Numerical Investigation of Crack Mitigation in Tubular KT-Joints Using Composite Reinforcement

Abstract

Recently, fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP) have begun to be used for steel structure reinforcement, following decades of successful utilization for the reinforcement of concrete structures. However, rehabilitation of tubular joints with a crack at the interface of mating members using FRP has rarely been investigated. A tubular KT-joint having a semi-elliptical crack subjected to axial tensile load is explored in this study. The joint was simulated using the fracture tool of ANSYS Structural, and the effect of crack size, location, and FRP reinforcement on stress intensity factor (SIF) was evaluated. The numerical simulations show that FRP reinforcement reduces the SIF, decreases the likelihood of crack growth, and may increase the fatigue life. A 4–12% reduction per millimeter thickness of unidirectional FRP was recorded.

Keywords

• crack mitigation
• crack growth
• composite reinforcement
• fracture analysis
• tubular joint