Experimental evaluation of the dowel-bearing strength of laminated flattened-bamboo lumber perpendicular to grain

This paper examines the dowel-bearing strength of laminated flattened-bamboo lumber (LFBL) perpendicular to grain under the influence of the flattened-bamboo arrangement method, the bolt diameter, and specimen size in accordance with ASTM D5764-97a. There were 360 specimens tested in total. As a result of the test results, it was demonstrated that the arrangement method of flattened bamboo panels significantly affected the dowel-bearing strength of the LFBL. In two of the groups (bolt direction perpendicular to the grain), the dowel-bearing strength was significantly greater than in the other two groups (bolt direction parallel to the grain). According to the arrangement method of the bamboo panels, the size effect on dowel-bearing strength varies. However, the dowel-bearing strength always decreased as the diameter of the bolt increased. Four typical failure modes and load–displacement curves were classified. Results of the tests were compared with those calculated by predicting formulas from other studies, allowing empirical equations for predicting the dowel-bearing strength of LFBL specimens to be developed.