Efficient elastic stress analysis method for piping system with wall-thinning and reinforcement

A piping system stress analysis need to be re-performed for structural integrity assessment after reinforcement of a pipe with significant wall thinning. For efficient stress analysis, a one-dimensional beam element for the wall-thinned pipe with reinforcement needs to be developed. To develop the beam element, this work presents analytical equations for elastic stiffness of the wall-thinned pipe with reinforcement are analytically derived for axial tension, bending and torsion. Comparison with finite element (FE) analysis results using detailed three-dimensional solid models for wall-thinned pipe with reinforcement shows good agreement. Implementation of the proposed solutions into commercial FE programs is explained.