Respected forum members,

Any suggestions for modeling finned pipes in CAESAR II?

pipe - 4" sch 80S; circumferential fins; 5 fins/inch; 19 mm height (from od of pipe); 1.2 mm thick fins.

Regards

What I can think of is used a thicker version of the pipe so that the section modulus of the two i.e. the modified pipe and the pipe with fins are equal. Another way, I can think of is to ( at least for large diameter pipes )model rigid elements on the OD of the pipe for which you also need to model rigid elements from the pipe centerline to the OD.

I would any day prefer to go by option 1.

Regards

I woud model the fins as insulation. They provide no structural strength (although help with hoop stress). Just treat it as insulation of thickness equal to the height of the fin and density = material density * fin thickness / fin spacing.

Interesting question. Craig makes a valid point that the fins offer no structural strength which rather negates Anindya's option 1. I'd opt then for Anindya's second proposal: Very short-length rigids would add appropriate weight to the system with no adverse affect on structural integrity. And CAESAR II's duplication properties could be used to quickly model each section. Result: An easy-to-constuct and reasonably accurate model.

Regards,