Fatigue crack propagation in steel A131 under ice loading of crushing, bending and buckling

Three types of ice loading, which are most commonly present when ice acts on structures, are chosen and simulated for use of fatigue crack propagation tests on offshore structural steel A131. The three types of ice categorized in accordance with the failure modes when acting on structures called Crushing ice, bending ice, and buckling ice, respectively. This paper presents an experimental investigation on the fatigue crack propagation behavior of widely used high strength steel A131 for offshore jackets in the loading environment of ice crushing, bending, and buckling. The test results of fatigue crack propagation in steel A131 tinder these simulated ice loading at temperature 292K are presented and analyzed in detail in this paper, The amplitude root mean square stress intensity factor is optimized to be the fundamental parameter of fatigue crack propagation for all types of ice loading histories. The results are also compared with constant amplitude fatigue crack propagation conclusions as in wave load mode, and a joint investigation on the results from ice forces, ice-induced vibrations, and ice-induced fatigue crack propagation is conducted. Conclusions are drawn for reference in structural design and material selection for offshore structures in ice environments.