UNIVERSAL COLLEGE OF PARAÑAQUE

Structural Steel Design:

Design of Tension
Members
ENGR. JOEVANNIE EMMANUEL C. LUMAGAS
Civil/Structural
Instructor

Civil Engineering Department Universal College – LMS Online Portal AY 2020-2021 / 2nd Semester
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Design of Tension Members

Tension members are structural elements that are subjected to axial tensile
forces. They are used in various types of structures and include truss members,
bracing for buildings and bridges, cables in suspended roof systems, and cables in
suspension and cable-stayed bridges. Any cross-sectional configuration may be
used, because for any given material, the only determinant of the strength of a
tension member is the cross-sectional area.
The stress in an axially loaded tension member is given by
𝑃
𝑓=
𝐴
where P is the magnitude of the load and A is the cross-sectional area (the area
normal to the load).
3.2 TENSILE STRENGTH
A tension member can fail by reaching one of two limit states: excessive
deformation or fracture. To prevent excessive deformation, initiated by yielding, the
load on the gross section must be small enough that the stress on the gross section is
less than the yield stress Fy. To prevent fracture, the stress on the net section must be
less than the tensile strength Fu. In each case, the stress P/A must be less than a limiting
stress F or
𝑃
<𝐹
𝐴
Thus, the load P must be less than FA, or
P < FA
The nominal strength in yielding is
Pn = FyAg
and the nominal strength in fracture is
Pn = FuAe
where Ae is the effective net area, which may be equal to either the net area or, in
some cases, a smaller area.
LRFD: In load and resistance factor design, the factored tensile load is compared to
the design strength. The design strength is the resistance factor times the nominal
strength. Equation 2.6,
Ru = ∅Rn
can be written for tension members as
Pu ≤ ∅𝑡 tPn
where Pu is the governing combination of factored loads. The resistance factor ∅𝑡 is
smaller for fracture than for yielding, reflecting the more serious nature of fracture.
For yielding, ∅𝑡 = 0.90
For fracture, ∅𝑡 = 0.75
Because there are two limit states, both of the following conditions must be satisfied:
Pu ≤ 0.90FyAg
Pu ≤ 0.75FuAe
The smaller of these is the design strength of the member.
 ASD: In allowable strength design, the total service load is compared to the
allowable strength (allowable load):
𝑃
𝑃𝑎 ≤ Ω𝑛
𝑡

where Pa is the required strength (applied load), and Pn/Ωt is the allowable
strength. The subscript “a” indicates that the required strength is for “allowable
strength design,” but you can think of it as standing for “applied” load.
For yielding of the gross section, the safety factor Ωt is 1.67, and the allowable load
is
𝑃𝑛 𝐹𝑦 𝐴𝑔
= = 0.6𝐹𝑦 𝐴𝑔
Ω𝑡 1.67

(The factor 0.6 appears to be a rounded value, but recall that 1.67 is a rounded
value. If Ωt = 5 ⁄3 is used, the allowable load is exactly 0.6 FyAg.) For fracture of the
net section, the safety factor is 2.00 and the allowable load is
𝑃𝑛 𝐹𝑢 𝐴𝑒
= = 0.5𝐹𝑢 𝐴𝑒
Ω𝑡 2.00
Alternatively, the service load stress can be compared to the allowable stress. This
can be expressed as
𝑓𝑡 ≤ 𝐹𝑡
where ft is the applied stress and Ft is the allowable stress. For yielding of the gross
section,
𝑃 𝑃𝑛 /Ω𝑡 0.6𝐹𝑦 𝐴𝑔
𝑓𝑡 = 𝐴𝑎 and 𝐹𝑡 = = = 0.6𝐹𝑦
𝑔 𝐴𝑔 𝐴𝑔

For fracture of the net section,

𝑃 𝑃𝑛 /Ω𝑡 0.6𝐹𝑢 𝐴𝑒
𝑓𝑡 = 𝐴𝑎 and 𝐹𝑡 = = = 0.5𝐹𝑢
𝑔 𝐴𝑒 𝐴𝑒

You can find values of Fy and Fu for various structural steels in Table 2-3 in the
Manual.
Example 3- 1
A ½ x 5 plate of A36 steel is used as a tension member. It is considered to a
gusset plate with four 5/8-inch-diameter bolts as shown in Figure 3.3 Assume that
the effective net area Ae equals the actual net area An (we cover computation of
effective net area in Section 3.3).
a. What is the design strength for LFRD?
b. What is the allowable strength for ASD?
3.3 EFFECTIVE AREA
Of the several factors influencing the performance of a tension member, the
manner in which it is connected is the most important. A connection almost always
weakens the member, and the measure of its influence is called the joint efficiency.
This factor is a function of the ductility of the material, fastener spacing, stress
concentrations at holes, fabrication procedure, and a phenomenon known as shear
lag. All contribute to reducing the effectiveness of the member, but shear lag is the
most important.
 For bolted connections, the effective net area is
Ae = AnU (AISC Equation D3-1)
For welded connections, we refer to this reduced area as the effective area (rather
than the effective net area), and it is given by
Ae = AgU
where the reduction factor U is given in AISC D3, Table D3.1. The table gives a
general equation that will cover most situations as well as alternative numerical values
for specific cases. These definitions of U will be presented here in a different format
from that in the Specification. The rules for determining U fall into five categories:
1. A general category for any type of tension member except plates and
round HSS with 𝓁 ≥ 1.3D (See Figure 3.7e.)
2. Plates
3. Round HSS with 𝓁 ≥ 1.3 D
4. Alternative values for single and double angles
5. Alternative values for W, M, S, and HP shapes
1. For any type of tension member except plat es and round HSS w 𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝓵 ≥ 1.3D

For any type of tension member except plates and round HSS witwith ≥ 1.3D
𝑥ҧ
𝑈 =1−𝓁
Where
𝑥ҧ = distance from centroid of connected area to the plane of the
connection
𝓁 = length of the connection
This definition of 𝑥ҧ was formulated by Munse and Chesson (1963). If a member
has two symmetrically located planes of connection, 𝑥ҧ is measured from the
centroid of the nearest one-half of the area. Figure 3.7 illustrates 𝑥ҧ for various
types of connections.
The length 𝓁 in Equation 3.1 is the length of the connection in the direction of the
load, as shown in Figure 3.8. For bolted connections, it is measured from the
center of the bolt at one end of the connection to the center of the bolt at the
other end. For welds, it is measured from one end of the weld to the other. If
there are weld segments of different lengths in the direction of the load, use the
average length.
2. Plates
In general, U = 1.0 for plates, since the cross section has only one element and it
is connected. There is one exception for welded plates, however. If the member is
connected with longitudinal welds on each side with no transverse weld (as in
Figure 3.9), the following values apply:
• For 𝓁 ≥ 2w U = 1.0
• For 1.5w ≤ 𝓁 < 2w, U = 0.87
• For w ≤ 𝓁 < 1.5w, U = 0.75

3. Round HSS with 𝓁 ≥ 1.3D (see Figure 3.7e):

U = 1.0
4. Alternatives to Equation 3.1 for Single and Double Angles:
The following values may be used in lieu of Equation 3.1.
• For four or more fasteners in the direction of loading, U = 0.80.
• For three fasteners in the direction of loading, U = 0.60.
5. Alternatives to Equation 3.1 for W, M, S, HP, or Tees Cut from These Shapes:
If the following conditions are satisfied, the corresponding values may be used in lieu of
Equation 3.1.
• Connected through the flange with three or more fasteners in the direction of
loading, with a width at least 2 ⁄3 of the depth: U = 0.90.
• Connected through the flange with three or more fasteners in the direction of
loading, with a width less than 2 ⁄3 of the depth: U = 0.85.
• Connected through the web with four or more fasteners in the direction of loading:
U = 0.70.
Figure 3.10 illustrates the alternative values of U for various connections.
If a tension member is connected with only transverse welds, U = 1.0, and An
is the area of the connected element. Figure 3.11 illustrates the difference between
transverse and longitudinal welds. Connections by transverse welds alone are not
common.
There are some limiting values for the effective area:
• For bolted splice plates, Ae = An ≤ 0.85Ag. This limit is given in a user note and is
from a requirement in Chapter J of the Specification “Design of Connections.”
• For open cross-sectional shapes (such as W, M, S, C, HP, WT, and ST) and (angles),
the value of U need not be less than the ratio of the connected element gross area
to the total gross area.
Example 3.4
Determine the effective net area for the tension member shown in Figure 3.12.
Example 3.5
If the tension member of Example 3.4 is welded as shown in Figure 3.13,
determine the effective area.
3.4 STAGGERED FASTENERS
If a tension member connection is made with bolts, the net area will be maximized
if the fasteners are placed in a single line. Sometimes space limitations, such as a limit
on dimension a in Figure 3.14a, necessitate using more than one line. If so, the
reduction in cross-sectional area is minimized if the fasteners are arranged in a
staggered pattern, as shown.
 Several approximate methods have been proposed to account for the
effects of staggered holes. Cochrane (1922) proposed that when deducting the
area corresponding to a staggered hole, use a reduced diameter, given by
𝑠2
𝑑′ =𝑑− (3.2)
4𝑔

where d is the hole diameter, s is the stagger, or pitch, of the bolts (spacing in the
direction of the load), and g is the gage (transverse spacing).
 If the net area is treated as the product of a thickness times a net width, and the
diameter from Equation 3.2 is used for all holes (since d′ = d when the stagger s = 0), the
net width in a failure line consisting of both staggered and unstaggered holes is
𝑤𝑛 = 𝑤𝑔 − Σ𝑑′
𝑠2
= 𝑤𝑔 − Σ 𝑑 − 4𝑔

𝑠2
= 𝑤𝑔 − Σd + Σ 4𝑔

where wn is the net width and wg is the gross width. The second term is the sum of all
hole diameters, and the third term is the sum of s2/4g for all inclined lines in the failure
pattern.
When more than one failure pattern is conceivable, all possibilities should be
investigated, and the one corresponding to the smallest load capacity should be used.
Note that this method will not accommodate failure patterns with lines parallel to the
applied load.
Example 3.6
Compute the smallest net area for the plate
shown in Figure 3.15. The holes are for 1-inch-
diameter bolts.
3.5 BLOCK SHEAR
For certain connection configurations, a segment or “block” of material at the
end of the member can tear out. For example, the connection of the single-angle
tension member shown in Figure 3.21 is susceptible to this phenomenon, called
block shear. For the case illustrated, the shaded block would tend to fail by shear
along the longitudinal section ab and by tension on the transverse section bc.
 For certain arrangements of bolts, block shear can also occur in gusset plates.
Figure 3.22 shows a plate tension member connected to a gusset plate. In this
connection, block shear could occur in both the gusset plate and the tension
member.
 The shear rupture stress is taken as 60% of the tensile ultimate stress, so the
nominal strength in shear is 0.6FuAnv and the nominal strength in tension is FuAnt,
where
Anv = net area along the shear surface or surfaces
Ant = net area along the tension surface
This gives a nominal strength of
Rn = 0.6FuAnv + FuAnt (3.3)
The AISC Specification uses Equation 3.3 for angles and gusset plates, but for
certain types of coped beam connections (to be covered in Chapter 5), the second
term is reduced to account for nonuniform tensile stress. The tensile stress is
nonuniform when some rotation of the block is required for failure to occur. For
these cases,
Rn = 0.6FuAnv + 0.5FuAnt (3.4)
The AISC Specification limits the 0.6FuAnv term to 0.6FyAgv, where
0.6Fy = shear yield stress
Agv = gross area along the shear surface or surfaces
and gives one equation to cover all cases as follows:
Rn = 0.6FuAnv + UbsFuAnt ≤ 0.6FyAgv + UbsFuAnt (AISC Equation J4-5)
where Ubs = 1.0 when the tension stress is uniform (angles, gusset plates, and most
coped beams) and Ubs = 0.5 when the tension stress is nonuniform. A nonuniform case is
illustrated in the Commentary to the Specification.
For LRFD, the resistance factor ∅ is 0.75, and for ASD, the safety factor Ω is 2.00.
Recall that these are the factors used for the fracture—or rupture—limit state, and block
shear is a rupture limit state
Example 3-10
Compute the block shear strength of the tension member shown in Figure 3.23. The
holes are for 7/8-inch-diameter bolts, and A36 steel is used.
a. use LFRD.
b. use ASD.