Materials and Design 32 (2011) 40624068

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Materials and Design

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Technical Report

Lateral resistance of joints made with various screws in commercial wood plastic
composites
Akbar Rostampour Haftkhani , Ghanbar Ebrahimi, Mehdi Tajvidi, Mohammad Layeghi, Mohammad Arabi
Department of Wood and Paper Science and Technology, College of Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 11 November 2010
Accepted 10 March 2011
Available online 16 March 2011

a b s t r a c t
In this study, the effects of screw diameter, pilot hole diameter, end distance, thickness of side and main
members, loading speed and screw type on the lateral resistance of screw joints in commercial wood
plastic composites were investigated and also compared with those calculated using the European Yield
Model (EYM). The results have shown that for a given diameter of screw, increase in end distance, thickness of joint members, pilot hole diameter and loading speed, increases lateral resistance of the joint.
Comparing screw effect it was found that lateral resistances of joints made with various screws did
not have signicant differences. The results have also shown that the accuracy of EYM prediction of lateral resistance for the joints fractured in mode Is is better than those fractured in modes IIIs or V.
2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Wood plastic composites (WPCs) are becoming increasingly
acceptable to consumers as a replacement for solid wood due to
some advantages, namely durability, variety of color, resistance
to degradation and fungal attacks, and reduced maintenance. Furthermore, adding wood llers to plastic products makes good use
of wood waste as well. Some prevalent applications of WPCs include decking, docks, fencing, signposts, picnic tables, boardwalks,
ooring, playground equipment, railing, doorframe and window
proles, garden furniture and decorative trims. Moreover, these
composites have received acceptance in automotive industries
and their uses are expanding in other industries. In almost all
applications mentioned above, joint fabrication would be involved.
In APA [1] on the connection of wood elements and its importance
it is noted that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and connections are the critical link between elements of a structure. Connections provide load path continuity and ensure structural
integrity. When the importance of proper connection details is
overlooked, structural failure can occur. Properly designed and detailed connections are what hold a structure together, and the designer needs to understand some fundamental principles
associated with connections for wood structures [1]. Although
WPC is supposed to function as replacement material for wood,

Corresponding author. Address: Department of Wood and Paper Science and

Technology, College of Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj 31587-77878,
Iran. Tel.: +98 261 222 4496, +98 912 479 5234, +09397925241; fax: +98 261 224
9311.
E-mail addresses: arostampour@alumni.ut.ac.ir, akbar.rostampour@gmail.com
(A.R. Haftkhani).
0261-3069/$ - see front matter 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.matdes.2011.03.020

not all types of wood fasteners would have equal applicability in

making joints on WPCs structural elements. Among various wood
fasteners, screws are the proper type to serve this purpose.
Studies on the behavior of bolted joints on WPC panels have
compiled considerable observations [2], but regarding performance of screwed joint on these materials, existing research reports are limited. The latter is true for MDF, particleboard,
plywood and OSB panels too. Some studies [39] were conducted
on screwed joints in these panels with most of them focusing on
screw withdrawal resistance. These studies have revealed that
screw withdrawal resistance depends on diameter of screw, corresponding lead hole and penetration depth of the screw in the main
member and IB in MDF and particleboard as well as the shear
strength of the wood parallel to the grain in solid wood. zifi
[10] studied The effects of pilot hole, screw types and layer thickness on the withdrawal strength of screws in laminated veneer
lumber and found that the highest withdrawal strength was obtained in oak samples having 4 mm veneer thickness bonded with
PF for 3.5  16 screw (23.14 MPa). The lowest value was obtained
for Uludag r having 5 mm veneer thickness bonded with MF
adhesive with 4.0  50 screw (7.61 MPa). The author has also declared that the use of proper size of pilot holes is advised in order
to avoid splitting of the face during insertion of screws as well as to
obtain maximum withdrawal strength.
A few studies are also conducted on screwed joints in WPCs.
Falk et al. [11] showed that the lateral resistance of the nail
decreased with increase of wood our content. A 46% decrease in
lateral resistance was found between 20% and 60% wood our content specimens. Chaharmahali et al. [12] observed that withdrawal
resistance of such joints are dependent on wood ber content of
WPC containing waste bers of MDF and particleboard. As ller

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A.R. Haftkhani et al. / Materials and Design 32 (2011) 40624068

content increased, withdrawal resistance was lower than that of

MDF panels. With ller content less than 60%, withdrawal
resistance of screwed joints on WPC panels was higher than the
other boards. Similar results were obtained from nailed joints,
however, withdrawal resistance of nailed joints on MDF and particleboard seemed to be in the same order. A similar study carried
out by Ayrilmis and Jarusombuti [13] indicated that screw withdrawal resistance declined with the increase in ber content from
40% to 60 wt.%.
Madhoushi et al. [14], tested withdrawal resistance of fasteners
driven into WPC made with rice straw ller under wet and dry conditions. Results indicated that in this kind of composite, screw has
higher withdrawal resistance among other fasteners. Also, irrespective of polymer type in WPC, higher ller to polymer ratios
cincrease withdrawal resistance of fasteners driven into reinforced
composites. In addition, wet condition was found to reduce withdrawal resistance of nailed joints (74%) more than that of screwed
joints (28%).
Khoo et al. [15] studied fastening methods on wood berrecycled polypropylene composites used as pallet members. They observed that without predrilling a pilot hole for driving screw,
fabricating intact joints on composite members of pallet would
be impossible. A pilot hole having 2.5 mm diameter and more than
6 mm depth was found suitable for screws with nominal diameters
ranging from 2.52 mm (gauge #3) to 4.2 mm (gauge #8) to penetrate the composite without any difculties.
In WPCs, the ultimate lateral resistance capacity of a screw in
single shear plane (two members) is dependent on several factors
such as material properties and dimensions of the connection
members. These include the thickness and bearing strength of
the two joined members and the diameter and yield strength of
the screw etc. Therefore, in this study the effects of screw and pilot
hole diameter, loading rate, screw type and main and side member
thickness on lateral resistance of screwed joints on commercial
WPC panels were investigated. Predicted lateral resistances
according to failure modes were also compared with corresponding measured values.

Fig. 1. Screws used in this study.

Table 1
Major specications of screws used in tests.
Screw type

Nominal
diameter
(m)

Actual
diameter
(mm)

Root
diameter
(mm)

Countersink
height (mm)

Sheet metal
screw
Sheet metal
screw
Sheet metal
screw
Fine thread
drywall
screw
Coarse thread
drywall
screw
Cut thread wood
screw

4 (8)

4.2

5 (10)

4.8

3.3

6 (14)

6.1

4.6

4 (8)

4.2

2.6

4 (8)

4.6

2.6

4 (8)

4.2

Values in parentheses are gauge number of screw.

hinges are formed in the screws shank. The three yield modes
(Fig. 2) and corresponding Eqs. (1)(4) that provide the nominal
lateral resistance value for each yield mode are as follows [1]:

2. Materials and methods

The tests were carried out on commercial wood plastic composite (WPC) 7, 15 and 30 mm in thickness. Oven dry densities of these
boards were 1.14, 1.14 and 1.18 g/cm3, respectively. The panels
were prepared from a domestic mill in Iran. In order to investigate
lateral resistance, the WPC specimens were cut according to ASTM
D1037 standard [16]. The nominal dimensions of specimens were
200  75 mm (length, width) with various thicknesses (7, 15 and
30 mm). All prepared test joints had a single shear plane (twomember joint).
In this study, the pilot hole diameter for each screw was 1 mm
lower than nominal diameter of corresponding screw, except those
for investigating pilot hole effect on lateral resistance, where the
pilot hole diameter varied.
Three types of screws were used; sheet metal screws (#8, 10
and 14), cut threads wood screws (#8), and ne and coarse threads
drywall screws (#8). Fig. 1 shows the screws used in this study.
Some specications of these screws are given in Table 1. Specications of specimens for the investigation of each variable are shown
in Table 2. Five replicates for each treatment were tested.
In order to investigate the accuracy of European Yield Model
(EYM) in predicting lateral resistance of these test joints, it is
appropriate to review the model here. The EYM provides three possible failure modes for a two-member screwed connection in single
shear. The model assumes that the bearing capacity is reached
when either the WPC crushes under the screw or one or two plastic

Dts F es
KD

k3 Dts F em
K D 2 Re

D2
Z
KD

mode I

mode III

s
2F em F yb
mode IV
31 Re

k3 1

s
21 Re 2F yb 2 Re D2

Re
3F em t 2s

Re F em =F es :
ts is the side member thickness, in. Fem is dowel bearing strength of
main member, Psi. Fes is dowel bearing strength of side member, Psi.
Fyb is bending yield strength of screw, Psi. D is unthreaded shank
diameter of screw, in., or is the root diameter of the threaded portion of the screws when the thread length is such that the threads
will extend into the shear plane of the connection, in.

K D 2:2 for D  0:17 in:; K D 10D 0:5 for 0:17 in:

< D < 0:25 in:
Experimental and corresponding predicted lateral resistances
according to the above formulas were compared with each other.

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A.R. Haftkhani et al. / Materials and Design 32 (2011) 40624068

Table 2
Specications of specimens for the investigation of each variable.
Case of study

Thickness of side
member (mm)

Thickness of main
member (mm)

Screw type

Loading rate
(mm/min)

Pilot hole
diameter (mm)

End
distance
(mm)

Screw
gauge

Investigation of end distance

and screw diameter
Investigation of loading rate
Investigation of pilot hole
diameter
Investigation of screw type

15

15

Sheet metal

12, 15, 18

15
15

15
15

Sheet metal
Sheet metal

6, 20, 60, 100

6

3
2.5, 3, 3.5

18
18

8, 10,
14
8
8

15

15

18

Investigation of main and side

member thickness

7, 15, 30

7, 15, 30

Sheet metal, drywall

screw, wood screw
Sheet metal

18

sheet metal screw (No.8)

sheet metal screw (No.10)
sheet metal screw (No.14)

2000

Lateral load (N)

1600

1200

800

400

0
12

15

18

End distance (mm)

Fig. 2. Three possible failure modes for a two-member screw connection in single
shear [1].

Fig. 3. Effect of screw diameter and end distance on lateral resistance (tested on
members 15 mm in thickness jointed with sheet metal screws).

Bending yield strength of screw and dowel bearing strength of

joint member as input parameters of EYM were measured. Bending
yield strength of each screw was measured according to ASTM
F1575-03 [17]. Dowel bearing strengths of each panel with different thickness and for various screws were measured according to
ASTM D 5764-97a [18].

Increasing end distance will provide more support for the screw
not to bend in the side member under lateral resistance and increases dowel bearing strength of screw in joint members, which
in turn increases the lateral resistance along with the increase of
the end distance.
Changing the screw diameter from #8 to #14, led to 5% increase
in the lateral resistance, whereas with change in end distance from
12 to 18 mm, the lateral resistance increased 27%.

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Effects of screw diameter and end distance on lateral resistance

3.2. Effect of loading rate on lateral resistance

Fig. 3 illustrates the effects of screw diameter and end distance

on lateral resistance of joints. As shown in Fig. 3, lateral resistance
irregularly increases with the increase of screw diameter. This can
be related to the decrease of the net section of joint members. At a
given screw diameter, however, lateral resistance increases with
increase in end distance. When a two-member screwed joint (single shear plane) is loaded laterally, lateral resistance is higher if the
member yields but the screw under load has not bent yet i.e. specimens failed in mode Is have higher lateral resistance than those
cases of failure in mode IIIs.
Height of the countersink for screws having high diameter is
more than that in low diameter screws. For driving a high diameter
screw into the panel, related countersink is deeper as compared
with a low diameter screw. This leaves lower net section in the
member for tolerating the applied lateral resistance. Furthermore,
for high diameter screws, the ratio of end distance to screw diameter is lower than that for small diameter screws. These have a key
role in tolerating the lateral resistance. That is why the lateral
resistance of the high diameter screw is partially lower than those
for the low diameter screw.

Fig. 4 illustrates the effect of loading rate on lateral resistance of

screws under lateral loading. As shown in this Figure, lateral resistance increases with the increase of loading rate. Changing the

Lateral load (N)

2000
1600
1200
800
400
0
6

20

60

100

Loading rate (mm/min)

Fig. 4. Effect of loading rate on lateral resistance (tested on members 15 mm in
thickness jointed by sheet metal screw #8).

4065

2000

2000

1600

1600

Lateral load (N)

Lateral load (N)

A.R. Haftkhani et al. / Materials and Design 32 (2011) 40624068

1200
800
400

1200
800
400

0
2.5

3.5

15

Pilot hole diameter (mm)

30

Thickness of main member (mm)

Fig. 5. Effect of pilot hole diameter on lateral resistance (tested on members 15 mm

in thickness jointed with sheet metal screw #8).

Fig. 8. Effect of main member thickness on lateral resistance, when thickness of

side member was 15 mm.

2100
2000
1600

Lateral load (N)

Lateral load (N)

1800
1500
1200
900
600

1200
800
400

300
0

0
Sheet metal
screw

Fine thread Coarse thread

drywall screw drywall screw

Wood screw

15

Thickness of side member (mm)

Fig. 6. Lateral resistance of various screws (tested on members 15 mm in thickness

jointed with various #8 screws).

Fig. 9. Effect of side member thickness on lateral resistance, when thickness of

main member was 15 mm.

1200

3000

Lateral load (N)

Lateral load (N)

2500
900

600

300

2000
1500
1000
500

0
7

15

30

Thickness of main member (mm)

Fig. 7. Effect of main member thickness on lateral resistance when thickness of side
member was 7 mm.

loading rate from 6 to 100 mm/min leads to 11% increase in the lateral resistance values.
3.3. Effect of pilot hole diameter on lateral resistance
Fig. 5 illustrates the effect of pilot hole diameter on lateral resistance of joints with members 15 mm in thickness connected with
sheet metal screw #8. As shown in the gure, the lateral resistance
increases when the pilot hole increases near to the root diameter of
the screw. Beyond this limit, by increasing the pilot hole diameter

15

30

Thickness of side member (mm)

Fig. 10. Effect of side member thickness on lateral resistance, when thickness of
main member was 30 mm.

up to nominal diameter of the screw, the corresponding lateral

resistances decrease signicantly. It seems that when pilot hole
diameter is much lower than root diameter, the screw thread edge
crushes the hole surface. It is also possible that with pilot holes
wider than screw root diameter, the contact surface between screw
and hole decreases which can be the reason for declining lateral
resistance in both cases. Study of Eckelman [7] has shown that
the optimal pilot hole diameter for driving a screw in wood based
panels is near to root diameter of the screw. Changing the pilot
hole from 2.5 to 3.5 mm resulted in an 18% change in the lateral
resistance values.

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A.R. Haftkhani et al. / Materials and Design 32 (2011) 40624068

3.4. Comparing lateral resistance of various screws

Fig. 6 illustrates the comparison of the lateral resistances of various screws. As shown in the Figure, lateral resistance of wood
screw is higher than that in other screws. This test was performed
on members 15 mm in thickness jointed with various #8 screws. In
this test, the pilot hole diameter for each screw was 3 mm. The root
diameters of screws used in this test are given in Table 2. As shown
in the Table, at a given gauge number, the root diameters of wood
screw and sheet metal screw are higher than drywall screws. This
is why the lateral resistances of these screws are higher than that
of drywalls screws. The lateral resistance of coarse thread drywall
screw is higher than that of ne thread drywall screws. This could
be attributed to higher height of threads in coarse thread drywall
screw than that in the ne thread screw. Generally, it was found
that lateral resistances of joints made with various screws were
not signicantly different.
3.5. Effect of main member thickness on lateral resistance
Fig. 7 illustrates the effect of main member thickness on lateral
resistance, when thickness of side member was 7 mm. The results
have shown that changing the main member thickness from 7 to
30 mm is accompanied by 17% increase in lateral resistance values.
Similarly, Fig. 8 illustrates the effect of main member thickness
on lateral resistance, when thickness of side member was 15 mm.
The results have shown that changing the main member thickness
from 15 to 30 mm would increase lateral resistance by only 2%.
3.6. Effect of side member thickness on lateral resistance
Fig. 9 illustrates the effect of side member thickness on lateral
resistance, when the thickness of main member was 15 mm. As
shown in the Figure, changing the side member from 7 to 15 mm
improves lateral resistance by 82%.
Fig. 10 illustrates the effect of side member thickness on lateral
resistance, when the thickness of main member was 30 mm.

Increasing the thickness of side member from 7 to 30 mm, results

in 132% increase in lateral resistance.
As shown in Figs. 710, the increase of side member thickness is
more effective on lateral resistance than that of the main member.
When a two-member joint (in single shear) is loaded laterally, if
the bending yield strength of the screw is high, the screw begins
to crush and yield the side member and then causes failure in
the side member under load (mode Is) or, if the bearing resistance
of members is high, the screw bends in the side member (mode IIIs)
or in shear plane under load (mode IV). Having a high thickness
side member helps the screw not to bend under load and this is
why the joints with higher side member thickness have higher lateral resistance than those with thinner side members.
3.7. Investigation of the accuracy of the European Yield Model (EYM)
to predict lateral resistance
In this study, rstly lateral resistance of each screw was
predicted using the formula for lateral resistance prediction and
then the results were compared with corresponding experimental
data. The results of this study are given in Table 3. As shown in the
Table, the accuracy of prediction of EYM in mode Is is better than
those in modes IIIs and IV. Because EYM does not consider end distance of joints in the calculation of lateral resistance and as we
know, lateral resistance increases with the increase in end
distance, the accuracy of EYM to predict lateral resistance signicantly decreases with the increase of the end distance.
Fig. 11 illustrates various types of member fracture modes under lateral resistance. The fracture of WPC panels with single shear
plane connected with screw may occur both in screw and side
member. EYM considers only screw failure mode. In this study, it
was observed that in specimens in which the screw failed in mode
IIIs, the fracture of the side member was bearing type, however, in
specimens in which the screw failed in mode Is, the fracture of the
side member was cleavage type. The fracture of specimens in
which the screw failed in mode V was in the shear plane and could
not be observed form the outside. The specimens with bearing type
fracture of side member had higher lateral resistances than those

Table 3
Comparison of observed and calculated values of lateral resistance with corresponding failure modes.
Type of screw

Gauge No. of screw

Thickness of side
member (mm)

Thickness of main
member (mm)

End distance (mm)

Failure mode

Fracture type of member

MAE

Sheet metal screw

Sheet metal screw
Sheet metal screw
Sheet metal screw
Sheet metal screw
Sheet metal screw
Sheet metal screw
Sheet metal screw
Sheet metal screw
Fine thread drywall screw
Coarse thread drywall screw
Sheet metal screw

10
14
14
14
8
8
8
10
10
8
8
8

15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
30

15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
30

12
12
15
18
12
15
18
15
18
18
18
18

Is
Is
Is
Is
IIIs
IIIs
IIIs
IIIs
IIIs
IIIs
IIIs
IV

Cleavage
Cleavage
Cleavage
Cleavage
Bearing
Bearing
Bearing
Bearing
Bearing
Bearing
Bearing
Bearing

127
346
125
57
90
284
491
226
370
239
299
2218

MAE 1n

Pn

i1 jZ

xi  Zxi j; where MAE is mean of absolute error, n is number of data, Z is calculated value and Z is observed value of lateral resistance.

Fig. 11. Fracture modes in the side member of WPC panel with single shear plane made with screw: (a) lateral (net-tension), (b) bearing, (c) tear out, and (d) cleavage [2,19] .

A.R. Haftkhani et al. / Materials and Design 32 (2011) 40624068

4067

Fig. 12. Some failure modes of studied joints and their corresponding major specications.

with cleavage type. Failure modes of some joints under lateral

resistance are shown in Fig. 12.

4. Conclusion
The aim of this study was to investigate lateral resistance of various screws in commercial wood plastic composites (WPCs) and to
evaluate the accuracy of EYM to predict lateral resistance. The results have shown that the highest changes in lateral resistance of
screw were related to changes in side member thickness (82
132%), end distance (28%), pilot hole diameter (18%), main member
thickness (217%), loading rate (11%) and diameter of screw (5%),
respectively. Hence, these factors must be considered regarding
their importance in engineering design of joining of WPCs with
screws. Because side member of jointed WPC members damages
under lateral load if bending yield strength of screw is appropriate,
it seems that engineering design of these joints has to be such that

side member of these joints are reinforced in different ways. One of

these ways is that, side member of these joints be selected with
sufcient thickness. This would support the screw not to bend in
the side member under high levels of load. Another option is that
end distance of joints and pilot hole for driving each screw into
the panel be selected appropriately. Not making use of screws with
countersink head in fabricating joints on WPC members would be
another alternative. Troughton [20] has suggested that screws with
countersink must not be used for joining plastic materials, and has
suggested that round head screw is proper for joining of plastic
materials.
In addition, the results have shown that the accuracy of EYM to
predict lateral resistance in mode Is is better than those in modes
IIIs and IV. Because EYM does not consider or incorporate end distance in the derivation of the formula, accuracy of prediction in
mode I increases with the change of the end distance. On the contrary, in mode III the accuracy of prediction decreases with the
increase in end distance.

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