In leak before break (LBB) analysis, applied moment at the position of a postulated crack is a key parameter. The current procedures of LBB analysis use the value of design basis loads that are calculated with the assumption that the pipe does not contain a crack and follows the linear elastic behavior. Therefore, this can lead to conservative results of LBB evaluation compared with the case that considers the effect of plastic behavior of cracked pipe on the calculation of the applied moment at the cracked section [2].
This paper aims to quantitatively investigate the conservatism of the existing LBB analysis in terms of the applied moment at the cracked section. The calculation results using the current procedures with linear elastic pipe model without a crack were compared with the results from the cracked pipe analysis. To consider nonlinearity of crack behavior and pipe material, the time history analysis methods that were verified using the simulated seismic pipe system experiment in the IPIRG-2 program were employed.
The comparison results indicated that the applied moment at the cracked section decreases when the effect of crack and nonlinear behavior are considered in the analysis. Therefore, the current procedures of LBB analysis are significantly conservative compared with the elastic-plastic time history analysis. Base on this detailed analysis, the additional safety margin can be secured in the LBB analysis.
