PART TWO...

Types of Anchors for Anchoring to Concrete

Everything you wanted to know about types of anchors for use in concrete (well almost everything)
by Richard E. Wollmershauser, P.E., FACI

Designers and installers of anchors for fastening attachments and structural components to concrete face a seemingly unlimited variety of anchoring products. How is one supposed to know which is the right anchor for a given application? This article gives a brief overview of the types of anchors available, how they develop the capacity to resist loads, and some general comments about appropriateness of these anchors for different applications. Anchors can be separated into two major categories, those that are placed before the concrete is cast, known as cast-in-place anchors, and those that are installed into hardened concrete, known as post-installed or drilled-in anchors. Each of these two categories is composed of a variety of different anchors, all of which transfer loads from the attachment to the concrete in a variety of ways depending on their individual designs.

LOADS AND LOAD-TRANSFER MECHANISMS

Before reviewing the various types of anchors, it is appropriate to present the types of loads that anchors must resist and mechanisms for load-transfer from anchor to concrete. The primar y types of loads to be resisted in normal construction are static and dynamic. Load factors are spelled

out in the applicable building codes. Static loads can be tension, shear, or combinations of both. Dynamic loads can be seismic, fatigue, wind, and shock. The many types of anchors available have characteristics that make them suitable for or unsuitable for use under these various types of loads. Two state-of-the-art documents, references 1 and 2, give much more detailed information. Especially good are approval agency evaluation reports such as ICBO ES, BOCA, and SBCCI or product listings for specific use as issued by listing agencies (e.g. UL and FM). Manufacturers literature may specify the applications for which anchors are qualified and if test reports are available to document capacities. The primar y load-transfer mechanisms under tension loading are (in no particular order of importance): keying or bearing, friction, and bonding as well as combinations. For shear loading, it is keying or direct bearing. Keying is the direct transfer of load from the anchor into the concrete by bearing forces in the same direction of loading of the anchor. Friction is the transfer of load through friction between expansion sleeves of the anchor and the wall of the drilled hole in the concrete. Bonding takes place when resins or grouts are used around the anchor, usually with post-installed anchors. Local

crushing occurs when the expansion forces at the sleeve are great enough to locally crush the concrete. In this case, the load-transfer mechanism becomes a combination of friction and localized keying. With many bonding systems, keying is also part of the load-transfer as the resin or grout fills the local pores in the wall of the hole. See Figure 1 for illustrations of the basic mechanisms.

CAST-IN-PLACE SYSTEMS
Traditionally, design engineers specify cast-in-place anchors if they know beforehand where anchors are to be installed. Table 1 provides a brief overview of the major types of cast-in-place anchors available, all of which use keying as a load transfer means, in tension, shear, or both.
Table 1. Cast-in-place Anchors
Standard fasteners Headed bolts J and L bolts Stud-welded plates Threaded inserts Proprietary anchors and shapes Usually sleeved Shear lugs Channel bars

Proprietary shapes

Through bolts Special shapes

Friction

Keying

Bonding

FIGURE 1. Load-Transfer Mechanisms

1.5

Traditionally, design engineers specify cast-in-place anchors if they know beforehand where anchors are to be installed.
J-Bolt Stud-welded Plate

Headed Bolt

L-Bolt

FIGURE 2. Cast-in-place Anchors

Many of these types of anchors have special uses. Shear lugs and stud-welded plates provide large shear resistance, while channel bars give specific attachment capability. J and L bolts are typically used for anchoring sill plates to foundations, but have a tendency to straighten and pull out under high tension loading. Headed bolts under ASTM A 490 and F 1554 specifications are veritable workhorses for structural engineers. But what if the cast-in-place anchor is mislocated, or if the location of the anchor is not known before construction, or additional anchorages need to be made after the concrete is cast? The post-installed anchor industry has developed a wide variety of products for these situations.

Table 2. Post-Installed Anchors

MECHANICAL SYSTEMS Undercut Anchors Torque-controlled expansion anchors Heavy duty sleeve anchor Wedge anchors Coil anchors Screw anchors Sleeve anchors Light duty metal anchors Plastic anchors Displacement-controlled expansion anchors Drop-in Self-drilling BONDED OR ADHESIVE SYSTEMS Using threaded rods or reinforcing bars Capsule systems Cartridge systems Bulk-injection systems Cemetitious or epoxy grouted systems Indicates normal category x Indicates possible but not primary category HEAVYDUTY MEDIUMDUTY LIGHTDUTY

x x x x

x x

POST-INSTALLED ANCHORS
With the development and improvements of rotary hammer drills and carbide-tipped bits, the user has the capability to install many different kinds of post-installed anchors in hardened concrete virtually anywhere that is accessible to the drills. Post-installed anchors can be divided into two major types, depending on the method of transferring load into the concrete. They are mechanical systems and bonded or adhesive systems. Anchors can also be cross-classified according to their load carrying capability; heavy-duty, medium-duty and lightduty. Table 2 provides an overview of the major types of post-installed anchors currently available as well as a generalized load categorization.

x x x x

MECHANICAL ANCHORING SYSTEMS

While mechanical anchors have been available for several decades, there have been significant advances in the types and capabilities of these systems. They cover the range from heavy duty to light duty capacities. The major concern is to select the appropriate anchors that will resist the expected loads for the given application. Is the anchor expected to experience seismic or fatigue loads, or merely static loads? While some anchors will withstand all of these types of loads, others may fail abruptly under dynamic loading at a load level less than the static capacity.

s UNDERCUT ANCHORS

These anchors have been on the market for about 20 years. They are excellent for use under both static and dynamic loads. They obtain their holding capacity through keying, that is, direct bearing on the concrete, and, under proper installation, can withstand very high loads without slipping out of the drilled hole. They are the preferred anchors for use where cracks in tension zones of the concrete can be expected to occur.

s EXPANSION ANCHORS

Expansion anchors have been available for at least 30 years. There are two basic types that are distinguished by their operating principles. The first, torquecontrolled expansion anchors, are installed by inserting the anchor into the drilled hole, and applying the prescribed setting torque to the head or nut. A cone at the bottom of the anchor is pulled up into an expansion sleeve that expands into the concrete with local crushing, and providing both friction and localized keying as load-transfer mechanisms. Most have a beneficial follow-up expansion characteristic that under tension loading, the more the anchor bolt displaces upward out of the hole, the greater the expansion forces. There are several types available that vary significantly in their ability to resist static and dynamic loads. The heavy-duty sleeve anchor (not to be confused with the light duty sleeve anchor composed of a sheet metal sleeve around a cone) can resist dynamic loads as well as function well in expected cracks in concrete. Wedge anchors are the most common type of torque-controlled expansion anchor. Many have been tested for resisting seismic loads and have received ICBO ES Evaluation Report listings for such service. Sleeve anchors are generally considered light duty, and rely more on friction and less on local crushing and keying of the concrete. They can be used in hollow masonry. The second major type of expansion anchor is the displacement-controlled expansion anchor. Two primary examples are the drop-in and the self-driller. Drop-in anchors are installed in the predrilled hole by use of a setting tool that drives a plug into the expansion portion of the anchor. The lower section of the anchor is expanded into the concrete, which experiences local crushing. The second type has cutting teeth on the lower end and drills its own hole. The anchor is driven onto an expansion plug that expands the lower portion of the anchor into the concrete. These anchors derive their holding capacity from friction and keying. The drawback is that they do not have any follow-up expansion. Once set, they do not expand further under loading. If the plug is not

Sleeve Anchor

Torque-controlled Expansion Anchor

Heavy-duty Sleeve Anchor

Undercut Anchor

FIGURE 3. Mechanical Anchors

Drop-in Anchor

Self-drilling Anchor

Stud Anchor

FIGURE 4. Displacement-controlled Expansion Anchors

sufficiently set, the anchor may experience reduced capacity.

s OTHER TYPES OF MECHANICAL ANCHORS

Screw anchors of smaller diameters and used for light duty applications have been available for many years. They are installed into holes drilled with matchedtolerance bits. Recently, manufacturers have been introducing larger diameter screw anchors in the heavy-duty range, either installed into holes drilled with matched-tolerance bits or using bits meeting the requirements of ANSI B212.15. They distribute the load into the concrete through load transfer from the threads to the concrete (keying). Coil anchors have also been introduced into the market in the heavy-duty

load range. A coil anchor is composed of a coil near the end of a specially designed lag bolt. As the bolt is torqued, the screw advances through the coil, which expands into the concrete. High load capacities can be developed.
s LIGHT DUTY ANCHORS

There are many light duty anchors available, made of metals and plastics. They function in a variety of base materials, concrete, masonry, wood, drywall, etc. Manufacturers publish test data to document their capacities in these base materials.

BONDED ANCHOR SYSTEMS

Bonded resin or adhesive anchors were generally introduced into the construction market about twenty years ago.

Bonded systems use a combination of adhesive bond and micro keying into the pores of the concrete. Early systems used polyester resin, epoxies, and later, vinyl ester resins. In recent years, a larger variety of resins have been developed that have individual advantages, such as use in high temperatures, low temperatures, damp and wet holes, etc. For two component epoxy systems, the ratio of hardener to resin is critical. Prepackaged cartridge systems assure that the proper mixing is obtained. While a variety of installation methods are used, most are two component resin systems that anchor threaded rod into predrilled holes. Most will resist dynamic loads, both seismic and fatigue, but documentation in the form of test reports should be obtained. Bonded or adhesive anchoring systems are not well suited for cracked tensile zones of concrete since about 1/2 the bonding is lost, unless one uses special anchoring systems developed for use in cracked concrete. One should also use the recommended drill bit size, since many of the adhesives are sensitive to the size of the gap between the anchor rod and the concrete.
s CAPSULE SYSTEMS

sules. The capsule is inserted into the hole. The threaded rod or reinforcing bar is then rotary-hammered into the glass capsule, breaking the glass and mixing the resin and hardener. Capsule anchors provide very good bonding as the rotar y mixing action wipes and cleans the surface of the hole, allowing the adhesive to bond well.
s CARTRIDGE SYSTEMS

IN SUMMARY
A wide variety of anchoring systems are available. The correct selection depends on several factors, including types of loads to be resisted, magnitude of the load, type of base material (concrete or masonr y), and environment conditions (damp, wet, dry), among others. The manufacturers literature provides a good starting place, but also look for evaluation reports and product listings, since they may be required under many building codes. s

Introduced also about 20 years ago, cartridge systems are the most popular delivery method since they are also the most versatile. The resin and hardener are packaged in separate but connected side-by-side plastic or foil tubes. A mixing nozzle is placed on the end of the tubes and the resin and hardener dispensed by a hand operated or a pneumatic dispenser. Also used for heavy-duty applications, hole cleaning is very critical since dust on the concrete hole surface limits the bond and micro keying.
s BULK INJECTION SYSTEMS

REFERENCES
1. State-of-the-Art Report on Anchorage to Concrete ACI 355.1R-91, American Concrete Institute, Detroit, 1991. 2. Fastenings to Concrete and Masonr y Str uctures; State of the Ar t Repor t, Comit Euro-Intrnational du Bton, Thomas Telford Services Ltd., London, 1994. 3. ANSI B212.15-1994, American National Standard for Cutting ToolsCarbideTipped Masonry Drills and Blanks for Carbide-Tipped Masonry Drills, American National Standards Institute, New York, N. Y., 10 pp. Richard Wollmershauser is Director Technical Ser vices for Hilti, Inc. of Tulsa, Oklahoma. He has been active in the concrete anchor industry for the past 20 years. He is a registered PE in Ohio and Oklahoma and a Fellow of the American Concrete Institute. He currently serves as Vice-President of CAMA, The Concrete Anchor Manufactures Association, Chairman of ASTM Subcommittee E06.13, Performance of Connections in Building Construction, and just completed 7 years as Chairman of the American Concrete Institute Committee 355, Anchorage to Concrete. He was editor of the ACI State-ofthe-Report on Anchorage to Concrete (ACI 355R1-93). He also serves on the Federation International du Beton Task Group SAG 4 Fastening to Concrete and Masonry. He served on three committees of the recent NEHRP 2000 Seismic Provisions Update program where he was concerned with the introduction of anchoring design methods.

The original capsules were made of glass, with an internal glass capsule that contained the hardener. Recent versions use plastic foil instead of the glass cap-

For high volume applications such as highway contracts or large building where repetitive installation of anchors is required, bulk mechanical and hydraulic dispensing systems are available. Attention to the proper mixing ratio for epoxy resins is critical since bulk equipment can go off ratio.
s GROUTED SYSTEMS

Predating resin systems are cemetitious grouts. There are a variety of proprietary systems available. Non-shrink or slightly expansive grouts are preferred to prevent shrinkage and lack of bonding to the existing concrete.

Adhesive Capsule Anchor

Adhesive Cartridge System

FIGURE 5. Adhesive Bonded Anchor Systems