What pressure does a brick wall with a volume of 2 m ^ 3 exert on the foundation if the support area is 0.4 m ^ 2?

Given:

V = 2 cubic meters – the volume of the brick wall;

ro = 1800 kilograms / cubic meter – brick density;

s = 0.4 square meters – the reference area of ​​the brick wall.

It is required to determine P (Pascal) – how much pressure the brick wall produces on the foundation.

Find the mass of the brick wall:

m = ro * V = 1800 * 2 = 3600 kilograms.

The force of gravity acting on a brick wall will be equal to:

F = m * g (where g = 10 N / kg is an approximate value);

F = 3600 * 10 = 36000 Newtons.

Then, to determine the pressure, you must use the following formula:

F = P * s, from here we find that:

P = F / s = 36000 / 0.4 = 90,000 Pascal (90 kPa).

Answer: a brick wall produces a pressure of 90,000 Pascal (90 kPa) on the foundation.