Local joint flexibility element for offshore plateforms structures

A large number of offshore platforms of various types have been installed in deep or shallow waters throughout the world. These structures are mainly made of tubular members which are interconnected by using tubular joints. In tubular frames, joints may exhibit considerable flexibility in both elastic and plastic range of response. The resulting flexibility may have marked effects on the overall behavior of offshore platforms. This paper investigates the effects of joint flexibility on local and global behavior of tubular framed structures in linear range of response. A new joint flexibility element is developed on the basis of flexibility matrix and implemented in a finite-element program to account for local joint flexibility effects in analytical models of tubular framed structures. The element formulation is considerably easy and straightforward in comparison with other existing tubular joint elements. It was concluded that developed flexible joint model produces accurate results comparing to sophisticated multi-axial finite element joint models. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.