Efficient fracture assessment of pipelines. A constraint-corrected SENT specimen approach

Reeling has proven to be an efficient and cost effective method for offshor e pipelaying. During the reeling process the pipe undergoes deformation tha t can strain the material by 1-2%. The existing failure assessment methods often turn out to be too conservative to allow such a strain level in the s tructure. The amount of conservatism can be significantly reduced by using a new failure assessment approach developed by SINTEF. This approach depend s on finite element calculations for establishing the non-linear fracture m echanics parameters and the stress and strain distributions in the pipe. Th e present study addresses the performance of shell and line spring finite e lements as a cost effective tool for performing such numerical calculations . (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.