#FEA #Failure #Thermostructural #NonLinearlyViscoElasticity #Polymers #Oil&Gas

Our client from the oil and gas industry approached us to investigate failures occurring during or after their swaging manufacturing process, a process used to incorporate metal seals to the main body of flexible pipes by applying a compressive force.  It is essential for the quality of the final product that this seal can withstand the lifecycle of the pipe.

 

We simulated the swaging process and the expected following thermal cycles by developing and using an advanced non-linearly viscoelastic axisymmetric FE model and applying multiple thermal creep load cases. The models were also further developed to investigate the effects of different manufacturing variables and determine an optimal range.

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Our findings helped the client to optimise their swaging manufacturing process, mitigate failures, and reduce their research and development and quality control costs by eliminating the need to perform expensive testing requiring to stop production.