Analysis of the Life Extension of ASTM A-36 Steel Structures Using the Concepts of Fracture

Nowadays, metallic structures have a wide range of applications, being used for the construction of bridges, stadiums, warehouses, oil rigs, airports, silos, deposits, baking among many other applications. In most cases, these types of structures are large-sized and have great efforts, so they are subject to failure. Fracture mechanics is a science where you study the behavior of a certain flaw, the crack. Therefore, the present work aims to analyze the behavior of cracks in steel structures, more specifically on a pedestal of an offshore crane manufactured in Steel ASTM A-36. To accomplish such a feat, mechanical traction tests are required following the norm ASTM A-370, the fracture tenacity test according to the norm British Standard-7448 and the criticism of the cracks with the support of the norm British Standard-7910, with the aim of obtaining the mechanical properties of the material, the tenacity the fracture of the steel and the criticality of the cracks, respectively. The laboratory tests of metallography will be necessary for the characterization of the material. Subsequently, through the calculations and analysis of the data acquired by the tests, the behavior of three types of cracks will be determined, surface flaw, through-thickness flaw and embedded flaw and how they will interfere in the integrity of the structure. After deliberating the mechanical properties and mechanical efforts suffered by the structure, it will be possible to determine the criticality of the three types of cracks, with the intuition of determining a generalist model for each type of defect aiming at the extension of life useful structure.