The cross-disciplinary approach to analysis and forecast of operational damage tolerance of the oil pipeline system – part 1

Abstract

The paper presents the cross-disciplinary approach to the analysis of the oil pipeline system based on the methodologies of tribo-fatigue and mechanothermodynamics. The pipeline section is analyzed as a complex system pipe-soil- flow of liquid subject to the set of mechanical, thermal and friction loads. It is shown that theses loads are mainly repeatedly-alternated, and the pipe metal works in the multi-cycle fatigue conditions. The procedure of resonance accelerated fatigue tests is proposed, and their results are presented. Also, the unorthodox method of integrated wear-fatigue tests of the pipeline steel was proposed with the model of simultaneous pressure and wall friction actions. The presented field test results of pipes subject to the long-term operation showed that their fracture may occur not only in the near-weld zone, but also in the vicinity of internal corrosion damages. New models of three-dimensional stressstrain state and volumetric damage tolerance for the system pipe-soil-liquid flow were developed. These models were applied with regard to the pipe internal corrosion damages, defined using the inline inspection technique. A new efficient method to describe static and cyclic elastic-plastic fracture of the pipe steel with crack using the transverse strain is proposed and tested. Results of the computer-simulated propagation of the crack-like damage are based upon the model of deformed solid with dangerous volume. The new model is proposed for risk and safety assessment with regard to the ultrasonic inspection data. The algorithm of the ‘oil line pipe’ problem solution is presented for drafting a short-term plan of particular R&D actions.