Finite - Element Analysis of Shear - Connection Shear - Out Fracture Performance

This paper presents the finite-element analysis of the shear-connection shear-out fracture (SOF) performance, covering the prediction of the SOF displacement at fracture and surface and through-thickness fracture failure analyses. The appearance of fracture on the connected plate surface, taken, as the SOF initiation in published literature is not the accurate SOF initiation. This work proposes using SOF displacement or fracture strain as a displacement or strain-based fracture limit state for shear connections that exhibit the SOF. The displacement or strain at fracture initiation at the middle-thickness of the connected plate represents the accurate SOF displacement or strain at fracture.