Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Institute of Technology Tiruchirappalli-620015, Tamilnadu, India.
*E-mail: aveer@nitt.edu
Pipe bends in steam distribution system are subject to creep and fatigue loads. Estimation of life of such bends is important from the viewpoint of safe operation of the system. The shape imperfections present in the manufactured pipe bends also influences life of pipe bends. This paper quantifies the life of pipe bends with various combinations of shape irregularities and pipe geometry used in industrial applications. The pipe bends are modeled in ANSYS and analysed with transient thermal loads and subsequently structural analysis was performed to determine the fatigue life. A static structural analysis was done with pressure loading to determine the creep life. The maximum stress intensity is used to determine the life in both the cases. A certain combination of shape imperfections considered is found to enhance the life of pipe bend with a particular geometry.
pipe bend, fatigue life, creep life, ovality, thinning
