EXPERIMENTAL PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF SPLICE JOINTS FOR TIMBER STRUCTURES USING STEEL PIPES AND HIGH-STRENGTH BOLTS

Abstract

A splice joint system for timber members was proposed and its performance was evaluated experimentally. The joints are composed of a steel plate and high-strength bolts. Bending moments in the timber members are converted to coupled bearing forces in the bolted connections between the steel and timber. The bearing strength of each bolt is enhanced through the use of doubly placed steel pipe sleeves. Experiments for the connections and splice joints were conducted. The bolt connections were found to have sufficient bearing strength to allow for yielding of the steel plates as the primary failure mechanism of the splice joints.