T-stress solutions for through-wall circumferential cracks in straight pipes under bending

•Closed form solutions presented for T-stress in circumferentially through-thickness cracked pipes.•Finite element modelling procedure calibrated on three-point-bend specimen for which T-stress solution is known.•Simulation strategy developed on specimen geometry was applied for pipe modelling.•Pipe T-stress from 3D finite element model compared with literature solution based on shell elements.

This paper reports the results of an extensive series of finite element calculations to provide normalised T-stress solutions for through-wall cracked pipes under bending for a range of crack sizes and pipe radius to wall thickness ratios. Comparisons with the limited solutions in the literature are used to give confidence in the numerical solutions obtained, which are shown to be sensitive to mesh refinement. The results are provided in a form that is suitable for use in practical constraint based defect assessment approaches.