AISC Limit States · Bolt Shear · Bearing · Tearout · Net Section · Block Shear
Explore all six AISC 360-16 limit states for a bolted steel connection: bolt shear, bolt bearing, bolt tearout, gross section yield, net section fracture, and block shear. The simulator ranks each limit state by capacity and identifies the governing failure mode with a demand-capacity ratio.
Enter the applied shear Ru, bolt diameter, number of bolts, plate geometry, steel grade, and bolt grade. The calculator computes φRn for all six AISC Chapter J and D limit states simultaneously. Results are sorted by ascending capacity so the weakest (governing) mode is immediately visible. Step through limit states one by one to study how each failure mechanism controls.
Bolt shear: φRn = 0.75·Fnv·Ab·n. Bolt bearing: φRn = 0.75·2.4·Fu·db·t·n. Tearout: φRn = 0.75·1.2·Fu·lc·t. Gross yield: φRn = 0.90·Fy·Ag. Net fracture: φRn = 0.75·Fu·An. Block shear: φRn = 0.75·min(0.6Fu·Anv + Ubs·Fu·Ant, 0.6Fy·Agv + Ubs·Fu·Ant). Standard hole diameter dh = db + 1/8 in.
Use when sizing or checking bolted shear connections in steel construction such as beam-to-column shear tabs, clip angles, and gusset plates. All six limit states must be evaluated — the governing mode may change as bolt diameter, plate thickness, or edge distance changes. Always verify block shear geometry for your specific connection layout.
Block shear is a combined fracture-on-tension and shear-on-shear failure where a block of material tears out of the connection. It is computed as the minimum of two failure modes: shear fracture plus tension fracture, or shear yield plus tension fracture. AISC 360-16 §J4.3 governs.
Bearing failure (§J3.10) occurs when the bolt crushes the plate in bearing; capacity = 0.75·2.4·Fu·db·t per bolt. Tearout occurs when the bolt rips through the plate edge; capacity depends on the clear distance lc from the bolt hole edge to the plate edge. Tearout typically controls at small edge distances.
DCR (Demand-Capacity Ratio) = Ru / φRn. A DCR ≤ 1.0 means the limit state passes. DCR > 1.0 means the applied load exceeds the design capacity for that mode. The governing limit state has the highest DCR.
AISC assigns φ = 0.75 for fracture-type limit states (bolt shear, bearing, tearout, net section fracture, block shear) because fracture is sudden and non-ductile. Gross section yielding uses φ = 0.90 because it is a ductile limit state with greater post-yield reserve.
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