Numerical Analysis of the Influence of Bolt Pretension on Rigid Flange Joint Rigidity in Substation Steel Structures

in order to research the influence of bolt pretension on the rigid flange joints stiffness further, ANSYS finite element model was built on the basis of experimental investigations, and was used to research the influence of bolt pretension on the axial rigidity, shear rigidity and bending rigidity. The calculation results indicated that the axial rigidity, shear rigidity and bending rigidity were all increased along with the increase of bolt pretension, and the increase of axial rigidity was most obvious.