Stress analysis of adhesively bonded sandwich pipe joints subjected to torsional loading

Composite pipes are becoming popular in the offshore oil and gas industry. These pipes are connected to one-another by various configurations of joints. The joints are usually the weakest link in the system. In this investigation we examine the response of various joint configurations subjected to torsion, one of the most common loading conditions in piping systems. Specifically, the theoretical analysis used to evaluate the stress field in the adhesive layers of tubular and socket type bonded sandwich lap joints is presented here. The two adherends of the joints may have different thickness and materials, and the adhesive layer may be flexible or brittle. The analysis is based on the general composite shell theory. The stress concentrations at and near the end of the joints as functions of various parameters, such as the overlap length, and thickness of the adhesive layer are studied. The effects of different adherend thickness ratios, adhesive thickness and overlap length are also studied. Results obtained from the proposed analytical solutions agree well with the results obtained from finite element analysis and those obtained by other workers.