Improvement of modeling and evaluation of piping systems in nuclear facilities

Abstract eng:
The paper presents the strategy of modeling and evaluation of piping systems in nuclear facilities in ANSYS computer code with use of Piping Models module. The module incorporates macros developed to automate the modeling of pipelines including macro for easy modeling of branch connections (tees) in accordance the provisions of ASME Boiler & Pressure Vessel Code, Section III, Division 1 – Subsection NB, Class 1 Components (1992). For the developed computational models with defined boundary conditions and loadings, nodal forces and moments were computed. Model geometry and results of analyses are exported into data files which are then imported into the evaluation program set up in Mathcad. Thus the program contains the complete information of the FEM model necessary to carry out automatic evaluation in which the stresses at all nodes of the model are determined following the guidelines of the code and subsequently, the obtained values are compared with the stress allowable values specified for the material of the piping. The presented procedure makes the development of a pipeline model significantly faster, automates the subsequent evaluation process, and minimizes the risk of human-factor error. It can be utilized for linear or nonlinear static and dynamic analyses including seismicity. Besides the detailed description of the model development in ANSYS and the implementation of macros, the examples of analysis of the concrete piping system is also presented in the paper.

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