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In this work, a novel optimization approach is introduced to extract combined hardening parameters from the cyclic stress-strain data obtained from the initial hardening cycles of isothermal, low-cycle fatigue tests. The incremental elastic-limit (IEL) concept is proposed due to the often-undiscernible elastic range of a stabilized stress-strain cycle, that increases the complexity of hardening parameters optimization. The optimization process is implemented by taking an iterative search for the elastic range by a fixed elastic limit increment, and the corresponding hardening parameters are obtained using the nonlinear fitting algorithms in the MATLAB™ Software. An implicit stress-update function is introduced to simulate the cyclic stress and strain with a given set of hardening parameters and yield strength. The fitness of the optimization is calculated based on the least square difference between the experimental and simulated stress-strain data. Furthermore, the IEL concept is incorporated to optimize the cyclic hardening parameters. In the final step, finite element (FE) analysis using the optimized hardening parameters is applied to demonstrate the effectiveness of the IEL approach. The proposed methodology is applied to pressure vessel steels and Ni-based weld metals. 

Abstract Coke drums are critical units in the delayed coking process to produce lightweight oil products from heavy residual oil. The fulfillment of the designed coke drum lifetime is often obstructed by low-cycle fatigue damage over cyclic thermal and mechanical loading. Considering the tremendous cost of drum replacement and production loss due to shutdown, the coke drum lifetime extension is of great economic significance in the oil and gas industry. A research project regarding coke drum fabrication and repair was initiated in the Manufacturing & Materials Joining Innovation Center (MA2JIC) at the Ohio State University in 2016. The project includes two phases of work. The first phase of the study (2016∼2019) focused on the external weld repair of coke drum materials, while the ongoing second phase of the study (2019∼2023) addressed coke drum fabrication and repair. A novel low-cycle fatigue testing approach was developed using Gleeble thermo-mechanical simulator and was applied to evaluating the performance of coke drum base materials and welded joints under cyclic deformation. The project goal is to improve the fundamental understanding of materials and joint performance that allows the optimization of coke drum design, fabrication, and repair. In this technical paper, the key methodologies and achievements of the project will be introduced, and some future work will be proposed for the next step.