ABSTRACT
Connections, typically, are the Achilles heels in any structural system assembled with structural members. Pultruded FRP structural members are assembled with bolted connections and/or adhesive bonding. In the design of any structural system, the configuration of structural construction systems must be selected before the design of a structural component. A connection must be designed to transfer forces from one member to another through a set of flat plates, angles, channels, or other forms of connectors, which connect different members in the same plane or even in orthogonal or other planes. To prevent catastrophic structural failures, a good design dictates that a member failure must precede the connection failure.
