A series of piping branch junctions has been manufactured by computer numeric control (CNC) machining, fully instrumented and subjected to in-plane bending or internal pressure tests. For some of the junctions, crack-like defects have been introduced at strategic locations. All data recorded during the loading of the branch junctions have been used in an attempt to establish an acceptable plastic load for each junction using the twice-elastic slope method. Measured plastic loads and maximum experimental loads achieved are compared with finite element (FE) predictions of limit loads.
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