Steel and Timber Structures

CHAPTER - SIX
Connections
Bisrat Ayalew (MSc)
Structural Engineering Stream
2013/2021
 Contents
• Introduction
• Types of bolt connections
• Bolt Grades
• Mode of Failure
• Design of Bolts
• Welded Connections
• Types of Welds
• Design of Welds
 Introduction
 Every structure is an assemblage of individual parts
or members which must be fastened together,
usually at the ends of its members.
 The two main fastening means are bolting and
welding (with a few and isolated case also riveting
and pins).
 Connections are structural elements used for
joining different members of a framework.
• Due consideration should be given to the design
of connections.
• However, efficiently the components are
designed, if the connections are inadequate the
result will be a week structure.
Cont.…
 Joint/connection - Zone where two or more members are
interconnected.
 The five basic types are the butt, lap, tee, corner, and edge
joints
Butt Joints are used mainly to join the ends of
flat plates having the same or nearly the same
thickness.
Lap joints are the most common type of joint
and are used in a large variety of connections.
Tee Joints are used to fabricate built up
sections such as tees, H-shapes, plate girders,
bearing stiffeners, hangers, brackets
Butt Joints
Corner areused
Joints are usedprincipally
mainly totojoin
form
the ends
built-up of flat plates
rectangular having such
box sections the as
same
used for or nearlyand
columns thefor
same thickness.
beams required to
resist high torsional forces.
Edge Joints are generally not structural but
are most frequently used to keep two or
more plates in a given plane or to maintain
initial alignment.
Cont.…
 Connections can be classified according to:
 The type of connecting medium used:
* Bolted connections,
* Welded connections,
* Bolted-welded connections
* Riveted connections.
 The type of internal forces the connections are
expected to transmit:
* shear connections,
* moment connections.
Cont.…
 The type of structural elements that made up the
connections:
* Single-plate angle connections,
* Double web angle connections,
* Top and seated angle connections,
* Seated beam connections, etc.
 The type of members the connections are joining:
* beam-to-beam connections (beam splices),
* column-to-column connections (column splices),
* beam-to-column connections, hanger connections
Cont.…
• Connections are needed to join:
– Members together in trusses and lattice girders
– Plates together to form built-up members
– Beams to beams, beams, trusses, bracing, etc to
columns in structural frames; and
– Columns to foundations
• Some typical connections are shown on next slide
• Connections in steel structures are normally made by

– Bolting
– Welding
Bolted Connections
• These are connections whose components are
fastened by bolts.
• Bolts are manufactured from mild steel or high
strength steel.
• Bolt consists of a head , a shank and Thread
The shank is threaded to take the nut at the other end.
• The lengths of the shank are different to suit different
jobs.
• The size of the bolt is the diameter of the shank.
• The shank is threaded at the end to receive nut.
 The tensile area for different bolts given in the
following Table:
Bolt Grades
• The nominal values of the yield strength fyb and
ultimate tensile strength fub to be adopted as
characteristic values in calculation are given below:
FAILURE MODEE BOLTS
There are many possible modes of failure that can
occur in bolted connections, the most common ones
of which are :
The shearing failure through the shank of the bolt
A bearing failure of the bolt itself is rare, occurring
only when the material of the steel in the plates is
harder than that in the bolts.
The tensile failure may result from over-tightening
the bolts, or from excessive externally applied
tensile forces.
The bending failure is caused by using
excessively long bolts in excessively thick
connections made up of several layers of plates.
FAILURE MODEE BOLTS
FAILURE MODEE BOLTS
Positioning of holes for bolts and rivets
Minimum and maximum spacing, end and edge
distances for bolts and rivets are given in Table below
Positioning of holes for bolts and rivets
 Positioning of holes for bolts and rivets

Bolt holes are made larger than the bolt diameter to

facilitate erection and to allow for inaccuracies.
Design of Bolts
a) Shear Resistance of a bolt
Design resistance for individual fasteners subjected
to shear and/or tension
b) Bearing Resistance
fub is the ultimate tensile strength of the bolt
c) Tension Resistance
Bolt Rivet

d) Combined shear and Tension

• When bolts subjected to both shear and tension then in
addition to the above the following relationship shown on
next slide shall be satisfied.
Example : 1
The connection shown in the below is subjected to
a design tensile force of 240 kN. The steel Grade is
S275, the bolt Grade 8.8 and its diameter is 20 mm.
Check that the connection is adequate. Assume the
steel exposed to corrosion.

Gusset plate: 100mm x 15mm,

Solution:
1- Geometry, material and load:
Angle: 2L70 x 7, S275 → fy = 275MPa
Cross-sectional area, Ag = 2 x (133*7) = 1862mm2
Gusset plate: 100mm x 15mm,
Cross-sectional area, Ag = 100*15= 1500mm2
Bolts:
Dia = 20mm,
Grade 8.8 → fyb = 640MPa ,fub = 800MPa
Tensile Area (area of thread) : As= 245mm2
Shank area: As= 314mm2
2. Holes diameter and spacing:
→The hole diameter shall be
d0= d + 2 mm Because d=20mm (14< d  22)
= 20 + 2 = 22 mm.
Min. edge distance,
e1 = 1.2do = 1.2 * 22 = 26.4mm<50mm …….Ok
e2 = 1.2do = 1.2 * 22 = 26.4mm<40mm …….Ok
Minimum hole distance,
P1= 2.2do = 2.2*22 = 48.4mm< 80mm…………Ok
Maximum edge distance,
e1 = 4t + 40mm , ((4*7)+40mm)= 68mm) = 68mm>[Link]
e2 = 4t + 40mm , ((4*7)+40mm)= 68mm) = 68mm>[Link]
Maximum hole distance,
P1 = The smaller of 14t or 200mm = (14*7=98mm) or 200mm
= 98mm>80mm……………….Ok
3. Capacity of connected members:
3.1. The gross cross sectional area resistance capacity
of the :-
a). angle:
1862∗275∗10−3
𝐴𝑓𝑦
𝑁𝑝𝑙,𝑅𝑑 = = = 512.05KN>240KN…OK
𝛾𝑚1 1.0
b). gusset plate:
1500∗275∗10−3
𝐴𝑓𝑦
𝑁𝑝𝑙,𝑅𝑑 = = = 412.5KN>240KN…OK
𝛾𝑚1 1.0

3.2. The Net cross sectional area resistance capacity

of the :-
a) Angle is connected by a single row of bolts in one leg:

The net section area of the angle

An  Ag   d t …..For non-staggered failure
A single angle in tension connected by a single row of bolt in
one leg ,the design ultimate resistant should be determined as
Spacing of holes: P1 = 80mm = 3.64do
Since P1is b/n 2.5do and 5do interpolation must be used

Observing the coefficients 0.4 and 0.7

Interpolating for the coefficient
3.64−2.5
Coeff. =0.4+( ) * (0.7-0.4) = 0.5368
5−2.5

Hence the design ultimate resistance of the net section

1862
𝐴𝑛𝑒𝑡 = -(22*7)
2
2
𝐴𝑛𝑒𝑡 = 777𝑚𝑚
 0.5368𝐴𝑛𝑒𝑡 𝑓𝑢
𝑁𝑢,𝑅𝑑 =
𝛾𝑚2
0.5368∗2∗777∗430∗10−3
𝑁𝑢,𝑅𝑑 = = 286.96KN>240KN
1.25

b) Gusset plate
Net area of the gusset plate:
Aeff = ((100*15) – (22*15))= 1170mm2

Design Ultimate resistance of the net section:

0.9 x Aeff x fU
NU , 

RD
M2

0.9 x 1170 x 430

NU , RD 
1.25 *1000

Nu,Rd = 362.23KN >240KN……..OK

III. Shear Resistance:
Assumption threads are in shear plane i.e. As=245mm2
The bolts are subjected to double shear (two shear planes each
at the interface b/n the gusset plate and angle
 0.6∗800∗245∗10−3
𝐹𝑉,𝑅𝑑 = 2*
1.25
240
= 188.16 KN > =120KN…OK
2
IV. Bearing resistance

Bearing of end bolt

𝑒1 50
𝑎𝑑 = =3∗22=0.76 ,
3𝑑0
𝑓𝑢𝑏
=
800
=1.86 , 𝑎𝑑 is the Minimum = 0.76
𝑓𝑢 430
1.0
 𝑒2
smallest of 𝑘1 =2.8 - 1.7 or 2.5
𝑑0
40
𝑘1 =2.8* - 1.7 =3.39 or 2.5
22
𝑘1 = 2.5 (smaller)
2.5∗0.76∗430∗20∗15∗10−3 240
𝐹𝑏,𝑅𝑑 = = 196 KN > =120KN…OK
1.25 2

V. Tension Resistance

0.9∗800∗245 240
𝐹𝑡,𝑅𝑑 = = 141.12 KN > =120KN…OK
1.25 2
Eccentric Connections
• The line of action of the forces in connected members

should in general pass through the centroid of the fastener

group.

• However, it is often impossible to arrange members

so that this condition is satisfied, and as a consequence the

fasteners are subjected to eccentric forces.

• There are two principal types of eccentrically loaded
connections:
1. Bolt group in direct shear and torsion and
2. Bolt group in direct shear and tension
Bolts in direct shear and torsion
• In the connection shown previous slide the
moment is applied in the plane of the connection
and the bolt group rotates about its center of
gravity.

• A linear variation of loading due to moment is

assumed, with the bolt farthest from the center of
gravity of the group carrying the greatest load.

• The direct shear is divided equally between

bolts and the side plates are assumed to be rigid.
• Consider a group of bolts shown below
where the load P is applied at an eccentricity
e.
Cont.…..
Cont…
Welded Connections
• Welding is the process of joining metal parts by
fusing them and filling in with molten metal from
the electrode.

• This method is used extensively to join parts and

members and to fabricate complete elements such
as plate girders.

• Welding provides neat, strong and more efficient

joints than are possible with bolting.
Welded Connections
Types of welds
• The four types of welds are the
– butt,
– fillet,
– slot, and
– plug welds
• Each type of weld has specific advantages
that determines the extent of its usage.
a) Butt welds
• The principal use of butt welds is to connect structural

members that are aligned in the same plane.

• Since butt welds are usually intended to transmit the full load
of the member they join, the weld should have the same
strength as the pieces joined, in which case they are referred to
as full penetration welds.

• There are many variations of butt welds and each is classified

according to its particular shape.

• Each type of butt welds requires a specific edge penetration

and is named accordingly.
b) Fillet welds
• For fillet weld the weld metal is located on
the face of the plates.

• Fillet welds owing to their overall economy,

easy of fabrication and adaptability are the
most widely used.
c) Slot and Plug welds
• Slot and plug welds may be used extensively in
connection as shown in figure (a) and (b),or may be
used in combination with fillet welds as shown
figure (c) on next slide.
• A principal use for plug or slot welds is to transmit
shear in a lap joint when the size of the connection
limits the length available for fillet or other edge
welds.
• Slot and plug welds are also useful in preventing
overlapping parts from buckling.
Design of fillet weld
• Two geometrical weld parameters for design:
a) throat thickness, a, is the minimum distance
from the root to the weld face ignoring the
convex zone.
b) Weld length, l, is the longitudinal weld dimension
in the direction of the welding arc displacement.
• Few terms are used while designing a fillet weld as
follows:
a) Minimum weld size
• Welds must be of some minimum sizes based on
the thickness of the base metal.
• Minimum sizes of fillet weld as shown in Table
below
b) Maximum weld size
• The maximum size of fillet welds along the edges
of connected part is:
– Along edges of material less than 6 mm, the
minimum size may be equal to the thickness of the
material.
– Along edges of material 6 mm or more in
thickness, the maximum size shall be 1.0 mm less
than the thickness of the material.
c) Minimum length of fillet weld
• The minimum length of fillet weld should not be
less than 30 mm or 6a, a is throat thickness.
d) Throat thickness
• Throat thickness is the shortest distance from the
root to the face of the weld as shown in Figure.
 The effective throat thickness of a fillet weld
should not be less than 3 mm.
Design Strength of fillet weld
 EXAMPLE
A connection shown in the figure below is subjected
to a design tensile force of 168kN. All data regarding
the member and connection are shown in figure. The
steel grade is Fe 360. Check that the connection is
adequate.