Preventing mechanism failures of bolts

and bolted joints

Bolted joints in particular can be a major source of concern for engineers.  Frequently, assumptions are made to
assess whether the joint is capable of sustaining the forces applied to it. Failure of a single bolted joint can have
disastrous consequences for the reliability and safety of bolted connections, and this failure will occur to the bolt or
joint as a result of any of the following five mechanism failures:

 The bolt preload being insufficient to resist the applied forces.

 Thread stripping of the internal or external threads.
 Fatigue failure of the bolt
 The bolt being directly over loaded by the applied force
 Excessive bearing stress under the nut face, bolt head or within the joint itself

1.The bolt preload being insufficient to resist the applied forces.

2. Thread stripping of the internal or external threads.

3. Fatigue failure of the bolt.

4. The bolt being directly over loaded by the applied force

5. Excessive bearing stress under the nut face, bolt head or within the joint itself.

1.Insufficient Clamp Force

The majority of bolted joints rely on the clamp force which is generated by the torqueing or tensioning of bolts to
sustain the forces which are applied.

The inclusion of a gasket in a joint to prevent leakage is only effective as long as there is sufficient clamp force
generated by the bolts to allow effective sealing. With forces applied to the joint, the forces are transmitted by friction
as a result of the clamp force generated by the bolts, leading to a secure bolted connection.

2. Thread Stripping
Thread stripping can be a problem in many designs where tapped holes are required in low tensile material. In
general terms, thread stripping of both the internal and external threads must be avoided if a reliable design is to be
achieved. If the bolt breaks on tightening, it is obvious that a replacement is required.

When a bolt is being tightened, two threads are mated together, which leads to the tightness of the bolt. When the
two threads are mated together, a shear stress is applied across the threaded section. If this stress becomes too
high, the section will shear. This is known as thread stripping.

Thread stripping internally strips parts of the internal thread itself and becomes embedded around the external
thread.

This type of bolt thread stripping is very serious, and must never be allowed to occur. Its occurrence is a certain sign
that there is something seriously wrong with the bolts. If it is observed, the bolting procedures must be re-examined
and re-evaluated immediately. If it is allowed to persist, serious consequences may result because the bolts will not
only sustain a preload, but external loadings may be transmitted directly to the bolts and cause joint failure.

3. Fatigue Failures
Fatigue failures typically occur within a couple of threads, where the bolt engages into the internal thread. Failure is
then reached due to the high stress gradient within the region.

Fatigue failures can be particularly hazardous because they often occur with no visible warning signs and the failure
is often sudden. Fatigue failures are often unknowingly avoided in gasketed joints simply because the required crush
for the gasket often dictates a torque or bolt tension that minimizes the risk of a fatigue failure.  However, changing to
a new gasket type later on which requires less crush may be the initial cause of bolt fatigue failure.

It is not unusual to assume that a bolt has failed due to overload when it has in fact failed from fatigue, which can also
be a consequence of self-loosening.

4. Bolt Overload
Bolt overload is a result of the applied force being sufficiently high causing the bolt to fail due to overload. This is a
direct result of the axial force being applied acting upon the bolted joint, which then causes the bolt fractures in the
threaded area.

5. Excessive Bearing Stress

Bolts are typically made from high strength steels, which when fully tightened, exert high clamp force onto the joint.
The area directly under the bolt head or nut face sustains the high bearing stress.

If a maximum stress limit for the joint material is exceeded, then deformation occurs over a period of time. This leads
to the extension being lost in the bolt, resulting in the clamp force subsequently being reduced.

Bolts are considered to transfer force between the connected members, one of the ways bolts transfer force is called
bearing.

The bearing method assumes that the bolt contacts the side of a hole and there is a compressive force between the
bolt and the side of the hole.  The magnitude of this compressive force is limited by the strength of the material to
handle this compressive force.

Preventing Failures of Bolts and Bolted Joints

As we’ve learned the reliability and safety of bolted connections is paramount, it was with this problem in mind that
HTL launched the bolting software packages, Joint Integrity Software: Bolt-Pro and Joint-Pro. These packages allow
you to record and manage each bolted connection so that these problems don’t occur.