Failure analysis and mechanical behavior of dented pipeline dent caused by indenter

Abstract

Dented defects pose a great threat to the safety of oil and gas pipeline transportation. In this paper, dent behavior of a pipeline caused by a spherical indenter was investigated. Effects of thickness, indenter displacement, indenter radius and pipeline internal pressure on the stress, strain and depth of the pipeline dent are discussed. The results show that internal pressure has a great effect on the pipeline dent. When the internal pressure increases, folds appear on the pipeline wall. With the increasing of wall thickness and indenter displacement, the stress, plastic strain and dent depth increase. But the radius of the indenter has a little effect on the dent’s stress and strain. In general, the strain and the depth of the dent achieve an extreme point or maximum near the edge of the dent.