Publisher's Synopsis
With the introduction of Safety Case Regulations, following Lord Cullen's report on the Piper Alpha disaster, a Safety Case, which is renewed every three years, is required for each installation operating in UK waters, to ensure that structural integrity is maintained. The reassessment of structural integrity is therefore an important issue amongst offshore operators. Fracture mechanics analysis, using the stress intensity factor, provides the only viable means to assess the remaining fatigue life of cracked tubular joints. Also, assessing the significance of the fatigue damage allows expensive in-service inspections to be scheduled effectively, thus improving safety. The economic benefit of a reliable fatigue crack growth analysis procedure can thus be significant, as it enables the risk of fatigue failure to be properly evaluated, allowing expensive repairs of damaged components to be carried out only when necessary. The results of this research are therefore of interest to offshore oil and gas operators and authorities enforcing offshore safety regulations.
