Behavior of Single and Double Bolted Staggered Joint in Thick Composite Plates

Abstract

Although staggered arrangements in bolted connections can offer good area usage especially for narrow members, it has the most complex stress fields. In this paper, a 3D finite element model was developed to analyze single and double lapped bolted composite plates. The modeling technique was validated with published experimental and numerical works. Different bolt arrangements were selected combined with other parameters like number of bolts, clamping force, and friction coefficient. The staggered bolt arrangements in composite plates were studied and compared with other different bolting patterns. It was found that in the absence of clamping force, part of load will be transferred by friction due to the effect of secondary stresses, which can be increased by increasing the friction coefficient. Furthermore, the staggered patterns produced horizontal forces that could cause cracks in the composite material if it was not taken into consideration during the composite laminates design.