Mechanical Behavior of Rotational Screw Thread Loosening in Bolted Joints Under Repeated Temperature Changes

Abstract

Bolted joints have been used in mechanical structures. However, loosening accidents sometimes happen under several types of loadings. Recently, some studies have been conducted on the screw thread loosening in bolted joints. It is verified that bolted joints are loosened when transverse repeated loadings are applied. A lot of parts for preventing the loosening in the joints have been proposed. Among these parts, eccentric nut is especially expected to be the solution for preventing the loosening. Some studies on no rotational loosening in bolted joints under thermal changes have also conducted. However, few studies on rotational screw thread loosening in bolted joints have conducted. In our previous study, mechanism of rotational screw thread loosening in bolted joint under repeated temperature changes was examined. However, the difference in the loosening mechanism between the FEM results and the experimental results was substantial. In this study, the effect of the incline at the bearing surfaces was taken into consideration on the loosening. In addition, the loosening in the bolted joint with the eccentric nut under repeated temperature changes was examined using finite element method (FEM) calculations. Discussion is made on the mechanism and a solution of rotational screw thread loosening in the bolted joints under the repeated temperature changes. The results show that a reduction in axial bolt force was increased when the incline at the bearing surfaces was taken into consideration and the eccentric nut was shown for preventing the bolt loosening.