Ductile Fracture propagation phenomena have been widely investigated by researchers in the last years, with particular regard to large metallic structures such as pressurized vessels or gas pipelines. A large number of burst tests have been carried out by Centro Sviluppo Materiali S.p.A. (C.S.M.) in the last decades to identify a set of significant parameters characterizing fracture propagation conditions; the aim is to foresee the behavior (speed and its derivatives) of longitudinal running cracks. The optimal choice of these parameters is strongly helped by appropriate use of Finite Element analysis. To this goal a Finite Element software has been developed, it allows the correct computing of some particular aspects of fracture propagation and the behavior of pressured real gases during decompression. In the present paper a pipeline burst test, carried out on a X100 grade pipeline, and all laboratory tests and data manipulations necessary to build up the whole procedure have been discussed. One of the main objectives is the setting of a procedure able to identify the fracture parameters, when a ductile propagation occurs, avoiding any scatter due to transient effects.
One of the major challenges in the design of ultra high grade (X100) high pressure gas pipelines is the identification of a reliable crack propagation strategy. Ductile fracture propagation is an event that involves the whole pipeline and all its components, including valves, fittings, flanges and bends. Recent research results have shown that the newly developed high strength large diameter gas pipelines, when operated at severe conditions (rich gas, low temperatures, high pressure), may not be able to arrest a running ductile crack through pipe material properties. Hence, the use of crack arrestors is required in the design of safe and reliable pipeline systems. A conventional crack arrestor can be a high toughness pipe insert, or a local joint with higher wall thickness. Steel wire wrappings, cast iron clamps or steel sleeves are commonly used non-integral solutions. Recently, composite crack arrestors have enjoyed increasing interest from the industry as a straightforward solution to stop running ductile cracks. A composite crack arrestor is made of (glass) fibres, dipped in a resin bath and wound onto the pipe wall in a variety of orientations. In this paper, the numerical design of composite crack arrestors will be presented. First, the properties of unidirectional glass fibre reinforced epoxy are measured and the micromechanic modelling of composite materials is addressed. Then, the in-use behaviour of pipe joints with composite crack arrestors is covered. Large-scale tensile tests and four point bending tests are performed and compared with finite element simulations. Subsequently, failure measures are introduced to predict the onset of composite material failure. At the end, the ability of composite crack arrestors to arrest a running fracture in a high pressure gas pipeline is assessed.
Abstract. The present paper deals with the measurements of the critical Crack Tip Opening Angle by using an instrumented test. There is a comparison between the analysis of results made by a well known kinematic model and those given by finite element analysis based on a cohesive model for node release. Analysis is performed both on simple specimens and on back slotted ones.
The new, higher grade pipeline steels provide an opportunity to reduce pipeline costs by enabling a shift to higher pressure at reasonable wall thickness. However, these higher operating stresses place greater demands on the pipeline, particularly when a running fracture is considered. Several studies have shown that intrinsic arrest cannot be counted on for these grades under all operating conditions. In such cases, crack arrestors will be needed. This paper presents results obtained using CSM’s proprietary PICPRO® finite element code to predict the performance of crack arresters on X120 pipes, and shows that the predictions agree well with full-scale experimental results obtained in arrestor trials.
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