Platform, Pipeline and

Subsea Technology CIVL4171

Ultimate Strength Analysis

Mark Cassidy

Introduction

Offshore design codes such as API RP2A

provide design rules for members (braces, legs
etc.)
They are less prescriptive about the structural
performance of the overall platform
Current best practice is to also determine the
performance of the structure under extreme
loads
This is typically done by numerical analysis

Linear Analysis

Purpose written offshore structural design

software such as SACS, StruCAD*3D & SESAM
typically analyze structures using linear elastic
theory

Linear vs. Nonlinear

Analysis
Linear elastic analysis cant predict structural failure

Load

Linear
analysis
Nonlinear
analysis

Secondary
Bending Moment
= P

Displacement

Nonlinearities

Nonlinearities in structural analysis come from a

number of sources, including:
Geometric nonlinearities (P- effect, buckling)
Material nonlinearities (plastic failure, soil
response)
Contact between members

Linear vs. Nonlinear

Analysis
Why do linear analysis ?
Design codes are often based on linear elastic
results (particularly WSD versions)
May include amplification factors to
account for important nonlinear effects
In designing for serviceability, we usually
require the structure to remain linear elastic,
If we trust the safety factors in the design
code we may not need more complex analysis

Linear vs. Nonlinear

Analysis
Why do nonlinear analysis ?
To establish the ultimate strength and
performance of the structure
To determine the response of the structure to
accidents (ship impact & blasts)
Forms the basis for reliability analysis i.e. to
determine the Risk of Failure.

Nonlinear Analysis
Software for offshore nonlinear analysis
Some specialist offshore software has
nonlinear modules:
SACS
StruCAD*3D
Specialist software:
USFOS
ASAS

Incorporates
wave loading

A general FEA program, e.g. ABAQUS, ANSYS,

LS/DYNA, NASTRAN

Nonlinear Analysis
Software for nonlinear analysis

General packages are usually much more

complex, but allow for less routine analyses to
be performed

The specialist packages automate may of the

typical analysis tasks, and often have
specialized features

Pushover Analysis
What is a pushover analysis ?

The pushover analysis is the main (analytical)

tool used to determine the ultimate limit state
performance of an offshore jacket structure

It is also sometimes used to calculate the

reliability of the structure via the Reserve
Strength Ratio (RSR)

Pushover Analysis

Steps in a Pushover Analysis:

1. Development of a detailed structural model
2. Application of an appropriate set of loads on
the structure
3. Carrying out the analysis
4. Verification
5. Interpretation

Pushover Analysis
Step 1: Development of a detailed model
The model used for design may not have
enough detail for a pushover analysis
Additional nodes may be required in the
model, or more complex joint models
Importantly, nonlinear material properties are
needed, along with member imperfections

Braced Monotower

Ultimate Limit State

NWS Structural Failure

Pushover Analysis

Step 2: Application of appropriate loads

The steps in applying the loads are generally
straightforward
But, The choice of actual loads to apply is
more difficult and depends on the information
that is to be extracted
The combination of loads used may be
important

Pushover Analysis
Step 3: Running the analysis
For a well behaved structure, the nonlinear
analyses are fairly straightforward
Analyses can become more involved when
failure is dominated by buckling response.
Contact analysis can be particularly difficult.
Parameters which control the analysis may
need to be varied to obtain a consistent
response

Pushover Analysis
Step 4: Verification
Make sure that each of the steps in the
analysis are verified against known results, if
possible
This may be particularly important for novel
structural configurations

Pushover Analysis
Step 5: Interpretation
Do the results mean what you think they mean?
Is the collapse mode sensible - do you
understand why the particular failure mode
occurred?
Do the forces balance?
Check failure values - are they reasonable?
Is the result stable - if you change something
by a small amount, do you get a similar
answer (may not be the case, even for a
correct analysis)

Pushover Analysis
Reserve Strength Ratio
The RSR is a measure of the platforms strength,
when compared to the design strength

Collapse Load
RSR =
Design Load
The strength is measured in terms of the total
load that is resisted
The RSR should be an estimate of the true
failure load - not a lower bound estimate

**

Pushover Analysis
Reserve Strength Ratio
How do we measure the total load?
Load is most commonly measured in terms of
the total base shear acting on the structure

Pushover Analysis
Reserve Strength Ratio

Base Shear

Pushover Analysis

Pushover Analysis
Modelling

Pushover Analysis
Modelling

Pushover Analysis
Modelling

Pushover Analysis
Modelling

Member Modelling

There are often a few choices as to the method

of modelling individual members
The choice of model types has to be assessed
on the basis of expected modes of failure, the
sophistication of the required model and the
available analysis tools

Member Modelling
Phenomenological elements:
These elements represent the behaviour of
tubular members by experimentally derived
relationships between P- and M-
Able to model buckling, and cyclic behaviour
For example, can insert plastic hinges when
required

Member Modelling
Marshall Strut Element

Tension

Element is clever
enough to model
column buckling
behaviour

Compression

Member Modelling
Plastic Section Capacity

Member Modelling
Why not use phenomenological elements all the
time?
Limited to modelling members with well
known properties
Cannot be extended to different geometries or
materials without physical tests to establish
the member behaviour

Member Modelling
Plastic hinge beam-column models:
Based on beam-column theory
Model the typical behaviour of beams in
combined bending and compression
Plastic failure of the member is modelled by
formation of a plastic hinge in the member

Member Modelling
Plastic hinge beam-column models:
Element formulation may include local
buckling, denting and modelling of hydrostatic
pressure effects
But this needs to be confirmed for each
different program

Member Modelling
General beam models:
Model the member behaviour from first
principles
To model column buckling behaviour, a
number of elements are required along the
beam member (this can add a lot of
complexity to the model)

Member Modelling
General beam models:
More detailed material properties may be
required than for the other element types
Other element types usually include default
properties and only require an input of yield
stress
However, for most pushover analysis,
member strains are restricted to the yield
plateau

Member Modelling
General beam models:

Elastic - Perfectly Plastic

material behaviour

END Lecture 1

Member Modelling
Imperfections:
Regardless of the type of element used to
model members, initial imperfections play an
important part in the collapse load of
compression members
Member collapse may drive failure of the
frame, and hence imperfections need to be
modelled appropriately

Member Modelling
Imperfections:
Imperfections in real members are due to:
1. Geometric imperfections (member out of
shape)
2. Residual stresses due to fabrication

Imperfections are generally modelled as

equivalent imperfections

These are geometric imperfections with

account for both sources of imperfections

Therefore, not quite the same as the

geometric imperfections

Member Modelling
Effect of Imperfections

Member Modelling
Imperfections
In specialized pushover software,
imperfections may be included by the analysis
program automatically

In general FE software, imperfections usually

need to be modelled in a separate step

Member Modelling
Imperfections

Hybrid Beam Shell

model in ABAQUS
Imperfections modelled
using a separate
Eigenvalue analysis

Member Modelling
Material properties:
If the pushover analysis is being conducted for
a reliability analysis, then the best estimate
material properties should be used
Youngs modulus is usually well known (210
GPa), but yield stress may be specified as a
minimum, or characteristic value
If a probability of failure is to be calculated,
then the best estimate (or true) yield should
be used. These should be available from the
mill certificates. Typically about 10% greater
than the specified minimum yield stress

Pushover Analysis
Joints:
Joints may be modelled in a number of ways
The easiest is to model them simply as rigid
connections. That is, there is no rotational
flexibility at the connection
This assumption is required for a linear elastic
analysis, as design codes (conservatively)
correct for this (e.g. member effective length)

Pushover Analysis
Modelling - Joints

Pushover Analysis
Modelling - Joints

Pushover Analysis
Modelling - Joints

Pushover Analysis
Modelling - Joints

Pushover Analysis
Loading
Two theories to how to load the structure
1.

Apply the design wave, and increase that

or

2.

Apply waves with kinematics corresponding

to increasing return period

Pushover Analysis

Pushover Analysis

Pushover Analysis
Loading
First method is simple
Second method better as
Allows for deck inundation to be checked
More accurately represents the loading on
the structure with increasing return period
(very important for moment dominated
structures)

Pushover Analysis
Effect of Structural Configuration

Pushover Analysis
Effect of Structural Configuration

100 year wave

Wave
corresponding to
failure

Platform
type

RSR

Return
Period

RSR

Monopod

1.48

350

Hybrid

1.71

Jack-up
Jacket

Return
Period

Ratio

1.29

210

1.66

590

1.51

310

1.90

2.17

1450

1.97

1100

1.32

2.30

1800

2.28

1600

1.12

Pushover Analysis
Finding the Return Period from the RSR

Pushover Analysis
Finding the Return Period from the RSR
Will have wave height as a function of return
period, or frequency of occurrence
This may be plotted as a function of the critical
action (base shear or moment), by running two
return period waves past the structure, and
then extrapolating
If environmental variability is the dominant
source of uncertainty, this provides a first pass
estimate of the reliability of the structure

Pushover Analysis
Finding the Return Period from the RSR

Pushover Analysis
Finding the RP from the RSR
Log(Ln(N ))
0

0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8

1.2

1
GoM

Log( E/E d )

0.5
CNS

0
-0.5
NWS

-1
-1.5

Questions