Strain-Based Failure Assessment Based on a Reference Strain Method for Welded Pipelines

2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jae-Sung Lee ◽  
Myung-Hyun Kim
Keyword(s):  
Reference Strain ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Equivalent Stress ◽  
Strain Curve ◽  
Evaluation Procedure ◽  
J Integral ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Plastic Energy ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Strain Method

Abstract Engineering critical assessment (ECA) is an evaluation procedure for structures with flaws and has been widely applied for assessing pipeline integrity. The standards for structural integrity assessment, including BS 7910, involve stress-based ECA, and they are known to produce overly conservative results. Therefore, strain-based ECA has been recently developed as an alternative approach. One of the effective methods for improving the accuracy of strain-based ECA is the reference strain method. However, only a limited number of studies have applied this method to welded pipelines. Therefore, a numerical analysis based on strain-based ECA was performed for girth-welded joints with a circumferentially oriented internal surface crack. Particular attention was given to the strength mismatch effects. The equivalent stress–strain curve in BS7910 was used to reflect the strength mismatch effects in the reference strain. The results of the proposed method were validated with the results of a finite element analysis (FEA) in terms of the J-integral. Previous methods and the proposed method exhibit a reasonable correlation of the J-integral in the case of over-matching (OM). In the under-matching (UM) cases, while the previous procedures tended to underestimate or excessively overestimate the elastic-plastic energy release rate in comparison with the FEA, the proposed method evaluated the J-integral of pipelines with sufficient accuracy.

Investigation of Strain-Based Failure Assessment Based on Reference Strain Method for Welded Pipes

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jae Sung Lee ◽  
Myung Hyun Kim
Keyword(s):  
Reference Strain ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Equivalent Stress ◽  
Strain Curve ◽  
Evaluation Procedure ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Strain Method

Abstract Pipelines are effective means to transport oil and gas. It is essential to maintain the safety of pipelines with the increasing demand for oil and gas resource. Welded pipelines may suffer damage such as cracks during installation and operation, and the consequence evaluation for such damage is very important. Engineering critical assessment (ECA) is the evaluation procedure for structures with flaws and has been widely applied for assessing the pipeline integrity. Although main standards of structural integrity assessment including BS 7910 are stress-based ECA, it is known to produce overly conservative results. In this regard, strain-based ECA has been recently developed. One of the methods for improving the accuracy of strain-based ECA is the reference strain method. However, only few researches with reference strain method applied to welded pipes are available. Therefore, in this study, a numerical analysis based on the strain-based ECA is performed for strength mismatched girth welded joints with a circumferentially oriented internal surface crack. Equivalent stress-strain curve in BS7910 is employed to reflect the strength mismatch effects in the reference strain. This paper compares the results from the reference strain method and finite element analysis: J-integral and reference strain. Strain capacity of the reference strain method with strength mismatch is also discussed against stress-based ECA.

scholarly journals Applying Fracture Mechanics to Cracked Components Subjected to Unloading

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sam Oliver ◽  
Martyn Pavier ◽  
Mahmoud Mostafavi
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element Analysis ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Fracture Parameter ◽  
J Integral ◽  
Single Cycle ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Hardening Material ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Plastic Materials ◽  
Elastic Plastic Materials

The J-integral is widely used as a fracture parameter for elastic-plastic materials. The J-integral describes the intensity of the stress field close to the crack tip in a power-law hardening material under a set of well-known restrictions. This study investigates what happens when one of these restrictions is broken, namely the requirement for no unloading to occur. In this work, a centre-cracked plate is subjected to a single cycle of load in which unloading occurs. A remote tensile stress is applied, then released, then applied again up to and beyond its initial magnitude. The J-integral at each step of the analysis is calculated using finite element analysis. Its validity as a fracture parameter at each step is discussed with the aid of results from a strip yield analysis of the same problem. The relevance of the results in the context of structural integrity assessment is discussed.

Defect Tolerance Assessment for ABWR Nozzle Crotch Corner

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fumihito Hirokawa ◽  
Masaaki Hayashi ◽  
Minoru Masuda ◽  
Yasuhiro Mabuchi ◽  
Yukinori Yamamoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Pressure Vessels ◽  
Defect Size ◽  
Nuclear Industry ◽  
Evaluation Procedure ◽  
Defect Tolerance ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Bending Stresses ◽  
Main Steam

In the nuclear industry, demands on the structural integrity reliability of metal components are always increasing. The quantification of allowable defects in pressure vessels should therefore draw on advanced structural integrity assessment procedures. In the UK, R6 [1] is the main procedures used for defect tolerance assessment (DTA). In this paper, the overall evaluation procedure of DTA using R6 applied to the Main Steam (MS) nozzle crotch corner of the Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) is presented. At the nozzle crotch corner region, high stresses, including through-wall bending stresses from the local structural discontinuity, were present. These bending stresses have been categorised as secondary. R6 conservatively implies such bending stresses may need to be categorised as primary, to allow for the possibility of elastic follow-up. To support application as a secondary stress, an elastic-plastic finite element analysis has been performed to evaluate the J-integral for the nozzle crotch corner. The resulting values of J, when compared to the stress intensity factor and collapse solutions used for the assessment, showed that treating the bending stress as secondary maintained sufficient margin, indicating conservatism. Finally, the DTA results of the nozzle crotch corner are presented to determine the defect tolerance criteria. This includes calculating the limiting defect size at the start of plant life when considering the end of life critical defect size and through life Fatigue Crack Growth (FCG).

Structural integrity assessment for a component of the bucket-wheel excavator

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anghel Cernescu ◽  
Liviu Marsavina ◽  
Ion Dumitru
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factor ◽  
Fatigue Life ◽  
Crack Length ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Evaluation Procedure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Material Component ◽  
High Level ◽  
Remaining Fatigue Life

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a methodology for assessing the structural integrity of a tie member from a bucket-wheel excavator, ESRC 470 model, which was in operation for about 20 years. The tie member is made of S355J2N structural steel. Following the period of operation, the occurrence of microcracks which can propagate by fatigue is almost inevitable. It is therefore necessary to analyze the structural integrity and the remaining life of the component analyzed. Design/methodology/approach – In principle, the assessment methodology is based on three steps: first, the evaluation of mechanical properties of the material component; second, a BEM analysis using FRANC 3D software package to estimate the evolution of the stress intensity factor based on crack length and applied stress; third, risk factor estimation and remaining fatigue life predictions based on failure assessment diagram and fatigue damage tolerance concept. Findings – Following the evaluation procedure were made predictions of failure risk factor and remaining fatigue life function of crack length and variable stress range, for a high level of confidence. Originality/value – As results of this analysis was implemented a program for verification and inspection of the tie member for the loading state and development of small cracks during operation.

Overview of EASICS Weldment Assessment Route Development Through Inelastic Analysis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. May ◽  
S. Bate ◽  
M. Chevalier ◽  
D. Dean
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Reactor ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Validation Data ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Inelastic Analysis ◽  
Inelastic Material ◽  
Creep Fatigue ◽  
Material Mismatch

Abstract Structural integrity assessment of weldments within metal structures is key to substantiate any nuclear reactor design. The assessment of weldments should consider the localised strain enhancement due to weldment geometry and material mismatch. For high temperature plant designs (operating within the creep regime), R5 Volume 2/3 Appendix A4 provides a procedure for the assessment of creep-fatigue initiation in austenitic and ferritic steel weldments, which accounts for the associated strain enhancement using a Weld Strain Enhancement Factor (WSEF). The current austenitic Type 1 WSEFs in R5 Volume 2/3 have been defined by data attained primarily for plate butt weldments under applied bending loads, and this factor is used for all butt weldments. It has been proposed that the weld strain enhancement may be dependent on loading, geometric and material mismatch conditions, and that adopting a single factor in an assessment may introduce varying levels of conservatism, which are unquantified. This work has included reviewing the current R5 Type 1 WSEF against existing validation data, previous inelastic Finite Element Analysis (FEA) studies and the use of inelastic material models in the FEA of weldments subject to cyclic loading.

Improved Incremental J-Integral Equations for Determining Crack Growth Resistance Curves

2012 ◽  
Vol 134 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xian-Kui Zhu
Keyword(s):  
Fracture Mechanics ◽  
Crack Growth ◽  
Integral Equations ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Test Procedure ◽  
Fracture Toughness Test ◽  
J Integral ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Growth Increments ◽  
Unloading Compliance

The J-integral resistance curve is the most important material properties in fracture mechanics that is often used for structural integrity assessment. ASTM E1820 is a commonly accepted fracture toughness test standard for measuring the critical value of J-integral at the onset of ductile fracture and J-R curve during ductile crack tearing. The recommended test procedure is the elastic unloading compliance method. For a stationary crack, the J-integral is simply calculated from the area under the load-displacement record using the η-factor equation. For a growing crack, the J-integral is calculated using the incremental equation proposed by Ernst et al. (1981, “Estimations on J-integral and Tearing Modulus T From a Single Specimen Test Record,” Fracture Mechanics: Thirteenth Conference, ASTM STP 743, pp. 476–502) to consider the crack growth correction. For the purpose of obtaining accurate J-integral values, ASTM E1820 requires small and uniform crack growth increments in a J-R curve test. In order to allow larger crack growth increments in an unloading compliance test, an improved J-integral estimation is needed. Based on the numerical integration techniques of forward rectangular, backward rectangular, and trapezoidal rules, three incremental J-integral equations are developed. It demonstrates that the current ASTM E1820 procedure is similar to the forward rectangular result, and the existing Garwood equation is similar to the backward rectangular result. The trapezoidal result has a higher accuracy than the other two, and thus it is proposed as a new formula to increase the accuracy of a J-R curve when a larger crack growth increment is used in testing. An analytic approach is then developed and used to evaluate the accuracy of the proposed incremental equations using single-edge bending and compact tension specimens for different hardening materials. It is followed by an experimental evaluation using actual fracture test data for HY80 steel. The results show that the proposed incremental J-integral equations can obtain much improved results of J-R curves for larger crack growth increments and are more accurate than the present ASTM E1820 equation.

Different Structural Integrity Assessment Methods for Pipe Containing Circumferential Through-Thickness Crack

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huifeng Jiang ◽  
Xuedong Chen ◽  
Zhichao Fan
Keyword(s):  
Fracture Toughness ◽  
Finite Element Analysis ◽  
Finite Element ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Load Ratio ◽  
Limit Load ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Calculated Load

Heretofore, several kinds of codes are applicable to the structural integrity assessment for pipe containing defects, i.e. API 579, R6 and BS 7910 etc. In this paper, different methods from API 579-1/ASME FFS-1: 2007 and R6-2000 were employed to assess the integrity of pipe containing a circumferential through-thickness crack. However, there was a significant difference between the calculated load ratios by these two codes, although the calculated fracture ratios were very close. To verify these results, elastic-plastic finite element analysis was carried out to calculate the limit load and the load ratio. Additionally, the experimental results and our previous engineering experience were also referred to. The final results imply that the larger load ratio obtained from R6-2000 rather than API 579 code is more reasonable for the pipe with good fracture toughness.

Structural Integrity Assessment Criteria and Service Life Prediction of Cold Wrinklebends

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xian-Kui Zhu ◽  
Brian N. Leis
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element ◽  
Service Life ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Pipeline Steel ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Computation Time ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Fea Model ◽  
Hardening Models

Three-dimensional elastic-plastic finite element analysis (FEA) is performed in this paper to simulate the complicated stresses and deformation of wrinklebends in a pipeline from its bending formation to operation under cyclic loading. Three plastic hardening models (isotropic, kinematic and combined isotropic/kinematic) are discussed and used in FEA of wrinklebend response that considers strain hardening and Bauschinger effects. The FEA simulation is carried out first for an elbow held at constant pressure while subject to cyclic bending, which serves as a benchmark case. The results show that the three hardening models lead to very different outcomes. Comparable FEA simulations are then developed for wrinklebends under cyclic pressure. Detailed parametric analysis is considered, including finite-element type, element sensitivity, computation time, and material input data. Based on those results viable nonlinear FEA model is developed as the basis to quantify wrinklebend response under service-like conditions. Based on the FEA results, fatigue damage is quantified using the Smith, Watson and Topper (SWT) parameter, and thereafter a damage criterion is proposed to predict the fatigue life of a wrinklebend under the pressure cycles of 72%–10% of SMYS for typical X42 pipeline steel. The results show that the wrinkle aspect ratio H/L is a key parameter to control the service life of a wrinklebend.

Thermal Hot Spot and Corrosion Damage in Conical Pressure Components

2011 ◽  
Vol 133 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Adibi-Asl ◽  
R. Seshadri
Keyword(s):  
Conical Shell ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Hot Spot ◽  
Active Regions ◽  
Corrosion Damage ◽  
Limit Load ◽  
Decay Length ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Integrity Assessment ◽  
Assessment Decisions

Structural integrity of an in-service component containing damage such as corrosion and thermal hot spot has to be evaluated regularly so as to certify the acceptance and safety of continued service of the component. In this paper, limit load solutions of a damaged conical shell, particularly local wall thinning and thermal hot spot, is investigated. The derived solutions are based on identifying the regions in the damaged component that directly participate in the plastic action (kinematically active). The concepts of reference volume and decay length are employed to identify the kinematically active regions in the damaged conical shell. The different solutions proposed in this paper are compared with the elastic-plastic finite element analysis. The results indicate that proposed solutions can be used with acceptable accuracy to make integrity assessment decisions.

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