Evaluating Relaxation of High-strength Bolts by Parameters on Slip Faying Surfaces of Bolted Connections

The clamping force of a high-strength bolt reduces within a certain time period after the initial clamping force. When special treatments are used on a faying surface, the clamping force is relaxed severely. Tests were conducted for slip critical joints subjected to various faying surface parameters. Relaxation occurred for slip resistant joints with an uncoated surface that had been shot-blasted, cleaned, milled or rusted. It was observed that the initial clamping force dropped from 6.2% to 8.0% after 744 hours. For joints with a 5 mil thick zinc coating, the clamping force of the bolts decreased by 8.37%, and in the case of 4.9 mil thick red lead painted treatment, the relaxation ratio was 24.6%. The standard deviation of the slip coefficients between the time immediately after tightening and 1,000 hours after tightening was 0.223. It is particularly noteworthy that, for red lead painted treatment, the slip coefficient dropped from 2.5 times to 2.8 times when compared with the slip coefficient before relaxation. Joints with inorganic zinc should not have thickness exceeding 5 mils, and joints with a red lead painted surface should not be allowed regardless of the thickness of coating.