A PROBABILISTIC FRACTURE-MECHANICS ANALYSIS FOR CRACKED PIPE USING 3-D MODEL

For the purpose of probabilistic fracture mechanics (PFM) estimation based on elastic-plastic fracture mechanics (EPFM) in the field of reliability analysis of pressure vessels and piping, a 3-D EPFM database of fully plastic solutions for surface cracks and a PFM code for the integrity evaluation of nuclear structural components based on the above database are given. As an example, a comparison study of the PFM analysis is then performed between the 2-D and the 3-D solutions to demonstrate the 3-D effects on the solutions.