Bolting Reliability for
Offshore Oil and
Natural Gas Operations
PROCEEDINGS OF A WORKSHOP
Anne Frances Johnson, Rapporteur
National Materials and Manufacturing Board
Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences
National Academy of Engineering
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
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This activity was supported by Contract No. 10003191 with the Department of the Interior. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-46547-2
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-46547-8
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/24896
Cover page: The cover depicts a bolted pipe flange obscured by shadows, moving light, and flickering—making it hard to gauge. Graphic artist: Erik Svedberg.
Copyright 2018 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. Bolting Reliability for Offshore Oil and Natural Gas Operations: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: https://doi.org/10.17226/24896.
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COMMITTEE ON CONNECTOR RELIABILITY FOR OFFSHORE OIL AND NATURAL GAS OPERATIONS
ROBERT SCHAFRIK, NAE,1 GE Aviation (retired), Chair
ROBERT POHANKA, National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (retired), Vice Chair
CLYDE BRIANT, NAE, Brown University
BILL CAPDEVIELLE, Consultant
HOMERO CASTANEDA-LOPEZ, Texas A&M University
NANCY J. COOKE, Arizona State University
THOMAS W. EAGAR, NAE, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
BRUN L. HILBERT, Exponent
DEREK J. HORTON, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory
DAVID W. JOHNSON, JR., NAE, Stevens Institute of Technology
DAVID K. MATLOCK, NAE, Colorado School of Mines
JYOTIRMOY MAZUMDER, NAE, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
ROGER L. McCARTHY, NAE, McCarthy Engineering
JOHN R. SCULLY, University of Virginia
POL D. SPANOS, NAE, Rice University
NEIL G. THOMPSON, Det Norske Veritas (DNV GL)
Staff
ERIK SVEDBERG, Senior Program Officer, Study Director
JAMES LANCASTER, Director, National Materials and Manufacturing Board
NEERAJ P. GORKHALY, Associate Program Officer
HEATHER LOZOWSKI, Financial Associate
JOSEPH PALMER, Senior Project Assistant
HENRY KO, Research Assistant
Consultant
ANNE FRANCES JOHNSON, Rapporteur
___________________
1 Member, National Academy of Engineering.
NATIONAL MATERIALS AND MANUFACTURING BOARD
CELIA MERZBACHER, Semiconductor Research Corporation, Chair
RODNEY C. ADKINS, NAE,1 IBM Corporate Strategy (retired)
MICHAEL I. BASKES, NAE, Bagley College of Engineering
JIM C.I. CHANG, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan
MALCOLM CHISHOLM, NAS,2 Ohio State University
LEO CHRISTODOULOU, Boeing, Inc.
JACK HU, NAE, University of Michigan
SANDRA L. HYLAND, Consultant
MICHAEL F. McGRATH, McGrath Analytics, LLC
ROBERT MILLER, IBM Almaden Research Center
EDWARD MORRIS, National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining; America Makes: The National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute
NICHOLAS A. PEPPAS, NAE/NAM,3 University of Texas, Austin
F. STAN SETTLES, University of Southern California
HAYDN WADLEY, University of Virginia
BEN WANG, Georgia Institute of Technology
STEVE ZINKLE, NAE, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Staff
JAMES LANCASTER, Director
ERIK SVEDBERG, Senior Program Officer
NEERAJ P. GORKHALY, Associate Program Officer
HEATHER LOZOWSKI, Financial Associate
JOSEPH PALMER, Senior Project Assistant
HENRY KO, Research Assistant
___________________
1 Member, National Academy of Engineering.
2 Member, National Academy of Sciences.
3 Member, National Academy of Medicine.
Acknowledgment of Reviewers
This Proceedings of a Workshop was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published proceedings as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this proceedings:
David Cain, Lloyd’s Register Group Limited,
John Hoefler, Lloyd’s Register Group Limited,
William Johnson, NAS1/NAE,2 California Institute of Technology, and
James Pettigrew, Texas A&M University.
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the content of the proceedings nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this proceedings was overseen by Aziz I. Asphahani, QuesTek Innovations, LLC. He was responsible for
___________________
1 Member, National Academy of Sciences.
2 Member, National Academy of Engineering.
making certain that an independent examination of this proceedings was carried out in accordance with standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the rapporteur and the National Academies.
Contents
Opening Remarks from the National Academy of Engineering
Opening Remarks from the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement
2 PANEL 1: SUBSEA FASTENER DESIGN REQUIREMENTS
High-Strength Bolting versus Subsea Service Conditions
Bolt Design for High-Powered Ship Propellers
Panel 1 Discussion: Subsea Fastener Design Requirements
3 PANEL 2: SUBSEA FASTENER DESIGN QUALITY
Hydrogen Embrittlement and High-Strength Steel Fasteners
Subsea Bolt Manufacturing and Processing Variables
4 PANEL 3: SUBSEA FASTENER IN-SERVICE PERFORMANCE
A Historical View of Subsea Bolting
Bolt Manufacturing: A Look at Critical Operations
A Deepwater Drilling Contractor’s Perspective
Panel 3 Discussion: Subsea Fastener In-Service Performance
5 PANEL 4: STANDARDS AND REGULATIONS
Insights from the Aviation Industry: Quality Oversight of Critical Titanium Engine Components
FAA Regulatory Requirements Promote Quality Products for Aviation Safety