Ultimate Axial Load Prediction Model for X65 Pipeline with Cracked Welding Joint Based on the Failure Assessment Diagram Method

Crack defects in the girth welds of pipelines have become an important factor affecting the safe operation of in-service oil pipelines. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the factors affecting the safe operation of pipelines and determine the ultimate load during pipeline operation. Based on the failure assessment diagram (FAD) method described in the BS 7910 standard, the key factors affecting the evaluation results of the suitability of X65 pipeline girth welds are analyzed, and the effects of crack size, pipe geometry, and material properties on the evaluation results are investigated. The results indicate that the crack depth is more crucial to the safe operation of the pipeline than the crack length. While the effect of wall thickness is not significant, the misalignment can seriously aggravate the stress concentration. In general, the higher the yield ratio and tensile strength of the pipe material, the more dangerous the condition at the weld. The ultimate axial load that a crack-containing girth weld can withstand under different combinations of the above factors was determined. Furthermore, a data driven model via the optimized support vector regression method for the ultimate axial load of the X65 pipe was developed for engineering application, and the comparison results between the FEM results and the predicted results proved its accuracy and reliability.

Application of Failure Assessment Diagram (FAD) for Steel Welded Connection Based on BS7910 and DNV-RP-108

The failure assessment diagram (FAD) method has been widely accepted to evaluate the extent to which cracks may affect structural safety. The usage of this FAD method has been validated and included in [1]-[3]. The structure under investigation, described in four fully welded T-joint (BCC5) specimens, where these welded joints are a source of stress concentration and defects from which fatigue cracks can grow. The four specimens were modeled under different displacement loading using a finite element analysis program Ansys and SolidWorks software. In this work, the application of a FAD (Lr, Kr) using maximum stress, cumulative stress ranges, and the last half-cycle stress range was investigated. The results are showing that all the points were lying outside the FAD curve except for the BCC5D specimen point was inside FAD when using maximum stress. Conclusions made that the cumulative stress gives Lr and Kr are extremely large and hence predict failure too early. With the Crack Tip Opening Displacement (CTOD) of the test specimen assumed to be about 1mm rather than 0.1mm it was found that, if a FAD is to be used to indicate failure, then both Lr and Kr should be based on the maximum stress. It appears that the FAD methodology does help to predict the final failure (which is the usual application in such cases). This represents more effectively the structural behavior and would be more easily used by designers.

Critical Crack Sizes of Pressure Vessels Based on Failure Assessment Diagram Under Design Requirements

Standards or codes for defects assessment usually accompany their own design standards, such as, ASME BPVC section VIII and API 579-1/ASME FFS-1, GB 150 and GB/T 19624. The development of defects assessment standards should be adapted to the design requirements of pressure vessels. The consistency between fitness-for-service (FFS) procedures and design requirements of pressure vessels is discussed in this work. As a key link between FFS procedures and design standards, the required material fracture toughness not only depends on the methods of FFS procedures such as failure assessment diagram, but also on the design requirements. A procedure based on failure assessment diagram under design requirements is proposed to calculate critical crack sizes. The result can give some meaningful suggestions for the development of standards or codes.

Simple Calculations of J-Integral for Through-Wall Crack in Welded Pipes Based on Failure Assessment Diagram

In the present study, simple J-integral estimations of welded pipes with a circumferential through-wall crack (TWC) in weld zone were proposed based on the failure assessment diagram (FAD) concept using scaling factor that is defined as a ratio of plastic limit load of welded pipe to that of base metal pipe. For this purpose, the detailed 3-dimensional (3-D) finite element (FE) limit analyses for welded pipes with a circumferential TWC have been systematically carried out considering various thickness of pipe, circumferential crack lengths, strength mismatches between base and weld metal, widths of weldment and locations of TWC (weld center and interface between the weld metal and the base metal). As for loading conditions, axial tension and global bending were considered in the FE analyses. Based on the present FE results, numerical expressions on scaling factors representing the ratio of plastic limit loads of welded pipes to those of base metal pipes were derived. Finally, the new FAD-based J-estimations based on option 1 concept was proposed to predict J-integrals of welded pipes incorporating the present scaling factors, i.e. ratio of plastic limit load. Moreover, the proposed J estimations were validated by comparing with FE results using actual properties.