Fatigue reliability assessment of tubular joints of existing offshore structures

Tubular joints of offshore structures are prone to fatigue damage. Because of uncertainties involved in quantifying the fatigue process in this type o f structure, a reliability approach may be adopted to assess the risks of f ailure. In-service inspections of structures produce additional information , which may be taken into consideration in order to update the reliability. The paper reviews the methods for carrying out such reliability analyses b ased on principles of linear elastic fracture mechanics and applies them to a sample tubular joint. The results of this type of analyses may be used f or inspection, planning, and (or) decision making regarding repairs or modi fication of the service life of a structure.