Experimental determination of the tightening coefficient of bolts according to the din standard

Abstract

The use of slip-critical connections is very common in the design of critical steel structures and is seen as an effective way to transfer the force in conditions of dynamic loading. The limit state of the connection occurs when the calculated shear stress is reached, which depends on the friction coefficient of the contact planes and the value of the clamping force, equal to the bolt tension stress. In order to ensure the necessary bolt tensioning force, it is necessary to know the bolt tightening coefficient, because according to the current understanding of the slip-critical connection performance, the designed functioning of the bolt connection is ensured when the bolt tensioning force arising at the necessary torque value is achieved. Otherwise, the actual work of the connection will be different from the calculated, because only a given tension force provides the estimated bearing capacity of the bolted connection with friction planes. This article focuses on tensile testing of a bolt and determining the tightening factor of a bolt made of high-strength10.9 M14 steel. The tightening factor is determined with strain gauges by measuring the relative strain of the bolt when the nut is tightened. This method requires specialized equipment and a test bench and can be used in the study of bolt performance in the absence of a certificate or the need to verify or clarify the available data. The results show that the proposed method can provide a stable determination of the coefficient value. The examined bolts were made according to the German standard DIN931, strength 10.9 size M14x220, nuts according to the German standard DIN934, strength 10 size M14. An Instron 1000HDX tensile testing machine was used to plot the performance of the bolt steel. Nut tension control was determined with the use of NOGRAU NTW24-034R torque wrench, and bolt elongation control with FLA 5-11 strain gauges and National Instruments data acquisition system. On the basis of the conducted research, a method for determining the tightening factor of high-strength bolts has been tested and proposed. The proposed method of determining the tightening factor of a high-strength bolt can be used in research work and allows to determine the coefficient in the absence of an appropriate certificate or the need to clarify (verify) the stated value of the coefficient.