A joint industry project, run by DNV GL, has replicated stresses measured in an umbilical subjected to tension and bending in full-scale tests, further validating the accuracy of the analysis software Helica.
According to DNV GL, Helica, which calculates stresses in umbilical and flexible pipe components, can analyse thousands of simulations in a matter of minutes, improving engineering efficiency and significantly reducing design cost.
The JIP compared stresses calculated using Helica with measured stresses in a full-scale umbilical sample subjected to tension and bending, and reportedly, the analysis results correlated well with the test data.
“As far as we know, this is the first time anyone has been able to demonstrate such a remarkably strong correlation between analysis results and such high quality stress measurements in full-scale subsea umbilicals,” says Nils Sødahl, vice president, Riser Technology, DNV GL – Oil & Gas . The JIP, which included Ultra Deep LCC, ExxonMobil, Oceaneering, Shell, Technip and ABB, based its research on data provided by ExxonMobil. “We are very grateful to ExxonMobil for contributing stress measurements to the JIP and giving us this opportunity,” says Sødahl.
New industry standard for stress and fatigue analysis
“We strongly believe that Helica will be the new industry standard for stress and fatigue analysis of flexible pipes and umbilicals,” says Are Føllesdal Tjønn, CEO DNV GL – Software .
The JIP validation results were presented at the ISOPE (International Society of Offshore and Polar Engineers) annual International Ocean and Polar Engineering Conference in Rhodos, Greece on 27 June.
Source: DNV GL