Is it for me?
Structural, civil, maintenance, pipeline, materials, welding, inspection and plant engineers including those responsible for maintaining welded equipment and structures, managing the integrity of ageing structures and optimising asset performance.
Key features of the course:
- Introduces the concepts of fitness-for-purpose and engineering critical assessment (ECA), using a mixture of lectures, informal discussion, quizzes, videos and software exercises to reinforce learning
- Focuses on the practical applications of fracture mechanics and covers brittle and ductile fracture, plastic collapse, fatigue crack growth and stress corrosion cracking
- Highlights fracture and fatigue procedures in BS 7910, with an emphasis on how they are applied to welded structures
- Discusses the assessment of circumferential flaws in pipeline girth welds
- Covers a range of relevant subjects related to BS 7910, e.g. failure case studies, non-destructive testing (inspection), materials properties, fracture toughness testing
- Provides practical training in fracture and fatigue assessments using CrackWISE software
- Provides engineers with a firm foundation in the application of BS 7910 to the assessment of flaws using fitness-for-purpose methods
Delivery of the course will be via Zoom, from 0900-1230 on six mornings spread over two weeks. IMPORTANT NOTE: The sessions are weekday mornings only.
What will I learn?
Schedule to be confirmed.
Failure case studies:
- Examples of engineering failures
- Contributing factors and lessons learnt, especially with respect to welded structures
Fitness-for-purpose methods:
- Concept of fitness-for-purpose methods and engineering critical assessment (ECA)
- Key factors affecting structural integrity
Fracture mechanics theory:
- Main principles of fracture (for driving force and fracture toughness): K, CTOD, J
- Linear elastic and elastic-plastic fracture mechanics (LEFM and EPFM)
Non-Destructive testing (inspection):
- Role of NDT in ECA
- Capabilities of major NDT methods
Materials issues:
- Awareness of flaw types including fabrication and service flaws
- Materials/service issues and their effects on fracture toughness
Introduction to BS 7910:
- Background and definitions relating the day's sessions on input data to the terminology (flaw types and stress categorisation)
Fracture mechanics testing:
- Testing (especially welds) including preparation and post-test analysis
Fracture assessment using the Failure Assessment Diagram (FAD) approach:
- Definition, main parameters, primary and secondary stresses, local and global collapse
- Main features and input data to FAD assessments
Software workshop:
- Fracture assessment to BS 7910
- Using CrackWISE for fracture assessment and critical parameter cases
- Fracture quiz
Fatigue of welded structures:
- Fatigue design of welded joints
- Factors which affect the fatigue of welds
Comparison of fracture assessment Options (1-3):
- Material-specific FADs
- Fracture toughness R-curves
Fatigue assessment procedures in BS 7910:
- Fracture mechanics based calculations of fatigue crack growth
- Fatigue quiz
Software workshop:
- Using CrackWISE for fatigue assessment
- Charpy/fracture toughness toolkit
Annexes of BS 7910 Part 1:
- BS 7910 annexes - content and use
- Recent developments in BS 7910
Other assessment procedures:
- Links to other flaw assessment procedures (including FITNET and API 579-1/ASME FFS-1)
Annexes of BS 7910 Part 2:
- BS 7910 annexes - content and use
- Recent developments in BS 7910
Software Workshop:
- CrackWISE using R-curves and stress-strain curve data
- Sensitivity assessments
Fracture assessment of circumferential girth weld flaws:
- Guidance in BS 7910
- Example of installation and operation cases
Final examples and wrap-up session.