Problem description

In PLAXIS 2D, the Point load object can also contain a bending moment as a prescribed load. This bending moment is defined positive when it acts in counter clockwise direction, and negative in clockwise direction.
In PLAXIS 2D AE’s Structures mode, the visualized direction of the arrow follows this sign convention correctly: a clockwise arrow will represent a negative value for the BendingMoment ( M ), while a counter clockwise arrow represents a positive value.

Figure 1. Sign convention for input bending_moment (M)

However, in PLAXIS 2D AE when you change the sign for the bending moment in Staged construction mode, the direction of the drawn bending moment will not change: it will stay the same as it is visualized in the Structures mode of the program, independent of the value in the phase in Staged construction mode:

• when the bending moment is zero in Structures mode, no arrow will be displayed in Staged construction mode
• when the value is negative in Structures mode, the arrow in Staged construction mode will be visualized in clockwise direction,
• and for a positive, counter clockwise bending moment in Structures mode, the Staged construction visualization will show a counter clockwise arrow

This is a visualization issue for the PLAXIS 2D AE Staged construction view only: the value from the Model Explorer or the Selection explorer (after clicking on the point to select it) will be the actual value used in the calculation.

Solution

This issue is now solved since PLAXIS 2D 2015.00

In PLAXIS 2D AE, when using bending moments, please check the activate state of the bending moment and its value using the Model explorer or Selection explorer. After the calculation you can find the defined values for each phase in the Output program via the menu item Project > Load information.