A Parametric Study on the Strain Concentration in Field Joint of Concrete Coated Pipelines Using Finite Element Method

Abstract

This paper aims at investigating the strain concentration in the field joints of concrete coated pipelines. A parametric study, using the finite element (FE) method, is conducted to investigate the effect of different geometric and material related parameters on the strain concentration. The selected parameters are believed to be the most influencing ones, and their variations selected as such, so to reflect practical situations. The finite element approach used in this study was discussed and validated by the authors in their earlier work. In this study, twenty three FE models are analyzed and their results are processed and presented in terms of variation of Strain Concentration Factor (SCF) versus the considered parameters, thus enabling us to examine the trend of variation of SCF with respect to each parameter. The observed trends and their underlying mechanics are described. Furthermore, a non-dimensional “geometric parameter” is introduced, which lumps the geometrical parameters investigated into a single parameter, such that it could adequately describe the variations of SCF. It is observed that a threshold exists for this parameter, beyond which the SCF can be deemed constant for design purposes, and below which the SCF would become very sensitive to the geometrical properties.