Fatigue Capacity of Stiffener to Web Frame Connections

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., Ltd. (DSME), StatoilHydro and DNV established a common project to investigate the reason for the difference between calculated fatigue lives and the in-service experience and to assess the fatigue capacity of stiffener web connections subjected mainly to web frame shear stresses. The main objective of the work was to establish fatigue test data and perform numerical analysis of collar plate connections in order to provide improved confidence in analysis methodology for fatigue life assessment. Large scale fatigue tests of different types of connections were carried out to obtain fatigue test data of collar plate connections. Finite element analyses were carried out for comparison with fatigue test data and with measured stresses on the test model. Based on this work recommendations on fatigue design analysis of connections between stiffeners and web frames have been derived. The background for this is presented in this paper.