Design of sleeve connections with cross-bolted on circular hollow sections under axial tension

Abstract

This present paper evaluates the behavior and resistance capacity of cross-bolted sleeve connections with circular hollow sections (CHS) under axial tension. This connection allows harmony in the continuity of the tubes. The cross-bolted sleeve connection with CHS comprises outer tubes connected by an inner tube and cross bolts at 90°. Therefore, an experimental, numerical, and parametric study was conducted to identify the connection's possible failure modes. The experimental tests were developed with cross bolts at 90°, which enable the identification of fracture through the effective net area, bearing failure, and bolt bending. Finite element (FE) numerical models were developed and validated by Ansys software to provide a parametric study. Thus, such a parametric study was carried out using the verified FE models. The failure modes were evaluated considering the effects of geometric properties concerning their type and location; a relative slenderness limit for the design of connections was proposed, directing the occurrence of a failure in the outer tube. Normative prescriptions do not foresee the design of the sleeve. Therefore, new formulation methods for estimating the strength were proposed, allowing the design of these connections.