THE DEVELOPMENT AND APPLICATION OF THE DYNAMIC FRACTURE ANALYSIS CODE FOR CRACK PROPAGATION INGAS PIPELINES
There are many instances where the dynamic fracture events are the results of fluidpressure acting on the structures. This paper describes the development of integratedfluid/structure/fracture computational program, PFRAC (Pipeline FRacture Analysis Code), andthe applications of this code in the dynamic crack propagation for gas pipelines. It also discussesthe conditions of crack initiation, propagation and arrest. For the calculation of the crack drivingforce, G, in PFRAC, the numerical approach using the nodal force release and the energy balancemethods are described. Based on the test data, a linear decay function of the internal gas pressurebehind the crack tip, is incorporated into PFRAC program.