Evaluation of Double Shear-Joints for Timber Structures using Pultruded GRP Dowels, and Implications

Pultruded dowels offer an attractive alternative to steel in dowelled timber joints in terms of structural performance, cost, and aesthetic quality. The performance of pultruded rods has been compared with steel in a thick timber-to-steel joint and also in a thick timber-to-timber double shearjoint. EC5-type design equations cannot be applied to pultruded dowels, so the design load to failure has been predicted using modified versions of these equations. Cross-breaking guillotine shear strength values have been used instead of ultimate fastener strength values with some success. Overall, pultruded dowels offer a very satisfactory alternative to steel dowels in embedment conditions where structural ductility is vital.

R.D. Drake and M.P. Ansell