Numerical analysis of stress concentration and crack initiation in a bolted joint under combined fretting loads

Numerical analysis of stress concentration and crack initiation in a bolted joint under combined fretting loads | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Numerical analysis of stress concentration and crack initiation in a bolted joint under combined fretting loads Otbi BOUGUENINA, Khaled BENDAHANE, Mohammed SEHOUL, Ali BELHOCINE This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7993078/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study aims to predict the mechanical response of a bolted assembly composed of two aluminum alloy plates with localized damage in the contact region, under combined normal and tangential loading. A finite element model was developed using ANSYS to simulate the stress field distribution within the assembly. The analysis focuses on identifying critical stress concentrations that may initiate and propagate cracks. Nodal stress solutions were evaluated for key parameters, including von Mises equivalent stress, maximum principal stress, friction stress, and contact pressure. Results indicate that the highest stress levels occur near the nut-side interface at a specific angular and radial location (θ ≈ 181.86°, r ≈ 13.64 mm), where the tangential stress component (σₓₓ = 288.86 MPa) exceeds the material’s elastic limit (220 MPa). The findings highlight the dominant role of tangential loading in crack initiation and provide precise localization of the most vulnerable zone within the contact area. This numerical approach enhances the understanding of damage mechanisms in bolted joints subjected to fretting conditions and supports improved design strategies for structural reliability. mechanical behavior bolted assembly stress fields finite element cracks Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7993078","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":547166281,"identity":"5603b418-af50-4934-8683-3ca475597568","order_by":0,"name":"Otbi BOUGUENINA","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Nour Bachir El-Bayadh University Center","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Otbi","middleName":"","lastName":"BOUGUENINA","suffix":""},{"id":547166282,"identity":"e48b41df-3e70-4482-979a-a4dcb43efc23","order_by":1,"name":"Khaled BENDAHANE","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"","institution":"Nour Bachir El-Bayadh University Center","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Khaled","middleName":"","lastName":"BENDAHANE","suffix":""},{"id":547166283,"identity":"a91c1068-d683-4c90-8d85-0b7f7b3ff520","order_by":2,"name":"Mohammed SEHOUL","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Nour Bachir El-Bayadh University Center","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mohammed","middleName":"","lastName":"SEHOUL","suffix":""},{"id":547166284,"identity":"31d855e2-4dac-4cf3-a973-a9b780066f46","order_by":3,"name":"Ali BELHOCINE","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University Djillali, Liabes Sidi Bel Abbes","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Ali","middleName":"","lastName":"BELHOCINE","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-10-31 00:08:15","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7993078/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7993078/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":96367625,"identity":"f1973401-6027-4421-bce9-985bad212843","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-20 10:13:41","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1363214,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"PaperNumericalanalysisAAM.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7993078/v1_covered_e91bf4ff-98a2-485f-9c2e-ebe5212d3744.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Numerical analysis of stress concentration and crack initiation in a bolted joint under combined fretting loads","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"mechanical behavior, bolted assembly, stress fields, finite element, cracks","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7993078/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7993078/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study aims to predict the mechanical response of a bolted assembly composed of two aluminum alloy plates with localized damage in the contact region, under combined normal and tangential loading. A finite element model was developed using ANSYS to simulate the stress field distribution within the assembly. The analysis focuses on identifying critical stress concentrations that may initiate and propagate cracks. Nodal stress solutions were evaluated for key parameters, including von Mises equivalent stress, maximum principal stress, friction stress, and contact pressure. Results indicate that the highest stress levels occur near the nut-side interface at a specific angular and radial location (θ\u0026thinsp;\u0026asymp;\u0026thinsp;181.86\u0026deg;, r\u0026thinsp;\u0026asymp;\u0026thinsp;13.64 mm), where the tangential stress component (σₓₓ = 288.86 MPa) exceeds the material\u0026rsquo;s elastic limit (220 MPa). The findings highlight the dominant role of tangential loading in crack initiation and provide precise localization of the most vulnerable zone within the contact area. This numerical approach enhances the understanding of damage mechanisms in bolted joints subjected to fretting conditions and supports improved design strategies for structural reliability.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Numerical analysis of stress concentration and crack initiation in a bolted joint under combined fretting loads","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-11-20 05:03:19","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7993078/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"44675f0e-eef8-4836-b547-f0e839158000","owner":[],"postedDate":"November 20th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-11-20T05:03:19+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-11-20 05:03:19","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7993078","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7993078","identity":"rs-7993078","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}