Seismic vulnerability analysis of buried polyethylene pipeline based on finite element method

Lifeline engineering plays an important role in the development of human society and economy. A large number of seismic damage events show that the buried polyethylene pipeline is easy to be damaged under the earthquake action, however, the research on the seismic vulnerability of the buried polyethylene pipeline is still lacking. In this paper, the seismic vulnerability of buried polyethylene pipeline is studied based on the finite element method (FEM). The FE model and vulnerability analysis model are established. The establishment of the FE model mainly considers different site categories, soils damping that calculated by the Rayleigh damping theory and the wave pattern and input mode of seismic wave. At the same time, the grid sensitivity analysis and model verification are carried out. The vulnerability model includes the seismic demand model and the seismic capacity model. Based on the previous research, the damage state of the polyethylene pipeline is defined, and the sample combination of pipeline and seismic wave is considered to calculate the vulnerability curve of the pipeline. In all, this study provides a useful idea for the rapid evaluation of the seismic performance of buried polyethylene pipes.