structural DESIGN

Design of Stainless Steel Bolted

Connections in Accordance With the
Recently Published ANSI/AISC 370
Design rules for bearing-type and slip-critical bolted connections made of stainless steel are now available.
By Francisco Meza, Ph.D. and Nancy Baddoo

I n the December 2022 edition of Structure

Magazine, Benjamin Baer gave an overview
of the new AISC design specification for
structural stainless steel, ANSI/AISC 370,
and introduced the provisions for design-
ing members. This article focuses on the
design of bolted connections in structural
stainless steel.

Introduction
Stainless steel bolts are used in a wide range
of architectural and industrial applications
(such as water treatment, food processing,
chemical processing, marine structures, and
nuclear facilities) where carbon steel bolts
would be simply inadequate. They are avail-
Figure 1 Typical detail for connecting dissimilar materials to avoid galvanic corrosion for bolts installed to the
able in various alloys and conditions, offering
snug-tight condition in a water-shedding service environment.
different strengths, corrosion resistance levels
and the ability to operate at high and low
temperatures. Even though stainless steel bolts have a higher initial group providing unique properties and a range of different corrosion
cost than their carbon steel equivalents, the savings from a long levels. ANSI/AISC 370 covers the design of members and bolts made
life with low maintenance can easily outweigh these initial costs in from the austenitic and duplex stainless steel alloy groups, which are
demanding applications. As well as being essential for connecting the most commonly used structural stainless steels. The design of
stainless steel members, stainless steel bolts are also suitable for con- precipitation hardening stainless steel alloys is also covered for ten-
necting galvanized steel and aluminum members. They are also used sion members, fittings and fasteners where higher strength is needed.
in timber construction because they are resistant to chemicals used A summary of the design rules and key recommendations for bolted
to treat timber, and also resistant to corrosion caused by acetic acid connections is given below.
which is emitted by timber.

Material Selection and Specification

Design of Bolted Connections
An important consideration when selecting a stainless steel bolt, nut,
The design of stainless steel bolted connections in the US has become and washer is to ensure they have a corrosion resistance at least as good
significantly easier thanks to the release in 2021 of the Specification for as that of the most corrosion-resistant material being joined. When
Structural Stainless Steel Buildings (ANSI/AISC 370) and its accompa- a structure is exposed to a corrosive environment, the connections
nying Code of Standard Practice for Structural Stainless Steel Buildings are the parts most affected by the aggressive environment as they are
(AISC 313). The second edition of Design Guide 27 Structural Stainless susceptible to crevice corrosion, stress corrosion cracking, and galvanic
Steel (AISC DG 27), released in 2022, also gives practical guidelines corrosion if dissimilar metals are connected.
for designing stainless steel bolted connections and provides design The potential for crevice corrosion at a connection should be con-
tables for determining their strength. sidered in any environment where moisture is present and surface
Stainless steels can be classified into five basic groups, with each deposits may accumulate, particularly those containing chloride salts.

18 STRUCTURE magazine
Bracing connection in a stainless steel canopy at Porto Airport, Portugal. Photo on right courtesy of TriPyramid Structures, Inc.

Crevice corrosion can occur at locations that are shielded or occluded slip critical connections cannot be used for joining dissimilar metals.
and have insufficient localized oxygen concentrations that are too Several ASTM standards cover stainless steel bolts. Most stainless
low to maintain a passive film. Possible sources of moisture include steel bolt standards have a corresponding standard for the nut unless
spray, ponding, rain, fog, condensation, and humidity. When crevice the nut is specified in the same standard as the bolt (this is the case
corrosion is a concern, the most common design options are to seal for ASTM A1082/A1082M, which covers stainless steels suitable
the joint, modify the design to reduce the risk of regular moisture for bolts and nuts).
accumulation or select a stainless steel alloy with sufficient crevice The ASTM standards covering stainless steel bolts are given in
corrosion resistance for the service environment. Table 1. There are no ASTM standards for stainless steel washers.
The development of chloride stress corrosion cracking (SCC) requires However, requirements are given in ANSI/AISC 370 regarding mate-
the simultaneous presence of tensile stresses and a chloride-rich envi- rial selection and hardness.
ronment, which is unlikely to be encountered in standard building For the austenitic stainless steel bolts, although all the standards
atmospheres. Service environments potentially prone to chloride give the same values for yield strength and tensile strength of bolts
SCC include indoor swimming pool areas, specific industrial and in the annealed condition (Fyb = 30ksi, Fub = 75 ksi), the strengths in
food processing environments, and structural members in areas with the cold worked condition and strain-hardened condition depend
high coastal or de-icing salts accumulation. The stresses do not need on both the alloy and the diameter of the bolt. Strength and size are
to be very high in relation to the material's yield stress. They may inversely correlated because it is difficult to achieve uniform work
be due to loading or residual effects from manufacturing processes. hardening through the thickness of a bolt. For the duplex stainless
Caution should be exercised when stainless steel members containing
high residual stresses (e.g., due to cold working) are used in chloride- Material Bolt Nut Common alloys
rich environments. Duplex stainless steel bolts usually have superior Group 1 (304,
resistance to SCC than the austenitic stainless steel bolts covered in ASTM F593 ASTM F594 304L), Group 2
ANSI/AISC 370. Precipitation hardening stainless steel bolts should (316, 316L)
not be used when SCC is a concern. The potential for galvanic cor-
rosion should also be considered in bolted connections that combine Austenitic ASTM A962/ B8 (304), B8M
ASTM A320
stainless steel with other metals. In this type of connection, the dis- A962M (316)
similar metals must be isolated from one another electrically. This ASTM A193/ ASTM A194/ B8 (304), B8M
usually includes using insulating washers and bushings to prevent A193M A194M (316)
contact between the bolt and members being joined so that galvanic
ASTM A1082/ ASTM A1082/
corrosion is avoided if there is moisture infiltration or condensation Duplex 2205
A1082M A1082M
within the joint. Figure 1 shows an example of galvanic separation
of dissimilar metals for a bearing-type connection, in which the bolt ASTM F593 ASTM F5942M 630 (17-4)
Precipitation
is snug-tightened, in a water-shedding application. The connection ASTM A1082/ ASTM A1082/
Hardening 630 (17-4)
in Figure 1 would not be an appropriate design for a regularly or A1082M A1082M
continuously immersed condition or where crevice corrosion of the
stainless steel was a concern. Because of the need for isolating material, Table 1 ASTM product standards for stainless steel bolts and nuts.

N OVE M B ER 2023 19
 steel bolts, the yield and tensile strengths vary between alloys, and in Surface Class Slip coefficient, µ[a]
the case of precipitation hardening stainless steel bolts, they also vary SSB 0.20
with the heat treatment. (ANSI/AISC 370 permits the precipitation
hardening alloys only in heat treatment condition H1150 to reduce SSC 0.40
the risk of hydrogen embrittlement and SCC). SSD 0.50
Values include the potential loss of preloading force due to time-
[a]

dependent relaxation.
Structural Performance of Stainless Steel
Bolted Connections Table 2 Slip coefficients for stainless steel slip-critical connections given in ANSI/
AISC 370.
Stainless steel bolts behave differently from carbon steel bolts
due to the different material composition and non-linear stress- the bearing/tear-out strength of the plate can be determined for
strain characteristics. This means it is only possible to adopt the case in which the deformation at the bolt hole under service
some of the design rules and installation procedures used for loads is or is not a design consideration.
carbon steel bolts.

Slip-critical Connections
Bearing-type Connections
Slip-critical connections are required when deformations in bolted
As with carbon steel, the strength of stainless steel bearing-type connections must be limited to predefined values under service
connections may be governed by the failure of the bolt itself or the or ultimate loads. Typical applications can be found in bridges,
connected plates. Failure of the bolt may be due to shear, tension, cranes, radio masts, and towers of wind turbines. In this type of
or a combination thereof, while the connected plates may fail in connection, the shear force is transferred by friction between the
bearing or tearing when the spacing between bolts or the spac- faying surfaces, and therefore, ensuring that the level of preten-
ing between the bolt and the edges of the plate is not sufficient. sion in the bolt and the slip coefficient of the faying surfaces are
The minimum bolt spacing and edge distance requirements are achieved is key to guaranteeing the strength of the connection.
the same for stainless steel and carbon steel bolted connections. ANSI/AISC 370 covers the design of slip-critical connections
The strength provisions given in ANSI/AISC 370 for stainless in which the bolt is made of austenitic or duplex stainless steel
steel bolts are similar to those for a carbon steel bolt of the same with a specified minimum yield strength F yb ranging from 80
diameter and tensile strength (Fub). As for carbon steel bolts, ksi (550 MPa) to 130 ksi (900 MPa) and faying surfaces made
the shear and tensile strengths of a stainless steel bolts are calcu- of stainless steel plates. The reader should be aware that there
lated by multiplying the nominal (tensile or shear) stress by the is a typographical error in the upper bound limit of Fyb (<= 116
nominal unthreaded area of the bolt. If the bolt is subjected to ksi (800 MPa)) given in the current version of ANSI/AISC 370,
combined tension and shear, the strength is predicted using the which will be corrected in the next edition in 2025. The use
same interaction equation used for carbon steel bolts. However, of slip-critical connections comprising stainless steel bolts and
due to the wide variety of stainless steel bolts on the market, each carbon steel plates is outside the scope of ANSI/AISC 370. This
with different tensile strength (Fub), rather than tabulating the is because in this type of connection, the dissimilar metals would
nominal (tensile and shear) stresses, ANSI/AISC 370 provides need to be isolated similarly to the connection shown in Figure
simple expressions for calculating these values. 1 with the washers and bushings made of an incompressible
For stainless steel bolts in tension, the nominal tensile stress material, for which there is currently no data.
is given by 0.75Fub, where the 0.75 coefficient accounts for the To limit the surface pressures on the clamped package and
reduced cross-sectional area of the threaded part of the bolt. thus minimize pretension losses due to plastification of the sur-
Similarly, if shear failure occurs in the threaded portion of the face, ANSI/AISC 370 requires washers hardened to at least 290
bolt, the nominal shear stress of the unthreaded portion of the Brinell HBW to be placed under both the bolt head and the nut.
bolt (0.55Fub) is reduced to 0.45Fub to compensate for the reduced Embedding of the surface can also be minimized using washers
cross-sectional area of the threaded part of the bolt. The 0.55 with a diameter larger than the nut or the head of the bolt.
and 0.45 coefficients include a 10% reduction in strength to Galling can occur when the bolt is highly pre-tensioned or
account for the detrimental effect of the uneven redistribution torqued, and stainless steel bolting assemblies are more suscep-
of stresses in long-bolted connections. tible to this than carbon steel bolting assemblies. Therefore,
The resistance factor used in calculating the available strength the use of lubrication during the installation of slip-critical
of austenitic and duplex stainless steel bolts is the same as that bolting assemblies is essential to minimize galling. It is rec-
used for carbon steel bolts. However, it was reduced by 10% for ommended that the lubricant is applied between the paired
precipitation hardening stainless steel bolts to account for the threads and the bearing surfaces between the nut and
lack of sufficient test data on this type of bolt. the washer.
The equations for calculating the bearing and tearing strength of The nominal strength of stainless steel slip-critical connections
stainless steel plates have a similar form to those used for carbon is calculated by the same equation used for carbon steel slip-
steel plates, with the tearing strength increasing proportionally critical connections, which is given by Equation 1, where: Du
to the bolt-to-bolt or bolt-to-edge distance until the bearing is a multiplier that reflects the ratio of the mean installed bolt
strength is reached. However, stainless steel plates will exhibit pretension to the specified minimum bolt pretension; Tb is the
lower bearing and tear-out strengths due to the gradual softening specified minimum bolt pretension, hf is a reduction factor that is
of the material. As for carbon steel bearing-type connections, used when two or more fillers are placed between the connected

20 STRUCTURE magazine
 Surface Rz[b] Rt[c] the defined roughness values given in Table 3. If a faying
Class[a] µin. µm µin. µm surface with different surface roughness is used, tests can be
conducted according to the testing method given in AISC
SSB 1400 ≥ 35 2000 ≥ 50 DG 27 to determine the appropriate slip coefficient to use in
SSC 1800 ≥ 45 2400 ≥ 60 the design.
SSD 2200 ≥ 55 2800 ≥ 70 When a slip-critical connection is subject to both ten-
sion and shear, the tensile force reduces the clamping force
[a]
Surfaces must be grit-blasted. between the faying surfaces, reducing the slip resistance of the
[b]
Rz is the surface roughness according to ASTM D7127. connection. This effect is accounted for by applying the same
[c]
Rt is the surface roughness according to ASTM D4417. reduction factor used for slip-critical connections made of
carbon steel.
Table 3 Definition of surface classes for stainless steel slip-critical connections given
in ANSI/AISC 370.

parts (hf is the same as for carbon steel slip-critical connections); Summary
ns is the number of slip planes, and μ is the slip coefficient for
the faying surfaces. Stainless steel bolts have a long track record of providing dura-
ble solutions for connecting a wide range of materials. The
Rn μDuhfTbns (1) design process is similar to that of carbon steel bolts. Care is
needed in specifying stainless steel bolts as there are a range of
The resistance factors used to calculate the available slip resis- alloys and conditions (strengths). Guidance is available in ANSI/
tance for different hole types (i.e., standard size, slotted and AISC 370 and AISC DG 27. In the coming months, an RCSC/
oversized holes) are also the same as those used with carbon steel AISC stainless steel bolting guide will be prepared, with essential
slip-critical connections. information for specifiers and designers all in one place.■
An important distinction when calculating the resistance of
stainless steel slip-critical connections is that the minimum bolt
Francisco Meza, Ph. D., is a principal engineer at the Steel Construction
pretension Tb is taken as 70% of the yield strength of the bolt
Institute. He has worked on a number of projects developing design
multiplied by the net tensile area of the bolt. This definition of
guidance and specifications for structural stainless steel, and has
Tb differs from that for carbon steel slip-critical connections,
undertaken a key role in drafting ANSI/AISC 370-21, Specification for
which is based on 70% of the tensile strength of the bolt. The
Structural Stainless Steel Buildings. He also co-authored the Second Edition
reason Tb is based on the yield strength of the bolt is that tests
of AISC Design Guide 27 Structural Stainless Steel.
on stainless steel bolts have shown that it is only sometimes pos-
sible to guarantee a minimum bolt pretension as high as 70% of Nancy Baddoo is an Associate Director at the Steel Construction Institute.
the tensile strength. For the last 12 years, she has chaired the European technical committee
To ensure that the specified minimum bolt pretension is achieved, responsible for the stainless steel Eurocode, EN 1993-1-4. She wrote the
ANSI/AISC 370 requires that the stainless steel bolting assembly, First Edition of AISC Design Guide 27, co-authored the Second Edition,
as well as its installation process, meet the requirements of a Bolt and played a key role in drafting ANSI/AISC 370-21.
Tightening Qualification Procedure, such as the one included
in AISC DG 27, which covers the
turn-of-nut, the calibrated wrench,
and the combined methods.
The value of the multiplier Du in taylor
devices inc.

Photo credit: John Doogan/WSP

Equation (1) was conservatively set
to 1.0 for stainless steel slip-critical
connections because there was insuf- TAYLOR DAMPED
D
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ficient data to justify a higher value.
This contrasts with the value of 1.13
used for carbon steel slip-critical
MOMENT FRAMEE™
connections, for which significantly
more data is available on the differ- DAMPER R DESIGN
ent bolt installation methods.
In stainless steel slip-critical con-
nections, the slip coefficient μ is
SIMPLIFIED
primarily dependent on the rough- No
N o Peer Review wR
Required
equ uired
ness and asperity of the faying
surfaces, the latter being con-
No Tim
Time-History
m e History A
Analysis
n a
trolled by the type of media used Quick Design Times
to blast the surfaces. Table 2 shows
the current slip coefficient values
given in ANSI/AISC 370. These
values are only applicable to grit- (716) 694-0800 | www.taylordevices.com ESR-4769
blasted faying surfaces that meet

N OVE M B ER 2023 21