Reliability evaluation method of anti-loosening performance of bolted joints

Loosening failure is a serious failure mode of bolted joints. The anti-loosening performance of bolted joints can be evaluated quantitatively by measuring their critical transverse loads. However, the uncertainty of various technological and structural parameters of bolted joints causes the uncertainty of their critical transverse loads. The reliability of the anti-loosening performance of bolted joints affects the reliability of the equipment being used. In this study, the source, action form and degree of the uncertainty of various technological and structural parameters of bolted joints were analyzed, and the sensitive parameters were screened out. Then, the distribution of the stochastic critical transverse load under the action of uncertain parameters was calculated numerically, and the reliability was obtained by integrating the probability density function. The reliability evaluation method was validated in the entire sample space by finite element analysis. Finally, four different bolted joints were selected as specimens, and the reliability evaluation method was validated by experimental tests. The method proposed in this paper can be used to evaluate the reliability of the anti-loosening performance of bolted joints comprehensively and accurately.