Q: I have several piping analysis under way for air-cooler inlet and outlet piping systems.

I have tried all sorts

of configurations to try and model in the most realistic way the connections between piping and the air-coolers
and the restraints, but I have yet to come up with something that gives me realistic results (compliant to API
661 or not).

If someone knows how to model air-cooler piping systems successfully, some help would be greatly
appreciated.

A: In the Applications Guide, you'll find several examples of modeling vessels and nozzles.   You model exactly
the same way for any sort of "non-rigid" item.  Remember, CAESAR II uses ONLY the "3D Beam Element",
which can be thought of as an "infinitely thin stick".  The "3D Beam Element" does not provide the concept of
"shell", "surface", or "volume".

If your model of the cooler (pretending it is a big pipe) is not sufficiently accurate, get the nozzle stiffnesses
from the vendor, and use this data as "restraint stiffnesses" at the nozzles.   Use a CNODE here so that you can
define the displacements of the nozzle (again acquired from the vendor).