STRUCTURAL STEEL
DESIGN
 

Tension Members
-1-

Dr.Mu'taz K.M
Ass.Prof. in Civil Engineering

Faculty of Engineering Al-Mustansirya University

 
  

Introduction:
Tension members are axially loaded members stressed in tension and are used in steel
structures in various forms .They are used in trusses as web and chord members
,hanger and sag rods ,diagonal bracing for lateral stability and lap splices such as in a
moment connection ,see figure shown below :

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Analysis of Tension Members :

For members subject to tension, the two basic modes of failure are tensile yielding
and tensile rupture .Tensile yielding occurs when the stress on the gross area of the
section is large enough to cause excessive deformation .Tensile rupture occurs
when the stress on the effective area of the section is large enough to cause the
member to fracture , which usually occurs across a line of bolts where the tension
member is weakest .

The expression for tensile yielding on the gross area is :

Ø Pn = Ø Fy Ag

Where :

Ø = 0.90

Fy = Minimum yield stress

Ag = Gross area of the tension member

The expression for tensile rupture on the effective area is :

Ø Pn = Ø Fu Ae

Where :

Ø = 0.75

Fu = Minimum tensile stress

Ae = Effective area of the tension member

The effective area of a tension member is described as follows :

Ae = U. An

Where :

An = Net area of the tension member

U = Shear lag factor

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The net area of a tension member with fasteners that are in line is the difference
between the gross cross-sectional area and the area of the bolt holes :

An = Ag - Aholes

Aholes = n (db + 1/8) t or Aholes = n (dhole + 1/16) t

n = number of bolt holes along the failure plane

db = bolt diameter

dhole = hole diameter

t = thickness

Section B3-13 of the AISC specification indicates that when calculating the net area
for shear and tension , an additional 1/16 in. should be added to the hole size to
account for the roughened edges that result from the punching or drilling process .

For tension members with a series of holes in a diagonal or zigzag pattern , which
may be used when bolt spacing is limited there may exist several possible planes of
failure that need to investigated .

g
s

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In this case another term is added to the net width of the member :

Where:

s = Longitudinal center to center spacing between two consecutive holes

g = Transverse center to center spacing between two consecutive holes

The expression for the net area then becomes :

∑ ∑

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Faculty of Engineering Al-Mustansirya University

 
  

Faculty of Engineering Al-Mustansirya University

 
  

If the zigzag line goes from a web hole to a flange hole , the thickness change at the
junction of the flange and web as shown the example (3-5) .

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Effective Net Area

If the forces are not transferred uniformly across a member cross section, there will
be a transition of region uneven stress running from the connection , when the
member is loaded in axial tension until failure .As result , the AISC Specification
(D3-3) states that the effective net area ,Ae .

The shear leg factor (U) account for non uniform stress distribution .Table (D3-1) of
the AISC gives the value for the shear leg factor (U) some of the values for (U) as
shown below :

Plate

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Another measure of the effectiveness of a member is the length of its connection, L.

The (U) is computed as follows :

Where :

L = Length between first and last bolts in the line

= Distance from the plane of the connection to the centroid of the area of the
whole section

Note :

In order to calculate U for W-section connected by its flange only ,we will assume
that the section is split into two structural tees . Then the will be the distance from
the outside edge of the flange to the C.G of the structure tee .

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Faculty of Engineering Al-Mustansirya University

 
  

Example : Determine the maximum factored load that can be applied

in tension to the angle shown below . The angle is ASTM
A36 : its connected with four 3/4 in, diameter bolts.

Faculty of Engineering Al-Mustansirya University

 
  

Faculty of Engineering Al-Mustansirya University