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AN EFFECTIVE EXTERNAL REINFORCEMENT SCHEME

FOR CIRCULAR HOLLOW SECTION JOINTS


Y. S. Choo, National University of Singapore, Singapore
J. X. Liang, National University of Singapore, Singapore
G. J. van der Vegte, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands
ABSTRACT
This paper presents an effective external reinforcement scheme for
circular hollow section joints. The collar plate reinforcement is a scheme
which may be applied to newly fabricated or existing joints which are
found to be under-strength. The paper first introduces the structural
scheme and then presents results of extensive numerical studies on the
static strength of circular hollow section (CHS) joints reinforced with a
collar plate. The results show that significant strength enhancement of
the reinforced joints can be achieved through proper proportioning of the
reinforcement plate.
INTRODUCTION
This paper presents an external reinforcement scheme, termed a collar, for strengthening
circular hollow section (CHS) joints. Choo et al. (1) first investigated plate reinforcement
schemes which may be used for field installation of auxiliary structures for offshore
structures. The collar plate may be suitable to provide reinforcement to a pre-fabricated joint
that is found to be under-designed. This concept may also find potential applications for
reinforcing joints in older offshore platforms and large span structures.
Fig. 1 illustrates the schematic arrangement for the collar reinforcement for a X-joint which
may be found to be under-strength. In the figure, the collar plate reinforcement, assumed to
be square in this case, is shown to be placed outside the foot-print of the brace-chord
intersection, with thickness tc and length lc. The usual notations for the outside diameter and
wall thickness of the brace (d1 and t1) and chord (d0 and t0), and associated geometric ratios
are also indicated. The details 1 and 2, with additional weld shown hatched in Fig. 1, are
indicative welding arrangement to connect the collar plate to the brace and chord. The
edges of collar plate can be profiled to accommodate the existing full penetration weld at the
brace-chord intersection.
For the externally placed collar reinforcement plate which may be bent to be compatible with
the chord curvature, Fig. 2 shows three possible schemes: 4 parts, 2 parts (parallel) and 2
parts (perpendicular). For the 4 part scheme, for example, the solid lines indicated in Fig. 2
denote the lines of weld connecting the collar plate to the brace and chord. Indicative weld
details shown in Fig. 1 (details 1 and 2) can be sized appropriately for the design
requirements. For a joint loaded predominantly by in-plane bending, the 2 parts (parallel)
arrangement may be an option if the welding requirement needs to be minimized. For a joint
loaded predominantly by brace axial load or out-of-plane bending, the 2 parts
(perpendicular) arrangement may be considered. For collar plates with large lc/d1 ratio,
additional slot welds may be placed within the boundaries to provide supplementary ties
between the collar plate and the chord.

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423

d1

t0

d1
t1
lc

tc

t1

= 2l0/d0 = t1/t0
= d1/d0 c = tc/t0
lc/d1
2 = d0/t0

lc

1
2

d0

d0

chord

collar
plate

brace

Detail 1

Detail 2

Figure 1. Collar plate reinforced CHS X-joint.


C
A

4 parts

2 parts (parallel)

2 parts (perpendicular)

Figure 2. Arrangement of collar plate parts.


This paper presents results of numerical studies on the behaviour of CHS T- and X-joints
with collar plate reinforcement. The accuracy of the numerical results is verified against the
T-joint tests reported by Choo et al. (1, 2). The results show that significant strength
enhancement for collar reinforced joints can be achieved through proper proportioning of the
reinforcement plate. Selected plots are presented to demonstrate the strength enhancement
of X-joints under brace axial compression, in-plane and out-of-plane moments.
COMPARISON WITH REFERENCE TEST RESULTS
Reference information on T-joint Tests
Choo et al. (1) presented results from an experimental programme investigating the strength
enhancement to a simple T-joint by provision of reinforcement around the intersection
region, in the form of a doubler plate or a collar plate. The experimental programme
consisted of eight tests with brace axial load with four pairs of tests, each pair with brace
compression and tension. The chord length was chosen such that joint failure occurred prior
to chord member failure, with particular reference to recommendations by Zettlemoyer (3).

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Detailed investigations into the behaviour of the test specimens and strength enhancement
offered by the doubler and collar reinforcement for T-joints, are presented by Choo et al. (2)
and van der Vegte et al. (4).
In this paper, the experimental result for the collar reinforced T-joint specimen EX-03 and the
calibration of the nonlinear finite element model are provided for illustration. Details can be
referenced in our papers (2, 4).
Mesh densities and element type
For a particular joint subjected to given loading, an analyst can consider the appropriate
symmetry in geometry, loading and boundary conditions to determine the finite element (FE)
model for analysis. For a X-joint subjected to brace axial load, only one-eighth of the joint
modelled (as shown in Fig. 3) with appropriate symmetry conditions and load specification is
required. For each FE model, more refined mesh is generated where stress gradient is more
critical. The automatic mesh generator for reinforced joints in this study is an extension of
that presented by Qian et al. (5).
Y

Figure 3. FE model for one eighth of a collar plate reinforced CHS X-joint
2 = 50.8, = 0.64, lc/d1 = 1.50 and c = 1.0.
For the present FE models, two layers of 20-noded solid elements, type C3D20R with
reduced integration in ABAQUS (6), are specified through the thickness of all members to
provide good description of possible non-linearity in the thickness direction. Depending on
the actual joint geometry, 500 to 1000 elements are created to represent one-eighth of a
whole joint. Such mesh density has been proven to be able to produce results with good
accuracy (7).
Weld geometries
As three-dimensional solid elements are used in the FE models, it is possible to simulate the
weld geometries with high accuracy. The actual geometric definition of the welds is included
in all FE models. The geometry of the penetration weld between the brace and the chord is
modelled following the American Welding Society (8) recommendations. The depth of the
fillet welds between the reinforcing plate and the chord surface is taken the same as the
thickness of the plate, with two layers of finite elements specified. The welds connecting the
collar plate and chord (along the chord circumferential or longitudinal directions) are not
explicitly modeled. These are reflected in the FE model by specifying the appropriate
spatially common nodes to be tied.

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425

Geometric and material specifications


The geometrical non-linearity is included to predict possible buckling in the chord wall
through the NLGEOM parameter in the *STEP option in ABAQUS input file. The material
nonlinearity is specified using the true stress and associated logarithmic strain to define the
plasticity with isotropic hardening (6).
Contact interaction
When a collar plate reinforced joint is loaded, contact may occur between the bottom of the
collar parts and the chord outer surface. The contact interaction plays an important role in
the load transferring mechanism of plate reinforced joints and thus non-linear contact
analysis is required. Since both of the reinforcing plate and the chord wall are deformable
bodies, a deformable-deformable contact interaction was defined using a master-slave
algorithm in the numerical analysis (6).
Comparison between test and FE results
Fig. 4a shows the cut-section of the collar-reinforced Specimen EX-03 after completion of
the test. It can be observed that the collar reinforcement has relocated the chord plastic
hinges away from the brace-chord intersection, and that the brace has deformed extensively
adjacent to the intersection. Fig. 4b shows the deformed shape predicted by the nonlinear
FE analysis, and very good agreement with the experimental result is observed.

Figure 4. Comparison between test and FE results, (a) Cut-section of EX-03 after test, and
(b) FE prediction.
The load-ovalisation curves (in which ovalisation at particular load level is based on the
change in diameter of the chord section) for Specimen EX-03 are shown in Fig. 5. The
numerical prediction is found to correspond very closely with the experimental curve, and
this serves to verify the accuracy of the numerical method.
Programme set-up
Parametric studies to investigate the static strength of collar plate reinforced X-joints have
been conducted by the authors. The chord diameter of all joints was taken as do=508 mm,
with varying from 0.25 to 0.80 (= 0.25, 0.43, 0.64 and 0.80), = 12, and 2= 31.8 and
50.8. The brace-to-chord thickness ratio =1.0, and the brace length was kept at 4d1. The
thickness of the reinforcing plate was assumed equal or larger than the chord wall thickness
t0. For each combination of 2 and ratios, three values of plate thickness parameter
(c=1.00, 1.25 and 1.60) and five values of plate length parameter (lc /d1=1.25, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5
and 3.0) have been considered. The corresponding un-reinforced joints were also included
to provide the appropriate reference strength. A total of 8 un-reinforced joints and 120 collar

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reinforced joints were analyzed, with each joint subjected to brace axial compression, inplane moment or out-of-plane moment separately.
The un-bent collar plate was assumed to be square in shape, except for large cases,
where the plate width exceeded half the perimeter of the chord section, and for this case, the
plate width was limited to half the chord perimeter with welds along its edges.
In the following sections, selected results shown for the various loading conditions are
focussed on joints with 2 = 50.8 and = 0.25 and 0.64.
=0.54, 2=50.6, Collar, Compression

Experimental
Numerical
500

Load [kN]

400

300

200

100

0
0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Ovalisation [mm]

Figure 5. Experimental and numerical load-ovalisation curves for EX-03.


STRENGTH OF REINFORCED X-JOINT UNDER AXIAL COMPRESSION
Failure mechanisms and load-indentation curves
Fig. 6a to 6b show the deformed shapes of two collar reinforced X-joints subjected to axial
brace compression. Due to the weld at the brace-chord intersection, and the collar-chord
segments along the longitudinal (crown) and circumferential (saddle) segments, the collar
plate is effective in stiffening the chord and enhancing the load transfer from the brace.
= 0.25
= 1.00
lc = 2.00d1
c = 1.00

= 0.64
= 1.00
lc = 2.00d1
c = 1.00

Figure 6. Deformed shapes of collar reinforced X-joints with lc=2.0d1 and 2=50.8 with
(a) = 0.25, (b) = 0.64.

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In Fig. 7a and 7b, the non-dimensionalised loads F/fy0t02 for the joint with = 0.25 and 0.64
and plate sizes lc=1.25d1 to 2.5d1 are plotted against the displacement /d0, where is the
indentation of the chord wall at the crown position. It can be seen that significant strength
enhancement is achievable for plate reinforced joints. For a joint with = 0.64 and lc=2.5d1,
a jump in joint strength can be observed when the collar plate width reaches half of the
chord section perimeter due to a more direct and effective load transfer mechanism through
the welds.
Unreinforced joint
lc/d1=1.25
lc/d1=1.50
lc/d1=2.00
lc/d1=2.50

Unreinforced joint
lc/d1=1.25
lc/d1=1.50
lc/d1=2.00
lc/d1=2.50

=12.0
2=50.8
c=1.00
=0.25

=12.0
2=50.8
c=1.00
=0.64

40

15

30

F/fy0*t02

F/fy0*t02

10
20

5
10

0
0.00

0.02

0.04

/d0

0.06

0.08

0
0.00

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

/d0

Figure 7. Normalised load-indentation curves for collar reinforced X-joints with different plate
width to brace diameter ratios (a) = 0.25 (b) = 0.64.
The deformation limit proposed by Yura et al. (9), which is defined as 60fyd1/E, is adopted to
determine the ultimate strength of a joint without a pronounced peak value in the loaddisplacement curve. It is noted that the collar plate reinforcement can provide substantial
strength enhancement to the joint.
Effects of c and lc /d1
Fig. 8a and 8b present the strength enhancement due to provision of collar plate for joints
with 2=50.8 and =0.25 and 0.64, with the corresponding un-reinforced joint strength as
reference strength. Each of the strength ratios is plotted against the plate parameters c and
lc/d1 in a three-dimensional diagram for each . As noted in Fig. 8b, the reinforced joint
strength, obtained by the provision of an appropriately dimensioned collar plate, can be up to
3 times of the strength of an un-reinforced joint. The strength of a collar plate reinforced joint
may be improved either by increasing the collar plate length or by using a thicker plate. For
joints with small values of lc/d1, the effect of the plate thickness is insignificant. The effect of
plate thickness becomes more important as the collar plate length increases.
BEHAVIOUR OF REINFORCED X-JOINTS UNDER IN-PLANE BENDING
In this section, the failure mechanisms for un-reinforced and collar reinforced X-joints under
in-plane bending are presented to highlight the differences. The geometric parameters of the
joints considered are 2 = 50.8 and = 0.25 and 0.64. More details are reported by Choo et
al. (10).

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2=50.8

=0.25

2.2

3.5

2.0

3.0

1.0
1.0

2.0
1.2

1.4

1.6

1.5
1.25

2.0

3.0
2.5

1.5
1.0
1.0

2.0
1.2

1.4

1.6

1.5
1.25

1.2

2.5

3.0
2.5

1.4

Fu,c /Fu,u

1.6

lc /d

Fu,c /Fu,u

1.8

=0.64

ld /d

2=50.8

Figure 8. The effects of d and ld/d1 on the strength of axially loaded collar plate reinforced
X-joints with 2 = 50.8 (a) = 0.25 (b) = 0.64.
Failure mechanisms
Fig. 9a and 9d show the deformed shapes of collar plate reinforced joints with different
combination of and lc/d1. The collar plate reinforced joint is observed to fail with relatively
large plastic zones formed near the brace-chord intersection. Because of the welds between
the collar plate parts and the chord surface parallel to the chord axis, the collar plate acts
closely with the chord wall on both compressive and tensile sides.
For joints with short collar plates (Fig. 9a and 9c), plastic hinges are observed near the
welds between the collar plate and the chord. The strength enhancement due to the short
collar plate may be regarded as an equivalent increase in . No obvious plastic hinge is
found for a joint with long collar plates (Fig. 9b and 9d).

= 0.25
lc = 1.25d1

= 0.25
lc = 2.00d1

= 0.64
lc = 1.25d1

= 0.64
lc = 2.00d1

Figure 9. Deformed shapes of collar plate reinforced X-joints under in-plane bending.

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429

Effects of c and lc /d1


Fig. 10a and 10b present the strength enhancement due to provision of collar plate for joints
with 2=50.8 and =0.25 and 0.64. As noted in Fig. 10b, the reinforced joint strength,
obtained by the provision of an appropriately dimensioned collar plate can be up to 2.8 times
of the strength of an un-reinforced joint. For joints with small values of lc/d1, the effect of the
plate thickness is insignificant. The effect of plate thickness becomes more important as the
collar plate length increases and more deformation of the collar plate takes place.

2=50.8

2=50.8

=0.25

3.0

3.0

2.0
1.2

1.4

1.6

1.5
1.25

2.0
3.0
2.5

1.5
1.0
1.0

2.0
1.2

1.4

1.6

1.5
1.25

1.5

3.0
2.5

ld /d

2.0

Mi,u,c /Mi,u,u

2.5

lc/d

Mi,u,c /Mi,u,u

2.5

1.0
1.0

=0.64

Figure 10. The effects of c and lc /d1 on the strength of collar plate reinforced X-joints under
IPB with 2 = 50.8 (a) = 0.25 (b) = 0.64.
STRENGTH OF REINFORCED X-JOINTS UNDER OUT-OF-PLANE BENDING
Failure mechanisms
Fig. 11a and 11b show the deformed shapes of collar plate reinforced joints loaded by outof- plane bending. It can be observed that the weld connecting the collar plate to the chord,
from the saddle positions along the chord circumferential direction is effective in transferring
the brace moment.

Figure 11. Deformed shapes of collar plate reinforced X-joints under out-of-plane bending
with 2 = 50.8 (a) = 0.25 (b) = 0.64.

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Effects of c and lc /d1


Fig. 12a and 12b show the potential strength enhancement for collar plate reinforced Xjoints. It can be seen that the strength ratio of the reinforced joint to the corresponding unreinforced joint varies from 1.6 to 3.6. The plate thickness parameter c and length parameter
lc /d1 have significant effects on the strength of the reinforced joints for cases with large lc/d1
ratios. Equivalent strength enhancement can be obtained by either increasing the plate
length or by using a thicker collar plate.

2=50.8

2=50.8

=0.25

2.0
1.2

1.4

1.6

1.5
1.25

3.0
2.5

2.0
1.0
1.0

2.0
1.2

1.4

1.6

1.5
1.25

1.0
1.0

3.0
2.5

2.0

3.0

ld /d

3.0

Mo,u,c /Mo,u,u

4.0

lc/d

Mo,u,c /Mo,u,u

4.0

=0.64

Figure 12. The effect of d and ld/d1 on the strength of collar plate reinforced X-joints under
OPB with 2 = 50.8 (a) = 0.25 (b) = 0.64.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
Extensive numerical studies have been conducted to evaluate the behaviour of circular
hollow section (CHS) X-joint reinforced with a collar plate, subjected to axial brace
compression, in-plane bending or out-of-plane bending respectively. From the presented
results of un-reinforced and collar plate reinforced CHS T- and X-joints, the following may be
concluded:
1. The collar plate is an effective reinforcement scheme, and can improve the static strength
of CHS T- and X-joints considerably.
2. Each of the parameters: the brace-to-chord diameter ratio , the plate-to-chord wall
thickness ratio c, and the plate length-to-brace diameter ratio lc/d1 have significant
influence on the strength of collar plate reinforced joints.
3. For a reinforced joint with fixed brace and chord dimensions, equivalent strength
enhancement can be obtained by either appropriately increasing the plate length or using
a thicker reinforcement plate.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
Based on the present studies, the following are possible recommendations for future
research on the collar plate reinforced joints:
1. Since only part of the geometric parameters and loading conditions have been covered in
the current study, more extensive parametric studies will provide a comprehensive
understanding of collar plate reinforced joints.

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431

2. Fatigue analyses of collar plate reinforced joints are proposed. The current study
concentrated on the static strength of plate reinforced joints. It is important to investigate
the behavior of plate reinforced joints under fatigue loading.
3. Experimental investigations on plate reinforced joints subjected to different loading cases
will provide reliable reference results for parametric numerical investigation. Due to lack of
experimental data on plate reinforced joints, this study used available test results on
reinforced T-joints and published numerical results to verify the numerical methods.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors wish to record their appreciation to Dr Nick Zettlemoyer of ExxonMobil
Upstream Research (USA) for initiating the research on reinforced joints in the National
University of Singapore. They like to thank Professor Jaap Wardenier in Delft University of
Technology and Professor Richard Liew in National University of Singapore for their
contributions towards the studies.
REFERENCES
1. Choo, Y.S., B.H. Li, G.J. van der Vegte, N. Zettlemoyer & J.Y.R. Liew (1998). Static
strength of T-joints reinforced with doubler plate or collar plate. Tubular Structures VIII:
Proceedings Eighth International Symposium on Tubular Structures, Singapore, pp. 139145.
2. Choo, Y.S., G.J. van der Vegte, B.H. Li, N. Zettlemoyer & J.Y.R. Liew (2005). Static
strength of T-joints reinforced with doubler or collar plates - Part I: Experimental
investigations. Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 131, No. 1, pp. 119-128.
3. Zettlemoyer, N. (1988). Developments in ultimate strength technology for simple tubular
joints. Proc. Offshore Tubular Joints Conference (OTJ88), Surrey, UK.
4. van der Vegte, G.J., Y.S. Choo, J.X. Liang, N. Zettlemoyer and J.Y.R.Liew (2004). Static
strength of T-joints reinforced with doubler or collar plates - Part II: Numerical
simulations. Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE (accepted for publication).
5. Qian X.D., Romeijn A., Wardenier J. and Choo Y.S. (2002). An automatic FE mesh
generator for CHS tubular joints. Proc. 12th International Offshore and Polar Engineering
Conference. Kita-Kyushu, Japan.
6. Abaqus/Standard Users Manual Version 6.2 (2001). Hibbitt, Karlsson and Sorensen
Inc., Rhode Island, USA.
7. van der Vegte, G.J. (1995). The static strength of uniplanar and multiplanar tubular Tand X-joints. PhD thesis. Delft University Press.
8. A.W.S. (1996). Structural Welding Code, AWS D1.1-96. American Welding Society Inc.,
Miami, USA.
9. Yura, J.A., N. Zettlemoyer & I.F. Edwards (1980). Ultimate capacity equations for tubular
joints. Proc. Offshore Technology Conference, Paper OTC 3690, Houston, U.S.A.
10. Choo Y.S., Liang J.X., van der Vegte G.J., Liew J.Y.R. (2004). Static strength of collar
plate reinforced CHS X-joints loaded by in-plane bending. Journal of Constructional
Steel Research, Vol. 60, No. 12, pp. 1745-1760.

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