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Experimental evaluation of the effect of clamping force and hole clearance on carbon composites subjected to bearing versus bypass loading

Bearing versus Bypass loading occurs in multi-fastened joints and is of special interest to the aircraft industry that uses these types of joints to join dissimilar materials. This paper presents the results of a series of carbon fibre laminate bearing versus bypass load tests investigating the effect of hole clearance, laminate lay-up, washer contact size and clamping force value. The results are particularly useful for developing and testing the robustness of failure criteria. This work was sponsored by Airbus (UK) Ltd and provided evidence that current design practise was safe.