This paper presents experimental results and finite element analysis of the cold-formed steel bolted connection under shear loading. Experiments are conducted to study the ultimate behaviors, such as ultimate strength and failure mode of connections. The samples were fabricated into three different groups, single bolted, double bolted and quadruple bolted connection. Material properties were determined by tensile coupon testing. Bearing failure modes were detected in the bolted connection tests. The ultimate capacities were compared with the nominal strengths calculated using the AISI (2012). The comparisons show that the nominal strength parameters predicted by this specification is conservative. The finite element analysis shell elements were used to model the cold-formed steel plate while solid elements were used to model the bolted fastenings for the purpose of studying the structural behavior of bolted connections. Material nonlinearities, contact problem and geometry nonlinearities analysis are carried out in order to predict ultimate strength and failure mode of connections. The results show that the proposed model accurately represents the failure mode and ultimate strength of bolted connection, as determined from experimental investigation. The new factor for type of bearing connection has a good agreement with the tested bearing strength of bolt connection.

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The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of geometric variables on the bolt load distributions of a cold-formed steel bolt connection. The study was conducted using an experimental test, finite element analysis, and an analytical method. The experimental study was performed using single-lap shear testing of a concentrically loaded bolt connection fabricated from G550 cold-formed steel. Finite element analysis with shell elements was used to model the cold-formed steel plate while solid elements were used to model the bolt fastener for the purpose of studying the structural behavior of the bolt connections. Material nonlinearities, contact problems, and a geometric nonlinearity procedure were used to predict the failure behavior of the bolt connections. The analytical method was generated using the spring model. The bolt-plate interaction stiffness was newly proposed which was verified by the experiment and finite element model. It was applied to examine the effect of geometric variables on the single-column multibolt connection. The effects were studied of varying bolt diameter, plate thickness, and the plate thickness ratio (t2/t1) on the bolt load distribution. The results of the parametric study showed that thet2/t1ratio controlled the efficiency of the bolt load distribution more than the other parameters studied.

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