Net Section Efficiency of Steel Coupons with Power Actuated Fasteners

Abstract

An experimental investigation was conducted to determine the effect of power actuated fasteners (PAFs) on the net section fracture strength of steel tension members. An extensive series of steel coupons were tested under tension loads. Coupons were provided either with PAFs or with drilled holes with the same diameter as the PAFs. The objective of this study was to determine if current specification rules for computing the net area of tension members with bolt holes could be applied to members with PAFs. The coupons tested with PAFs exhibited consistently higher net section efficiencies than coupons with drilled holes. These results indicate that installing a PAF into a tension member has less effect on the member’s net section fracture strength than a drilled hole. Design recommendations are provided for computing the net area of steel tension members with PAFs.