Ultimate Tensile Resistance of Bolted Gusset Plates
Publication: Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 24, Issue 4
Abstract
This paper discusses the ultimate capacities of bolted gusset plates that fail by tensile rupture. In addition to the block shear failure mode to which most gusset plates in bridge trusses and those in braced building frames are subject, a narrow tapered gusset plate may also fail in the inclined net section fracture mode. The inclined net section fracture mode has been observed in failed gusset plates, but to the authors’ knowledge no explicit formula has been proposed in the literature for use in engineering practice. This paper first demonstrates that, for a rectangular bolted gusset plate failing in net section fracture, the ultimate capacity can be determined accurately using the net section across the whole width, without any reference to the Whitmore concept. It then shows through finite-element analysis that the outer net section fractures of a tapered plate are inclined rather than normal to the loading direction. A practical design equation is proposed to determine the net section tension capacity of a tapered gusset plate, and is shown to reasonably match the ultimate loads of specimens tested by independent workers. The existing resistance factor can be applied conservatively to the design equation. This paper includes examples illustrating the governing failure modes of rectangular and tapered bolted gusset plates in tension.
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Acknowledgments
This research was conducted with the support of the Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship for the first author, administered by the University of Wollongong. The authors also thank the Sustainable Building Research Centre at the Innovation Campus of the University of Wollongong for the use of its facilities.
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Published In
Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 24 • Issue 4 • November 2019
Copyright
©2019 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 15, 2019
Accepted: Jul 15, 2019
Published online: Sep 10, 2019
Published in print: Nov 1, 2019
Discussion open until: Feb 10, 2020
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