Bending capacity of multi-layered FRP pipelines during offshore installation

Abstract

The Fiber Reinforced Polymeric (FRP) pipelines have higher strength than steel, and excellent fatigue behavior and corrosion resistance. Because of their superior performance in mechanical loads and corrosive environment, they are a good choice for offshore applications. Since FRP materials are anisotropic and the pipelines are multilayered, the calculation of stresses is difficult. Stress analysis can be performed numerically with the aid of commercial software packages. However, the numerical solutions are approximate and the parametric study is problematic. In the present work, an analytical solution for bending stress calculation of multilayered FRP pipelines during offshore installation is presented. Typical examples are solved and bending capacity of multilayered FRP pipelines versus the fiber orientation angle and number of layers is provided and discussed.