Analysis and Testing of a 13Cr Pipeline to Demonstrate “Leak Before Break”

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert M. Andrews ◽  
Neil Millwood ◽  
Sanjay Tiku ◽  
Nick Pussegoda ◽  
Menno Hoekstra ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fracture Mechanics ◽  
Weld Metal ◽  
Limit Load ◽  
Parent Material ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Girth Welds ◽  
Full Scale Tests ◽  
Leak Before Break

As part of a safety case for a subsea 13Cr pipeline, the operator wished to demonstrate that if a circumferential through wall crack developed, the crack would remain stable as a leak rather than growing to a full bore rupture. An initial fracture mechanics analysis had suggested that the margins on crack length were too small to make such a “leak before break” argument. This paper reports an integrated programme of small scale testing, numerical modelling and full scale testing which showed that a leak before break case could be made. 13Cr martensitic steel generally shows excellent toughness at the service temperature, as does the super duplex weld metal that was used for the girth welds. However, as the pipeline had been installed by reeling, there was some concern that the toughness may have been reduced. Hence a programme of fracture toughness testing was designed to generate tearing resistance curves for both as-received and pre-strained parent material and weld metal. Deep and shallow through thickness notched specimen geometries were tested to explore the effect of constraint on the toughness. Finite element analysis was used to predict the stress intensity for a range of crack lengths, including the effects of misalignment. Non-linear analyses were used to estimate the limit load for the cracked pipe. The test results were used as input to tearing analyses to Level 3 of BS 7910. These showed that the tolerable length of a through wall crack exceeded the length of anticipated defects by a factor of at least two. To confirm the fracture mechanics predictions, two full scale tests were carried out. These used pressure cycling to grow a through wall crack by fatigue. These cracks were stable under an internal pressure equal to the pipeline design pressure. The cracked specimens were then axially loaded to failure. Extensive tearing occurred before final failure at loads above those predicted by the fracture analysis, confirming the conservatism of the predictions.

Determination of the Elastic-Plastic Fracture Mechanics Z-Factor for Alloy 182 Weld Metal Flaws for Use in the ASME Section XI Appendix C Flaw Evaluation Procedures

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Wilkowski ◽  
H. Xu ◽  
D.-J. Shim ◽  
D. Rudland
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element ◽  
Fracture Mechanics ◽  
Weld Metal ◽  
Alloy Steel ◽  
Limit Load ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Low Alloy Steel ◽  
Evaluation Procedures ◽  
Estimation Scheme ◽  
J Estimation

One of the ways that the ASME Section XI code incorporates elastic-plastic fracture mechanics (EPFM) in the Section XI Appendix C flaw evaluation procedures for circumferential cracks is through a parameter called Z-factor. This parameter allows the simpler limit-load (or net-section-collapse) solutions to be used with a multiplier from EPFM analyses. Traditionally the EPFM solution was determined by using the GE-EPRI J-estimation scheme to determine the maximum load by EPFM, and Z = limit load / EPFM solution. The Z-factor is a function of the material toughness as well as the pipe diameter. With the advent of primary water stress-corrosion cracks (PWSCC) in pressurized water reactor (PWR) dissimilar metal welds (DMW), there is a need to develop Z-factors for Alloy 82/182 nickel-based alloy welds that are susceptible to such cracks. Although there have been Z-factor solutions for cracks in stainless and ferritic pipe butt welds, the DMW are somewhat different in that there is a much lower yield strength material on one side of the weld (typically forged or wrought 304 stainless steel) and on the other side of the weld the low alloy steel has a much higher strength than even the weld metal. This paper shows how 3D finite element analyses were used for a particular pipe size to determine the sensitivity of the crack location in the Alloy 182 weldment (crack in the center of weld, or closer to the stainless or low alloy steel sides), and how an appropriate stress-strain curve was determined for use in the J-estimation schemes. A Z-factor as a function of the pipe diameter was then calculated using the LBB.ENG2 J estimation scheme using the appropriate stress-strain curves from the finite element analysis. The LBB.ENG2 analysis was used rather than the GE-EPRI estimation scheme since it has been found that the LBB.ENG2 analysis is more accurate when compared with full-scale pipe tests. From past work, the GE-EPRI method was found to be the most conservative of the J-estimation schemes in predicting the maximum loads for circumferential flaws when compared to full-scale circumferentially cracked-pipe tests. The proposed Z-factor relationship should be restricted to normal operating temperatures (above 200C) with low H2 concentrations, where the Alloy 182 weld metal exhibits high toughness.

Crack Growth During Full Scale Reeling Simulation of Pipes With Girth Welds

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oddvin O¨rjasaeter ◽  
Olav Jan Hauge ◽  
Guy Ba¨rs ◽  
Per Egil Kvaale
Keyword(s):  
Crack Propagation ◽  
Crack Growth ◽  
High Strain ◽  
High Stress ◽  
Strain Range ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Final Fracture ◽  
Lack Of Fusion ◽  
Girth Welds

Installation of pipelines by reeling has proved to be an effective method. However, the pipe bending results in very high stress and strain and cannot be handled by conventional design rules, as stated in design codes, e.g. [2]: High strain crack growth must be assessed according to specific case-by-case selected criterions. In the present work the performance of 10” and 12 3/4” pipes with typical weld defects is studied — from initiation of cracks at notches to final fracture. Information was obtained from several sources: full scale cyclic bending of pipes, FE simulations, and small-scale tests. The plasticity during reeling operations results in substantial non-linear behavior due to varying cross section properties, cyclic creep, and different material response at tensile and compression side of the pipe. Hence, a full scale reeling simulation must be carefully planned and include sufficient tolerances. Critical cracks in pipe girth welds initiate mainly from the surface (undercuts, lack of penetration, or lack of fusion), but potentially also internally (lack of fusion or large pores). Various configurations of these parameters were investigated in full scale pipe tests. It was possible to verify both crack propagation during the reeling cycles, and the point of final fracture (for ECA verifications). In pipe design on must assure safe conditions for both reeling operations and for later in-service loading. Proper design tools must be available. Several methods for high strain crack growth analysis were considered and also compared to small-scale specimen data. Conventional strain-life methodology failed to predict the crack propagation accurately. A new approach including a tensile strain range parameter offered promising results.

Evaluation of Weld Metal Strength Mismatch in X100 Pipeline Girth Welds

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henryk G. Pisarski ◽  
Yuri Tkach ◽  
Marie Quintana
Keyword(s):  
Fracture Toughness ◽  
Adverse Effects ◽  
Weld Metal ◽  
Axial Stress ◽  
Limit Load ◽  
Allowable Stress ◽  
Simple Method ◽  
Weld Width ◽  
Girth Welds ◽  
Assessment Procedures

A relatively simple method based on standard fracture mechanics flaw assessment procedures, such as BS 7910, but modified using published mismatch limit load solutions is described. It is used to illustrate the effects of weld width and strength mismatch on CTOD requirements for girth welds in Grade X100 strength pipeline material subjected to axial stress. It is shown that fracture toughness requirements based on standard analyses not allowing for mismatch effects can be unnecessarily conservative when either undermatched or overmatched welds are present. Adverse effects of undermatching, in reducing the allowable stress, can be mitigated by reducing weld width. It is shown that even small amounts of overmatching (e.g. 10%) can be beneficial by allowing axial stress to exceed the SMYS of the parent pipe and reducing CTOD requirements.

TurkStream Collapse Test Program

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Timms ◽  
Doug Swanek ◽  
Duane DeGeer ◽  
Arjen Meijer ◽  
Ping Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Ageing ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
The Black Sea ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Test Program ◽  
Line Pipe ◽  
Medium Scale ◽  
Collapse Resistance ◽  
Full Scale Tests ◽  
The Impact

The TurkStream pipeline project is designed to transport approximately 32 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually from Russia to Turkey under the Black Sea, with more than 85% of the deep-water route being deeper than 2000 m. The offshore section is intended to consist of two parallel lines, each approximately 900 km long. The preliminary stages of the front end engineering design (pre-FEED) phase was managed by INTECSEA. To support the analyses and design of the deepest portions, a full scale collapse test program was performed by C-FER Technologies (C-FER). This collapse test program, which included 62 full-scale collapse and pressure+bend tests, 54 medium-scale ring collapse tests, and hundreds of small-scale tests, was primarily aimed at measuring, quantifying and documenting the increase in pipe strength and collapse resistance resulting from the thermal induction heat treatment effect (thermal ageing) that arises during the pipe coating process. Two grades of 32-inch (813 mm) outside diameter (OD) line-pipe, SAWL450 and SAWL485 with wall thicknesses of 39.0 mm or 37.4 mm, respectively, were supplied from various mills for testing. The collapse test program objectives were as follows: • Determine the collapse resistance of line pipes originating from various pipe mills; • Determine the pressure+bend performance of line pipes originating from various pipe mills; • Measure the effect of thermal ageing on material and collapse testing results, including the impact of multiple thermal cycles; and • Evaluate the results of medium-scale ring collapse tests as compared to full-scale tests. This paper presents selected results of this work, along with some comparisons to predictive equations.

Development of Fatigue Design Data for the Ormen Lange Offshore Project: An Overview

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans Olav Knagenhjelm ◽  
Oddvin O̸rjasæter ◽  
Per J. Haagensen
Keyword(s):  
Crack Growth ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Formation Water ◽  
Worst Case ◽  
Vortex Induced Vibrations ◽  
Welding Defects ◽  
Condensed Water ◽  
Full Scale Tests ◽  
Full Scale Testing

The Ormen Lange offshore pipelines from shore to the field go through very difficult terrain creating freespans in the range 40–80m for the 30” lines. For the 6” lines long freespans will be present prior to burial and vortex induced vibrations (VIV) will give a contribution during laying due to strong currents. Using existing codes for fatigue calculation was giving too conservative results compared to the welding technology used and experience from SCR work showed that better S-N data should be expected. A dedicated program was started as part of the Ormen Lange (OL) technology verification program overseen by Norwegian Authorities. An overview of the results is presented here. A full evaluation of the data is not yet complete. Papers will be published later presenting the full technical details and dataprocessing. Fatigue test results from the OL pipeline fatigue verification are presented focusing on the following topics: • Defect sizes in pipeline production welds; • Contractor-A: 5G welding position; • Contractor-B: 2G welding position; • 6” pipe full scale testing; • 30” pipe full scale testing; • Residual stresses; • Crack growth tests and sector specimen fatigue tests in production environments. The following are a summary of the main test variables in the program: • Mapping of actual welding defects compared to AUT results. • Welds with varying misalignment (high/low) and lack of penetration (LOP) from installation contractors tested in air. • Welds with natural welding defects in internal environment (Condensed water and formation water). • Welds with notches made by electrical discharge machining (EDM) (2×65mm and 2×15mm) in internal environment (condensed water and formation water). • Crack growth tests using large compact tension (CT) specimens in air, seawater and internal product environments (condensed water and formation water). • Full scale tests including worst case high/low, LOPs, and tests with normal welds including repair welds. The following main conclusions can be drawn from the work: • Small scale testing with representative worst case defects predicts well large scale testing results with the same features when the small scale specimen stresses are corrected for bending moments etc. arising from the cutout of the pipe. • Full scale testing of 30”×35.5mm wall thickness 2G pipes welded continuously (without start/stop) with worst case defects and high/low exceeds the D curve. • Full-scale tests of 30”×35.5mm wall thickness 5G non continuous welds with worst case defects and high/low exceeds the E curve. • Pipe welds showed low or even compressive residual stresses in the root. For continuously welded pipes the stress levels were low but more varying, also on the cap side. This partly explains the good results. • It is verified that the fatigue loads during operation are below the threshold of crack growth, and thus fatigue will not be a probable failure mechanism. This is under the condition that the measurements of vortex induced vibrations (VIV) during operation confirm the engineering calculations.

Fatigue Resistant Threaded and Coupled Connectors for Deepwater Riser Systems: Design and Performance Evaluation by Analysis and Full Scale Tests

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celine Sches ◽  
Emmanuel Desdoit ◽  
Jacky Massaglia
Keyword(s):  
Performance Evaluation ◽  
Fatigue Cracks ◽  
Systems Design ◽  
High Strength Steels ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Post Treatment ◽  
Mechanism Analysis ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Full Scale Tests

Threaded and Coupled (T&C) riser connectors with High Strength Steels have been developed for deepwater top tensioned riser (TTR) applications up to 10,000ft Water Depth. These developments have been ongoing for a decade, and the resulting solutions are now becoming the standard in the industry. Due to the stringent fatigue requirements involved, new design and performance evaluation methods were needed and have been built over time. In this article, we will demonstrate how these methods were implemented into the standard development process of T&C connectors, with a focus on finite element analysis (FEA) techniques. This process includes full scale tests programs on resonant fatigue frames, statistical post treatment of the resulting data, and fatigue cracks expertise for failure mechanism analysis. These elements are a key for the evaluation of T&C connectors’ fatigue performance and for the determination of influencing parameters, leading to the proper design optimization possibilities. The application of these methods will be illustrated with actual examples on T&C connectors’ recent developments. Namely, we will describe FEA methodologies, testing methods and results post-treatment techniques. We will show how the connectors’ performance is eventually derived after such analysis and test data accumulation. The reader will see that innovative and effective fatigue enhancement techniques have resulted, along with premium fatigue compliant sealing devices. The experience and expertise gained, together with a continuous improvement process of our methods have made T&C riser connectors a viable solution to meet emerging needs within deepwater industry, including xHP-HT, SCR and flow lines.

Effects of Negative Biaxial Loadings and Notch on Failure Assessment Diagrams

2009 ◽  
Vol 132 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Ragupathy ◽  
K. Ramesh ◽  
D. Hall
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element ◽  
Fracture Mechanics ◽  
Biaxial Loading ◽  
Failure Criteria ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
J Integral ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Worst Case ◽  
Failure Assessment ◽  
The Impact

The failure assessment diagram (FAD) is a simplified and robust flaw assessment methodology, which simultaneously connects two dominant failure criteria: linear elastic fracture mechanics on one end and plastic collapse on the other end. This interaction is in the realm of elastic-plastic fracture mechanics. It is popularly known as the R6 approach, which graphically characterizes the impact of plasticity on crack driving force. In recent years, there has been continuous interest in using FADs to assess the failure of cracked structures subjected to biaxial loadings. Biaxiality is defined as the ratio of stress applied parallel and normal to the crack. Some pressure loaded aircraft components operate under negative biaxial ratios up to −0.5. In this paper, a detailed study on FAD was conducted using finite element analysis computed J-integral methods to investigate the effect of biaxial loading using different FAD approaches for geometries with notches. Geometries with a crack that emanates at a fillet region were simulated with various biaxial loading ratios from −0.5 to +0.5 using 2014-T6 material. FAD curves were numerically generated for cracks at notched regions subjected to various biaxial loadings using J-integral values from finite element analyses. These results were compared with standard FAD approaches. All comparison studies were made between uniaxial and biaxial loading cases with FAD curves created using four different crack sizes. Under small scale yielding, this study clearly shows that FAD curves are not influenced by negative biaxial loading at low load (up to 40% of yield strength). It was clearly confirmed that the majority of previously developed analytical FAD curves do not effectively account for notch and plasticity effects due to negative biaxiality. Based on this study, tension normal to the crack and compression parallel to the crack is the worst combination, and it has a very pronounced effect on FAD curve shapes. The standard analytical FAD curves are nonconservative compared with the approach recommended here, particularly under the worst case condition. FAD curves developed are shown to predict lower failure loads as compared with the currently accepted analytical FAD approaches defined in existing standards, e.g., R6 and API 579. The impact of negative biaxial loading can be investigated directly using a J-integral FAD approach but can be compared with ease by plotting both approaches in a FAD format.

Girth Weld Qualification for High Strain Pipeline Applications

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin W. Hukle ◽  
Agnes M. Horn ◽  
Douglas S. Hoyt ◽  
James B. LeBleu
Keyword(s):  
Plastic Strain ◽  
Weld Metal ◽  
Heat Affected Zone ◽  
High Strain ◽  
Flaw Size ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Plastic Strains ◽  
Strain Capacity ◽  
Metal Properties ◽  
Girth Welds

Pipeline applications that are subject to global plastic strains require specific testing and qualification programs intended to verify the strain capacity of the girth welds. Such strain demands are generally beyond the limits of standard ECA applicability which normally cover demands up to 0.5% strain. Therefore, qualification of welding procedures for high strain environments require significantly more testing than weld procedures intended for stress-based designs. The plastic strain capacity of girth welds is a function of the pipe and weld metal properties, as well as the maximum flaw size allowable in the girth weld. Specific weld metal/heat affected zone properties, based on small scale testing, should be combined with full scale curved wide plate testing of girth welds that include artificial flaws.

scholarly journals Finite Element Analysis and Full-Scale Testing of Locomotive Crashworthy Components

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Llana ◽  
Richard Stringfellow ◽  
Ronald Mayville
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element Analysis ◽  
Finite Element ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Element Model ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Design Concepts ◽  
Dynamic Finite Element Analysis ◽  
Full Scale Tests ◽  
Force Displacement

The Office of Research and Development of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Volpe Center are continuing to evaluate new technologies for increasing the safety of passengers and operators in rail equipment. In recognition of the importance of override prevention in train-to-train collisions in which one of the vehicles is a locomotive, and in light of the success of crash energy management technologies in cab car-led passenger trains, the Volpe Center seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of components that could be integrated into the end structure of a locomotive that are specifically designed to mitigate the effects of a collision and, in particular, to prevent override of one of the lead vehicles onto the other. A research program has been conducted to develop, fabricate and test two crashworthy components for the forward end of a locomotive: (1) a deformable anti-climber, and (2) a push-back coupler. Detailed designs for these components were developed, and the performance of each design was evaluated through large deformation dynamic finite element analysis (FEA). Designs for two test articles that could be used to verify the performance of the component designs in full-scale tests were also developed. The two test articles were fabricated and dynamically tested by means of rail car impact in order to verify certain performance characteristics of the two components relative to specific requirements. The tests were successful in demonstrating the effectiveness of the two design concepts. Test results were consistent with finite element model predictions in terms of energy absorption capability, force-displacement behavior and modes of deformation.

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