An equation for bolt clampup relaxation in transient environments
An equation for bolt clampup relaxation for transient temperature-moisture (T-M) conditions was derived starting with a relaxation equation for steady-state conditions, and then using an incremental time approach that exploits the superposition principle for linear viscoelasticity. The resulting equation uses the initial T-M condition (at the time of clamping), the T-M history after clamping, and elastic clampup coefficients for temperature and moisture changes. For a given material and joint configuration, the clampup coefficients are constants that can be calculated by elastic analyses. The clampup equation was used to calculate the changes in clampup occurring in a T300/5208 graphite/epoxy joint exposed to a one-year history of temperature and moisture. Two cases were considered: one was a dry joint exposed to a relatively humid environment and the other was a nearly saturated joint exposed to an arid environment.