After a thermal study, the temperatures are imported into a static study
for thermal stress analysis. Simulation treats the thermal expansion of bolt connectors as
follows.
Simulation prescribes to bolt connectors the same reference temperature at
zero strain as for the rest of the assembly (T0) (see the static study's Flow/Thermal Effects tab).
For a loose fit bolt, the static study obtains the bolt temperature by
averaging the temperatures of the head and nut contact surfaces. If the tight fit condition is
enabled, the study also accounts for the temperature of the cylindrical hole surface when
calculating the bolt temperature. Since the bolt connector shank is modeled as a beam element,
the bolt connector can expand only in the axial direction.
Contraction of the bolt due to cooling is not considered.
The length variation of the bolt due to temperature change is:
DL = Alpha * (T - T0) * L
where L is the bolt length and Alpha is the thermal expansion coefficient
defined under Material in the
Connectors PropertyManager.
Temperature-dependent material properties for materials assigned to bolts are not
supported. Only constant material properties are supported for bolts.