KTH Solid Mechanics

SE1025 FEM for engineering applications

Computer Workshop 2
FEM for engineering applications 2014 (Sept.-Oct.)

General information
The workshop should be carried out in groups of two or three students. The results should be
presented to the assistant before leaving the workshop. During the workshop, one thermo
mechanical problem and one mechanical problem will be analysed. In both cases, the finite
element code ANSYS will be used.

Problem 1
A thermo elastic analysis will be carried out in two steps. In the first step, a stationary heat
transfer problem will be analysed and in the second step, a stress analysis will be carried out
based on the resulting temperature distribution from step one and an applied internal pressure.
The geometry consists of a fin mounted on a pipe of stainless steel. Through the pipe, hot
water is flowing which then is cooled down by the fin. Heat flow will take place both through
heat conduction within the structure and across its boundaries though convection. A full 3Danalysis will be carried out. In figure 1, an example of a heat cooling system is shown, here
from a computer. Material and geometric data can be found in figures 2-4.

Figure 1. Heat cooling device in a computer.

KTH Solid Mechanics

Water

SE1025 FEM for engineering applications

Pipe

Data:

Fin

Water temperature: Tv = 90C

Air temperature: Tl = 20C
Elastic modulus: E = 200 GPa
Poissons ratio: = 0.3
Thermal expansion: = 1.8 10-5 1/C
Thermal conductivity: k = 20 W/m/C
Internal pressure: p = 200 103 Pa
Convection coefficients:
Steel-Water: hsv = 500 W/m2/C
Steel-Air: hsl = 5 W/m2/C

Air

Figure 2. The entire geometry. Make use of

symmetry of the geometry and model only 1/8.
W = 100

[mm]

W = 100

Ri = 20
Ry = 25

Figure 3. Top view of 1/8 of the fin and pipe.

KTH Solid Mechanics

SE1025 FEM for engineering applications

h = 50

t=5
Figure 4. Side view of 1/8 of the fin and pipe.

Question
Before you solve the thermo mechanical problem where, in your opinion, should the
maximum stress be located? Are the stress levels reasonable?

KTH Solid Mechanics

SE1025 FEM for engineering applications

Problem 2
This problem consists of a pressure vessel with an internal pressure. The geometry is shown
in the figure below. You should utilize axial symmetry and use 2D-axisymmetric elements
when modelling the pressure vessel. The material is stainless steel and material data can be
taken from Problem 1.
[m]

t = 0.01
r
z
p = 5 MPa

D = 0.5

L =2

Calculate the principal stresses according to the approximation of a thin walled pipe and
compare with corresponding results from the FE-simulation.

r = 0
p rm
t
p rm
z =
,
2t

rm =

(D t )
2

average radius