CAN/CSA-S

S16-01 S.F.S
Stiemer

Conne
ectors
The study of connectionss should be related to the CSA S16.1‐01 Lim
mit States Desig
gn of Steel Struuctures. In partticular 
refer to thee Code section
n, the Commenntary and the tables and grap
phs that allow ffor quick desiggn and analysiss. 
 
 

 
 
Typ
pical beam‐to‐‐column bolted
d connection 

Rivets
These are non longer used d in steel constrruction as they became too exxpensive in
manpower and material. Older steel strructures, beforee about 1960, that t today
may have to t be analysed for heavier loaads, or length ofo life, will conntain rivets.
The engineeer should havee some knowleedge of their strength. A desiggn Code of
the year the structure wass designed willl be helpful.
The preparration of materrial with holes required
r for boolts is exactly the
t same as
those formmerly used for rivets. The rivet was heated inn a forge until red r hot, and
then throwwn to a person called
c a “buckeer” who caughtt the red hot rivvet in a
funnel; theen inserted it in
n the connectionn hole. The buucker held the head
h of the
rivet in plaace while the riiveter, using ann air hammer formed
fo a head on
o the hot shannk of the rivet which
w essentiaally
filled the punched
p or drilled holes. Upoon cooling theree was some redduction in the material
m fillingg the holes but
compensattion was initial tension that wasw formed in thhe rivet when it i cooled. This provided somee friction betw ween
the contactt surfaces (fayiing surfaces) of the connectedd material. Occcasionally a baadly formed heaad could be knnocked
off with a hammer.
h
The change to high streng gth bolts meannt that heating was
w no longer required for fieeld connectionns. The table beelow
summarizees the strengthss of metric andd imperial size bolts.
b

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High-S
Strength Bolts
B

The A325M M and A490M are the most common c bolt sttrengths used today.
t A307 boolts are used whhere strength is not
a consideraation. In generaal, one bolt sizze and strength should be usedd for the entiree design to avoiid mixing bolt
strengths on
o the site. Murphy’s Law iss really true!

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M20 A325 bolts in shear or bearing connections.

Clause 12.3.2 requires that the diameter of the punched hole for bolts be 2 mm larger than the bolt diameter unless
the material being bolted is drilled. Consider a central plate that is 130 m wide by 20 mm thick. This is to be spliced
by having a plate 130 mm by 12 mm on each side of the central plate. The failure patterns for the splice material will
be:
Shearing of the M20 bolts,
Excessive bearing pressure on the central or splice plates,
Excessive yielding of the central plate,
Fracture on the net section of the central plate,
Tension and block shear failure.
 

 
 
To determine the maximum force that can be used for design we consider two cases: (1) The yielding of the central
bar on the gross area =  Ag Fy, or (2) the failure of the bar through the bolt line 1 – 1 at ultimate material strength =
 A n Fu

Determine the strength of the inner plate 130 x 20 mm thick

Based on the Fy = 350 MPa the strength would be
Ry = 0.9 (130 x 20) 350/1000 = 819 kN
Based on the strength at ultimate failure through the two bolt holes
Ru = 0.9 (130 – 2 x 24) 20 (450)/1000 = 664.8 kN governs
 
Consider a single M20 bolt that can fail by shear on two shear planes – at the top and bottom splice plates, or by
bearing of the bolt shank on the plate.
Shear on two planes of the bolt shaft with the threads of the bolt not included. Obviously if one shear plane
encountered the threaded part of the bolt the area would be less than that of the bolt shaft. The question is how is
the designer to know if threads are included in the shear plane? This is a mystery that lies with the ability of the bolt
inspector on the job.
Vr = 0.6 φr n m Ab Fu Cl. 13.12.1.1 p. 1-28
where,
Vr is the shear on the bolt shaft
φr is the resistance factor for bolts = 0.80
n is the number of bolts
m is the number of shear planes
Ab is the bolt shaft cross section area
Fu is the ultimate strength of the bolt material
 
  Vr =0.60 (0.80) 1 (2) 314 (830) / 1000  =  250.2 kN                 Table 3‐4 p. 3‐8 

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CAN/CSA-S
S16-01 S.F.S
Stiemer

Bearing off one bolt shaft on the 20 mm m plate. Table 13.10

1 p 3-7
Br = 3 φbr t d n Fu
where,
Br is the bearing g of the rectanngle bolt diameeter by the platee thickness,
φbrb is the resista
ance factor for bearing p
p.1-29 (g)
t is
i the plate thicckness
d is the bolt diam meter
Fu = 450 MPa th he ultimate streength of the plate.

0 (20 ) 1 (450) / 1000 = 3611.8 > Bolt sheaar

Br = 3 (0.67) 20

Bearing onn the splice plates will not govvern since the combined thickness = 2 x 122 mm which is more than the
thickness of
o the centre pllate.
To developp the strength ofo the splice wee will need 6644/250.2 = 3 bollts.
      
Assume thhe configuration n shown in the diagram abovve where the dim mensions are as
a follows:
Bolt spacing aloong the splice = 50 mm
Thhe gauge lines spacing betweeen bolts = 30 mm m
It is necesssary to check th
he net section acting
a along thhe width of the inner plate witth 2 bolt holes out line 1 - 1, or the
path of faillure from one bolt
b to the adjaacent bolt alongg a diagonal linne 1 – 2.

In the 19200’s a rule was given

g that if a hole
h was nearbby e.g., 1 – 2 paath then all thee holes along thhe diagonal patth
would be deducted
d and th
he quantity s2/44g be added for every diagonnal on the path. This “rule of thumb”
t is still in the
bably because it works.
specificatioons today, prob

Net sectionn on path 1 – 2 - 1:

Ru = 0.9 [ 130 – {3 x 24) + 2 (502/(4 x 30)}] 20 (450) /10000 = 807 kN
Net sectionn on path 1 – 1:
Ru = 0.9 [ 130 – (2 x 24)] 20 (4450) /1000 = 664.2
6 kN govverns

Block shear
s and tension
t faillure 13..11 p. 1-38
This is a prroblem that occurs at the endds of tension
members whenw connectioons are made between
b the
tension meember and a gu usset plate or chhord section. See
S
Chapter 4 forf additional information.
i
If the distaance of a hole from
f the edge oro end of a platte is
too small thhere is the possibility that thee connection will
w
tear out of the plate. Thiss is a complicatted mathematiccal
problem thhat includes two o types of failuure. Normally a
technician detailing a con nnection will know
k the requirred
distances. Many
M structuraal steel fabricattors have their
own standaards that may control
c this prooblem.
 

Between h holes A and B tthere will be aa tension failurre of the platee, while along  the lines AD aand BC the plate will 

shear. The resulting failuure will be a block of the platte along the lines DABC beinng torn away from the body  of the 
plate. 
 
The Code ccovers this situuation in Cl. 13.11 p.1‐38 . Tw
wo situations have to be investigated: 
Tension failure with sheaar at yield  on ttwo  splice plattes, 
  Tr = φAnt Fu  + 0.6 φAgv Fy 

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  Tr = [0.67 (60 ‐24) 12 (2) 450]/1000 + [0.6 (0.67) (35) (12*2*2) 350]/1000 
         =      260.5  +  236.4   =  496.9 kN       (Tear out of two plates) 
 
Tension with shear at yield on inner plate 
  Tr = [0.67 (60 ‐24) 20 (450)]/1000 + [0.6 (0.67) (35) (20*2) 350]/1000 
    =   260.5 +  197.0   =  457.5 kN    (Tear out of inner plate) 
 
Tension  failure with shear at  ultimate stress on splice plates. 
Tr = φAnt Fu  + 0.6 φAnv Fu 
Tr  =  260.5  +  (0.6  * 0.67 * (35 ‐ 12) (12 *2*2) 450/1000 
             =  260.5 +  199.7    = 460.2  kN          (Tear out of two plates) 
   
Tension failure with shear at ultimate stress on inner plate. 
Tr = 260.5  +  (0.6  * 0.67 * (35 ‐ 12) (20*2) 450/1000 
Tr =  260.5 +  166.43         =  426.93 kN 
   
Summary of calculations:
Ultimate strength on the net area of the inner plate = 819 kN
Yield strength of 130 x 20 mm plate = 664.8 kN
1 – M20 bolt in double shear = 250.2 kN
1 – M20 bolt in bearing on a 20 mm plate = 361.8 kN
Require at least 664.8 / 250.2 = 3 – M20 bolts
Block shear and tension on 2 – 12 mm thick splice plates
At yield on gross area = 496.2 kN
At ultimate on net area = 460.2 kN
Block shear on the 20 mm centre plate
At yield on gross area = 457.5 kN
At ultimate on the net area = 426.9 kN
The values for tension and block shear can be improved by increasing the end distance from the end of the splice
plate to the first row of bolts.

Slip-Critical Connections Table 3-1 p. 3-6

This type of connection is used where vibration, reciprocating loading or critical deflections should be avoided.
High strength material bolts are required (either A325 or A490 quality). The bolts are tensioned to a finger tight
condition then the `turn of the nut`is used ( less than a revolution ) to produce a large pressure on the faying surfaces
of the material being connected. It is the friction between the individual pieces of material that carries the service
load.
The condition of the contact surfaces is critical to inhibit any slippage. The parameters required are outlined in Table
3 p. 1-117, the Code Cl. 13.12.2.2, p.1-39, and design Table 3-10, 3-11, p. 3-15. Because the slip condition is a
Serviceability condition the number of bolts required is based on Specified load alone, but a check at Ultimate
loads has also be made.
For the example above M20 – A490 bolts with clean mill scale and a Class A coating, ks = 0.33. c1 = 0.78 (Table 3,
p.1-117), m = 2.0 for double shear, Ab = 314 mm2, Fu = 830 (Table 3-3, p. 3-8). The slip resistance of a single bolt
is 
Vs = 0.53 c1 ks m n Ab Fu = 0.53(0.78) 0.33 (2) 1 (314) (1040)/1000 = 89.1 kN
(Note that the HSC gives Vs = 44.5 kN for one bolt in Table 3-11, p.3-15)

To avoid slipping of the contact surfaces we check at the service load level. Assuming an overall safety factor of
1.55 (a guess) the unfactored service load will be 426.9 /1.55 = 275.42 kN. That requires 275.42 kN/89.1 = 3
bolts. Since the use of 3 – M20 A325 bolts was adequate for the splice of Problem 2 this problem will also be
adequate since A-490 bolts are stronger.

Bolts in tension
In this situation it is the net area of the shank of the bolt that will resist tension. It is estimated that the net area
through the threaded portion of the bolt is about 0.75 of the gross cross section. The pretension does not seem to be
additive with the applied tension after the connected elements begin to separate.

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For rigid elements the boolts will take all of the load, but
b if there is soome flexibilityy in the elementts of the conneection
(See beloww) a prying forcce will act on thhe connection and cause additional forces. See HSC p 3-119 to 3-25 for
details.
Kulak and Grondin Sugg gest in Limit Staates Design in Structural Steeel the conservaative equation
Q (3 b/(8*a)) – t3/(328000) where
Q= w ms are defined in the diagram below.
the term
The pryingg force at the bo
olt = Nominall bolt force * Q

In designin
ng tension conn
nections the distance b should  be as small as possible an
nd the thicknesss t large.  The HSC 
gives a moore complicated
d method on pp. 3‐20. 

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Bolts in
n shear and
d tension C 13.12.1.3 p. 1-39, Com. p. 2--55
Cl.
This combination of forces usually occuurs with the deesign of brackeets supporting an a eccentric loaad. An interacttion
formula is used to assure that there is noo overstress in the individuall bolts. Interacttion formulas relate
r two dissiimilar
conditions by considering g what amountt of the capacitty Vf/Vr utilizes and how mucch by Tf/Tr. Thhe sum total off the
two terms should be less or equal to 1.00. For the combbination of Sheear and Tensionn the formula is i in the form of
o an
equation foor an ellipse.
(Vf/Vr)2 + (Tf/Tr)2 <= 1.0

Problem: Consider
C a tee-shaped bracket with two row ws of 5 - M20 A325
A bolts in a bearing type connection.
c Thhreads
are not included on the sh
hear plane. Thee vertical load is Pf = 1000 kN
N at an eccentrricity e = 120 mm.

The detailss of the brackett are shown in the diagram thhat follows.
 

Shear: 
Shhear per bolt Vf = 1000/10 = 100 kN
R
Resistance to sh
hear Vr = 398 kN
k Table 3-3, p. 3-8
Bearing on 12 mmm plate Vr = 217
2 kN (singlee shear) goveerns Table 3-6, p.33-9
A
Assume that thee column flangee is greater thaan 12 mm

The momeent acting on th he bracket is 10000 (0.120) = 120

1 kN m. Thiss will cause tennsion in the topp bolts and
compressioon in the bottom m. A number of o methods of analysis
a have been
b developedd, one of whichh is illustrated
above.
The neutraal axis of rotatio
on is taken at the
t centroid of the bolt group. The moment is then assumeed to be resisteed by
tension in top
t four bolts anda by compreession in the boottom four. Thiis gives a leverr arm for the innternal momentt =
240 mm. and
a the force accting in tensionn on the top fouur bolts of Tf = M/240 = 1200000/240 = 500 kN

For a singlle bolt in tensio

on
Tf = 500/ 4 = 12 25 kN

The resistaance of a bolt in

n tension is fouund in Table 3--4, p.3-8 as
Tr = 156 kN

Checking the
t interaction formula:
Tf/Tr)2 + (Vf/Vr)2 = (125/156))2 + (100 / 398))2 = 0.642 + 0.063 = 0.705 O.K.
(T O

This is onee model of anallysis, but theree are others. If a beam analysiis is made the second
s row of bolts should haave a
smaller forrce than the top
p row. As well it is sometimees assumed thatt the compression side of the moment equattion
should be a rectangular area
a and not jusst the bolt areass. In the past the
t neutral axiss was taken at 1/6 of the depthh of

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the connecction. Note thee similarity to thhe analysis of a rectangular concrete

c beam with bolts reprresenting reinfo
forcing
bars and thhe bearing at th
he bottom of thhe bracket repreesenting the coompression of the
t concrete. Refer
R to HSC p.3-2
and the tabbles on p.3-30 following.
f

Bolts in
n shear in moment
m co
onnections
s Tab
ble 3-15, p.3-30
The brackeet considered in
n this example creates a sheaar due
to the downnward load andd a shear causeed by the mom ment.
These sheaars can be addeed vectorially to produce the
maximum value of Vf. Other
O models arre also availablle. This
problem will
w be solved using the table 3-15,
3 p.3-30
Single sheaar of a M20 – A325
A bolt

Vf = 125 kN Taable 3-4

Bearing onn the flange of the column at 10 mm

Br = 181 kN Taable 3-6

Table 3-155 gives for D = 80mm, b=90 mm,

m and a verttical
row of 4 boolts

C = 2.84
Pf = C Vr = 2.84
4 (125) = 355 N.G.
N

For the sam

me width of plaate check the number
n of boltss in a
single row that is required.

Make
D = 80 mm but change b to 1000 mm. This giives
C = P/ Vs = 750/125 = 6.0.

We need 12 bolts in two rows spaced att 100 mm o.c.

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