Contains papers from an August 1999 conference on fracture mechanics analysis, design and analysis of piping and components, fitness for service and life evaluation, and design analysis of pressure vessels, heat exchangers, and components. Specific areas of investigation include prediction of creep

The aim of this major reference work is to provide a first point of entry to the literature for the researchers in any field relating to structural integrity in the form of a definitive research/reference tool which links the various sub-disciplines that comprise the whole of structural integrity. Special emphasis will be given to the interaction between mechanics and materials and structural integrity applications. Because of the interdisciplinary and applied nature of the work, it will be of interest to mechanical engineers and materials scientists from both academic and industrial backgrounds including bioengineering, interface engineering and nanotechnology. The scope of this work encompasses, but is not restricted to: fracture mechanics, fatigue, creep, materials, dynamics, environmental degradation, numerical methods, failure mechanisms and damage mechanics, interfacial fracture and nano-technology, structural analysis, surface behaviour and heart valves. The structures under consideration include: pressure vessels and piping, off-shore structures, gas installations and pipelines, chemical plants, aircraft, railways, bridges, plates and shells, electronic circuits, interfaces, nanotechnology, artificial organs, biomaterial prostheses, cast structures, mining... and more. Case studies will form an integral part of the work.

As fatigue and fracture mechanics approaches are used more often for determining the useful life and/or inspection intervals for complex structures, realization sets-in that all factors are not well known or characterized. Indeed, inherent scatter exists in initial material quality and in material performance. Furthermore, projections of component usage in determination of applied stresses are inexact at best and are subject to much discrepancy between projected and actual usage. Even the models for predicting life contain inherent sources of error based on assumptions and/or empirically fitted parameters. All of these factors need to be accounted for to determine a distribution of potential lives based on combination of the aforementioned variables, as well as other factors. The purpose of this symposium was to create a forum for assessment of the state-of-the-art in incorporating these uncertainties and inherent scatter into systematic probabilistic methods for conducting life assessment.

Pressure vessels, heat exchangers and components -- Piping and components -- Limit load analysis -- Fatique and fracture -- Fitness for service, life extension, remediation and repair -- Student papers.