Analytical model to characterize bolted beam-to-column joints with four bolts per row

Eurocode 3 Part 1-8 provides detailed application rules for the design of bolted end-plate connections. Although these rules apply to connections with any number of vertical bolt rows, most of them are limited to configurations with two bolts only in each horizontal row, i.e. one bolt on each side of the beam or column web.
However, it is sometimes more economic to place four bolts in one row, for instance when wide flange H-sections are used. This configuration is commonly met in different countries in Europe and, in particular, in Germany where this configuration is even standardized.
The theoretical model on which the Eurocode 3 application rules are founded is general and can be potentially applied to connections with four bolts per horizontal row. However, specific design rules need to be developed.
Within the present document, easy-to-apply analytical design rules aimed at predicting the mechanical properties of connections with four bolts per row in full agreement with the Eurocode 3 approach are detailed. The latter are validated through comparisons to experimental tests performed at the University of Dortmund.
The present document is organised as follows:
• First, the component method, on which the proposed analytical model is founded, is briefly described (§ 2);
• Then, the T-stub model used to characterise the joint component in bending is detailed (§ 3) and adapted to connection with four bolts per row (§ 4).
• Finally, the proposed adaptations of the analytical model are validated in § 5 and compare to previous analytical methods in § 6.