An external diameter 457mm (18") duct, 12.7mm (0.

5") wall thickness, X52, has been dented by a mechanical

excavator. A detailed inspection of the damage site has revealed that the dent has a smooth profile and has no
associated metal loss or cracking defects.

Facts:
1) The dent is not adjacent to any welds. The depth (measured under pressure) is 3.5% of the duct diameter.
2) The duct is cyclically loaded from 52 bar to 86 bar (750 psi to 1250 psi) once a day.
3) The pipeline is 10 years old and has a design life of 30 years.
The depth of the dent measured under pressure is 3.5% of the duct diameter (corresponding to a depth of 4.8% of
the duct diameter if the spring back correction factor is taken into account, see below).
5) Simple dents of less than 5.0% of the duct diameter are considered unlikely to obstruct the passage of intelligent
tools ("pigs").
6) Simple dents less than 8% of pipe diameter have no major effect on failure resistance under static conditions
(bursting) of the duct.
7) Therefore, denting is not a problem in relation to static internal pressure loading.

Is this dent acceptable when subjected to static and cyclic internal pressure?
For that reason, the duct is subjected to cyclic pressure and therefore a fatigue evaluation is required.
  STEP 1 – Determine a loading time history.
a)
The pipeline is subjected to a daily cycle, i.e. 365 fatigue cycles per year.
p = 500 psi

b) STEP 2 – Based on the loading time history in STEP 1, determine the historical and estimated future number of full-
range pressure cycles including startup and shutdown, and designate this value as NΔFP .
Estimated future number of full-range pressure cycles including startup and shutdown, =365
NΔFP .= 365 cycles
c) STEP 3 – Based on the loading time history in STEP 1, determine the historical and estimated future
number of operating pressure cycles.
= 0,20* 1100= 220 psi
p = 500 psi220 psi

,= 365 cycles

d) STEP 4 – there is not temperatura changes.

e) STEP 5 – Based on the loading time history in STEP 1, determine the number of temperature cycles for
components involving welds between materials having different coefficients of thermal expansion.

N Δ α .= 0

f) STEP 6 – If the expected number of operating cycles from STEPs 2, 3, 4 and 5 satisfies the criterion in Table 14.2

  150

  365 150

The Level 1 Assessment criteria are

not satisfied
A fatigue analysis of the pipeline is required
considering the remaining 20 years of service.