs4 per4 sq4 ft4 ,nine piles will be used in supporting each column4 ,the depth of pile necessary to safely support the load will be found by driving a few trial piles and using what is known as the ,engineering ,news formula 7,baker's ,masonry ,construction page #bde7 ,p #b,wh d #a1 in which ,p the safe load in tons2 and d is the penetration in inches under the last blow4 ,w is the weight of the hammer in tons2 and h h is the fall in feet4 ,the piles will be of good quality straight-grained white oak1 and before being driven1 the entire bark will be stripped off4 ,no pile less than #ae in4 at the top will be used4 ,the piles will be spaced #c ft4 center to center4 ,a detail drawing of the foundation is shown in ,plate ,,iii1 page #bc4 ,the concrete used in the foundation will be composed of #a part ,louisville ,natural cement and #d parts of sandstone broken to pass a #b-;in4 ring1 the part passing a -in4 ring being screened out4 ,the concrete is assumed to have a compressive strength of #aj tons per sq4 ft41 and then the area of the cast iron base to support the column will be #ee #aj #e4e sq4 ft4 ,a base #cj inches square will be used4 ,the first floor will be composed of #f-;inches of concrete made as that for the foundation resting directly on the ground4 ,over this will be spread -in4 of neat ,portland cement to give the floor an even surface4 ,,conclusion ,the writer realizes that he has not treated such details as cornices1 gutters1 window frames1 etc4 but time will not permit of a further elaboration of the design4 ,illustration3 ,,plate-,i ,illustration3 ,,plate-,,ii ,illustration3 ,,plate-,,iii ---------------------------------------- -------------------------------- ,,transcriber',s ,,notes #a4 ,silently corrected typographical errors and variations in spelling4 #b4 ,archaic1 non-standard1 and uncertain spellings retained as printed4 #c4 ,enclosed block printed font in underscores4