The Earthquake Engineering Online Archive

Inelastic analysis of piping and tubular structures

Mahasuverachai, Mana; Powell, Graham H.

UCB/EERC-82/27, Earthquake Engineering Research Center, University of California, Berkeley, 1982-11, 140 pages (555.6/M15/1982)

The "fiber" procedure is used to model the inelastic behavior of three pipe sections: (i) a straight pipe element assuming a cubic shape function, (ii) a curved pipe element based on a combination of beam and shell theories, and (iii) a straight pipe element which automatically determines an appropriate shape function as the analysis progresses. Models (i) and (ii) are suitable for modeling straight and curved segments, respectively, in piping systems, assuming closely spaced nodes. They also include options for the effect of internal pressure and temperature change. They are incorporated into the computer programs ANSR and WIPS. The third model has been incorporated into ANSR. The elements are all applicable for either small or large displacement analysis. A number of example elements are analyzed to assess their applications.

Available online: http://nisee.berkeley.edu/documents/EERC/EERC-82-27.pdf (7 MB)