Fatigue Analysis of the Taut-Wire Mooring System Applied for Deep Waters

Precisely predicting the fatigue life of taut-wire mooring systems has become an interesting and important problem for scientists and engineers since there are still difficulties in the inspection and maintenance of mooring lines in a rough sea environment especially in deep waters. In this paper, a comprehensive fatigue analysis is performed for a polyester taut-wire mooring system of an FPSO based on the time domain dynamic theory, rainflow cycle counting method and linear damage accumulation rule of Palmgren-Miner. Three influential factors in the fatigue analysis including the pre-tension, dynamic stiffness and T-N curve are investigated in detail. Two polyester T-N curves, one is from the DNV- 0S-E301 and the other is from the API-RP-2SM, are adopted in the calculation. The fatigue analysis of the mooting system after one-line failure is also carried out. The calculation results indicate that the fatigue life is significantly affected by the T-N curve. The fatigue life decreases with increasing pre-tension, and is largely reduced if taking into account the dynamic stiffness caused by cyclic loading. The analysis also proves that one-line failure has remarkable effects on the fatigue lives of other mooting lines. The present parametric and comparative study is believed to be meaningful to further understanding of the taut-wire mooting system for deepwater applications.

Ice-Induced Fatigue Analysis by Spectral Approach for Offshore Jacket Platforms with Ice-Breaking Cones

The spectral methods and ice-induced fatigue analysis are discussed based on Miner＇s linear cumulative fatigue hypothesis and S-N curve data. According to the long-term data of full-scale tests on the platforms in the Bohai Sea, the ice force spectrum of conical structures and the fatigue environmental model are established. Moreover, the finite element model of JZ20-2MSW platform, an example of ice-induced fatigue analysis, is built with ANSYS software. The mode analysis and dynamic analysis in frequency domain under all kinds of ice fatigue work conditions are carded on, and the fatigue life of the structure is estimated in detail. The methods in this paper can be helpful in ice-induced fatigue analysis of ice-resistant platforms.

Study on the application of spectral fatigue analysis

Fatigue failure has long been an important issue for ships and offshore structures. Among the numerous methods for predicting fatigue life, the spectral method is accepted as the most reliable. Although the theory behind spectral analysis is straight-forward, the analysis itself is complicated and time-consuming because it is closely related to critical technical details such as the application of fatigue loading (wave pressures and the inertial forces due to cargoes), the extraction of the stress, and the calculation of stress RAO. Here, four key technical details-loading application, displacement boundary condition, the calculation of stress RAO, and the extraction of the fatigue stress-are discussed thoroughly. For each aspect, a resolution is presented based on the finite element pre-and post-processing software MSC/PATRAN or FE solver MSC/NASTRAN. The resolutions are effective and efficient, which can help engineers perform spectral fatigue analysis accurately and faster.

Selection Methodology of High-Cycle Fatigue Analysis Approach for Damage Estimation in Welded Structural Joints

The main purpose of this paper is to provide a summarized general guideline to aid decision making of choosing the type of fatigue analysis approach,best suited for modelling and evaluating high-cycle fatigue damage in welded structural joints.It describes how addition of stress concentration and stress direction information into fatigue assessment methodology affect simulated fatigue damage accumulation results and when it is beneficial or necessary to use a particular fatigue damage estimation approach.The focus is on stress-life curve based approaches,particularly when deciding between variants of nominal,hot-spot or multiaxial fatigue assessment approaches for evaluating fatigue damage within welded joint structures.Evaluation is illustrated through application of proposed methodology to choose and perform fatigue assessment for a non-conventional load-bearing tubular joint structure within a floating lemniscate crane upper arm,which has been observed of being prone to aggressive crack propagation within its welds.Damage within the structure is estimated using two non-optimal fatigue analysis approaches to verify applicability of proposed selection methodology.Results are then summarized through comparative assessment and findings are discussed based on what leads to result changes within each fatigue damage analysis approach.

Fatigue Analysis of Steel Catenary Risers Based on a Plasticity Model

The most critical issue in the steel catenary riser design is to evaluate the fatigue damage in the touchdown zone accurately. Appropriate modeling of the riser-soil resistance in the touchdown zone can lead to significant cost reduction by optimizing design. This paper presents a plasticity model that can be applied to numerically simulate riser-soil interaction and evaluate dynamic responses and the fatigue damage of a steel catenary riser in the touchdown zone. Utilizing the model, numerous riser-soil elements are attached to the steel catenary riser finite elements, in which each simulates local foundation restraint along the riser touchdown zone. The riser-soil interaction plasticity model accounts for the behavior within an allowable combined loading surface. The model will be represented in this paper, allowing simple numerical implementation. More importantly, it can be incorporated within the structural analysis of a steel catenary riser with the finite element method. The applicability of the model is interpreted theoretically and the results are shown through application to an offshore 8.625 steel catenary riser example. The fatigue analysis results of the liner elastic riser-soil model are also shown. According to the comparison results of the two models, the fatigue life analysis results of the plasticity framework are reasonable and the horizontal effects of the riser-soil interaction can be included.

A Rapid Estimation Method of Structural Fatigue Analysis for a 17k Ton DWT Oil Tanker

Fatigue cracks and fatigue damage have been important issues for ships and offshore structures for a long time.However,in the last decade,with the introduction of higher tensile steel in hull structures and increasingly large ship dimensions,the greater attention should be paid to fatigue problems.Most research focuses on how to more easily access the fatigue strength of ships.Also,the major classification societies have already released their fatigue assessment notes.However,due to the complexity of factors influencing fatigue performances,such as wave load and pressure from cargo,the combination of different stress components,stress on concentration of local structure details,means stress,and the corrosive environments,there are different specifications with varying classification societies,leading to the different results from different fatigue assessment methods.This paper established the Det Norske Veritas（DNV） classification notes ＂fatigue assessment of ship structures＂ that explains the process of fatigue assessment and simplified methods.Finally,a fatigue analysis was performed by use data of a real ship and the reliability of the result was assessed.

PROBABILISTIC METHODOLOGY OF LOW CYCLE FATIGUE ANALYSIS

The cyclic stress-strain responses (CSSR), Neuber's rule (NR) and cyclic strain-life relation (CSLR) are treated as probabilistic curves in local stress and strain method of low cycle fatigue analysis. The randomness of loading and the theory of fatigue damage accumulation (TOFDA) are considered. The probabilistic analysis of local stress, local strain and fatigue life are constructed based on the first-order Taylor's series expansions. Through this method proposed fatigue reliability analysis can be accomplished.

Virtual vibration test rig for fatigue analysis of dozer push arms

To obtain accurate fatigue life results for construction machinery components,acquiring load spectra is crucial,as their authenticity and validity directly determine the precision of the analysis.In working conditions,component attitudes change continuously,but they remain static on the vibration test rig(VTR),so the acquired target signals should match with the actual component attitudes in the driving signal generation.This paper proposes an efficient and economical simulation-based virtual VTR for fatigue analysis of dozers.First,the relationship between the push arm rotation angle and the cylinder stroke is established,since the cylinder strokes can be measured easily in data acquisition experiments.Second,load decomposition is used to determine the attitude relationship between virtual VTR conditions and actual conditions,and target signals are calculated based on this attitude relationship and measured data.According to the system's frequency response function,the driving signals are iterated until the system's response signals converge with the target signals.Finally,the iteratively obtained load spectra are utilized for fatigue life analysis.The results show that the virtual VTR can effectively and accurately obtain the results of fatigue analysis and has engineering application significance.

The Performance of Small Diameter Aluminum Light Support Structures Containing Handholes under Cyclic Fatigue

Aluminum light poles play a pivotal role in modern infrastructure, ensuring proper illumination along highways and in populated areas during nighttime. These poles typically feature handholes near their bases, providing access to electrical wiring for installation and maintenance. While essential for functionality, these handholes introduce a vulnerability to the overall structure, making them a potential failure point. Although prior research and analyses on aluminum light poles have been conducted, the behavior of smaller diameter poles containing handholes remains unexplored. Recognizing this need, a research team at the University of Akron undertook a comprehensive experimental program involving aluminum light poles with handholes containing welded inserts in order to gain a better understanding of their fatigue life, mechanical behavior, and failure mechanisms. The research involved testing seven large-scale aluminum light poles each 8-inch diameter, with two separate handholes. These handholes included a reinforcement that was welded to the poles. Finite Element Analysis (FEA), statistical analysis, and comparison analysis with their large counterparts (10-inch diameter) were used to augment the experimental results. The results revealed two distinct failure modes: progressive crack propagation leading to ultimate failure, and rupture of the pole near the weld initiation/termination site around the handhole. The comparison analysis indicated that the 8-inch diameter specimens exhibited an average fatigue life exceeding that of their 10-inch counterparts by an average of 30.7%. The experimental results were plotted alongside the fatigue detail classifications outlined in the Aluminum Design Manual (ADM), enhancing understanding of the fatigue detail category of the respective poles/handholes.

Fatigue Characteristic Analysis of Deepwater Steel Catenary Risers at the Touchdown Point

This paper presents fatigue characteristic analysis of a deepwater steel catenary riser （SCR） under ambient excitations. The SCR involves complex nonlinear dynamic behaviors, especially at the touchdown point （TDP） where the riser first touches the seafloor. Owing to the significant interaction with soil, the touchdown zone is difficnlt to be modeled. Based on Lumped-Mass method and P-y curve, nonlinear springs are used to simulate the SCR-seabed coupled interaction. In case studies, an SCR＇s dynamic features have been obtained by transient analysis and the structure fatigue assessment has been carried out by S-N approach. The comparative analysis shows that the TDP is the key location where soil-riser interaction rises steeply and minimum fatigue life occurs. Parameters such as ocean environment loads, vessel motions, riser material and geometric parameters are discussed. The results indicate that the vessel motion is the principal factor for the structure fatigue life distribution.

Research of Springing and Whipping Influence on Ultra-Large Containerships' Fatigue Analysis

Rules of Classification Societies all around the world have made changes on design wave loads' value and fatigue influence factor modification due to the influence of springing and whipping on ultra-large containerships.The paper firstly introduced 3-D linear hydroelastic theory in frequency domain and 3-D nonlinear hydroelastic theory in time domain, considering large amplitude motion nonlinearity and slamming force due to the severe relative motion between ship hull and wave. Then the spectrum analysis method and time domain statistical analysis method were introduced, which can make fatigue analysis under a series of standard steps in frequency and time domain, respectively. Finally, discussions on the influence factor of springing and whipping on fatigue damages of 8500 TEU and 10000 TEU containerships with different loading states were made. The fatigue assessment of different position on the midship section was done on the basis of nominal stress. The fatigue damage due to whipping can be the same as the fatigue damage due to springing and even sometimes can be larger than the springing damage. Besides, some suggestions on calculating load case selection were made to minimize the quantity of work in frequency and time domain. Thus, tools for fatigue influence factor modification were provided to meet the demand of IACS-UR.

Fatigue analysis of piezoelectric microdevice based on a continuum damage model

The utilization of piezoelectric materials in MEMS devices under harsh environments has gained affordable appreciations due to its unique mechanical and electrical material properties.However,the reliability of MEMS devices triggered by fatigue damage remains elusive and needs to be further explored.Here,we present a continuum constitutive model for piezoelectric materials containing a substantive amount of randomly dispersed microcracks.The constitutive equation of the piezoelectric materials with microcracks is formulated via Helmholtz free energy by combining the Kachanvo damage evolution law and the Chaboche fatigue damage development to express the fatigue damage growth.A case of the fatigue damage analysis of the piezoelectric microplate with transverse matrix cracks in the status of plane stress is presented by adopting the von Karman’s plate theory.With numerical schemes employed,the effect of cyclic impulsive loadings and electrical loadings on the fatigue damage and fatigue life prediction of a piezoelectric microplate is investigated and discussed.The findings provide valuable insights into the fundamental mechanism of reliability in piezoelectric MEMS devices due to cyclic loadings,thereby offering new ways to exploit and fabricate the piezoelectric-based MEMS devices suitable for harsh conditions.

Computationally Efficient Approaches to Fatigue Analysis of Deepwater Risers

Riser long-term fatigue performance is an important design consideration. Although extensive application of irregular sea analysis in time domain with the rainflow counting technique for post-processing is regarded as the most accurate of the approaches for fatigue analysis, it does suffer from some limitations, such as the computational effort. For this reason, two computationally efficient approaches are employed to perform the fatigue analysis of a deepwater top-tensioned riser, based on the Longuet-Higgins distribution and time domain scaling respectively. With Longuet-Higgins distribution irregular wave sea states are expanded into their individual wave bins. These regular wave simulations are of short duration and consequently run quickly. Using the time domain scaling technique, the number of irregular wave runs can be performed for a comparatively small number of load cases and hence reduces the calculation time. The results showed a reasonable accuracy and significant efficiency for both approaches, compared with those from the equivalent rainflow analysis. With much less computational effort and disk storage requirement, the approaches outlined in this paper can therefore be used for the fatigue assessment of deepwater risers in industry practice.

Fatigue Analysis of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Cylinders for Safety Risk Assessment

With the widespread application of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG),the safety of LPG cylinder has received more and more attention.For the safety of LPG cylinder,we conduct a safety risk assessment of cylinder using the failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) method.Taking the most influential inflatable fatigue under normal conditions as the research object,we use FE-safe software to analyze the fatigue failure.The risk compliance coefficients of various failure modes are calculated and classified according to the risk level.In this way,the service life of the LPG cylinder weld is determined.The presented method improves the safety risk assessment process of LPG cylinder and provides a good theoretical and practical basis for similar pressure vessel risk assessment.

Analysis of the Material Properties of Vehicle Suspension Coil Spring

The suspension coil spring is one of the most important components in a vehicle suspension system. Its primary function is to absorb the vibrational shocks that are occasioned by irregular road surface to provide the vehicle with stability and ride comfort. The main objective of this study is to design a suspension coil spring made of structural steel for light duty vehicles with the aim of weight and cost reduction. This study was motivated by the government of Ghana’s actions to industrialise the automotive sector of the country through government policies and programs. The study made use of high carbon steel and low carbon steel as the control materials and structural steel as the implementing material. This was done to determine the suitability of structural steel for vehicle suspension coil spring. The study analysed parameters such as total deformation, equivalent Von Mises stress, maximum shear stress, and safety factor in the static structural analysis. The fatigue analysis also analysed parameters such as fatigue life and fatigue alternating stress. The results of the study revealed that the suspension spring made of structural steel has superior properties against all the parameters set for this study apart from deformation. The two control materials that are known for suspension coil spring design and manufacture have better properties to withstand deformation than the implementing material.

Fracture Mechanics and Its Application in the Fatigue Behavior of Reinforced Welded Hand-Holes in Aluminum Light Poles

Predicting fatigue life of a given specimen using analytical methods can sometimes be challenging. An approach worth considering for this prediction involves employing fracture mechanics. Fracture mechanics can complement both laboratory experiments and finite element analysis (FEA) in estimating fatigue life of a given specimen, if relevant. In the case of aluminum light poles containing a welded hand-hole, the fatigue life has not yet been thoroughly predicted. The University of Akron has conducted a comprehensive fatigue study on aluminum light poles through various means, albeit without of predicting of said fatigue life of the specimens. AFGROW (Air Force Growth) can be used as a fracture mechanics software to predict fatigue life. ABAQUS was used (for FEA) in conjunction with the AFGROW analysis. The purpose of this study was to ultimately predict the life of the specimens tested in the lab and was achieved with various models including hollow tube and plate models. The plate model process was ultimately found to be the best method for this prediction, yielding results that mimicked the data from the laboratory. Further application for this form of fracture mechanics analysis is still yet to be determined, but for the sake of aluminum light poles, it is possible to predict the fatigue life and utilize said prediction in the field.

Lightweight Design of Commercial Vehicle Cab Based on Fatigue Durability

To better improve the lightweight and fatigue durability performance of the tractor cab,a multi-objective lightweight design of the cab was carried out in this study.First,the finite element model of the cab with counterweight loading was established and then confirmed by the physical testing,and use the inertial reliefmethod to obtain stress distribution under unit load.The cab-frame rigid-flexible couplingmulti-body dynamicsmodelwas built by Adams/car software.Taking the cab airbag mount displacement and acceleration signals acquired on the proving ground as the desired signals and obtaining the fatigue analysis load spectrum through Femfat-Lab virtual iteration.The fatigue simulation analysis is performed in nCode based on the Miner linear fatigue cumulative damage theory.Then,with themass and fatigue damage values as the optimization objectives,the bending-torsional stiffness and first-order bending-torsional mode as constraints,the thickness variables are screed based on the sensitivity analysis.The experimental design was carried out using the Optimal Latin hypercube method,and the multi-objective optimal design of the cab was carried out using theKriging approximationmodel fitting and particle swarmalgorithm.The weight of the optimized cab is reduced by 7.8%on the basis of meeting the fatigue durability performance.Finally,a seven-axis road simulation test rig was designed to verify its fatigue durability.The results show the optimized cab can consider both lightweight and durability.

Multiaxial Fatigue Analyses of Stress Joints for Deepwater Steel Catenary Risers

In the present study, the dynamic and fatigue characteristics of two types of stress joints are investigated under ocean environmental condition. Connected with the riser and the platform, stress joint at the vessel hang-off position should be one of the main critical design challenges for a steel catenary riser （SCR） in deepwater. When the riser is under a high pressure and deepwater working condition, the stress state for the joint is more complex, and the fatigue damage is easy to occur at this position. Stress joint discussed in this paper includes two types： Tapered Stress Joint （TSJ） and Sleeved Stress Joint （SSJ）, and multiaxial fatigue analysis results are given for comparison. Global dynamic analysis for an SCR is performed first, and then the local boundary conditions obtained from the previous analysis are applied to the stress joint FE model for the later dynamic and multiaxial fatigue analysis. Results indicate that the stress level is far lower than the yield limit of material and the damage induced by fatigue needs more attention. Besides, the damage character of the two types of stress joints differs： for TSJ, the place where the stress joint connects with the riser is easy to occur fatigue damage; for SSJ, the most probable position is at the place where the end of the inner sleeve pipe contacts with the riser body. Compared with SSJ, TSJ shows a higher stress level but better fatigue performance, and it will have a higher material cost. In consideration of various factors, designers should choose the most suitable type and also geometric parameters.

Design and Analysis of Tapered Stress Joint for Top Tensioned Riser System

Stress Joint （SJ） plays a key role in the Top Tensioned Riser （TTR） system for deep water engineering. A preliminary design method of tapered SJ is proposed in the paper, which could help designers obtain accurate design data. After a further sensitive analysis is carried out, the related parameters choice and control methods are recommended in the engineering practice. By taking the extreme environment conditions into consideration, the effects of bending stress reduction and curve control are analyzed, and the 3-D FE models are established by ABQOUS for numerical evaluation to verify the correctness of design results. At last, dynamic analysis and fatigue analysis, based on actual project, are carried out with designed stress joint. The analysis results prove the feasibility and guidance of this method in the practical engineering applications.

Recent Developments in Fatigue Assessment of Ships and Offshore Structures

A review is provided of various approaches that have been adopted recently to assess the fatigue of ships and offshore structures.The relevant fatigue loading is reviewed first,focusing on the successive loading and unloading of the cargo and the transient loadings.The factors influencing fatigue strength are discussed,including the geometrical parameters,material,residual stress,and ones related to the environment.Different approaches for fatigue analyses of seam-welded joints are covered,i.e.,the structural stress or strain approach,the notch stress or strain approach,notch intensity approach,and the crack propagation approach.