Torque Tensioning of Galvanized Bolt
by:
Dr. Thomas Langill, Technical Director
American Galvanizers Association Bolt lock-up and relaxation phenomenon
6881 South Holly Circle, Suite 108
Englewood, CO 80112 USA
are important considerations in joints made
www.galvanizeit.org from these anticorrosive fasteners.
Bolting has become the most widely used, versatile and galvanized structure in 1980 revealed that without any main-
reliable method for making field connections of structural steel tenance, it was in excellent condition. Furthermore, no main-
members. Advantages such as speed of erection, reliability in tenance of the galvanized structural steel will be required for
service and good corrosion performance, all led to the use of many years to come, despite the use of corrosive de-icing
bolted connections over welding or hot riveting. Corrosion salts on the bridge deck.
protection is a great commodity for outdoor structures and
nothing protects as well as hot-dip galvanizing. In the con- Hot Dip Galvanizing
struction of galvanized steel structures, bolted connections First used over 150 years ago, hot-dip galvanizing is one
offer further advantages. Damage to the galvanized coating of the oldest metallurgical coating processes. It forms a cor-
from local heating during welding and hot riveting and the rosion protection system using zinc metal on the surface of a
need for coating repairs to the affected area are eliminated. steel part. The steel part is cleaned in a caustic soda bath to
In bolted steel structures, the integrity of the entire as- remove oil and greases that remain from the fabrication pro-
sembled structure depends on the bolts and nuts. For exterior cesses along with other residues such as soils and paints. Next,
use, these critical fasteners must be adequately protected from the steel part is immersed in an acid bath to remove the rust
atmospheric corrosion. Where steel members of the structure and mill scale from the surface. Mechanical cleaning, such as
are alvanized, it is essential that fasteners employed should wheel abrading or grit blasting, may be used to perform these
also?be galvanized (Figure 1) to maintain a uniform level of initial cleaning steps. The final cleaning and preparation step
corrosion protection throughout the structure and to avoid dis- is to coat the steel part with a zinc ammonium chloride flux
similar metal corrosion'. solution. The steel part is then lowered into a molten bath of
The first conventional bolted galvanized bridge in North zinc metal. When the steel part reaches the temperature of the
America, the Lizotte Bridge located in Quebec, Canada, was bath metal, the iron from the steel and the zinc from the bath
erected in 1963 (Figure 2). A thorough examination of this interdiffuse to form distinct intermetallic layers. The steel part
is withdrawn from the bath and the final coating layer of bath
metal forms on the surface. Figure 3 shows the typical mi-
crostructure of a hot dip galvanized coating.
The hot dip galvanized coating is usually 2 to 4 mils (50 to
100 prn) thick on fasteners. The coating is generally uniform
on all surfaces, including comers and edges, providing excel-
lent corrosion protection at these critical points. The inset of
Figure 3 shows the hot dip galvanized coating on the edge of
a steel part. The pure zinc layer and the zinc-iron alloy layers
are anodic to steel, providing sacrificial protection in the event
the coating is scratched or damaged. This insures that exposed
steel will not rust until the surrounding zinc coating is
depleted.
Fig. 1-Assortment of galvanized fasteners. I
'Fig. l)-Zinc/iron intermetallics in hot dip galvanized coating.
Layers from the top: ETA (100Y0 Zn),
ZETA (94% Zn/6% Fe), DELTA (9oy0 Zn/lO% Fe),
Fig. 2-Lizotte Bridge; bolted galvanized bridge.
I GAMMA (75% Zn125% Fe), BASE STEEL.
32 Fastener Technology InternationallOctober 2001
Mechanical Properties After Galvanizing working or slip movement in the joint produces the frictional
Since the bolt carries a significant responsibility for the resistance required for “friction-type’’joint design. Pretreat-
structural integrity, it has been questioned if galvanizing will ment methods include wire brushing and grit blasting. Al-
adversely affect the bolt’s mechanical properties, tensile though there might have been some early slip in the joints,
strength and fatigue strength. the fatigue resistance was equal to or greater than that ob-
According to a British Non-Ferrous (BNF) Metals’ study, tained from ungalvanized joints of similar steel; apparently
the galvanizing process has no effect on the properties of the the zinc coating process did not reduce the basic fatigue
structural steels when galvanized in the “as received” condi- strength of the steel in these connections.
tion. In another study3, steels with a tensile strength over Disassembly of the joints further illustrated the effect of
150,000 psi (1 035 MPa) were found to be susceptible to hy- the lock-up. To separate the plates of a joint it was often nec-
drogen embrittlement. Numerous tests3-’have explored the hy- essary to pry them apart. Layers of zinc tended to pull off
drogen embrittlement of zinc coated fasteners. The conclu- from the surfaces of the plate as a result of the cold welding
sions have been incorporated into ASTM standards with the effect associated with the lock-up.
result that A 325 structural bolts can be hot dip galvanized
whereas A 490 bolts are prohibited from being zinc coated. Relaxation
Tests conducted at the University of TorontoXshow that The pure zinc coating outer layer of a hot-dip galvanized
the reduction in fatigue strength due to hot dip galvanizing coating is rather soft. This could lead to bolt relaxation and a
will be negligible for short friction-type joints. The joints stud- decrease in the tension of the fastener system. The high clamp-
ied in this work have a high uniform clamping force on the ing pressure of the bolt may cause the zinc to flow and cause
faying surface from A 325 high strength bolts (Figure 4) act- loss of tension and bolt extension. Professor M u n ~ e ~also.’~
ing over small gage and pitch dimensions. Furthermore, Dr. observed this and his studies indicate a 6.5% loss of bolt load
Gunther Valtinat9 from the Technical University of Ham- due to relaxation in galvanized bolts and plate members as
burg-Harburg, conducted torque-induced tension tests that compared to 2.5% in non-coated members. The relaxation oc-
had similar conclusions. The results showed that unprepared curred in the first five days. Fastener design can make allow-
galvanized high strength bolthut assemblies retain an inferior ances for this relaxation and still take advantage of the lock-
torque-induced tension association. A lubricant on the galva- up after a few cycles of dynamic loading.
nized bolt threads eliminates this torque-tension problem. Hot The amount of relaxation appeared to be related to the thick-
dip galvanized bolts with lubrication compare favorably with ness of the galvanized coating. It was concluded that the in-
black bolts with the same lubrication in reaching bolt tensions creased bolt relaxation occurred because of the creep or flow
that exceed the minimum proof load. ASTM A 563 stipulates of the zinc coating under sustained high clamping pressures.
that a lubricant be provided for hot dip galvanized fasteners. Like plain ungalvanized bolts, the galvanized bolts experi-
enced most of the creep and relaxation immediately upon
completion of the tightening process.
Installation of Galvanized Bolts
The association of torque and induced tension depend on
several factors such as bolthut thread surface, thread surface
itself and lubrication condition^^-'^. The galvanized fasteners
have higher levels of friction between the bolt and nut threads
than uncoated fasteners creating a more variable torquehn-
duced tension association. Due to greater friction observed
between bolt and nut threads, torque induced tension can lead
to bolt fracture when lubricant is not applied. With the addi-
tion of lubricant, according to ASTM A 563, the friction be-
tween the bolthut threads is greatly reduced and the assem-
I Fig. L A 325 high strength bolts. I bly is allowed to tighten past the minimum tension without
fracturing the bolt.
The Phenomenon of Bolt Lock-Up The tightening and installation of the bolthut assembly
Professor W.H. Munse’” found galvanized bolts experi- can be costly. The selection of the tightening method is an
ence initial slip and then a “Lock-Up” behavior incurs after important consideration in the economics of bolted structures.
the first few cycles of dynamic loading. When slip commences The turning piece should have a washer underneath to pre-
in a galvanized joint, there is continuing change in the load as vent damage, and lubrication should be provided. Any of the
measured by the small shear block tests conducted at the Uni- three methods of tightening can be used:
versity of Illinois. If the load is large enough and is only ap- Calibrated wrench.
plied in one direction, the joints will slip into bearing. But if Direct tension indicator.
the load is periodically reversed, as in dynamically loaded struc- Turn-of-nut.
tures, slip will cease after a few cycles of loading and the sur- The slip factor of galvanized steel will be lower than regu-
faces are said to have become locked-up. lar black bolts. However, the slip can be increased by wire
This lock-up phenomenon illustrates an important fact: If brushing or grit blasting the hot dip galvanized surface. When
the galvanized contact surfaces in a bolted joint have not been slip commences in a galvanized joint, there is continuing
pretreated to increase their initial frictional resistance, the change in the load. This change in loading can lead to the
October 2001/Fastener Technology International 33
surfaces becoming locked-up after a few cycles of dynamic
loading. As explained earlier, although there might be some
early slip in the joints, the fatigue resistance is equal to or
greater than that obtained from uncoated joints of similar steel.
The zinc coating does not reduce the basic fatigue strength of
the fastener system when the lock-up state is reached.
For more information on torque tensioning of galvanized
fasteners, contact the author or Circle 224.
References :
1. Barnett, Walter. “The Durability of Fastener Assemblies in Corrosive
Environments.” Corrosion & Coatings SA, April 1993.
2. British Non-Ferrous Metals Technology Centre, “Galvanizing Charac-
teristics of Structural Steels and their Weldments.” International Lead
Zinc Research Organization, New York, NY. 1975.
3. Tunney, William. “Embrittlement of Galvanized Steel.” St. Joe Minerals
Corporation, 1970.
4. Boyd, Walter K. and Hyler, W.S. “Factors Affecting Environmental
Performance of High-Strength Bolts.” Journal of the Structural Divi-
sion. July 1973.
5. Grobin Jr., Allen W. “Hydrogen Embrittlement Problems - With Plated
Fastener and Other Hardware Items.” ASTM Standardization News.
March 1990.
6. Munse, W.H., “Structural Behavior of Hot Galvanized Bolted Connec-
tions.” gChInternational Conference on Hot-dip Galvanizing.” London,
England, June 1967.
7. McDonald, R.D., “Steel Embrittlement Problems Associated with Hot
Dip Galvanizing Causes, Mechanisms, Controls, and Selected Refer-
~
ences.” Department of Energy, Mines and Resources, Ottawa, Canada,
January, 1975.
8. Sanderson, R.A. “Investigation ofthe Fatigue Behaviour of High Strength
Bolted Galvanized Joints.” Department of Civil Engineering University
of Toronto, 1969.
9. Valtinat, G., Piraprez, E., Greff, E., “International Tightening Tests with
High Strength Bolts M20x100 of the Systems HR and HV.” Technical
University of Hamburg-Harburg, Hamburg, Gemany, February 1998.
10. Divine, J.R., Chesson, E. Jr., Munse, W.H., “Static andDynamic Prop-
erties of Bolted Galvanized Structures.” Department of Civil Engineer-
ing, University of Illinois, April 1966.
11. Kennedy, D.J. Laurie, “High Strength Bolted Galvanized Joints.” Journal
of the Structural Division Proceedings of the American Society of Civil
Engineers. December, 1972.
12. Moore, R., MacLennan, A.D., Porter, F.C., “Galvanized Steel In Fric-
tion-Grip Connections”, Construction Steel Work Metals & Materials,
Portal Press Ltd.
13. Yura, J. A. and Frank, K.H. and Polyzois, D. “High Strength Bolts for
Bridges.” Department of Civil Engineering Bureau of Engineering Re-
search University of Texas at Austin, May 1987.
m
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