Experimentally calibrated finite element fatigue reliability assessment of an offshore platform in the Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf as one of the regions with a large number of gas and oil reservoirs hosts a considerable number of fixed offshore platforms. Corrosion and fatigue are among the main reasons for damages to these structures. Despite the importance of these structures, little is known about their fatigue reliability in this region. In this paper, we use a scaled-prototype to verify a finite element model used for the reliability assessment of this structure. Historical wave height and period data as well as data from corrosion measurements performed in this region are used to model the fatigue reliability of this platform. Fatigue reliability of this structure is assessed by first-order reliability method results of which are verified by Monte Carlo and importance sampling methods. We studied the effect of corrosion, wave height, and depth of water in the Persian Gulf on the fatigue reliability of this structure. Reliability assessment is carried out in different locations for different ages of the structure.