Numerical modeling of sheathed screw connections in CFS shear walls

Screw connections within sheathed cold formed steel (CFS) shear walls experience in -plane shear that acts in a parallel direction to the sheathing's free edge. Yet, many investigations focused on connections where shear loads applied perpendicular to the sheathing's free edge. Although the modes of failure in perpendicular testing are comparable to those ones in CFS shear walls, the load deformation behavior and strength might not be precisely predicted. Thus, the purpose of this study is to create a finite element (FE) model to simulate screw connections under parallel loading. The element types and mesh discretization, solution procedures, and geometrical and material nonlinearity were all taken into account. Sheathing boards' material behavior was simulated using Concrete Damage Plasticity model (CDP). The FE model's load-displacement behavior, ultimate strength, and failure mechanisms were verified against existing experimental findings. The verified FE model was utilized to conduct a parametric study to investigate the influence of panel type, panel thickness, the thickness of CFS stud, screw diameter and spacing on the connection behavior. The parametric study findings have been utilized to generate a design formula for the connection strength employing non -linear regression analysis. The influence of loading direction on connection's behavior is presented by comparing the current research results with a previous investigation on screw connections under perpendicular loading performed by the authors and documented in an earlier paper.