Stochastic analysis of failure pressure in reinforced thermoplastic pipes under axial loading and external pressure

Reinforced thermoplastic pipes (RTPs) are flexible composite pipes that are acknowledged as a good alternative to conventional submarine pipes. This study aims at investigating the impact of the uncertainties involved in the production process of the RTPs on the failure pressure under combined loading conditions. The stress distributions of RTPs were analyzed using the theory of the three-dimensional (3D) thick-walled cylinder method, combined with the homogenization method. Based on these results, to evaluate the failure mechanisms of RTPs, the 3D Hashin–Yeh failure criterion and the damage evolution model were adopted to establish a progressive failure model. For analyzing the influence of randomness of the related parameters on the first-ply failure (FPF) pressure as well as the final burst failure (FF) pressure of RTPs, a sufficient number of samples were generated using the Monte-Carlo method. Results of the stochastic analysis were validated using the hydraulic burst test data. The statistical evaluation of the stochastic analysis results was performed by using the Weibull probability density distribution function, and the results showed an increase in the probability of getting a lower failure pressure of RTPs than the average failure pressure (considering the randomness of production parameters).