Nonlinear finite element analysis of axi-symmetrically dented/wrinkled pipe has been presented in this paper. The pipe including surrounding soil was modelled using three different approaches to indicate the effects of modelling approaches on the simulation of pipe behavior. In the first approach, pipe was modelled with the geometry of the dented/wrinkled pipe without consideration of any residual stress and stress history. In the second approach, residual stress was applied at the nodal points of the pipe geometry modelled as in the first approach. In the third approach, a dent/wrinkle was created on the pipe wall through applying nodal displacements to include residual stress as well as the stress history effects.
The analysis revealed that the first approach provides an un-conservative estimation of the pipe capacity. The second approach provides a reasonable estimation of the pipe capacity for elastic perfectly plastic material. However, the second approach provides a conservative estimation for strain hardening material, since pipe stress history is not considered. For strain hardening materials, both residual stress and the stress history should be considered for the simulation of the pipe behavior. The surrounding soil appears not to contribute to the capacity of the pipes under the loading conditions investigated.