A slip-critical connection using high-strength bolted assemblies is a tension-controlled connection, since reliable provision of a specified tension force is necessary to guarantee the design performance of the connection. A number of methods for accomplishing this task are known, but only one of them is sufficiently well regulated and used in practice – the torque method. The use of alternative methods of bolt tension control may improve the reliability of tension-controlled bolted connections and eliminate the need for daily calibration of the torque wrench. An experimental study of the tensioning process for high-strength bolt sets of various diameters – M16, M20, and M24 – has been carried out in this article. An experimental setup for measuring the parameters of the stress-strain state of bolt assemblies during tightening has been designed and manufactured. The relationships between the nut rotation angle, torque, and tension in the bolt body were described and analyzed.
Vasilkin et al. (Tue,) studied this question.