Local joint flexibility element for offshore plateforms structures

This paper investigates the effects of joint flexibility on local and global behavior of tubular framed structures in linear range of response. A new joint flexibility element is developed on the basis of flexibility matrix and implemented in a finite-element program to account for local joint flexibility effects in analytical models of tubular framed structures. The element formulation is considerably easy and straightforward in comparison with other existing tubular joint elements. It was concluded that developed flexible joint model produces accurate results comparing to sophisticated multi-axial finite element joint models.