Bearing Stress in Connections

BES 122 – Fundamentals of Deformable Bodies

WMSU Reference/s:

Beer, F., Johnston, R., DeWolf, J., & Mazurek, D. (2015). Mechanics of materials (7th
Edition). 2 Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10121: McGraw-Hill Education.

This document is for classroom use only and should not be shared outside the WMSU
community.
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Bearing Stress 𝝈𝑩
Bearing stress is the stress created in the connections such as
bolts, pins, rivets, rod and collar, post and plate along the bearing
surface or surface of contact of members being connected. This
may also be referred to as the contact pressure between separate
bodies.

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Bolt, Pin, and Rivet Connection:
Consider the plate A and the bolt in the
connection, as shown.

The force P represents the resultant of

the elementary forces distributed on
the inside contact surface of a half
cylinder of diameter d and length of t.

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Experiments have shown that the distribution of these elementary
forces on contact surface are elliptical and non uniform, which is
quite complicated. Hence, average nominal value 𝜎𝐵 is used
which is obtained by dividing the force P by the area of the
rectangle representing the projection of the bolt on the plate
section.

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Average bearing stress:

𝐵𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑟 𝑅𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑃𝐵

𝜎𝐵 =
𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 (𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑐𝑡 𝑆𝑢𝑟𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒)
𝜎𝐵 =
𝐴𝑐𝑠
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Rod and Collar Connection:

Note: Figures were taken from the MDSolids Software

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Post and Plate:

Note: Figures were taken from the MDSolids Software

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SAMPLE PROBLEM 1
The axial force in the column supporting the timber shown is 𝑃 =
20 𝑘𝑖𝑝𝑠. Determine the smallest allowable length L of the bearing
plate if the bearing stress in the timber is not to exceed 400 psi.

Answer: L = 8.33 in
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SAMPLE PROBLEM 1

Answer: L = 8.33 in
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SAMPLE PROBLEM 2
The steel end-cap is fitted into grooves cut in the timber post. The
working stresses for the post are 1.8 MPa in shear parallel to the
grain and 5.5 MPa in bearing perpendicular to the grain.
Determine the smallest safe dimensions a and b.

Answer: b = 33.3 mm, a = 10.91 mm

SAMPLE PROBLEM 2

Answer: b = 33.3 mm, a = 10.91 mm

SAMPLE PROBLEM 3
The collar bearing shown is subjected to a 250 kN force. The
collar is 12.5mm thick. Find d and D so that the allowable normal
stress of 𝜎 = 140 𝑀𝑃𝑎, the allowable shear stress in the collar of
𝜏 = 100 𝑀𝑃𝑎, and the allowable bearing stress between the collar
and the support of 𝜎𝑏 = 35 𝑀𝑃𝑎, is not exceeded.

Answer: d = 63.66 mm & D = 114.85 mm

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SAMPLE PROBLEM 4
The lap joint shown in the figure is fastened by four rivets of ¾ in
diameter. Find the maximum load P that can be applied if the
working stresses are 14 ksi for shear in the rivet and 18 ksi for
bearing in the plate. Assume that the applied load is distributed
evenly among the four rivets, and neglect friction between the
plates.

Answer: P = 24,700 lb
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SAMPLE PROBLEM 5
The load P applied to a steel rod is distributed
to a timber support by an annular washer. The
diameter of the rod is 22 mm and the inner
diameter of the washer is 25mm, which is
slightly larger than the diameter of the hole.
Determine the smallest allowable outer
diameter d of the washer, knowing that the
axial normal stress in the steel rod is 35 MPa
and that the average bearing stress between
the washer and the timber must not exceed 5
MPa.

Answer: d = 63.3 mm
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