Vibration Analysis of Circular Cylindric

VIBRATION ANALYSIS
OF
CIRCULAR CYLINDRICAL LIQUID STORAGE TANKS
USING FINITE ELEMENT TECHNIQUE
A THESIS
SUBMITTED TO THE COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BASRAH
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE
OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN STRUCTURAL
ENGINEERING
By
Abdulamir Atalla Karim
(M.Sc.)
June 2008
Certification
I certify that the thesis titled (Vibration Analysis of Circular

Cylindrical Liquid Storage Tanks Using Finite Element Technique)
which is being submitted by Abdulamir Atalla Karim is prepared
under my supervision at the University of Basrah in partial
fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of
Philosophy in Civil Engineering (Structures).
Signature:
Prof. Nabeel A. Jasim
Date:
In view of the available recommendations, I forward this thesis

for discussion by examining committee.
Signature:
Dr. Ahmad M. Al-Kadhimi
Head of the Department of Civil Engineering
Date:
‫ﺑﺴﻢ ﺍﻪﻠﻟ ﺍﻟﺮﲪﻦ ﺍﻟﺮﺣﻴﻢ‬
‫ﺭ‪‬ﺑﻨ‪‬ﺎ ﺁﺗِﻨ‪‬ﺎ ﻣِﻦ ﻟﱠﺪ‪�‬ﻚ‪ ‬ﺭﺣ‪‬ﻤ‪‬ﺔً ﻭ‪‬ﻫ‪‬ﻴ‪‬ﺊ ﻟَﻨ‪‬ﺎ ﻣِﻦ‪ ‬ﺃَﻣ‪‬ﺮ�َِﺎ ﺭ‪‬ﺷ‪‬ﺪﺍ‬
‫ﺻ‪‬ﺪ‪‬ﻕَ ﺍﻪﻠﻟُ ﺍﻟﻌ‪‬ﻈﻴﻢ‬

‫ﺳﻮﺭﺓ ﺍﻟﻜَﻬﻒ‪ -‬ﺁﻳﺔ )‪(١٠‬‬
Abstract
ABSTRACT
A vibration analysis of circular cylindrical liquid storage tanks is

conducted. Linear theory is adopted and elastic materials are assumed
throughout the study. The effects of variation of various parameters of the
fully anchored ground supported steel tanks, namely; wall thickness, tank
diameter, tank length, base plate thickness, and stiffeners properties on the
mode shapes and natural frequencies are investigated. Various conditions of
the supporting soil ranging from very weak to completely rigid are also
studied. Empty tanks and tanks filled with liquid at various depths are
examined. Different cases of boundary conditions are explored.
The finite element method is used to model the various components

consisting the liquid storage tank system. The wall and the base plate of the
tank are modeled using linear flat shell elements, and space beam elements
are used to model the ring stiffeners. The soil reaction is represented by
Winkler’s model. The contained liquid is represented using the added mass
method. A general purpose finite element program ANSYS 5.4 is used to
conduct the modal analyses. A total of 365 different cases of cylindrical tanks
have been investigated. The mode shapes and natural frequencies for the first
selected modes are determined and discussed.
It is found that for all cases the natural frequency increases as the shell
thickness increases, and decreases as the tank length or diameter increases.
For empty tanks fixed at the base, an increase of about 34 – 43% in the
natural frequency is achieved when the tank wall thickness is doubled.
However, when the tank diameter or length is doubled, a decrease in the
natural frequency of about 26 – 33% and 48 – 52%, respectively, is obtained.
I
Abstract
Within the investigated range, the soil flexibility is found to decrease

the natural frequency by up to 88%. Adding stiffeners can enhance the
natural frequency by up to about 104%. The contained liquid is found to
reduce the values of the natural frequency by 32 – 86% while approximately
has a negligible effect on the circumferential wave number.
Simple formulae are suggested to estimate the natural frequency and

the circumferential wave number for the first mode in terms of tank
dimensions for empty tanks having fixed base. A continuous representation
of the Winkler’s model is suggested. This model is found to strongly
facilitate the modelling procedure and yields results in general agreement
with those obtained by the usual discrete representation. A new proposed
method is developed to predict the shape of liquid surface and to determine
the liquid effects on the tank vibration.
II
Acknowledgement
I am most grateful and highly indebted to my supervisor Dr.

Nabeel Abdulrazzaq Jasim for the considerable assistance offered
continually during the various stages of this work.
Many thanks and appreciations are due to Dr. Salih I. Najim, Dean
of the College of Engineering, and Dr. Ahmad M. Al-Kadhimi, Head
of the Department of Civil Engineering, for their continuous support and
encouragement.
Special thanks are presented to Dr. Ali A. Al-Zeiny for his
cooperation in providing some important references. Thanks are also due
to Dr. Abdulnaser M. Abass and Mr. Hussain A. Hussain for their help
and real support.
Finally, great deal of thanks is dedicated to the members of my
family for their continued encouragement and patience.
Abdulamir Atalla Karim

June 2008
III
IV
Contents
Abstract I
Acknowledgement III
Contents V
List of tables IX
List of figures XV
Notation XIX
Chapter One: Introduction

1.1 General 1
1.2 Vibration analysis of liquid storage tanks 2
1.3 Aim of study 3
1.4 Layout of thesis 4
Chapter Two: Review of Literature

2.1 General 5
2.2 Historical development of vibration analysis 5
2.3 Vibration of shells 6
2.4 Liquid storage tanks 12
2.5 Fluid – structure interaction 15
2.6- Soil – structure interaction 20
2.7 Liquid - soil – structure interaction 21
2.7- Concluding remarks 26
Chapter Three: Free Vibration Analysis

3.1 General 27
3.2 The tank wall 27
V
3.2.1 Thin shell theory 28
3.2.2 Equation of motion 28
3.2.3 Basic assumptions 30
3.2.4 Circular cylindrical shell 31
3.3 Modal analysis 32
3.4 Eigenvalues and eigenvectors 32
3.5 Free vibration of circular cylindrical shells 33
3.6 The base plate 36
3.6.1 Equation of motion 37
3.6.2 Circular plates 37
3.7 The soil-structure interaction 38
3.7.1 Winkler model 39
3.7.2 Continuous representation 39
3.8 The stiffeners 40
3.9 The contained liquid 41
3.9.1 Added mass method 42
3.9.2 New suggested model 43
Chapter Four: Finite Element Formulation

4.1 General 49
4.2 Structural analysis 49
4.3 Finite element method 50
4.4 Strong and weak forms 51
4.5 FE procedure 52
4.5.1 Domain discretization 52
4.5.2 Displacement interpolation 52
4.5.3 Formulation of FE equations 52
4.5.4 Coordinates transformation 53
4.5.5 Assembly of global FE equations 53
VI
4.5.6 Imposition of displacement constraints 54
4.5.7 Solving the FE equations 54
4.6 Finite element equations 54
4.6.1 Minimization of the mechanical energy 54
4.7 Modal analysis using FEM 62
4.8 Solution of Eigenvalue problems 63
4.8.1 Subspace iteration method 63
4.8.2 Frontal solution 65
4.9 Finite element formulation 67
4.9.1 Spring element 67
4.9.2 Beam element 70
4.9.2.1 Plane beam element 70
4.9.2.2 Space frame element 74
4.9.2.3 Element equations in global coordinates 77
4.9.3 Shell element 78
4.9.3.1 Two-dimensional plane stress solid element 79
4.9.3.2 Plate element 89
4.9.3.3 Shell element 95
4.9.3.4 Element matrices in global coordinate system 98
4.9.4 Three dimensional solid element 100
4.9.4.1 Element matrices in global coordinates 106
4.10 ANSYS program 107
4.10.1 FEA using ANSYS 108
Chapter Five: Applications, Results, and Discussion

5.1 General 111
5.2 Case study I: Freely supported shell 112
5.2.1 Effect of wall thickness 113
5.2.2 Effect of shell diameter 115
VII
5.2.3 Effect of shell length 116
5.3 Case study II: Tank fixed at base 117
5.3.1 Parametric study 118
5.3.2 Effect of tank’s relative dimensions 121
5.3.3 Suggested formulae 121
5.4 Case study III: Cylindrical tank hinged at base 122
5.4.1 Effect of base plate thickness 123
5.5 Case study IV: Cylindrical tank supported by soil 124
5.5.1 Modelling of soil reaction 124
5.5.2 Modal analysis 125
5.5.3 Elastic medium 127
5.6 Case study V: Cylindrical tank with stiffeners 128
5.7 Case study VI: Cylindrical tank filled with water 131
5.7.1 Broad tank filled with liquid 132
5.7.2 Tall tank filled with water to various depths 133
5.7.3 Tanks completely filled with liquid 134
5.7.4 Liquid filled tank with stiffeners 135
Chapter Six: Conclusions and Recommendations

6.1 Conclusions 189
6.2 Recommendations 191
References 193
Appendix A 201
Appendix B 207
Abstract in Arabic
VIII
List of Tables
Page
Table Description
No.
5-1 Comparison of values of frequency factor 137

5-2 Mode shape and natural frequencies for freely supported shell of 137
wall thickness= 0.1 mm
5-10 Mode shape and natural frequencies for freely supported shell 141
with h = 11.0 mm and L= 6.283 m
5-11 Mode shape and natural frequencies for freely supported shell 142
with h = 11.0 mm and D= 2.0 m
5-12 Mode shape and natural frequencies for the first two axial modes. 142
5-13 Mode shape and natural frequencies for fixed base tank having L= 143
3m and D= 8m.
IX
3m and D= 16m.
3m and D= 32m.
3m and D= 64m.
6m and D= 8m.
6m and D= 16m.
6m and D= 32m.
6m and D= 64m.
12m and D= 8m.
12m and D= 16m.
12m and D= 32m.
12m and D= 64m.
5-25 Comparison of natural frequencies and circumferential wave 149
numbers determined by two methods
5-26 Mode shape and natural frequencies for tank with hinged base 149
having L= 3m, D= 8m, and 20 mm base plate thickness
X
having L= 12m, D= 64m, and 20 mm base plate thickness.
5-38 Effect of base plate thickness on natural frequency for h= 20mm. 155
5-39 Values of spring stiffness for tanks resting on elastic soil 156
5-40 Mode shape and natural frequencies for tank resting on soil 156
having L= 3m, D= 8m, and 15 mm wall thickness.
XI
5-48 Natural frequencies and circumferential wave number determined by 160
two methods of soil representation. L= 3m, D= 8m, base plate
thickness= 20mm and ksoil = 24 MN/m3.
5-49 Natural Frequencies determined using different thicknesses of the 161
elastic media. L= 3m, D= 8m, h= 5mm, ksoil = 6 MN/m3, and base
plate thickness= 20mm.
5-50 Section properties of ring stiffeners 161
5-51 Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top. L=3 m, D= 32 161
m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base plate thick=20 mm
5-52 Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top and bottom. 162
L= 3 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base
plate thick=20 mm
5-53 Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top, bottom and 162
mid-height. L=3 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, t=15 mm, and
base plate thick=20 mm
5-54 Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top. L=12 m, 162
D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base plate
thick=20 mm
XII
5-55 Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top and bottom. 163
L=12 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base
plate thick=20 mm
5-56 Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top, bottom and 163
mid-height. L=12 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, t= 15 mm, and
base plate thick=20 mm
5-57 Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at quarter points. 163
L=12, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base plate
thick=20 mm
5-58 Values of the added mass at nodes for broad tank 164
5-59 Natural frequency values for tank filled with water. L=3 m, 164
D= 8 m.
D= 16 m.
D= 32 m.
D= 8 m.
D= 16m.
D= 32m.
5-65 Natural frequency values for tank completely filled with liquid, 166
having ring stiffeners. L=3 m, D= 32 m, wall thick=15 mm.
XIII
XIV
List of Figures
Page
Figure Description
No.
1-1 Base uplift of unanchored tanks 4
3-1 Circumferential and axial waves and nodal pattern of circular 46

cylindrical shell
3-2 Soil modelling 47
3-3 Spherical sliding surface 47
3-4 Impulsive added mass 48
4-1 Spring element 67
4-2 Beam element 70
4-3 Two-dimensional rectangular element 79
4-4 Two-dimensional quadrilateral element 85
4-5 Rectangular plate element 89
4-6 Brick element 100
5-1 Mode shapes for Freely supported shell 167
5-2 Circumferential wave number versus frequency factor for the 169
first axial mode. L= 2π m, D= 2m, h= 11mm.
5-3 Circumferential wave number versus wall thickness. L= 2π m, 169
D= 2m.
5-4 Relation between wall thickness and natural frequency. L= 2π m, 170
D= 2m.
5-5 Circumferential wave number versus natural frequency. L= 2π m, 170
D= 2m, h= 11mm.
5-6 Circumferential wave number versus diameter. L= 2π m, 171
h= 11 mm.
XV
5-7 Relation between diameter and natural frequency. 171
L= 2π m, h= 11 mm.
5-8 Circumferential wave number versus length. 172
D= 2 m, h= 11mm.
5-9 Relation between Length and natural frequency. 172
D= 2 m, h= 11 mm.
5-10 Mode shapes for tank with fixed base 173
5-11 Circumferential wave number versus natural frequency for the 174
first axial mode
5-12 Circumferential wave number versus natural frequency for the 174
second axial mode
5-13 Circumferential wave number versus wall thickness for the first 175
mode for various values of diameter, for L=3m of tank with fixed
base.
5-14 Circumferential wave number versus wall thickness for tank with 175
fixed base. L= 3 m, D= 8 m.
5-15 Relation between wall thickness and natural frequency for the 176
first mode for various values of diameter and L=3 m of tank with
fixed base.
5-16 Relation between wall thickness and natural frequency for tank 176
with fixed base. L=3m, D=8m.
with fixed base. L=3m, D= 16m.
with fixed base. L= 6m, D= 64m.
XVI
5-22 Circumferential wave number versus natural frequency for tank 179
5-23 Circumferential wave number versus tank diameter for the first 180
mode for various values of length and h =10 mm of tank with
fixed base.
5-24 Relation between tank diameter and natural frequency (1st mode) 180
for various values of length and h =10 mm of tank with fixed
base.
5-25 Circumferential wave number versus modulus of subgrade 181
reaction. Wall thick = 15mm, base plate thick =20mm.
5-26 Relation between modulus of subgrade reaction and natural 181
frequency. Wall thick = 15mm, base plate thick =20mm.
5-27 Relation between base plate thickness and natural frequency. 182
L=12 m, D= 32 m, and h= 15mm.
5-28 Comparison of natural frequency values determined by two 182
methods. L= 3m, D= 8m, ksoil = 24 MN/m3, base plate thickness=
20mm.
5-29 Relation between moment of inertia Iy of ring stiffeners and the 183
natural frequency. L=3m, D= 32m.
5-30 Relation between moment of inertia Iy of ring stiffeners and the 183
5-31 Relation between moment of inertia Iy of ring stiffener at top and 184
the percentage increment in natural frequency.
5-32 Circumferential wave number versus moment of inertia Iy of ring 184
stiffeners. L=3m, D= 32m.
5-33 Circumferential wave number versus moment of inertia Iy of ring 185
stiffeners. L= 12m, D= 32m.
XVII
5-34 Comparison of the natural frequency values of completely filled 185
tank. R=18.29m, L=12.2 m, and h=25.4 mm.
5-35 Comparison of the natural frequency values for various liquid 186
depths. R= 0.1524m, L= 1.0668 m, and h=6.35 mm.
5-36 Comparison of the natural frequency values for various liquid 186
5-37 Natural frequency of empty and completely filled tank. 187
L= 3m, D= 32m.
5-38 Natural frequency of empty and completely filled tank. L= 3m, 187
h= 15 mm.
5-39 Natural frequency of empty and completely filled tank. D= 32m, 188
h= 15 mm.
5-40 Circumferential wave number of empty and completely filled 188
tank. L= 3m, D= 32m.
XVIII
Notation
Symbol Description
[A] The dynamic matrix

[B] Strain matrix
[D] Matrix of material elastic properties
[I] Unit matrix
[K(e)] Element stiffness matrix in global coordinates
[K] Global stiffness matrix
[ke)] Element stiffness matrix in local coordinates
[L] Derivative operator matrix
[M(e)] Element mass matrix in global coordinates
[m(e)] Element mass matrix in local coordinates
[M] Global mass matrix
[Madd] Fluid added mass matrix
[N] Matrix of shape functions
[T] Transformation matrix
[X]i+1 and [Y]i+1 Approximate sets of eigenvectors.
[Λ] A diagonal matrix of eigenvalues.
{d} vector of element displacements in global coordinates
{dtt} Vector of second derivatives of element displacements in
global coordinates with respect to time.
{F} Vector of forces in global coordinates.
{f} Force vector
{P} Vector of nodal forces
{p} Vector of distributed loads
{u} Displacement vector.
{utt} Vector of second derivatives of displacements with respect
XIX
to time.
{X} Vector of body forces
{∆ tt} Vector of second derivatives of global system displacements
with respect to time.
{∆} Vector of global system displacements
{δ} Nodal displacement vector.
{δtt} Vector of second derivatives of nodal displacements with
respect to time.
{ε} Strain vector
{σ} Stress vector
{Φ} Displacement vector at certain natural frequency.
a A plane dimension of plate (m)
Amn Arbitrary Fourier’s constant
Bmn Arbitrary Fourier’s constant
Cmn Arbitrary Fourier’s constant
D Tank diameter (m)
E Modulus of elasticity of steel (Pa)
Eb Elastic modulus of soil block (Pa)
Em Total mechanical energy of the dynamic system (N.m)
f Natural frequency (Hz.)
h Shell thickness (m)
hb Thickness of soil block (m)
Hf height of liquid in tank (m)
hp Plate thickness (m)
I and Iy Moments of inertia (m4)
k1 = R2 ρs (1- µ 2)/E k2
k2 = h2/12R2
ksoil Soil modulus of subgrade reaction (N/m3)
L Shell length (m)
XX
l12, m12, and n12 Direction cosines
m Number of axial half waves
m(y) Added mass at y- level
ms Mass density per unit length
N Number of nodes in a circumference
n Number of circumferential waves
Nd Number of degrees of freedom
px, py, and pz Components of distributed load.
q Pressure on soil (Pa)
R Radius of shell (m)
Rs Radius of liquid sliding surface (m)
S Surface area of the element (m2)
T Total kinetic energy (N.m)
T1 to T4 Arbitrary constant coefficients
u, v, and w Translation in x, y, and z- directions.
ut, vt, and wt Time derivatives of translation in x, y, and z- directions.
V Volume of element (m3)
W Work done by loads (N.m)
Wp Potential energy of applied loads (N.m)
x, r, and θ The cylindrical coordinates
X, Y, and Z Components of the body forces per unit volume (N/m3)
x, y, and z The rectangular coordinates
βn4 = ms ωn2/EI
γxy, γyz, and γxz Shear strains
∆1 and ∆2 Settlements in soil (m)
ε xx, ε yy, and ε zz Strains in the x, y, and z- directions respectively.
λ An eigenvalue= ω2
Λ Strain energy (N.m)
λm Axial wave length parameter = m π R/ L
XXI
µ Poisson’s ratio
ξ, η, and ζ The natural local coordinates
Π Total potential energy (N.m)
ρ Mass density of steel plate and shell (kg/m3)
ρl Mass density of liquid (kg/m3)
φn Characteristic function of deflection of the nth mode
ω Angular natural frequency (rad/sec)
Ω2 (The frequency factor)2 = [(1- µ2) ρ/E] R2 ω2
ωn Angular natural frequency of the nth mode (rad/sec)
Abbreviations
FEM Finite element method.
PDE Partial differential equation.
XXII
Chapter One Introduction
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 General:
Liquid storage tanks are important facilities in different societies. They
are commonly used in industries for storing chemicals, petroleum products,
etc., and for storing water in public distribution systems [1]. Liquid storage
tanks can be classified into different types according to the basis upon which
the classification depends. In concerning to geometry, the tanks can be
cylindrical, spherical, conical, rectangular, etc. While, in concerning to
material of construction, steel and reinforced concrete are the two main
materials of almost all the storage tanks. The third basis of classification is
the type of the supporting system, which may be a well compacted soil or a
reinforced concrete mat foundation, and in this case the tank is referred to as
“ground supported”, or it may be a single column, multiple columns, or a
frame and thus the case is an “elevated tank”. Of these types, the ground
supported, steel, circular cylindrical tank is the most commonly used type for
storing liquids. This is because of its simplicity in design and construction,
and also its efficiency in resisting hydrostatic pressure [2].
Ground supported liquid storage tanks are designed as either, fully
anchored or unanchored [3]. Fully anchored tanks are strongly connected to
the foundation such that no separation between base plate and the foundation
can take place. While, unanchored tanks are not connected to the foundation
and thus, base uplift is probable in some cases, as shown in Fig. (1.1).
Steel liquid storage tanks are composed of steel sheets formed and
welded to construct the tank wall and base. These sheets may be either of
1
constant or variable thickness. Longitudinal and/or circumferential stiffeners

may be added to reinforce the walls. These stiffeners act together with the
shell as a composite structure.
1.2 Vibration analysis of liquid storage tanks:

Several loading conditions such as, wind and earthquakes, and some
work conditions such as nearby rotating or oscillating equipments may induce
vibratory motions in the tanks. These motions are classified as “free”
vibrations, if they occur in the absence of external loads; or they are referred
to as “forced” vibrations if they are set up by time dependent external loads
[4]. Free vibration is identified by “mode shape” and “natural frequency”.
The first refers to the shape of deformation of vibration, while the latter
represents the number of cycles of vibration per time. Knowledge of these
vibration characteristics is essential for the understanding of the dynamic
behaviour of tanks, and avoiding the harmful effects of resonance during such
aforementioned circumstances.
During strong vibrations, fully anchored tanks develop large
overturning base moments due to hydrostatic wall pressures and impose high
demands on their base-anchor system and foundation. High stresses in the
vicinity of anchor bolts or anchor straps, in poorly detailed connections, may
tear the tank wall. The unanchored tanks, on the other hand, experience
partial base uplifting during strong vibrations and respond with increased
flexibility. As a result, the hydrodynamic pressures and overturning moments
are reduced due to reduced contact of the uplifted tank with the rigid
foundation. The axial compressive stresses increase significantly, leading in
several cases to buckling of the wall. Unanchored tanks supported directly on
flexible soils are less prone to buckling damage, but due to nonlinear
2
response of the soil they experience uneven and permanent settlement around
the perimeter [5].
The dynamic response of liquid storage tanks can be strongly
influenced by the interaction between the flexible structure and the contained
fluid. If the latter has a considerable density, as in the case with all liquids,
then it exerts considerable inertial loading on the shell and results in
diminishing the resonant frequencies significantly [6].
1.3 Aim of study:

In the present work, vibration analyses of ground supported, steel, fully
anchored circular cylindrical liquid storage tanks are conducted. The effects
of various geometric properties on the vibration characteristics are explored.
Large number of empty tanks having different thicknesses and dimensions is
examined. Various foundation conditions ranging from rigid base to very
weak soil are investigated. An attempt to present a new representation of the
soil effect depending on Winkler model is made. The effect of the number,
location and bending rigidity of ring stiffeners on the shell vibration is
considered.
Tanks completely or partially filled with liquid are also investigated. A
new suggested geometric model of the effect of the contained liquid is
developed and examined.
A general – purpose – finite element program (ANSYS 5.4) is used to
conduct the analyses. The results are verified by comparing with the available
literature.
Finally a trial is made to present simplified approximate equations to
determine the fundamental mode shape and natural frequency of the circular
cylindrical tanks.
3
1.4 Layout of thesis:

The thesis consists of six chapters. In chapter one, the present, a
preliminary introduction of the subject is given. A brief survey of past works
dealing with the subject is given in chapter two. The assumptions employed
in the adopted theories and the analytical dynamic model of the various
components of the liquid storage tank system is outlined in chapter three.
Chapter four is focused on numerical modelling of these components. The
dynamic finite element equations are developed and the methods of solution
of eigenproblems are explained. A brief description of the used FE package
together with the elements adopted in the analysis is also presented in this
chapter. A description of the cases studied and the values of the various
parameters is given in chapter five. The resulting values concerning the mode
shapes and natural frequencies are also detailed and discussed in this chapter.
The main conclusions and findings drawn from this study together with some
suggestions for future work are listed in chapter six.
At rest During Vibration
Liquid height Rotation
Base uplift
Figure (1-1): Base uplift of unanchored tanks
4
Chapter Two Review of Literature
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
2.1 General:
The dynamic behaviour of liquid storage tanks has been investigated by
many researchers both theoretically and experimentally. In the following, a brief
survey is given for some of the most important contributions on the subject.
2.2 Historical development of vibration analysis:

Vibration analysis has its beginning with Galileo Galilei (1564- 1642),
who solved by geometric means the dependence of the natural frequency of a
simple pendulum on the pendulum length. He proceeded to make experimental
observations on the vibration behaviour of string and plates, but could not offer
any analytical treatment [4].
The equation for the transverse vibration of flexible thin beams was
derived in 1735 by Daniel Bernoulli, and the first solution for the simply
supported, clamped, and free ends beams were found by Euler in 1744. In the
field of membrane vibrations, in 1766, Euler published equations for a
rectangular membrane that were incorrect for the general case [4]. Work on
plate vibration analysis went on in parallel. Chladni discovered the various
modes of free vibration of plates. In experiments on horizontal plates, Chladni
used evenly distributed powder, which formed regular patterns after induction
of vibration. The powder accumulated along the nodal lines where no vertical
displacements occurred. Bernoulli attempted to justify theoretically the results
of these acoustic experiments. Bernoulli’s solution was based on the Euler-
Bernoulli’s beam bending theory. Bernoulli presented the plate as a system of
5
mutually perpendicular strips, each strip regarded as functioning as a beam.

Germain developed a plate differential equation that lacked the warping term.
Lagrange corrected Germain’s results by adding the missing term, thus he was
the first person to present the general plate equation properly [7].
What is even more interesting is that in 1821, Sophie Germain published
a very simplified equation of the vibration of a cylindrical shell. Unfortunately,
again it contained mistakes. In 1874, Aron as mentioned in Ref. [4] derived a
set of five equations, but because of his reluctance to employ simplifications the
equations were complicated. The simplifications that are logical extensions of
the beam and plate equations for both transverse and in-plane motions were
introduced by Love in 1888 as in Ref. [4].
2.3 Vibration of shells:

Problems concerning the vibration of shells are considerably more
complicated than their counterparts for beams or plates. Primarily this is caused
by the effects of the curvature. For beams and plates it is possible to consider
separately the flexural and extensional vibrations and only necessary to combine
these effects for complex problems. For shells membrane (extensional) and
flexural deformations are coupled, and any theory must consider these effects
simultaneously [8].
The mathematical model of thin shells admits a strain energy expression that
consists of two parts [9]:
1. Extensional, stretching, or membrane energy; which is produced by the
extensional and plane shear strains in the middle surface, and it is
proportional to thickness.
2. Flexural or bending energy; which is produced by the changes in
curvature and torsion of the middle surface, and it is proportional to the
cube of thickness.
6
For beams and plates the extensional and flexural deformations are governed by
separate systems of differential equations, and thus one type of deformation can
occur without the other. As soon as curvature is introduced (i.e. the object is a
shell), the two systems of governing equations are coupled and pure extensional
or flexural modes cannot occur [9].
The question of whether the flexural or extensional energy terms are
dominant in vibration of thin shells was well discovered in the end of the 19th
century [9].
Rayleigh in 1881, as cited in Ref. [9], proposed the hypothesis that the
low-frequency modes must be flexural and that for a sufficiently thin shell the
contribution of extensional energy to the total energy can be negligible.
Rayleigh also assumed that during vibration, the displacement field is such that
the two extensional strains and the plane shear strain of the middle surface are
zero. From the resulting three differential equations, he obtained the three
displacement components which he called “inextensional displacements”.
Rayleigh used the “inextensional displacements” to calculate approximate
natural frequencies from identification of the strain and kinetic energies
(Rayleigh principle). Since kinetic energy is proportional with (shell thickness
and the square of frequency), and flexural energy is proportional with (the cube
of shell thickness), Rayleigh concluded that for “inextensional” modes the
frequency is proportional with shell thickness. He failed to emphasize the
restrictions of this conclusion.
Love, as cited in Ref. [9], published a paper titled “On the small free
vibrations and deformation of a thin elastic shell”, in 1888, in which he laid
down the foundations of the deformation of thin shells. Love criticized
Rayleigh’s hypothesis of the inextensible middle surface pointed out that the
inextensional displacements cannot satisfy the specified boundary conditions,
therefore, he reasoned that some stretching of the middle surface of a shell must
7
occur. The essence of Love’s argument is that for a sufficiently thin shell, the
flexural energy must become smaller than the extensional energy, because the
former is proportional to a higher power of thickness, and therefore Rayleigh’s
hypothesis cannot be correct.
In 1949, Arnold and Warburton [10] investigated the general equations
for vibration of thin cylinders. A theoretical and experimental investigation was
made of the type of vibration usually associated with bell shape shells. The
cylinders were supported in such a manner that the ends remain circular without
directional restraint being imposed. It was found that the complexity of the
mode of vibration bears little relation to the natural frequency, for example,
cylinders of very small thickness-diameter ratio, with length about equal to or
less than the diameter may have many of their higher frequencies with the
simple modes vibration. The frequency equation which was derived by the
energy method was based on strain relations given by Timoshinko. In this
approach, displacement equations were evolved which are comparable to those
of Love and Flugge. Results were given for cylinders of various lengths, each
with the same thickness-diameter ratio, and also for a very thin cylinder in
which the simpler mode of vibration occurs in the higher frequency range. It
was shown that there are three possible natural frequencies for a particular nodal
pattern, two of these normally occurring beyond the aural range.
Watkins and Clary [11], in 1965, experimentally investigated the
vibrational characteristics of thin-walled, circular cylindrical and conical
frustum shells with free-free and fixed-free boundary conditions. The results of
the study showed that the natural frequencies predicted by Rayleigh type
vibration analysis were in good agreement with experimental results for
cylindrical shells with either free-free or fixed-free boundary conditions and
also for conical frustums with fixed-free ends. An equivalent cylinder analogy
was found to be applicable to fixed-free frustums having semi-vertex angle of
8
3.2o or less. As this angle increases, the agreement of this analogy with
experimental results becomes increasingly poor.
Forsberg [12], in 1966, conducted a study to determine the modal
characteristics of thin-walled cylindrical shells having arbitrary homogeneous
boundary conditions. He examined solutions obtained by various approximated
techniques, using the exact solution of the differential equation of motion (as
derived by Flugge), as a basis of comparison. Results obtained by energy and
finite difference techniques, as well as exact solutions for simplified (Donnell)
differential equations, were compared. The effect of omitting in-plane inertia
was also examined. Comparisons were made on the basis of natural frequency,
mode shape, and modal force distribution. The mode shape and modal forces
were found to be not significantly affected by the omission of in-plane inertia
terms. The one dimensional finite difference solution was found to give good
results but required a large number of points to accurately describe the lowest
mode of long thin shells. The energy method was found to give excellent results
for the frequency and reasonably accurate results for modal forces. The
boundary behaviour obtained from the two methods was found to be completely
in error.
In 1968, Ross [13] studied the non-symmetric free elastic vibration of
thin domes of revolution. He assumed that the frequency is low.
Approximations for the low natural frequencies and modes are derived
symmetrically under a variety of edge conditions. Low natural frequencies are
found only when the edge conditions impose no forces tangent to the shell
surface. When the edge is free, Rayleigh’s in-extensional frequencies are
recovered. For certain other edge conditions, new natural frequencies are found
that are above Rayleigh’s frequencies but still low compared, e.g. with the
lowest membrane frequency. The displacement modes associated with these
9
new frequencies are mostly of in-extensional type. The general results are
applied to estimate these new frequencies for spherical domes.
Sewall and Neumann [14], in 1968, conducted an experimental and
analytical study on the vibration of aluminum-alloy cylindrical shells with and
without external and internal longitudinal stiffeners for four end-support
conditions. The stiffeners were of rectangular cross section and were closely
spaced over the shell surface. Analytical results were obtained by application of
the energy method employing the Raleigh-Ritz procedure, in which the
longitudinal model components were approximated by an arbitrary number or
elementary beam-vibration functions chosen to satisfy prescribed end
conditions. It was found from experimental and analytical results, the minimum
frequencies of the externally stiffened shells, are significantly higher than the
minimum frequencies of the corresponding internally stiffened shells. It was
also found that the effect of stiffener rotary inertia in the analysis is negligible.
In 1955, Yu, as cited in Ref. [15] investigated the vibration of circular
cylindrical shells. He used the Donnell-Mushtari-Vlasov equations of motion, to
obtain a partial differential equation of eighth order. A suggested form of the
natural frequency was substituted in this P.D.E. which results in an eighth order
equation in terms of the longitudinal wave parameter. This equation was
simplified by assuming that the circumferential wave length is small compared
to the axial wave length. This assumption reduces the equation to a fourth order
one, from which the general solution was found, are applied to certain types of
boundary conditions.
In 1980, Scedel [15] used an approach similar to that used by Yu, to
investigate the natural frequency and mode shapes of circular cylindrical shells.
Instead of using Yu’s assumption, Scedel solved the differential equation by
using Galarkin’s method. So that a beam function that satisfied the boundary
condition was assumed. The solution was found which could be applied to
10
various types of boundary conditions. The membrane stress resultant was also
determined using Galarkin’s method.
Suzuki, et al. [16], in 1981, analyzed the axisymmetric vibration of a
cylindrical shell of which the thickness varies in the axial direction by using the
thin cylindrical shell theory and an improved thick cylindrical shell theory. The
equations of vibration were solved exactly by using a series solution. The
natural frequencies and the mode shapes of a cylindrical shell with both ends
clamped, simply supported and free were obtained. They also examined the
variation of natural frequencies and the mode shapes with the variations of the
thickness. They also investigated the influences of the shear deformation and
the rotary inertia upon the natural frequencies and the mode shapes. They found
that the natural frequency becomes high as the thickness becomes large. They
also found that the influence of shear deformation and the rotary inertia upon
the natural frequencies are small in the lower mode of vibration, but become
large for higher modes.
In 1997, Goncalves and Ramos [17] proposed a formulation and
numerical methodology for the vibration analysis of thin-walled cylindrical
shells subjected to any variationally consistent set of boundary conditions. They
used the Budiansky-Sanders first-order shell theory and adopted as fundamental
variables those quantities that describe the geometric and natural boundary
conditions on a rotationally symmetric edge of the shell. A system of eight first-
order differential equations was derived, and was solved using a numerical
procedure based on Galerkin method.
Backlund [4], in 1998, studied the vibration characteristics of stiffened
thin shells numerically within the context of the Donnell-Mushtri theory.
Different stiffener spacing and dimensions were considered in the formulations.
The natural frequencies of a clamped-free ring-stiffened truncated conical shell
were calculated by the use of the Rayleigh-Ritz method and compared with
11
ANSYS program. It was concluded that the membrane frequencies were fairly
insensitive of different stiffener arrangements, and more than fifteen stiffeners
had little influence on the bending frequencies, also it was found that the
stiffener height had the largest impact on the frequencies when the shell is
stiffened by many stiffeners.
In 2002, Pellicano, et al. [18] investigated the nonlinear vibration of
simply supported, circular cylindrical shells. Geometric nonlinearities due to
finite-amplitude shell motion were considered by using Donnell’s nonlinear
shallow-shell theory, taking into account the effect of viscous structural
damping. A discretization method based on series expansion of an unlimited
number of linear modes, including axisymmetric and asymmetric modes,
following the Galarkin procedure, was developed. Both driven and companion
modes were included, allowing for traveling-wave response of the shell. The
effect of the geometric shell characteristics, i.e., radius, length and thickness, on
the nonlinear behavior was analyzed. It was found that very short and thick
shells showed a hardening nonlinearity, conversely, softening type nonlinearity
was found in a wide range of shell geometries.
2.4 Liquid Storage Tanks:

The performance of ground-supported liquid storage tanks during
vibration situations (e.g. in earthquakes), demonstrates the need for a reliable
technique to assess their dynamic safety. Early developments of the dynamic
response theories of these tanks considered the container to be rigid and focused
attention on the dynamic response of the contained liquid [19]. The standard
analysis procedures for tanks containing liquid are usually based on the rigid
mechanical tank model developed by Housner in 1963 [20-22].
In his mechanical model, Housner divided the hydrodynamic pressure of
the contained liquid into two components, namely the impulsive pressure
12
resulting from the liquid mass accelerated with the tank, and the convective
pressure caused by the portion of the liquid sloshing in the tank [1].
Accordingly, the liquid in the tank is replaced by an impulsive mass that is
rigidly attached to the tank wall and by convective masses that are connected to
the tank wall through springs. Although, only the first convective mass may be
considered [23], additional higher-order convective masses may also be
included [24].
Housner, in 1954, as cited in Ref. [25] studied the dynamic pressures
developed on accelerated liquid containers. The containers were flat- bottomed
and of arbitrary constant cross section. Housner considered an incompressible
liquid undergoing small displacements, and developed simplified expressions to
approximate the pressures caused by the portion of the liquid accelerated with
the tank (impulsive pressure) and the portion of the liquid sloshing in the tank
(convective pressure).
In 1956, Conrad [26] conducted experimental and analytical
investigations on the hydrodynamic forces induced in fluid containers when the
containers are subjected to varying accelerations. Experiments were performed
on a model of a rectangular tank and forces due to the convective pressure were
measured and compared to those predicted by a simplified linear theory in
which the fluid system is reduced to a system of simple oscillators. An
investigation was made to determine the limit of applicability of this simplified
theory and observe the effect of the nonlinearity of the fluid motion on the
predicted forces. It was found that the natural frequency of vibration diverged
significantly from that for small amplitudes when the amplitude to depth ratio
exceeds 0.05.
Epstein [25], in 1976, presented design procedure and formulas for the
cylindrical and rectangular storage-tanks subjected to seismic loading. Shallow
and tall tanks were investigated. Housner mathematical modelling for the
13
hydrodynamic liquid pressure was adopted. In this model the liquid is assumed
to be incompressible and undergoing small displacements. Simplified
expressions were used to approximate the pressures caused by the portion of the
liquid sloshing in the tank (convective pressure), and the portion of the liquid
accelerating with the tank (impulsive pressure). A procedure to find the
maximum bending and overturning moments for a cylindrical and rectangular
tank was presented. Curves were given that can be used to quickly find these
moments. It was shown that for slender tanks the calculation of convection
forces should be based upon that portion of the liquid considered to be in
motion and not on the full liquid depth.
In 1976, Mouzakis, as cited in Ref. [27] proposed a strict analysis of
flexible wall liquid storage tanks, in which the liquid pressure was obtained
from an analytical solution based on the velocity potential theory and it is
substituted into Flugge’s equations of motion for shells. The solution was
determined by expanding these equations by Fourier series.
Shaaban et. al., as cited in Ref. [27] proposed, in 1976, a numerical
method in which the axisymmetric shell is treated by a finite element method,
and also the velocity potential of the liquid is treated by a finite element method
using annular elements with rectangular cross section.
In 1981, Fujita [27] investigated the seismic response of a cylindrical
liquid storage tank subjected to a horizontal seismic wave using the energy
method. The kinetic and strain energies of the shell were calculated by the
axisymmetric shell finite element. While kinetic energy of the liquid in the tank
was calculated by using the velocity potential theory neglecting the effect of the
free surface sloshing.
In 1981, Aslam [28] presented a finite element formulation to predict the
sloshing displacements and hydrodynamic pressure in axisymmetric tanks due
to arbitrary ground motion. The flexibility of the tank had been neglected. The
14
finite element equations were first derived for a completely general three-
dimensional problem and then were specialized to an axisymmetric tank
subjected to arbitrary horizontal ground motion. The equations were derived
using Galarkin’s principle.
Haroun and Housner [19], in 1982, developed a method for calculating
the dynamic characteristics of ground-supported cylindrical tanks. The method
offered a rigorous treatment of the interaction problem and provided a starting
point for the consideration of the complicating factors which influence the
dynamic behaviour of tanks. The liquid region was treated analytically, and
only the shell was modelled by finite elements. In this approach the number of
unknowns was substantially less than in those analyses when both tank wall and
liquid were subdivided into finite elements. In 1982, Haroun and Housner [29]
also, presented a generalization of this method to include some complicating
factors which affect these characteristics. It has been shown that the initial hoop
stress due to the hydrostatic pressure and the in-plane rigidity of the roof system
may affect considerably the cosnθ -type modes (i.e. modes with circumferential
waves) of the tank wall. In addition, the flexibility of the foundation soil can
reduce measurably the fundamental frequency of the cosθ -type (beam type)
modes due to the rocking motion. It was also concluded that the coupling
between liquid sloshing modes and shell vibrational modes was weak, and
consequently, the convective pressure can be evaluated with reasonable
accuracy by considering the tank wall rigid, and the impulsive pressure can be
determined by analyzing the liquid-shell system and neglecting the sloshing
motion.
2.5 Fluid – Structure Interaction:

The dynamic response of liquid storage tanks can be strongly influenced
by the interaction between the flexible containing structure and the contained
15
fluid. The dynamic response of flexible liquid storage tanks may have
characteristics significantly different from those of corresponding rigid storage
tanks [30].
There are different ways to handle the fluid-structure interaction
problems. The fluid may be modelled by a solid structural or acoustic finite
elements or by using the added mass approach [31,32]. In the FEM, the liquid
is modelled using the Eulerian approach, the Lagrangian approach, or the
Eulerian-Lagrangian approach. On the other hand in the added mass approach, a
liquid mass that is obtained by different techniques is added to the mass of the
structure at the liquid-structure interface [23].
Bauer et al. [33], in 1967, investigated the coupled oscillations of
containers, partially filled with an inviscid and incompressible liquid.
Rectangular and cylindrical tanks having elastic bottom or elastic walls were
studied. Linear elastic boundary theory was used in the analysis of the tank
walls and bottom. Sloshing of liquid was modelled using the velocity potential
function. It was found that the flexibility of the bottom of a rectangular tank
reduces the natural frequencies, while the flexibility of a cylindrical tank
increases the natural frequencies of the system.
Lakis and Paidoussis [6], in 1971, presented a theory for the
determination of the free vibration characteristics of vertical thin circular
cylindrical shells, partially or completely filled with stationary liquid. The shell
may be uniform or axially non-uniform. Only the so called “breathing” modes
of the shell were considered. The liquid was assumed to be incompressible and
dissipative effects were neglected. It was also assumed that the effect of internal
static pressure is small and may be neglected. The free surface sloshing effects
was also neglected. Cylindrical finite element was used to model the problem,
but the displacement functions were determined by using Sander’s theory for
thin cylindrical shells. The inertial loading of the fluid was taken into account
16
by incorporating the virtual mass of the fluid into the mass matrix of those finite
elements which are below the liquid free-surface.
In 1973, Stillman [34] investigated the vibration of the cantilevered
circular cylindrical shells containing liquid. The shell was modelled by using
assumed displacement functions. Rayleigh-Ritz method was used to obtain a set
of equations describing the behavior of the vibrating shell. The fluid domain
was modeled using the potential function. The liquid kinetic energy was added
to that of the shell. The resultant energy expression was minimized to obtain the
free vibration behaviour of the shell containing liquid at any depth.
In 1975, Shugar and Katonal, as cited in Ref. [31] constructed a fluid
analysis by utilizing isoparametric solid elements with a specified bulk modulus
and zero shear modulus. In place of standard two-point per coordinate Gaussian
integration scheme, they used one point at the element centre. In a similar study,
Khalil and Hubbard [30] considered the fluid element as a compressible solid
with zero shear modulus.
Akkas et. al. [31], in 1979, idealized water as a structural finite element
with zero shear modulus, by using the general-purpose finite element program
SAP-IV, to solve several solid-fluid interaction problems. The numerical
solutions were compared with the available analytical solutions and a
reasonable agreement was found.
Yamaki et al. [35], in 1984, presented an accurate analysis for the linear
free vibration of a clamped cylindrical shell partially filled with an
incompressible, inviscid liquid. For the vibration of the shell itself, the modified
Donnell equations were used and the problem was solved with the Galerkin
procedure, taking the effect of axisymmetric deformation due to the static liquid
pressure into consideration. For the vibration relevant to the liquid motion, the
solution for the velocity potential was assumed as a sum of two sets of linear
combinations of suitable harmonic functions. The unknown parameters of these
17
functions were selected to satisfy both boundary conditions along the shell wall
and the free surface. A determinate equation for the determination of the natural
vibration characteristics of the shell-liquid system was obtained. Experiments
on polyester shells were also conducted to clarify the validity of the theoretical
solution. The effects of the initial hoop stress as well as the condition of the
liquid surface on the natural frequencies were also examined.
In 1993, Lay [1] developed a numerical model for the seismic analysis of
tank with single and double curvatures, by using a combined FE – BE numerical
procedure. The coupled seismic liquid-shell interaction problem was solved
using a shell finite element for the tank structure and the boundary element to
model the fluid region. The boundary element equations for the liquid region
were used to obtain an equivalent finite element fluid mass matrix. This
equivalent fluid mass matrix was then combined with the shell structure mass
matrix and the coupled equations of motion were solved.
In 1998, Koh et al. [30] developed a variationally coupled BEM-FEM
which can be used to analyze the dynamic response of 3-dimensional
rectangular liquid storage tanks subjected to horizontal ground excitation,
including the free surface sloshing motion. The tank structure was modelled by
the finite element method and the fluid region by the indirect boundary element
method.
Al-Zeiny [36], in 2004, presented a simplified closed form solution to be
used to model the effect of liquid hydrodynamic pressure in the linear and
nonlinear analyses of cylindrical vertical liquid storage tank. The added mass
approach was used to derive the added mass index equation. Results of analysis
using the proposed method were found to agree with the results from fully
coupled liquid structure interaction and results obtained from a mechanical
analog method.
18
Krishna and Ganesan [37], in 2006, studied the vibration of fluid- filled
circular cylindrical storage tanks. In this method a polynomial function was
used for the fluid domain in contrast to the usual Bessel function approach. A
semi-analytical finite element approach has been used to desecribe the shell
structure. The study has been carried out for conventional shells as well as
viscoelastic shells. The fluid stiffness matrix and interaction matrix are
evaluated from which the added mass of the system is deduced. Numerical
results of the natural frequencies obtained by this method are shown to agree
with the results obtained from other procedure.
Virella et al. [38], in 2006, investigated the dynamic buckling of
aboveground steel tanks with conical roofs and anchored to the foundation,
subjected to horizontal components of real earthquake records. The study
attempted to estimate the critical horizontal peak ground acceleration which
induces elastic buckling at the top of the cylindrical shell, for the impulsive
hydrodynamic response of the tank-liquid system. Finite element models of
three cone roof tanks with different height to diameter ratios and with a liquid
level of 90 % of the height of the cylinder were used. The finite element
analysis package ABAQUS was used to carry out all computations. Shell
elements were used to model the tank wall and roof, while beam elements were
used to model the roof rafters. The liquid is modelled using an added mass
approach, in which the mass is obtained from the pressure distribution which is
due to the rigid body horizontal motion of the rigid tank-liquid system.
Geometric and material nonlinearities were considered in the dynamic buckling
analysis of the tank-liquid system. Viscous damping was introduced by means
of Rayleigh mass proportional damping. The plasticity of the shell was
modelled using the Von Mises yield criterion. It was found that for medium
height and tallest tank models, elastic buckling at the top of the cylindrical shell
occurs before plasticity. It was also, concluded that buckling at the top of the
19
shell is caused by a negative (inward) net pressure at the zone in the tank where
impulsive hydrodynamic pressure induced by the earthquake excitation exceeds
the hydrostatic pressure. This negative net pressure induces membrane
compressive circumferential stresses which buckled the shell.
In other paper Virella et al. [32], in 2006, investigated the fundamental
impulsive modes of vibration of cylindrical tank-liquid systems anchored to the
foundation under horizontal motion. The analyses were performed using a
general purpose finite element program. The roof and walls were represented
with shell elements and the liquid was modelled using two techniques: the
added mass formulation and acoustic finite element. It was found that the
fundamental modes of tank models with aspect ratio (height to diameter) larger
than 0.63 were very similar to the first mode of a cantilever beam. For a tank
with aspect ratio of 0.4 the fundamental mode was found to be bending mode.
2.6 Soil – Structure Interaction:

The effect of soil flexibility on the dynamic characteristics of liquid
storage tanks has been the subject of many researches, since the assumption of a
rigid ground condition often gives overly conservative results [39]. The
consideration of support flexibility reduces the overall stiffness of the structure
and increases the period of the system. In addition, soil medium imparts
damping due to its inherent characteristics. The flexibility of the soil medium is
substantially important for the dynamic analysis of the liquid storage tanks, and
the results may highly depend on the soil conditions as well as the configuration
of the structure.
In 1981, Haroun and Housner [40] used the mechanical model of liquid
storage tank to develop two simplified methods to determine earthquake
coupled response of the soil-rigid tank and soil-flexible tank systems. They
found that for rigid tanks, soil deformability amplifies the response of tall tanks,
20
however, broad tanks were found to behave as if they are supported by a rigid
foundation. It was also found that the deformability of the foundation soil
reduces the fundamental natural frequency of the deformable containers.
In 2002, Dutta and Roy [39] investigated the available methods of
representing the soil-structure interaction. The static and dynamic loading cases
of building and tank structures were explored. Various methods of representing
soil effect on the structure were discussed, and compared. It was found that
Winkler method, despites obvious limitation, yields reasonable performance.
2.7 Liquid - Soil – Structure Interaction:

In 1981, Bauer [41] investigated the interaction of an elastic bottom with
the liquid exhibiting a free surface for a rectangular container. The container
bottom was considered either as a flexible membrane or as a thin elastic
rectangular plate. Furthermore the hydroelastic problem of a liquid in a rigid
rectangular tank in which the free liquid surface was covered by a flexible
membrane or a thin elastic plate had also been treated. In both cases the coupled
frequencies of the structure-liquid system had been obtained. It was found that
even structural modes coupled with the odd liquid modes and vice versa and
that the coupled frequencies exhibited decreased magnitude compared with the
uncoupled structural frequencies, and increased magnitude compared to the
uncoupled liquid frequencies.
Hadi [42], in 1989, investigated the dynamic response of fluid containing
cylindrical tanks resting on elastic media under an arbitrary loading or base
acceleration. A semi-analytical finite element procedure was used, and the
combined effect of structure-soil-fluid interaction was focused on. The dynamic
equilibrium equations were solved by the mode superposition and direct
integration methods. The modified Wilson scheme was used in the forced
21
vibration problems. The seismic equilibrium equation was solved by Wilson

step-by-step direct integration method.
Chiba [43], in 1993, carried out a theoretical analysis on the linear
axisymmetric free vibration of an elastic bottom plate of a tank, coupled with
the contained liquid. The effect of the in-plane forces in the plate due to static
liquid pressure was taken into account. Numerical calculations were carried out
for nine kinds of bottom plates with different thicknesses. It was found that the
sloshing-type natural frequencies with the elasticity of the bottom plate taking
into account were higher than those when neglecting it, in the lower liquid
height region. However, this influence became small with increasing thickness
of the bottom plate, which widens the difference between the sloshing-type and
the bulging-type natural frequencies.
Haroun and Al Zeiny [44], in 1995, investigated the nonlinear uplift and
contact mechanism between base plate and the underlying foundation of a thin-
walled liquid storage tank. Nonlinearities due to base plate contact with
foundation, large deflection and plate hinge formation were examined. The base
plate was modeled as degenerated finite element, and the soil was modelled
using Winkler type springs, which were assumed to work only in compression.
It was found that neglecting the membrane stresses induced by large
displacement resulted in conservative estimates of uplift displacement, while the
simultaneous exclusion of the membrane stresses and the plastic hinges yielded
reasonable values for the uplift displacement.
Haroun and Al Zeiny [45], in 1996, used the finite element method to
analyze the nonlinear transient response of unanchored tanks. They considered
the successive contact and separation between the base plate and foundation, the
nonlinear fluid-structure interaction, large amplitude deformation of the base
plate, material yielding, soil-tank interaction, and large amplitude free surface
sloshing. It was observed that overturning moments exerted on unanchored
22
tanks may be smaller than those exerted on similar anchored tanks, yet stresses
at the bottom of the unanchored tank shell are generally much larger than those
of anchored tank subjected to same ground motion.
In 1997, Malhotra [5] investigated the seismic base isolation for ground
supported vertical cylindrical liquid storage tanks. The base plate is supported
on a soil bed and the tank wall is supported on a ring of “vertically soft” rubber
bearings. The tank-liquid system was represented by a lumped-mass-static
model and the rubber bearings were represented by a series of nonlinear
hysteretic axial springs. The dynamic equilibrium equations were solved by
using the linear acceleration method. He found that the isolation bearings is
effective in reducing the overturning base moments and the axial compressive
stresses in the tank wall, while maintaining the values of base uplift and plastic
reactions in the base plate at reasonable levels.
In 1998, Amabili et al. [46] investigated the dynamic behaviour of a tank
partially filled with a liquid having free surface. The effect of free surface waves
was taken into account, so that both bulging and sloshing modes were studied.
The structure was completely flexible, and was composed of a vertically
standing circular cylindrical shell, with ring stiffeners, and a flexible bottom
consisted of a circular plate resting on an elastic Winkler foundation. The effect
of the contained liquid was modeled using the potential function.
In 2000, Hosseini and Mohajer [47] performed a study on the effect of the
geometry of the tank foundation on the modal properties of the tank-liquid-soil
system in which both fluid-structure and soil-structure interactions have been
considered. For this purpose a set of cylindrical steel tanks with various
height/radius and thickness/radius ratios have been considered. The tank
foundations have been assumed to have two main different geometries, namely
square and circular in plan with different thicknesses, as well as various
dimensions and diameters. Various conditions have been considered for the sub-
23
soil varying from very soft to very stiff based on the value of shear wave
velocity. They found that the natural periods of the system were quite sensitive
to the foundation geometry. This sensitivity was much higher in the case of
circular foundations, especially for lower height to radius ratios and lower wave
values. It was concluded that by choosing appropriate values for foundation
dimensions, it is possible to make the period values a few times longer.
In 2001, Al Zeiny [48] investigated the effects of liquid hydrodynamic
pressures exerted on thin-walled unanchored liquid storage tanks during
earthquake motion. He employed the finite element technique to investigate the
effects of base plate thickness, foundation stiffness, ground acceleration,
plasticity and tank height and diameter, on the dynamic response of these tanks.
The foundation was modelled using springs to represent the uplift problem. The
nonlinear governing equations were solved using time integration technique that
has been developed specially to solve liquid-structure interaction problems. He
found that unanchored tanks supported on flexible foundations exhibit lower
compressive stresses and higher uplift displacements than those supported over
more rigid foundations. Also, formations of a plastic hinge in the connection
between the tank shell and base plate increase uplift displacements. Reducing
the thickness of the base plate caused the tank to uplift more and consequently
more axial stresses are developed at the bottom of the tank shell. In addition,
decreasing the base thickness reduced the rocking stiffness and consequently
lengthened the rocking period, and consequently, the developed hydrodynamic
forces were less than those for tanks with thicker base plate.
In 2002, Kim et al. [49], in their paper proposed a method of seismic
analysis for a cylindrical liquid storage structure considering the effect of the
interior fluid and exterior soil medium in the frequency domain. The horizontal
and rocking motions of the structure were also included. The fluid motion was
expressed in terms of analytical velocity potential function, which was obtained
24
by solving the boundary value problem including the deformed configuration of

the structure as well as the sloshing behaviour of the fluid. The effect of the
fluid was included in the equation of motion as an impulsive added mass and as
a frequency dependent convective added mass along the nodes on the wetted
boundary of the structure. The structure and the near-field soil medium were
presented using the axisymmetric finite elements, while the far-field soil was
modeled using dynamic infinite elements. The method can be applied to the
structure embedded in ground as well as on ground. The proposed method was
verified utilizing several cylindrical tanks on a rigid ground and a homogenous
elastic half space, for which solutions were available. An application example of
a reinforced concrete tank on a horizontally layered soil medium with rigid
bedrock was presented to demonstrate the beneficial effects of the soil-structure
interaction on the member force of the liquid storage tank subjected to
earthquake loading.
In 2003, Al Zeiny [50] investigated the effects of liquid hydrodynamic
pressures exerted on thin-walled liquid storage tanks during earthquake
motions. The successive contact and separation problem due to base isolation
was considered in addition to the soil-tank interaction and large amplitude free
surface sloshing.
Cho et al. [51], in 2004, examined the seismic response analysis of a
base-isolated liquid storage tank on a half space using a coupling method that
combined the finite elements and the boundary elements. The coupled dynamic
system that considers the base isolation system and the soil-structure interaction
effect was formulated in time domain. The finite element was used to model the
structure, while the boundary element was used for the liquid, the two
formulations were coupled using equilibrium and compatibility equations. The
base isolation system was modelled using biaxial hysteric element. The
25
homogeneous half space was idealized using the simple dashpot model with
frequency dependent coefficient.
2.8 Concluding remarks:

The survey of the available literature on the vibration analysis of liquid
storage tank system, clarifies that although the problem had been the subject of
many works for several decades, it still represents an attractive material for
present research effort. The first attempts were concentrated on the
determination of analytical mathematical models of the vibration of shells.
Other works are directed towards the evaluation of the hydrodynamic effects of
the contained liquid, considering the tank to be rigid. Such works provided
simple approximate formulae that had been the basis for the design codes.
The successive cases of failure of well designed tanks in the earthquakes
initiated investigations into the dynamic characteristics of flexible tanks. In
addition, the evolution of both the digital computers and various associated
numerical techniques had significantly enhanced solution capabilities. Thus,
many studies were carried out to investigate the dynamic interaction between
the deformable walls of the tank and the liquid, and showed that the dynamic
response of a flexible tank may be substantially different from that of a similar
rigid tank. These studies employed the FEM or BEM to model the tank and
either the FEM or the analytical methods to model the contained liquid. In
addition, the soil flexibility and base uplift had also been considered.
From the previous works it can be concluded that extensive mathematical
manipulations are required even a preliminary estimation of the vibrational
behaviour is required. In the present work an attempt is made to study the
effects of the various factors on the dynamic response of the liquid storage tank
system, from which simple and sufficiently accurate formulae and modelling
techniques suitable for preliminary design phase are suggested.
26
Chapter Three Free Vibration Analysis
CHAPTER THREE
FREE VIBRATION ANALYSIS
OF LIQUID STORAGE TANKS
3.1 General:
The modal analysis of the liquid storage tanks involves the investigation
of the vibration properties of the tank wall, base plate, the contained liquid and
the supporting foundation. The vibration response of any structure is governed
by three system parameters: mass, stiffness and damping [2]. Damping effects
are caused either by internal friction or by the surrounding media. Although
damping is present in all structural vibrations, it has usually little or no effect on
the natural frequency; consequently, it can be safely ignored in the initial
treatment of the problem [7]. The effect of damping is mainly evident in the
diminishing of the vibration amplitude with time [52]. In the present study the
damping is assumed to be negligible, so that, the vibration characteristics are
governed by the mass and stiffness. In the following articles the analytical
expressions defining each component of the liquid storage tank system is
described.
3.2 The tank wall:

The wall of most liquid storage tanks is an excellent example of the thin
shell, since the (thickness / radius) ratio is usually very small (<1/20)
27
3.2.1 Thin shell theory:

The shell is a three dimensional body which is bounded by two closely
spaced curved surfaces. The locus of points which lie midway between these
surfaces is called the middle surface of the shell. The distance between the
surfaces measured along the normal to the middle surface is the thickness of the
shell at that point. The thickness need not be constant in the formulation of a
suitable theory of deformation, but constant thickness results in governing
equations which are easier to solve; furthermore, certain manufacturing
processes naturally yield shells of essentially constant thickness [53].
There are two different classes of shells: thick shells and thin shells. A
shell is called thin if the maximum value of the ratio (h/R) (where h is the shell
thickness, and R is the radius of curvature of the middle surface) is very small.
For an engineering accuracy, a shell may be regarded as thin if the following
condition is satisfied [7]:
max. (h/R) ≤ 1/20
Hence, shells for which this inequality is violated are referred to as thick shells.
For a large number of practical applications, (h/R) ratio lies in the range [7]
1/1000 ≤ (h/R) ≤ 1/20
i.e. in the range of thin shells, and therefore the theory of thin shells is of great
practical importance.
3.2.2 Equation of motion:

A large number of different sets of equations have been arrived at by
various academicians, all purporting to describe the motion of a given shell.
This state of affairs is in contrast with the thin plate theory, wherein a single
fourth order differential equation of motion is universally agreed on [53].
Shells have all the characteristics of plates along with an addition one, i.e.
curvature. Thus, the plate is a special limiting case of a shell having no
28
curvature. In addition to the added complexity of curvature, shells are further

complicated because their bending cannot, in general, be separated from their
stretching. Thus, a classical bending theory of shells is governed by an eighth
order system of governing partial differential equations of motion, while a
corresponding plate bending theory is only of the fourth order. This added
complexity inters into the problem not only by means of more complex
equations of motion, but also through the boundary conditions as well. The
classical bending theory of plates requires only two conditions to be specified
along an edge, while a corresponding shell theory requires four specified
conditions.
Most of the shell theories are based on linear elasticity concepts. Linear
shell theories predict adequately stresses and deformations for shells exhibiting
small elastic deformations; i.e. deformations for which it is assumed that the
equilibrium equation conditions for deformed shell surfaces are the same as if
they were not deformed, and thus Hooke’s law applies [7].
For the purpose of analysis, a shell may be considered as a three
dimensional body, and the methods of the theory of elasticity may then be
applied. In fact, the consideration of complete elasticity equations leads to
expressions and equations which are so complicated that it becomes impossible
to obtain solutions for shell problems of practical interest [54]. Fortunately,
sufficiently accurate analyses of thin shells can be obtained using simplified
versions of the general elasticity equations. This is accomplished by attempting
to reduce the shell problem to the study of the deformations of the middle
surface of the shell, which reduces the three dimensional problem to a two
dimensional one.
Shell theories of varying degrees of accuracy were derived depending
upon the degree to which the elasticity equations are simplified. In this study
29
only the fundamental equations of thin shell in their most simple consistent
form are considered. Thus the following limitations are adopted:
1. The material is linearly elastic, isotropic, and homogeneous.
2. Displacements are small.
3. Shear deformation and rotary inertia effects are neglected.
4. Thickness is constant.
Many investigators have developed differential equations describing the
behaviour of thin shells. The wide variety in the resulting equations arises
basically from small differences in the formulation of the strain-displacement
relationships, and the discrepancies occur only in terms which numerically have
little significance. As long as the limitations of thin shell theory are observed,
the various formulations give identical numerical results within engineering
accuracy [12].
3.2.3 Basic assumptions:

In the classical theory of small displacements of thin shells the following
assumptions were made by Love as mentioned in Refs. [53, 55]
1. The thickness of the shell is small in comparison with the other
dimensions, for example, the smallest radius of curvature of the middle
surface of the shell.
2. Strains and displacements are sufficiently small so that the quantities of
second and higher- order magnitude in the strain- displacement relations
may be neglected in comparison with the first – order terms.
3. The transverse stress normal to the shell surface is small compared
with the other normal stress components and may be neglected.
4. Straight lines originally normal to the undeformed middle surface
remain straight and normal to the deformed middle surface and suffer no
extension.
30
These assumptions taken together give rise to what Love called his “first
approximation” shell theory. These approximations are almost universally
accepted by others in the derivation of thin shell theories.
3.2.4 Circular cylindrical shell:

Since the present work deals only with the circular cylindrical liquid
storage tanks are considered, the equations of motion of circular cylindrical thin
shells are described. As mentioned before, there is a large number of sets of
equations of motion for shells available in the literature. One of the most widely
used set of equations of free vibration of circular cylindrical shells is that known
as Donnell-Mushtari-Vlasov (DMV) bending theory [56], which is
R2 ∂2u/∂x2+ ½ (1-µ) ∂2u/∂θ2+ ½ R(1+µ) ∂2v/∂x∂θ – µ R ∂w/∂x = k1 ∂2u/∂t2 (3.1a)
½ R(1+ µ) ∂2u/∂x∂θ+ ½ R2(1-µ) ∂2u/∂x2+ ∂2v/∂θ2–∂w/∂θ =k1 ∂2v/∂t2 (3.1b)
µR ∂u/∂x+ ∂v/∂θ- w – k2 (R4 ∂4w/∂x4+2R2 ∂4v/∂x2∂θ2+ ∂4w/∂θ4)= k1 ∂2w/∂t2 (3.1c)
where R is the shell radius , k1= R2 ρ (1- µ 2)/E, k2= h2/12R2, u, v, and w are the
displacements of a generic point in the respective directions of the cylindrical
coordinates x, r, and θ which are the longitudinal, radial and circumferential
directions, respectively. Moreover ρ, µ and E are the shell’s density, Poisson’s
ratio and Young’s modulus, respectively.
An exact solution of the above equations is practically impossible except
for several types of shell’s geometry and boundary conditions. So that different
approximate approaches were developed. One approach is to neglect some
terms of minor importance, such as the in-plane inertia terms [55]. The most
reliable approach is by solving these equations by numerical methods. One of
the most powerful methods is the finite element technique. In this work the
finite element method (FEM) is implemented to represent the cylindrical shell.
31
3.3 Modal analysis:

All systems possessing mass and elasticity are capable of free vibration.
Of primary interest of such a system is its natural frequency of vibration, which
is mainly a function of the mass and stiffness of the system, keeping in mind
that the damping effect is negligible [7].
The basic model of a simple vibrating system is the spring- mass system.
The mass is assumed to be lumped, while the spring supporting it is assumed to
be of negligible mass. This simple model oscillates with one frequency. This is
due to the fact that the system has only one degree of freedom, which can be
interpreted as the system is allowed to move in only one direction.
A shell on the other hand, is composed of an infinite number of mass
particles and as a consequence it has an infinite number of degrees of freedom.
Its response thus may be analyzed into an infinite number of periodic motions,
which are referred to as the normal modes of free vibration. Each of these
normal modes has an associated natural frequency of free vibration. The lowest
natural frequency is often referred to as the fundamental frequency. The normal
mode can be thought of as the shape that the shell deforms according to and it
can be divided into meridional and circumferential waves. The points or lines
with zero displacement on these waves are sometimes called node- points or
node- lines. The number of waves distributed around the circumference is
denoted by n, and the number of meridional (also called longitudinal, or axial)
half- waves is dented by m, Fig. (3.1). Every normal mode can then be
described by the numbers m and n [4].
3.4 Eigenvalues and eigenvectors:

For free vibration of undamped system, the equations of motions
expressed in matrix form is
[M] {utt} + [K] {u} = {0} … (3.2)
32
where [M] is the mass matrix of the system, {utt} is the second derivative of the
displacement vector {u}, with respect to time, and [K] is the stiffness matrix.
The pre-multiplication of Eq. (3.2) by [M]-1, the inverse of the mass matrix,
yields
[M]-1 [M] {utt} + [M]-1 [K] {u} = 0
or
[I] {utt} + [A] {u} = 0 …(3.3)
where
[I] = [M]-1 [M] and [A] = [M]-1 [K]
The matrix [A] is referred to as the system matrix or the dynamic matrix since
the dynamic properties of the system are defined by this matrix, which is
generally not symmetric. [I] is the unit matrix.
If harmonic motion is assumed, i.e. {utt} = - ω2 {u}, in which ω is the
angular natural frequency, then Eq. (3.3) becomes
- ω2 [I] {u} + [A] {u} = 0
or
[A – ω2 I ] {u} = 0 … (3.4)
The characteristic equation of the system is the determinant equated to zero, i.e.
| A – ω2 I | = 0 … (3.5)
The roots ωi2 of the characteristic equation are called “eigenvalues”.
By substituting ωi2 into the matrix equation (3.4), the values of the
displacement vector {u} are obtained. This vector represents the mode shape,
and is called the “eigenvector”. Thus for an Nd-degrees of freedom system,
there will be Nd eigenvalues and Nd eigenvectors [52].
3.5 Free vibration of circular cylindrical shells:

The free vibrations occur at discrete natural frequencies, depending on
the geometry and material of the shell. Knowledge of the free vibration
33
characteristics is important for the general understanding of the fundamentals of

the shell behaviour [7].
In general, the free vibration of any elastic continuous system is the sum
of the principal modes. For the principal mode of vibration every particle in the
body performs simple harmonic motion at the frequency corresponding to the
particular root of the frequency (characteristic) equation, each particle passing
simultaneously through its respective equilibrium position. If the elastic curve
of the body under which the motion is started coincides exactly with one of the
principal modes, then only that mode will be produced. However, the elastic
curve resulting from a blow or a sudden removal of forces seldom corresponds
to that of a principal mode, and thus all modes are exited [52].
For a closed shell, of length L and freely supported (the radial and
tangential displacements are restrained while the longitudinal displacement is
free) at the two ends, the solution of Eqs. (3.1) can be sought in the following
form [55]:
u = ∑m ∑n Amn (cos (mπx/L) cos nθ sin ωt) …(3.6 -a)
v = ∑m ∑n Bmn (sin (mπx/L) sin nθ sin ωt) …(3.6 -b)
w = ∑m ∑n Cmn (sin (mπx/L) cos nθ sin ωt) …(3.6 –c)
where Amn, Bmn, and Cmn are arbitrary constants, m refers to the number of axial
half waves, whereas n characterizes the number of circumferential waves. The
displacement components u, v, and w in the above equations satisfy the freely
supported boundary conditions at x= 0 and x= L and periodicity conditions with
respect to θ.
Inserting Eqs.(3.6) into Eqs. (3.1), yields the following system of
homogeneous algebraic equations
34
[Ω2– ((1-µ)/2)n2 –λm2] Amn + [(1+ µ)/2]n λm Bmn – µ λm Cmn = 0 … (3.7-a)
[(1+ µ)/2]n λm Amn + [Ω2– ((1-µ)/2)λm2 –n2] Bmn + n Cmn = 0 … (3.7-b)
- µλm Amn + n Bmn +[ Ω2–H(λm2+ n2)2-1] Cmn= 0 … (3.7-c)

where Ω is the frequency factor, λm is the axial wave length parameter, and H is
the thickness parameter, defined as
Ω2= [(1- µ2) ρ/E] R2 ω2 …(3.8-a)
λm = m π R/ L …(3.8-b)
H= (h/R)2/12 …(3.8-c)
To determine the nontrivial solutions of the above system of homogeneous
equations, it is necessary to equate its determinant to zero, then
Ω2– ((1-µ)/2)n2 –λm2 [(1+ µ)/2]n λm – µ λm
[(1+ µ)/2]n λm Ω2– ((1-µ)/2)λm2 – n2 n = 0 (3.9)

- µλm n Ω2–H(λm2+ n2)2-1
The resulting equation of the third power in Ω2, or sixth power in ω, determines
the natural frequencies of vibrations of the given cylindrical shell corresponding
to certain numbers of m and n. The above equation can also be written in the
form [7],
T1 ω6 + T2 ω4 + T3 ω 2 + T4 = 0 … (3.10)
where T1, T2, T3, and T4 are some coefficients depending on m and n, as well as
geometric and material properties of the shell.
All the roots of the characteristic equation (3.10) are always real, and
three values of the natural frequency correspond to each pair of numbers m and
n. The negative values of ω, which have no physical meaning, are dropped.
Having any of the three frequencies, the ratios between the amplitudes Amn, Bmn,
35
and Cmn , can be calculated from the homogeneous equations (3.7). Each value
of ω corresponds to a certain ratio between the amplitudes of the longitudinal,
tangential, and radial displacements [7].
3.6 The base plate:

The plate is a flat structural member bounded by two planes, called faces,
and a cylindrical surface, called the edge or boundary. The distance between the
plane faces is called the thickness of the plate. The latter is small compared to
the other dimensions of the plate. For plates of constant thickness the two planes
are parallel and the generators of the cylindrical surface are perpendicular to
them. The plate possesses a geometrically similar dimensional characteristic as
the 2-D solid. The difference is that the forces applied on the plate are in the
direction perpendicular to the plane of the plate. The plate can also be viewed as
a 2-D analogy of a beam. Therefore, the plate experiences bending resulting in
deflection w in the perpendicular z- direction [57].
A plate resists transverse loads by means of bending. The flexural
properties of a plate depend greatly upon its thickness in comparison with other
dimensions. Plates may be classified into three groups according to the ratio
(a/hp), where a is a typical dimension of a plate in a plane and hp is plate
thickness, as follows [7]:
1. Thick plates, for which a/hp ≤ 8. The analysis of such plates includes
all the components of stresses, strains, and displacements as for solid
bodies using the general equations of three-dimensional elasticity.
2. Membranes, for which a/hp ≥ 80. These plates are devoid of flexural
rigidity, thus they carry the lateral loads by axial tensile forces.
3. Thin plates, for which 8 ≤ a/hp ≤ 80. Most of plates lie within this
group. Depending on the value of the ratio (w/hp), where w is the
36
maximum deflection, this group, in turn, may also be subdivided into two
different classes.
a. Stiff plates, when w/hp ≤ 0.2, carry loads two dimensionally, mostly by
internal bending and twisting moments and by transverse shear forces.
b. Flexible plates, when w/hp ≥ 0.3, carry the external loads by the
combined action of internal moments, shear forces, and membrane (axial)
forces.
3.6.1 Equation of motion:

The fundamental assumptions of the linear, elastic, small deflection
theory of bending of thin plates may be stated as follows [7]:
1. The material is elastic, homogeneous, and isotropic.
2. The plate is initially flat.
3. The deflection is small.
4. The straight lines, initially normal to the middle plane before bending,
remain straight and normal to the middle surface after bending.
5. The stress normal to the middle plane is small compared with the other
stress components, and may be neglected.
6. The middle surface remains unstrained after bending.
Many of these assumptions, known as Krichhoff’s hypotheses, are analogous to
those associated with simple bending theory of beams. These assumptions result
in the reduction of the three-dimensional plate problem to a two-dimensional
one.
3.6.2 Circular plates:

Since the present work is devoted for studying the circular cylindrical
tanks, so that, only circular plate will be considered. The classical differential
37
equation of motion for the free vibration, in terms of transverse displacements

w, of a circular plate is given by [58]:
4
D w+ ρ hp ∂2w/∂t2= 0 … (3.11)
where D is the flexural rigidity, defined by
D= E hp3/(12(1-µ2))
E is Young’s modulus, µ is Poisson’s ratio, ρ is the mass density, t is the time,
and
4 2 2
=
2
where is the Laplacian operator, defined in polar coordinates as
2
= ∂2/∂r2 + (1/r) ∂/∂r + (1/r2) ∂2/∂θ2
In the case of a plate supported by an elastic soil, Eq. (3.11) becomes
4
D w+ ksoil w + ρ hp ∂2w/∂t2= 0 … (3.12)
where ksoil is the modulus of subgrade reaction of the supporting soil.
3.7 The soil-structure interaction:

Structures are generally assumed to be fixed at their bases in the process
of analysis and design under dynamic loading. The consideration of the actual
support flexibility reduces the overall stiffness of the structure and increases the
period of the system [39].
The search of the physically close and mathematically simple model to
represent the soil medium in the soil – structure interaction problems shows two
basic classical approaches, viz., Winklerian approach and Continuum approach.
At the foundation – supporting soil interface, contact pressure distribution is the
important parameter. The variation of pressure distribution depends on the
foundation behaviour (viz., rigid or flexible) and nature of soil deposit (clay or
sand etc.). The mechanical behaviour of soil appears to be complex and it seems
to be impossible to establish any mathematical law that would conform to actual
38
observation [39]. In this context, simplicity of models, in many cases becomes a

prime consideration and they often yield reasonable results.
In the present work two models are used to represent the soil under the
tank base, both models adopt the Winklerian approach. The first one uses the
traditional discrete spring representation, whereas the other uses a proposed
continuous representation of these springs.
3.7.1 Winkler model:

Winkler’s idealization represents the soil medium as a system of identical
but mutually independent, closely spaced, discrete, linearly elastic springs, Fig.
(3.2-a). According to this idealization, deformation of foundation due to applied
load is confined to loaded regions only. The pressure-deflection relation at any
point is given by
q = ksoil w … (3.13)
where q is the pressure, ksoil is the coefficient of subgrade reaction, and w is the
deflection.
The values of subgrade reaction for various soil types range from about
4800 kN/m3 for a loose sand to about 128000 kN/m3 for dense sand [59].
3.7.2 Continuous representation:

In this suggested model the soil is represented by a three dimensional
linear elastic medium, Fig. (3.2-b). This medium has a modulus of elasticity of a
value such that to produce the same effect of Winkler’s spring model. The
evaluation of the modulus of elasticity is as follows.
If a pressure q is applied on a soil having subgrade modulus k, then
according to Winkler’s model, the settlement ∆1 under the load will be
∆1 = q / ksoil
39
The soil is now represented by a block of contact sectional area Ab, height
hb, and modulus of elasticity Eb. Then the change in height of the block ∆2 under
a pressure of magnitude q, applied on the area A is
∆2 = q hb / Eb
If now similar settlements are assumed to occur under similar loads of Winkler
and block models, i.e. ∆1 should be equals to ∆2, then
Eb = ksoil hb …(3.14)
From Eq. (3.14), it is noted that the value of modulus of elasticity of the
suggested medium depends on the height of the medium model in addition to
the modulus of subgrade reaction.
This block model is found to facilitate the descritization of soil and the
assessment of its effect on structure.
3.8 The stiffeners:

Stiffeners or ring beams are often used to stiffen the walls of cylindrical
tanks and other shell structures. The ring acts together with the shell to form a
composite structure. The analysis of such a composite structure is usually not
simple, and often has to be numerical. However, the analysis under
axisymmetric pressures may be simplified by using an effective ring beam
section, which consists of part of the ring beam and segments of the shell wall
[60]. Ring stiffeners may have various shapes, but angle rolled sections are the
most widely used.
Being suitably designed, the stiffened shells are more efficient and
economical than the corresponding unstiffened shell [7]. The shell functions
more efficiently if the meridional, circumferential, or a combination of both
systems of stiffeners is used [54]. In the present work only the circumferential
(ring beam) stiffeners are considered.
40
The effective length of the shell varies depending on the location of the
ring beam stiffener. The ring beam stiffeners are often placed at the end of the
shell or where the wall thickness changes. When ring stiffeners of equal
strength are closely and evenly spaced, the stiffened shell may be modelled as
an equivalent orthotropic shell. However, as the stiffener spacing increases or if
the wave length of vibration becomes smaller than the stiffener spacing, the
determination of a consistent satisfactory set of orthotropic module becomes
rather difficult. Thus, for a more general model, the ring stiffeners have to be
treated as discrete members [61]. The structure may be treated as a combination
of shell elements and stiffener elements each having its own equations of
motion and coupled by equation of continuity [53].
The free vibration of a uniform beam is governed by Euler’s differential
equation, [52]
EI ∂4y/∂x4 + ms ∂2y/∂t2 = 0 … (3.15)
where E is the elastic modulus, I is the moment of inertia, and ms is the mass
density per unit length.
To determine the normal modes of vibration, the solution in the form [52]
y(x,t)= φn(x) exp(iωn t) …(3.16)
is substituted into Eq. (3.15) to obtain the equation
d4φn(x)/dx4 – βn4 φn(x) = 0 …(3.17)
where φn(x) is a characteristic function describing the deflection of the nth
mode, βn4= ms ωn2/EI, and ωn is the natural frequency of the nth mode.
3.9 The contained liquid:

The vibration of liquid storage tanks involves the interaction between the
shell structure and the contained fluid. The response of the contained fluid
during vibration can be briefly described as follows [25, 32]:
41
During vibration, the contained liquid develops a hydrodynamic pressure

on to the walls of the tank. This pressure can be divided into two components.
The first component is the impulsive pressure, resulting from the liquid mass
accelerating with the tank. The second is the convective pressure, caused by the
portion of the liquid sloshing in the tank. The sloshing mass of the liquid
vibrates at frequencies which are very low compared to the vibration of the shell
structure. So that it can be concluded that practically no dynamic coupling
exists between the structure and the sloshing mass. Hence the sloshing effect is
usually ignored in the dynamic analysis of liquid storage tanks [6, 19, 56]. This
means that the effect of the contained fluid can be rationally modeled by
considering the impulsive fluid mass only.
Several approaches were developed to model the contained liquid in
vibration problems of shell structures, such as using the FEM by using elastic
solid elements [51, 31], or by solving the potential equation analytically [46]. In
the finite element method, the fluid can be represented by three different
methods, i.e. Eulerian, Lagrangian, and mixed methods. In the Eulerian
approach, the velocity potential (or pressure) is used to describe the behaviour
of the fluid, whereas the displacement field is used in the Lagrangian approach.
In the mixed approach, both the pressure and displacement fields are included in
the element formulation [62].
Some simplified approaches are available in which fluid-structure
interaction is studied in a decoupled manner. In this type of analysis, the fluid
response is first obtained assuming the structure to be rigid and the resulting
pressure field is imposed on the structure to obtain the structure response [63].
One of the most efficient methods in this context is the substitution of the fluid
effect by an added mass applied to each point of the vibrating shell [19, 35, 37].
In the present work the added mass approach is implemented to develop a new
suggested method of modelling the effect of the contained liquid.
42
3.9.1 Added mass method:

In this method the liquid pressure exerted upon the surface of the shell is
considered to be due to the inertial force of the accelerated liquid that can be
assumed to be in phase with the structural acceleration. Therefore, the effect of
the liquid can be included in the equations of the shell motion as added virtual
mass [56].Thus, the effect of the contained liquid is represented only by
equivalent masses added to the shell structure. There are various techniques
used to determine these equivalent masses [19, 37]. The evaluated mass is
added to the mass of the structure at the fluid–surface interface. The regulating
equation of the free vibration of the system will be,
([M]+ [Madd]) {utt} + [K] {u} = 0 …(3.18)
where [M] is the mass matrix of the structure, [Madd] is the added mass matrix,
{utt} is the second derivative of displacement vector with respect to time, and
{u} is the displacement vector.
In this approach, it is assumed that the added mass synchronously
vibrates with the structure; therefore, only the mass matrix is increased to
consider the fluid effect, whereas stiffness (and damping) matrices do not
change.
3.9.2 New suggested model:

Several models were previously developed to represent the hydrodynamic
effects of the contained liquid. In the present model it is assumed that during
vibration, the sloshing mass vibrates, at the top part of the contained liquid, as a
separated mass. This separated mass is assumed to vibrate by sliding on a
spherical path. The spherical path represents the top surface of the remaining
not sloshing, i.e. impulsive mass (Fig. (3.3)). As mentioned previously, only the
lower (impulsive) mass is considered here.
43
The impulsive mass is now divided horizontally and radially into wedges.
The mass of each wedge is determined and added as a lumped mass to the node
located at the fluid outer surface (Fig. (3.3)). The equations of calculating the
added mass is detailed in the following.
a. When R ≤ Hf :
For the case when the radius R of the tank is smaller than the height Hf of
the liquid in the tank. In this case the radius of the sliding surface Rs is equals to
the radius of the tank, Fig. (3.4-a),
Rs = R …(3.16)
The added mass is then,
(I) for nodes located at y > Hf
m(y) = 0 …(3.17)
in which y is the ordinate of the node, measured from the tank base, and m(y) is
the mass to be added to nodes located at y.
(II) for nodes located at (Hf – R) < y < Hf
m(y)= ρ(π R2 ∆h – π ∆h (R2 – (Hf – y)2))/N

or
m(y)= π ρl ∆h (Hf – y)2)/N …(3.18)
where ρl is the mass density of the liquid, ∆h is the vertical distance between
nodes, and N is the number of nodes at the circumference in the y-location
(III) for nodes located at y < (Hf – R)

m(y)= πρl ∆h R2 /N …(3.19)
44
b. When R > Hf :
This represents the case when the radius R of the tank is greater than the
liquid height Hf in the tank. In this case the radius of sliding surface Rs is
greater than the tank radius R. It is assumed that the sliding surface intersects
the top edge of the tank, and it is tangent to its base (Fig. (3.4-b), then
Rs2= R2+ (Rs – Hf)2
thus
Rs= (R2+Hf2)/(2Hf) …(3.20)
and
m(y)= π ρl ∆h (R2 – 2Rs y + y2)/N …(3.21)
Equations (3.16) to (3.19) can be used for partially filled tanks as well as for
completely filled tanks, provided that the liquid depth is greater than the tank
radius. Whereas, Eq. (3.21) can be used only for the case of completely filled
tank.
45
Chapter Three Vibration Analysis of Cylindrical Shells
n=0 n=1 n=2 n=3

Circumferential Nodal pattern
m=0 m=1 m=2

Axial nodal pattern
Nodal pattern for

m = 4 and n= 3
Figure (3.1): Circumferential and axial waves and nodal pattern

of circular cylindrical shell [53]
46
Load
Load
Foundation Spring
Foundation Elastic medium
(a) Discrete spring model (b) Continuous medium model
Figure (3.2): Soil modelling
Static water level
Sloshing mass
Hf
Sliding surface
Impulsive mass
2R
Figure (3.3): Spherical sliding surface
47
Static water
Rs
Hf – y
∆h
Hf
2R
(a) R ≤ Hf
Rs Rs- Hf
Rs- y
Rs
Static water level
∆h Hf
y
R
(b) R > Hf
Figure (3.4): Impulsive added mass

48
Chapter Four Finite Element Formulation
CHAPTER FOUR
FINITE ELEMENT FORMULATION
4.1 General:
In general, engineering problems can be cast into mathematical models of
physical situations. Mathematical models are differential equations with a set of
corresponding boundary and initial conditions. The differential equations are
derived by applying the fundamental laws and principles of nature to a system
or control volume. These governing equations represent balance of mass, force
or energy. When possible, the exact solution of these equations renders detailed
behaviour of a system under a given set of conditions [64].
However, there are many practical engineering problems for which the
exact solutions cannot be obtained. This inability to obtain an exact solution
may be attributed to either the complex nature of the governing differential
equations or the difficulties which arise from dealing with the boundary
conditions. To deal with such problems, the numerical approximations are
resorted. In contrast to analytical solutions, which show the exact behaviour of a
system at any point within the system, numerical solutions approximate exact
solutions only at discrete points [64].
4.2 Structural analysis:

Many structures are too complicated to be analysed by classical
techniques, so that an approximate methods have to be used. The breaking of a
dynamic structure down into a large number of substructures is a useful
analytical technique, provided that sufficient computational facilities are
49
available to solve the resulting equations. The finite element method of analysis
extends this method to the consideration of the continuous system as a number
of elements, connected to each other by conditions of compatibility and
equilibrium. Complicated structures can thus be modelled as the aggregate of
simpler structures [65].
4.3 Finite element method:

The finite element method is a numerical procedure that can be applied to
obtain solutions to a variety of problems in engineering. The fundamental
concept of the FEM is that any continuous quantity, such as displacement, can
be approximated by discrete models composed of a set of piecewise continuous
functions (shape functions) defined over a finite number of subdomains
(elements). The piecewise continuous functions are defined using the values of
the continuous quantity at a finite number of points in its domain. [66]
The FEM therefore consists of dividing the dynamic system into a series
of elements by imaginary lines, and connecting the elements only at the
intersections of these lines. These intersections are called nodes. The stresses
and strains in each element are then defined in terms of the displacements and
forces at the nodes. A series of equations is thus produced for the displacement
of the nodes and hence the system. By solving these equations the stresses,
strains, natural frequencies, and mode shapes of the system can be determined.
The accuracy of the FEM is greatest in the lower modes, and increases as the
number of elements in the model increases [65].
The principal advantage of the FEM is its generality; it can be used to
calculate the natural frequencies and mode shapes of any linear elastic system.
However, it is a numerical method that requires a large computer, and a care has
to be taken over the sensitivity of the computer output to small changes in input
[65].
50
4.4 Strong and weak forms:

Partial differential equations, such as Eqs. (3.1), are strong forms of the
governing system of equations [57]. The strong form, in contrast to weak form,
requires strong continuity on the dependent field variables (the displacements u,
v, and w in this case). Whatever functions that define these field variables, they
have to be differentiable up to the order of the partial differential equations that
exists in the strong form of the system equations. Obtaining the exact solution
for a strong form of the system equation is usually very difficult for practical
engineering problems. The finite difference method can be used to solve
equations of the strong form to obtain an approximate solution. However, the
method works well for problems with simple and regular geometry and
boundary conditions [57].
A weak form of the system equations is usually created using one of the
following widely used methods; energy principles, and weighted residual
method. The energy principle can be categorized as a special form of the
variational principle which is particularly suited for problems of the mechanics
of solids and structures. The weighted residual method is a more general
mathematical tool applicable, in principle, for solving all kinds of partial
differential equations. Both methods are very easy to understand and apply.
The weak form is often an integral form and requires a weaker continuity
on the field variables. Due to the weaker requirements on the field variables,
and the integral operation, a formulation based on a weak form usually produce
a set of discretized system equations that give much more accurate results,
especially for problems of complex geometry. Hence, the weak form is
preferred by many for obtaining an approximate solution. The finite element
method is a typical example of successfully using weak form formulation.
Using the weak form usually leads to a set of well-behaved algebraic system
equations, if the problem domain is discretized properly into elements. As the
51
problem domain can be discretized into different types of elements, the FEM
can be applied for many practical engineering problems with most kinds of
complex geometry and boundary conditions [57].
4.5 FE procedure:
The finite element analysis of a structural system generally consists of the
following steps: [57]
4.5.1 Domain discretization:
The solid body is divided into a number of elements. This process is often
called meshing. All the elements together form the entire domain of the problem
without any gap or overlapping. The purpose of the domain discretization is to
make it easier in assuming the pattern of the displacement field.
4.5.2 Displacement interpolation:

The displacement within an element is approximated simply by a
polynomial interpolation in terms of the displacements at the nodes, i.e.
{u}= [N] {δ} … (4.1)
where {u} is the vector of the field variables, [N] is the matrix of the shape
functions, and {δ} is the vector of the values of field variables at the nodes of
the element.
The shape functions are often expressed using the local coordinate system
that is defined within the element.
4.5.3 Formulation of FE equations:

The shape functions, the strain-displacement relationships, and applied
forces are substituted into the governing equations to obtain the element
equation, i.e.
[m] {δtt} + [k] {δ} = {f} …(4.2)
52
where [m] and [k] are the element mass and stiffness matrices, respectively,
{δtt} is the vector of the second derivatives of the nodal displacements with
respect to time (accelerations), and {f} is the element force vector, which is zero
for free vibration problems.
4.5.4 Coordinates transformation:

The element equation is formulated based on the local coordinate system
defined on an element. In general, the structure is divided into many elements
with different orientations. To assemble all the element equations to form the
global system equations, a coordinate transformation has to be performed for
each element in order to formulate its element equation in reference to the
global coordinate system which is defined for the whole structure. The
coordinate transformation gives the relationship between the nodal displacement
vector {δ} based on the local coordinate system and the nodal displacement
vector {d} for the same element, but based on the global coordinate system.
{δ}= [T] {d} … (4.3)
where [T] is the transformation matrix, which has different forms depending
upon the type of the element.
Substitution of Eq. (4.3) into Eq. (4.2) yields
[m][T]{dtt} + [k][T]{d} = 0
and the pre-multiplication by [T]T leads to [57]
[M(e)] {dtt}+ [K(e)] {d}= 0 …(4.4)
where [M(e)] = [T]T[m][T] and [K(e)] = [T]T[k][T]
4.5.5 Assembly of global finite element equations:

The finite element equations for all the individual elements are assembled
together to form the global finite element system equation:
53
[M] {∆ tt}+ [K] {∆}= 0 …(4.5)

where [M] and [K] are the global stiffness and mass matrices, and {∆} is a
vector of all the displacements at all the nodes in the entire problem domain.
4.5.6 Imposition of displacement constraints:

The constraints (boundary conditions) can be imposed by simply
removing the rows and columns corresponding to the constrained nodal
displacements.
4.5.7 Solving the global FE equations:

The resulting set of equations is solved, the displacements at the nodes
are determined, and from which the strains and stresses can be calculated.
4.6 Finite element equations:

The solution of problems in the theory of elasticity can proceed along one
of two lines. One can solve the governing differential equations for the specified
boundary conditions, or one can minimize an integral quantity related to the
internal and external work done by the stress components and the applied loads.
The finite element formulation of the elasticity problems utilizes the latter
approach. [66]
4.6.1 Minimization of the mechanical energy:

In a non-dissipative system the total energy is constant, and the equation
of motion can be established by the principle of conservation of energy. For the
vibration of undamped system, the energy is partly potential and partly kinetic.
The potential energy is stored in the form of strain energy in elastic deformation
or work done by a force field such as gravity, whereas the kinetic energy is
54
stored in the mass by virtue of its velocity [52]. Mathematically, the total energy
is [67]
Em= Π+ T …(4.6)
where Em is the total mechanical energy, Π is the total potential energy, and T is
the kinetic energy.
The total potential energy of an elastic system is the sum of two different
types of potential energy: the first is associated with the internal potential
energy (i.e. the so-called strain energy) and that associated with the external
potential energy from the external forces that act on the system [68], i.e.
Π = Λ + Wp ... (4.7)
where Λ, is the strain energy and Wp, is the potential energy of the applied
loads. The work done by the loads is the negative of their potential energy or
W = - Wp ... (4.8)
Combining Eqs.(4.7) and (4.8) yields
Π=Λ-W … (4.9)
In FEM the above equations are applied to each element in the considered
domain of the elastic system, so that, Eq. (4.9) can be rewritten for a single
element as
Π(e) = Λ(e) - W(e) …(4.10)
and the total potential energy of the whole domain is the sum of the total
potential energies of the elements, i.e.
Π = ∑ ( Λ(e) - W(e) ) …(4.11)
The strain energy of a differential element of volume dV is given by [66]
dΛ(e) = ½ {ε}T {σ} – ½ {εo}T {σ} …(4.12)
where {ε} is the total strain, {εo} is the initial strain and {σ} is the stress. The
total strain energy is obtained by the integration over the volume and is given as
Λ(e) = ∫V ½( {ε}T {σ} – {εo}T {σ}).dV …(4.13)
55
The stress is related to the strain by Hooke’s law, so that the vector {σ}
can be written as the sum of the products of a matrix [D], containing the elastic
constants of the material, by the strain vectors {ε} and {εo}, i.e.
{σ}= [D]{ε} - [D]{εo} …(4.14)
The strain displacement relationships are [66]
ε xx= ∂u/∂x , ε yy= ∂v/∂y , ε zz= ∂w/∂z ,
γxy= ∂u/∂y + ∂v/∂x , γyz= ∂v/∂z + ∂w/∂y , …(4.15)
γxz= ∂u/∂z + ∂w/∂x
which can be written in matrix form as

ε xx ∂ /∂x 0 0
ε yy 0 ∂ /∂y 0
u
ε zz 0 0 ∂ /∂z
v
γ xy ∂ /∂y ∂ /∂x 0
w
γ yz 0 ∂ /∂z ∂ /∂y
γ xz ∂ /∂z 0 ∂ /∂x
or
{ε}= [L]{u} …(4.16)
where u, v, and w are the displacement components in the x, y, and z-coordinate
directions, respectively, [L] is the derivatives operator matrix, and {u} is the
displacement vector. The displacement components can be written in terms of
the nodal displacement values. The general form of these relationships is
{u}= [N]{δ} …(4.17)
where [N] is the matrix of the shape functions which is a function of the spatial
coordinates only, and {δ} is the vector of time dependent nodal displacement
values.
Equations (4.16) and (4.17) allow the strain vector {ε}, to be written in
terms of the time dependent nodal displacements {δ} as;
56
{ ε }= [B]{δ} …(4.18)
where [B] is derived by performing the proper differentiation of [N].
Substituting Eqs. (4.14) and (4.18) into Eq. (4.13) and applying for a
single element yields,
Λ(e) = ∫V ½( {δ} T[B]T[D][B]{δ} – 2 {δ} T[B]T[D]{ εo}
+ { εo}T [D]{ εo } )dV …(4.19)
The last term is not a function of the nodal values, {δ}; therefore, it has no
influence on the minimization process and can be deleted.
The work done by the applied loads can be separated into three distinct
parts: that which is due to the concentrated loads Wc(e), that which results from
the distributed loads acting on the outside surface Wp(e) , and that which is done
by the body forces Wb(e) ,i.e.
W(e)= Wc(e)+ Wp(e)+ Wb(e) …(4.20)
The work done by the concentrated forces is
Wc(e)= {δ}T{P} …(4.21)
where {P} is the nodal forces. The work done by the distributed loads is
Wp(e)= ∫S (u px + v py + w pz )dS …(4.22)
where px, py, and pz are the distributed load components (per unit area) in the
respective directions. Utilizing Eq. (4.17), allows Eq. (4.22) to be written as
Wp(e)= ∫S {δ}T[N]T{p} dS …(4.23)
The work done by the body forces is given by
Wb(e)= ∫V (u X + v Y + w Z)dV …(4.24)
where X, Y, and Z are the body force components (per unit volume) in the x, y,
and z- directions respectively. By the analogy with Eq. (4.23), Eq. (4.24) can be
rewritten as
Wb(e)= ∫V {δ}T[N]T{X} dV …(4.25)
The substitution of Eqs. (4.21), (4.23), and (4.25) into Eq. (4.20) leads to
W(e)= {δ}T{P}+∫S {δ}T[N]T{P} dS+ ∫V {δ}T[N]T{X} dV ..(4.26)
57
The combination of equations (4.11), (4.19) and (4.26) yields the elemental
potential energy
Π(e)= ∫V ½ {δ}T[B]T[D][B] {δ} dV– ∫V {δ}T[B]T[D]{ εo}dV
-∫S {δ}T[N]T{P} dS -∫V {δ}T[N]T{X} dV- {δ}T{P}

or
Π(e)=½ {δ}T[k] {δ}– {δ}T {f} …(4.27)
in which [k] is the element stiffness matrix and {f} is the element force vector.
They are defined as
[k]= ∫V [B]T[D][B] dV …(4.28)
and
{f}= –∫V [B]T [D]{εo}dV - ∫S [N]T {P} dS
-∫V [N]T {X} dV- {P} …(4.29)
The sum of elemental potential energy over the whole domain gives the total
potential energy, as
Π=∑( ∫V ½ {δ}T[B]T[D][B] {δ} dV– ∫V {δ}T[B]T[D]{ εo}dV
-∫S {δ}T[N]T{P} dS -∫V {δ}T[N]T{X} dV) – {δ}T{P}

or
Π=½ {δ}T[K] {δ}– {δ}T {F} …(4.30)
where [K] is the global stiffness matrix, and {F} is the global force vector. They
are defined as
[K]= ∑ ∫V [B]T[D][B] dV …(4.31)
and
{F}=∑( –∫V [B]T[D]{ εo }dV -∫S [N]T{P} dS
-∫V [N]T{X} dV) - {P} …(4.32)
The kinetic energy is derived by considering an infinitesimal differential
mass dm= ρ dx dy dz located at arbitrary position (x, y, z). Displacements of the
58
differential mass in the coordinate directions are u, v, and w, and the velocity
components are ut, vt, and wt, respectively. The subscript represents the
derivative with respect to time. The kinetic energy of the mass is
dT= ½ (ut2+ vt2+ wt2)dm = ½ (ut2+ vt2+ wt2) ρ dx dy dz …(4.33)
Total kinetic energy of the body is then
T= ½ ∫z ∫y ∫x (ut2+ vt2+ wt2) ρ dx dy dz …(4.34)
in which the integrations are performed over the entire mass (volume) of the
body.
If the body is assumed to be a finite element with the displacement field
discretized as [67]
{u} = [N] {δ} …(4.35)
where {u} is the displacement vector, given by
u
{u} = v …(4.36)
w
[N] is the matrix of the shape functions in terms of spatial coordinates and {δ}
is the vector of nodal displacement values.
The velocity components can also be expressed as
{ut} = [N] {δt} …(4.37)
where {ut} is the velocity vector, which is the time derivative of the
displacement vector, and {δt} is the vector of nodal velocities.
The element kinetic energy expressed in terms of nodal velocities and
interpolation functions is then written as [57]
T(e)= ½ ∫z ∫y ∫x ({δt}T[N]T[N]{δt}) ρ dx dy dz …(4.38)
or
T(e)= ½ {δt}T ρ ∫V ([N]T[N]) dV {δt}
which can be written in a compact form as
T(e)= ½ {δt}T[m] {δt} ...(4.39)
59
where [m] is the element mass matrix defined as

[m]= ρ ∫V ([N]T[N]) dV …(4.40)
The kinetic energy of the global system is then,
T= ∑ ½ {δt}T[m] {δt}
or
T= ½ {δt}T [M] {δt} …(4.41)
in which [M] is the global mass matrix.
The mass matrix given by Eq.(4.40) is called as consistent mass matrix.
The term consistent is used because the interpolation functions used in
formulating the mass matrix are the same as (consistent with) those used to
describe the spatial variation of displacement.
The substitution of Eqs.(4.30) and (4.41) into Eq.(4.6) yields the total
mechanical energy,
Em= ½ {δ}T[K] {δ}– {δ}T {F} +½ {δt}T [M] {δt} …(4.42)
As the system is assumed to contain no mechanism for energy
dissipation, so that the total mechanical energy is constant, hence
d Em/dt= 0 …(4.43)
As the mechanical energy is expressed as a function of both the displacement
and velocity, the minimization procedure requires that, [67]
d Em/dt= (∂Em/∂δ)( ∂δ/∂t) + (∂Em/∂δt)( ∂δt/∂t) …(4.44)
Application of Eq. (4.44) to the energy represented by Eq. (4.43) yields
d Em/dt = {δt}T[K] {δ}– {δt}T {F} + {δtt}T [M] {δt}
from which
{δt}T[K] {δ}– {δt}T {F} + {δtt}T [M] {δt}= 0 …(4.45)
and since [M] is a symmetric matrix, then [52]
{δtt}T [M] {δt}= {δt}T [M] {δtt}
so that Eq. (4.45) can be written as
{δt}T[K] {δ}– {δt}T {F} + {δt}T [M] {δtt}= 0 …(4.46)
60
which when divided by {δt}T is reduced to a system of ordinary differential

equations
[K] {δ} – {F} + [M] {δtt}= 0
or
[M] { δtt} + [K] {δ} = {F} …(4.47)
where {δtt} is the vector of second order derivatives of displacements with
respect to time.
Examination of Eq. (4.47) in light of known facts about the stiffness and
mass matrices reveals that the differential equations are coupled, at least
through the stiffness matrix, which is known to be symmetric but not diagonal.
The phenomenon embodied here is referred to as static coupling (also referred
to as elastic or stiffness coupling), as the coupling terms arise from the elastic
stiffness matrix. The coupling means that more than one degree of freedom
appears in each equation. In consistent mass matrices, the equations are also
coupled by the non-diagonal nature of the mass matrix; therefore, the term
dynamic coupling (also referred to inertia or mass coupling) is applied when the
mass matrix is not diagonal. Obtaining solutions for coupled differential
equations is not generally a straightforward procedure. [67]
In the absence of externally applied nodal forces, Eq. (4.47), reduced to
[M] { δtt} + [K] {δ} = 0 …(4.48)
which represents a system of homogeneous linear second-order differential
equations with time as the independent variable. Hence, the case is an
eigenvalue problem in which the eigenvalues are the natural circular frequencies
of oscillation of the structural system, and the eigenvectors are the amplitude
vectors (mode shapes) corresponding to the natural frequencies.
61
4.7 Modal analysis using FEM:

For a structural system with a total number of DOF of Nd, the stiffness
matrix and mass matrix have a dimension of Nd×Nd. For a structure that
undergoes a free vibration, the discretized system equation is Eq. (4.48). The
solution can be assumed as [57]
{δ} = {Φ} exp(iωt) ...(4.49)
where {Φ} is the amplitude of the nodal displacement, i2= -1, ω is the frequency
of the free vibration, and t is the time. Substituting Eq. (4.49) into Eq. (4.48)
leads to
([K] – ω2[M]) {Φ}= 0
or
([K] – λ [M]) {Φ}= 0 …(4.50)
where λ = ω2
Equation (4.50) is called the eigenvalue equation. To have a non-zero
solution for Φ, the determinant of the matrix must vanish:
det ([K] – λ [M])= 0 …(4.51)
The expansion of the above equation will lead to a polynomial in λ of order Nd.
This polynomial equation will have Nd roots λ1, λ2, …, called eigenvalues, from
which the natural frequency can be determined. By substituting an eigenvalue λi
into Eq. (4.50), then
([K] – λi [M]) {Φ}= 0
which is a set of algebraic equations. Solving these equations for {Φ}, a vector
denoted by {Φ}i can then be obtained. This vector corresponding to the ith
eigenvalue λi is called the ith eigenvector that satisfies the following equation:
([K] – λi [M]) {Φ}i= 0 …(4.52)
An eigenvector {Φ}i corresponds to a vibration mode that gives the shape of the
vibrating structure of the ith mode. Therefore, analysis of the eigenvalue
equation also gives very important information on possible vibration modes
62
experienced by the structure during vibration. Mathematically, the eigenvectors

can be used to construct the displacement field.
4.8 Solution of the eigenvalue problems:

The solution of eigenproblems means the determination of the
eigenvalues λi and the corresponding eigenvectors {Φ}i, where i= 1,…, Nd.
Because the exact solution of the eigenproblems can prohibitively be expensive
when the order, Nd, of the system is large, thus approximate techniques of
solution have been developed. These approximate solution techniques have
primarily been developed to calculate the lowest eigenvalues λ1,… ,λp, and the
corresponding eigenvectors {Φ}1, …., {Φ}p, where p < Nd [69].
All solution methods must be iterative in nature because, basically,
solving the eigenvalue problem is equivalent to calculating the roots of a
polynomial P(λ) of order p. Since there are no explicit formulas available for the
calculation of the roots of a polynomial of order larger than four, an iterative
solution method has to be used, such as vector iteration, transformation,
polynomial iteration, Sturm sequence, Lanczos, and subspace iteration methods
[69].
Although, iteration is needed in the solution of an eigenpair (λi, {Φ}i), it
should be noted that once one member has been calculated, no further iteration
is required to find the other member. That is, if the eigenvalue λi has been
evaluated by iteration, then the eigenvector Φi can be determined by solving Eq.
(4.52).
4.8.1 Subspace iteration method:

An effective method widely used in engineering practice for the solution
of eigenvalues and eigenvectors of finite element equations is the subspace
63
iteration procedure. This technique is particularly suited for the calculation of a

few eigenvalues and eigenvectors of large finite element systems [69].
The solution procedure is named as subspace iteration method because
the iteration is equivalent to iterating with a subspace of dimension smaller than
the dimension of the stiffness and mass matrices.
The basic objective in the subspace iteration method is to solve for the
smallest p (where p< Nd) eigenvalues and corresponding eigenvectors satisfying
[K] [Φ] = [M] [Φ] [Λ] …(4.53)
where
[Φ]= [ {φ}1 {φ}2 …… {φ}p]
and [Λ] is the diagonal matrix of the eigenvalues, i.e.
λi 0 . 0
0 λi . .
[Λ]= …(4.54)
. . . .
0 . . λi
In addition to the relation in Eq. (4.53), the eigenvectors also satisfy the
orthogonality conditions, i.e.
[Φ]T[K] [Φ]= [Λ] and [Φ]T[M] [Φ]= [I] …(4.55)
where [I] is a unit matrix of order p because [Φ] stores only p eigenvectors.
Because iteration is performed with a subspace, convergence of the
subspace is all that is required and not the convergence of individual iteration
vectors to eigenvectors. When p is small it was found that the number of cycles
required to attain the required accuracy is large. So that, it is found
advantageous to use a larger number (q) of vectors to accelerate the
convergence of the results [69].
The procedure of the subspace iteration method can be summarized by
the following steps:
64
1. A starting trial set of eigenvectors [Φ]i (here i=1), is established which

contains q vectors.
2. The set [X]i+1 is found from
[K] [X]i+1= [M] [Φ]i
3. The projection of the matrices [K] and [M] is found from
[K]i+1 = [X]Ti+1 [K] [X]i+1 and [M]i+1 = [X]Ti+1 [M] [X]i+1
4. Solving for the eigensystem of the projected matrices is conducted
[K]i+1 [Y]i+1 = [M]i+1 [Y]i+1 [Λ] i+1
to determine [Y]i+1 and [Λ] i+1
5. An improved approximation to the eigenvectors is found
[Φ]i+1 = [X]i+1 [Y]i+1
6. Steps 1 to 5 are repeated until the results are converged.
In general, lower modes converge most quickly, and the process is

continued until the desired p modes are obtained with the necessary accuracy.
The additional q- p trial vectors are included because they accelerate the
convergence process, but obviously they require additional computational effort
in each cycle, so that a reasonable balancing must be maintained between the
number of vectors used and the number of cycles required for convergence. It
has been found [69, 70] that a suitable choice is given by q= min (2p, p+8).
4.8.2 Frontal solution:

The determination of eigenvalues and eigenvectors in the subspace
iteration methods involves the solution of sets of simultaneous equations of
large dimensions. A number of methods are available to solve such problems,
such as Gauss elimination, and Cholesky factorization. One of the most widely
used methods is the frontal method. The frontal solution method, also known as
65
the wave front solution, is an especially efficient method for solving finite
element equations [67].
In principle, the frontal solution is Gauss elimination and the important
aspect is the specific computer implementation. In the solution procedure only
those equations that are actually required for the elimination of a specific degree
of freedom are assembled, the degree of freedom considered is statically
condensed out, and so on. The computer procedure consists statically
condensing out one degree of freedom after the other and always assembling
only those equations that are actually required during the specific condensation
to be performed [69].
The main feature of the frontal solution technique is that the equations are
assembled and reduced simultaneously, instead of first assembling the complete
matrix. Therefore back-up storage for the total unreduced matrix is not required.
The procedure of the method can be summarized as follows:
i. After the individual element matrices are calculated, the program
reads in the degrees of freedom for the first element.
ii. Any degree of freedom that can be expressed in terms of the other
degrees of freedom is eliminated, by writing the equation to file. This
process repeats for all elements until all degrees of freedom have been
eliminated and a complete traingularized matrix is left on file.
iii. The program then calculates the nodal degrees of freedom solution by
back-substitution, and uses individual element matrices to calculate
the element solution.
A detailed procedure of the frontal solution method is given in appendix A.
66
4.9 Finite element formulation:

4.9.1 Spring Element:
The matrix equations of the spring element are similar to that of one
dimensional truss or bar elements. It is a straight member capable of
withstanding only axial forces, as shown in Fig. (4.1). In a three dimensional (3-
D) space, a spring has three components (in the x, y, and z- directions) of the
displacements as well as of the forces in each node. For the present work
damping is assumed to be negligible.
u2 2
u1
x,u
1
Figure (4.1): Spring element
Shape function:
The derivation of the element equations is based on a one dimensional
spring (bar) element having two nodes. For the purpose of simplicity, local
coordinates is adopted at the beginning and then the resulting equations will be
transformed to the global coordinates. In the local coordinate system, there is
only one degree of freedom at each node in the axial direction. The axial
displacement within the element u can be written in terms of the nodal values as
u= [N] {δ} …(4.56)
where [N] is the matrix of shape functions defined by
[N]= [ N1 N2 ] …(4.57)
in which N1= 1-x/l and N2= x/l …(4.58)
l is the length of the element, x is the axial coordinate starting at node 1, and
{δ} is the nodal displacement vector given by
67
u1
{δ}= …(4.59)
u2
Strain-displacement relationship:
The strain εx is
εx= ∂u/∂x= ∂ /∂x( [N] {δ})
or
εx= [B]{δ} …(4.60)
where [B] is the element strain nodal displacement matrix and given by
[B]=[ -1/l 1/l ] …(4.61)
Stress-strain relationship:
The stress σx is given as
σx = E ε x …(4.62)
where E is the elastic modulus. The substitution for εx from Eq. (4.60) yields,
σx= E [B]{δ} …(4.63)
Element matrices:
From Eq. (4.28), the stiffness matrix is
[k]= ∫V [B]T[D][B] dV
By substituting [B(e)] from Eq. (4.60) in the stiffness matrix, and noting that
[D]=E, the following is obtained
-1/l
[k]= ∫V E [ -1/l 1/l] dV …(4.64)
1/l
which results in
1 -1
[k]= E A/l …(4.65)
-1 -1
68
in which A is the cross sectional area of the element.

For the spring, EA/l represents the stiffness of the spring, so that
Eq.(4.65) will be
1 -1
[k]= EA/l …(4.66)
-1 -1
The mass matrix is given by Eq. (4.40) as
[m]= ∫V [N]T[N] ρ dV(e)
The substitution for [N] gives,
1- x/l
[m]= ρ ∫V E [ 1-x/l x/l] A dx …(4.67)
x/l
which after multiplication and integration yields,
2 1
[m]= (ρAl/6) …(4.68)
1 2
Element matrices in global coordinates system:

Coordinate transformation gives the relation between the displacement
vector in local coordinate, {δ} and displacement vector in global coordinates {d}
as
{δ}= [T]{d} …(4.69)
where [T] is the transformation matrix defined by [57]
l12 m12 n12 0 0 0
[T]= …(4.70)
0 0 0 l12 m12 n12
in which l12=(x2- x1)/l , m12=(y2- y1)/l , and n12=(z2- z1)/l
and {d}T= { u1 v1 w1 u2 v2 w2 }.
The element stiffness matrix in global coordinates is given by
[K(e)]= [T]T [k] [T] …(4.71)
and the element mass matrix in global coordinates system is also
69
[M(e)]= [T]T [m] [T] …(4.72)

which are of sixth order.
4.9.2 Beam Element:

The space beam element is a one dimensional element which has six
degrees of freedom per node, three translations u, v, and w in the x, y, and z
directions and three rotations θx, θy, and θz about the x, y, and z- axes, as shown
in Fig. (4.2-a).
v2
θx2
θy2 u2
ξ=-1 ξ=+1
w2 x=-a x=+a
v1 2 θz2 ξ
1 2
θy1 y θ1 v1 θ2
w1 x y v2
u1 θ 1 θz1 z
x1
(a) (b)
Figure (4.2): Beam element
4.9.2.1 Plane beam element:

At first, the element equations of a plane beam element with only one
lateral displacement and one rotational degree of freedom is derived. A beam
element of length 2a with nodes 1 and 2 at the ends of the elements is
considered. The local x-axis is taken in the axial direction of the element with
its origin at the middle section of the beam, as shown in Fig. (4.2-b).
Shape functions:
Similar to all other structures, to develop the FE equations, shape
functions for the interpolation of the variables from the nodal variables have to
70
be developed. As there are four degrees of freedom for a beam element, there
should be four shape functions. It is often more convenient if the shape
functions are derived from a special set of local coordinates, which is
commonly known as the natural coordinate system [57]. This natural coordinate
system has its origin at the middle of the element, and the element is defined
from -1 to +1, as shown in Fig. (4.2-b).
The relationship between the natural coordinate system and the local
coordinate system is
ξ= x/a …(4.73)
To derive the four shape functions in the natural coordinates, the displacement
in an element is first assumed in the form of a third order polynomial of ξ that
contains four unknown constants:
v= α0 + α1ξ + α2 ξ 2+ α3 ξ 3 …(4.74)
where α0, … are arbitrary constant coefficients. The rotation θ is the first
derivative of the displacement v, hence
θ= ∂v/∂x …(4.75)
= (∂v/∂ξ)( ∂ξ /∂x)
then
θ=(1/a) ∂v/∂ξ= (1/a)( α1 + 2α2 ξ + 3α3 ξ 2) …(4.76)
The four unknown constants α0 to α3 can be determined by utilizing the
following four conditions:
At ξ = -1 v= v1 and ∂v/∂x= θ1
At ξ = +1 v= v2 and ∂v/∂x= θ2
The application of the above four conditions gives
α0= ¼ (2 v1 + a θ1 + 2 v2 - a θ2)
α1= ¼ (-3 v1 - a θ1 + 3 v2 - a θ2)
…(4.77)
α2= ¼ ( - a θ1 + a θ2)
α3= ¼ ( v1 + a θ1 - v2 +a θ2)
71
The substitution of Eq. (4.77) into Eq. (4.74) gives

v= [N] {δ} …(4.78)
where [N] is the matrix of shape functions given by
[N]= [ N1 N2 N3 N4]
in which the shape functions are found to be
N1= ¼ ( 2 – 3 ξ + ξ3)
N2= ¼ a ( 1 – ξ - ξ2+ ξ3)
…(4.79)
N3= ¼ ( 2 +3 ξ - ξ3)
N4= ¼ a ( -1 – ξ + ξ2+ ξ3)
and {δ} is the vector of nodal displacements, defined as
{δ}T= {v1 θ1 v2 θ2}
Strain matrix
The axial displacement u at a distance y from the neutral axis can be expressed
as [57],
u=-yθ …(4.80)
The axial strain is
εx= ∂u/∂x ...(4.81)
The substitution of Eqs. (4.75) and (4.80) in Eq. (4.81) yields,
εx= -y ∂2v/∂x2 …(4.82)
and the use of Eq. (4.78) leads to
εx= -y ∂2 /∂x2([N] {δ})
hence,
εx= [B] {δ} ...(4.83)
where the strain matrix [B(e)] is given by
[B]= - y ∂2 /∂x2 [N]= (-y/a2) ∂2 /∂ξ2 [N]
i.e. [B] = - (y/2a2) [ B1 B2 B3 B4]
72
where
B1 = 3 ξ/2
B2= a(-1 + 3 ξ)/2
…(4.84)
B3= -3 ξ/2
B4= a(1 + 3 ξ)/2
Stress-strain relationship:
Similar to the equation for a truss or spring member, the original Hooke’s
law is applicable for beams, i.e.
σx = E ε x
this means that the element material property matrix is reduced to
[D]= E …(4.85)
Element matrices:
The stiffness matrix is given by Eq. (4.28)
[k]= ∫V [B(e)]T[D(e)][B(e)] dV
or
B1
B2
[k]= ∫∫ (E y2/a4) B1 B2 B3 B4 b dy dx …(4.86)
B3
B4
where b is the width of the beam element. The multiplication of the matrices
and evaluation of the integral, using
dx= a dξ
and
∫ b y2dy= Iz
where Iz is the area moment of inertia, leads to
73
3 3a -3 3a
3
4a2 -3a 2a2
[k]= (E Iz/2a ) …(4.87)
3 -3a
Sym.
4a2
The mass matrix is given by Eq. (4.40) as

[m]= ∫V [N]T[N] ρ dV(e)
which after multiplication and integration results in
78 22a 27 -13a
8a2 13a -6a2
[m]= (ρAa/105) …(4.88)
78 -22a
Sym.
8a2
where A is the area of element cross section.
4.9.2.2 Space frame element:

The space frame element contains the properties of the following
elements:
1. A beam in the xy plane with two DOFs; v and θz,
2. A beam in the xz plane with two DOFs; w and θy,
3. A truss element with one DOF; u, and
4. A torsional element with one DOF; θx
That is the space frame element has six DOFs in each node, and the stiffness
matrix of such element can be formulated simply, by the superposition of the
stiffness matrices of the above separate elements.
The stiffness matrix of the beam in the xz plane is identical to that of the
beam in the xy plane detailed in the previous section. The only difference is that
the area moment of inertia to be used is about the y- axis, i.e. Iy.
74
By assuming free warping, the stiffness matrix of the torsional element

can be found by a method similar to that used in the formulation of the truss or
spring element. The only difference is that the axial deformation is to be
replaced by the torsional angular deformation and the axial force (if any) by the
torque. Therefore, in the resultant stiffness matrix, the element tensile stiffness
AE/l is to be replaced by the element torsional stiffness GJ/l, where G is the
shear modulus and J is the torsion constant of the cross section of the bar, and in
mass matrix J replaces A. The rotational angle θx is defined by
θx= N1 θx1 + N2 θx2 …(4.89)
in which
N1= (1-ξ)/2 and N2= (1+ξ)/2 …(4.90)
So that the stiffness matrix of the torsional element is
1 -1
[k]= GJ/l …(4.91)
-1 -1
and the mass matrix is
2 1
[m]= ρ J l/6 …(4.92)
1 2
The resulting stiffness matrix of the space frame element will be
a1 0 0 0 0 0 -a1 0 0 0 0 0
b1 0 0 0 b2 0 -b1 0 0 0 b2
c1 0 -c2 0 0 0 -c1 0 -c2 0
d1 0 0 0 0 0 -d1 0 0
e1 0 0 0 b2 0 e1/2 0
f1 0 c2 0 0 0 f1/2
[k]=
a1 0 0 0 0 0 …(4.93)
b1 0 0 0 -b2
Symmetric
c1 0 c2 0
d1 0 0
e1 0
f1
75
and the mass matrix of the space frame element is

70 0 0 0 0 0 35 0 0 0 0 0
78 0 0 0 22a 0 27 0 0 0 -13a
78 0 -22a 0 0 0 27 0 13a 0
70rx2 0 0 0 0 0 -35rx2 0 0
8a2 0 0 0 -13a 0 -6a2 0
(e)
8a2 0 13a 0 0 0 -6a2
[m ]= m …(4.94)
70 0 0 0 0 0
78 0 0 0 -22a
Symmetric
78 0 22a 0
70rx2 0 0
8a2 0
8a2
where a1= AE/2a , b1= 3EIz/2a3, b2= 3EIz/2a2, c1= 3EIy/2a3, c2= 3EIy/2a2
d1= GJ/2a, e1= 2EIy/a, f1= 2EIz/a, m= ρ Aa/105 , and rx2= J/A
The displacement vector of the space frame element is defined as
{δ}T= { u1 v1 w1 θx1 θy1 θz1 u1 v1 w1 θx1 θy1 θz1 } …(4.95)
In the formulation of the matrices for the frame element, the

superposition of the truss (spring) element and the beam element has been used.
This technique assumes that the axial effects are not coupled with the bending
effects in the element. This means that the axial forces applied on the element
do not result in any bending deformation, and the bending forces do not result in
any axial deformation. As the frame elements in the present work are used to
model the ring stiffeners, which are curved beams, the coupling effects are exist
even in elemental level. Therefore, depending on the radius of the ring beam,
the mesh size becomes very important. So that, when the curvature of the ring
beam is large, i.e. the radius is small, the coupling effects are significant and
finer mesh is then required [57].
76
4.9.2.3 Element equations in global coordinates:

Having determined the element matrices in local coordinate system, the
next step is to transform these matrices into the global coordinate system to
account for the differences in orientation of the various elements.
The displacement in global coordinates has three translational
components in the global X, Y, and Z- directions, and three rotational
components with respect to the global axes in each node. The coordinate
transformation gives the relationship between the displacement vector {d} in
local coordinate system and the displacement vector {D} based on the global
coordinate system:
{d}= [T] {D}
where [T] is the transformation matrix given by [57]
[T1] 0 0 0
0 [T1] 0 0
[T]= …(4.96)
0 0 [T1] 0
0 0 0 [T1]
in which
lx mx nx
[T1] ly my ny …(4.97)
lz mz nz
where lx, to nz are the direction cosines defined by [57]
lx= X21/l, mx= Y21/l, nx= Z21/l ,
lz= (Y21 Z31 – Y31 Z21) / 2A1,
mz= (Z21 X31 – Z31 X21) / 2A1, …(4.98)
nz= (X21 Y31 – X31 Y21) / 2A1
ly= mz nx – nz mx, my= zz lx – lz nx, ny= lz mx – mz lx
77
X21= X2- X1, X31= X3- X1,

Y21= Y2- Y1, Y31= Y3- Y1, …(4.99)
Z21= Z2- Z1, and Z31= Z3- Z1,
X1, X2, and X3 are the global x coordinates of nodes 1and 2 and point 3,
Y1, Y2, and Y3 are the global y coordinates of nodes 1and 2 and point 3, and
Z1, Z2, and Z3 are the global z coordinates of nodes 1and 2 and point 3, in which
point 3 is an arbitrary selected point in the local xy plane, provided it does not
lie on the local x-axis.
Using the transformation matrix [T] the frame element matrices in global
coordinate system can be obtained as
[K(e)]= [T]T[k][T] and [M(e)]= [T]T[m][T]
4.9.3 Shell element:

A shell structure carries loads in all directions, and therefore undergoes
bending and twisting, as well as in- plane deformation. The shell structure is
divided into shell elements. Although, the shell structures are usually curved, as
for circular cylinders, flat shell elements are commonly used. The curvature of the
shell is then followed by changing the orientation of the shell elements in the
space. Therefore, if the curvature of the shell is very large, a fine mesh of elements
has to be used. This assumption sounds rough, but is very practical and is widely
used in engineering practice. [57]
In the present work, linear elastic flat shell element is used to model the
curved wall and the flat base of the cylindrical tank. The simplest but widely
used method is to formulate the shell element by combining a 2-D plane stress
solid element and a plate element. The 2-D solid element handles the membrane
effects, while the plate element is used to handle bending effects. The
procedures for developing such an element is very similar to that used to
formulate the space frame element from beam, truss, and torsional member
78
elements. Of course, the shell element can also be formulated using the usual
direct method of defining functions, substituting into the constitutive equations,
and thus obtaining the element matrices. However, as it might be expected, it is
going to be very tedious [57].
Since the plate structure can be treated as a special case of the shell
structure, the shell element that will be developed in the following sections is
applicable for modeling plate structures. In fact, it is a common practice to use a
shell element in a commercial FE package to analyse plate structures [71].
4.9.3.1 Two-dimensional plane stress solid element:

A rectangular plate subjected to in-plane axial forces, can be modeled by
using linear rectangular elements. Each element has four nodes with two
independent degrees of freedom per node, as shown in Fig. (4.3-a). So that, the
displacement vector {u} will be
u
{u}= (4.100)
v
where u and v are the displacements in the local x and y- directions.
y,v (x4,y4) (x3,y3)
u4,v4 u3,v3 η
(-1,+1) (+1,+1)
4 η 3
4 3
ξ ξ
(x1,y1) 1 2 (x2,y2)
1 2
u1,v1 u2,v2
x, u (-1,-1) (+1,-1)
(a): Physical coordinates (b): Natural coordinates
Figure (4.3): Two-dimensional rectangular element
Shape functions:
The derivation of the shape functions in terms of the nodal coordinates
using the local x, and y axes was found to be algebraically complex [67].
79
Fortunately, the complexity can be reduced by using the normalized or natural

coordinates ξ and η, as shown in Fig. (4.3-b), defined as
ξ= (x- xc)/a and η= (y- yc)/b ...(4.101)
where xc and yc are the x and y- coordinates of the element centroid respectively,
a= (x2-x1)/2 and b= (y2-y1)/2 ...(4.102)
Therefore, ξ and η are such that the values range from -1 to +1.
The use of the natural coordinates permits the displacement vector to be
written in terms of the displacement nodal values as
{u}= [N] {δ} …(4.103)
where [N] is the shape functions matrix defined as [67]
N1 0 N2 0 N3 0 N4 0
[N]= …(4.104)
0 N1 0 N2 0 N3 0 N4
in which
N1= ¼ (1- ξ)(1- η)
N2= ¼ (1+ξ)(1- η)
…(4.105)
N3= ¼ (1+ ξ)(1+ η)
N4= ¼ (1- ξ)(1+η)
and
{δ}T= { u1 v1 u2 v2 u3 v3 u4 v4 } …(4.106)
Strain – displacement relationship:

The strains for the plate subjected to in-plane forces are given by [57]
εx= ∂u/∂x,
εy= ∂v/∂y, and …(4.107)
γxy= ∂u/∂y + ∂v/∂x
{ε}= [L]{u} …(4.108)
where {ε} is the strain matrix given by
80
εx
{ε}= εy …(4.109)
γxy
and [L] is the operator of derivatives matrix defined as
∂ /∂x 0
[L]= 0 ∂ /∂y …(4.110)
∂ /∂y ∂ /∂x
The substitution of Eq. (4.103) into Eq. (4.108) yields
{ε}= [L] [N] {δ}
or {ε}= [B] {δ} …(4.111)
in which [B]= is the strain nodal displacement matrix given by
[B]= [L] [N], i.e.
∂N1 /∂x 0 ∂N2 /∂x 0 ∂N3 /∂x 0 ∂N4 /∂x 0
[B]= 0 ∂N1 /∂y 0 ∂N2 /∂y 0 ∂N3 /∂y 0 ∂N4 /∂y
∂N1 /∂y ∂N1 /∂x ∂N2 /∂y ∂N2 /∂x ∂N3 /∂y ∂N3 /∂x ∂N4 /∂y ∂N4 /∂x
…(4.112)
The shape functions N1 to N4 are written in terms of the natural coordinates ξ
and η so that, the chain rule is used to determine the required derivatives, i.e.
∂Ni /∂x= (∂Ni /∂ξ)(∂ξ /∂x)+ (∂Ni /∂η)(∂ η /∂x)
= (∂Ni /∂ξ)/a + 0 ` …(4.113a)
and
∂Ni /∂y= (∂Ni /∂ξ)(∂ξ /∂y)+ (∂Ni /∂η) (∂η /∂y)
= 0+ (∂Ni /∂ η)/b …(4.113b)
The substitution of Eqs. (4.113) into Eq. (3.112) leads to
-(1- η)/a 0 (1- η)/a 0 (1- η)/a 0 -(1- η)/a 0
[B]= 0 -(1- ξ)/b 0 -(1- ξ)/b 0 (1- ξ)/b 0 (1- ξ)/b
-(1- ξ)/b -(1- η)/a -(1- ξ)/b (1- η)/a (1- ξ)/b (1- η)/a (1- ξ)/b -(1- η)/a
…(4.114)
81
It is clear that the strain nodal displacement matrix of the linear rectangular
element is no longer a constant matrix. This implies that the strain, and hence
the stress, within the element is not constant.
The constitutive relationship:

The relation between the stresses and strains is given by
{σ}= [D] {ε} …(4.115)
where {σ} is the stress vector defined as
σx
{σ}= σy …(4.116)
τxy
in which σx, and σy are the normal stresses in the x and y- directions,
respectively, and τxy is the shear stress in the xy- plane. [D] is the matrix of the
material elastic properties, defined for the plane stress problems as [68]
1 µ 0
[D]= E/(1- µ2) µ 1 0 …(4.117)
0 0 (1- µ)/2
Element matrices:
Having obtained the shape functions and the strain nodal displacement
matrices, and the matrix of the material elastic properties, the element stiffness
and mass matrices can be obtained using Eqs. (4.28) and (4.40). The stiffness
matrix as given in Eq. (4.28) is
[k]= ∫V [B]T[D][B] dV
For a rectangular element
dV= h dx dy
where h is the thickness of the plate element. From Eqs. (4.101)
dx= a dξ and dy= b dη
82
So that,
dV= abh dξ dη …(4.118)
[k]= abh ∫ ∫ [B]T[D][B] dξ dη …(4.119)
where the limits for the two integrations are from -1 to +1.
Evaluation of the integrals in the above equation would not be a straight
forward, since the strain nodal displacement matrix [B] is a function of ξ and η.
It is still possible to obtain the closed form for the stiffness matrix by carrying
out the integrals in Eq. (4.119) analytically, but often it is more advantageous to
use a numerical integration scheme to evaluate these integrals. The commonly
used method is the Gauss integration scheme, which is a very simple and
efficient procedure that performs numerical integrals [57].
Gauss integration scheme:

In the formulation of element matrices, integrations of polynomial forms
have been faced. A simple polynomial is relatively easy to integrate in closed
form. In FEM, where large a number of elements is to be used, huge numbers of
integrations are required, so that analytical integration methods are tedious and
hence not efficient. Instead of using analytical solution, numerical integration
methods and the most popular of which is Gauss quadrature are extensively
used in FEM [67].
For two-dimensional elements, Gauss integration is given by
I= ∫ ∫ f(ξ, η) dξ dη = ∑i ∑j Hi Hj f(ξi , ηj) …(4.120)
where f(ξ, η) is the term to be integrated, Hi and Hj are the weight coefficients,
and f(ξi , ηj) is the value of the function at certain values of ξ and η. The number
and location of sampling (Gauss) points, and the values of the corresponding
weighting coefficients are specified depending on the degree of the integrand.
83
A detailed description of Gauss integration scheme is given in

appendix B.
The element stiffness matrix is obtained by numerically carrying out the
integrals in Eq. (4.119) using Gauss integration scheme. 2 x 2 Gauss points are
sufficient to obtain the exact solution for the stiffness matrix given by Eq.
(4.119). This is because the entry in the strain nodal displacement matrix [B] is
a linear function of ξ or η. The integrand in the stiffness matrix consists of the
product [B]T[D][B], which implies multiplications of two linear functions, and
hence becomes a quadratic function. So that two sampling points in each
direction is sufficient to obtain the exact solution [57].
The element mass matrix is obtained by Eq. (4.40) as
[m]= ρ ∫ ∫ [N]T [N] dV
The substitution of Eq. (4.118) into Eq. (4.40) results in
[m]= abhρ ∫ ∫ [N]T [N] dξ dη …(4.121)
where the limits for the two integrations are from -1 to +1.
Gauss integration with four sampling points is also sufficient to obtain the
exact solution.
Linear quadrilateral elements:

Though the rectangular element can be very useful, and is usually more
accurate than the triangular element, it is difficult to use it for problems with
non-rectangular domains. Hence, its practical importance is very limited. A
much more practical and useful element would be the so-called quadrilateral
element, that can have non-parallel sides. However, there can be a problem for
the integration of the stiffness and mass matrices for the quadrilateral element
because of the irregular shape of the integration domain. The Gauss integration
scheme cannot be implemented directly with quadrilateral elements. Therefore,
it is required first to map the quadrilateral element into the natural coordinates
84
system to become a square element. So that, the shape functions and the
integration method used for the rectangular element can be utilized. Hence, the
key in the development of a quadrilateral element is the coordinate mapping.
Once the mapping is established, the rest of the procedure is exactly the same as
that used for formulating the rectangular element [57].
Coordinate mapping:
The quadrilateral element with four nodes numbered 1, 2, 3 and 4 in
counter-clockwise direction shown in Fig. (4.4-a) is considered. The coordinates
for the four nodes are indicated in the figure in the physical coordinate system.
The physical coordinate system can be the global coordinate system of the
entire structure, or may be a local coordinate system of the considered element.
A local natural coordinate system (ξ, η) with its origin at the centre is used. The
values of these natural coordinates range from -1 to +1, which map the element
into a square shape in the natural coordinates, as shown in Fig. (4.4-b).
y (x3,y3)
(x2,y2)
3 η
4 (-1,+1) (+1,+1)
4 3
(x1,y1) 1
ξ
2 1 2
(x2,y2) (-1,-1) (+1,-1)
x
Figure (4.4): Two-dimensional quadrilateral element
The displacement vector is expressed in terms of the nodal displacement

values using shape functions similar to that used in the rectangular element
given by Eqs. (4.104) and (4.105). By using similar concept, the physical
coordinates x and y can also be interpolated in terms of their nodal values by
85
means of the shape functions which are expressed as functions of the natural
coordinates ξ and η. This coordinate interpolation is mathematically expressed
as
{x}= [N] {X} …(4.122)
where {X} is the vector of the physical coordinates, defined as
x
{x}= …(4.123)
y
[N] is the matrix of the shape functions given by Eqs.(4.104) and (4.105), {X} is
the physical coordinates at the nodes of the element, given by
{X}T= { {X1} {X2} {X3} {X4} } …(4.124)
in which {Xi}, is the vector of physical coordinates at node i defined as
xi
{Xi}= i=1, 2, 3, 4 …(4.125)
yi
Equation (4.123) can also be explicitly expressed as
x= ∑ Ni xi i=1, 2, 3, 4 …(4.126a)
and
y= ∑ Ni yi i=1, 2, 3, 4 …(4.126b)
Strain matrix:
In formulating element strain matrix, derivatives of the interpolation
functions with respect to the physical coordinates are required, as previously
demonstrated. In quadrilateral elements, both element physical coordinates and
the field variables are expressed as functions of the natural local coordinates, so
some additional mathematical complexity arises. Specifically, the derivatives
∂Ni/∂x and ∂Ni/∂y must be computed. Since the interpolation functions are
expressed in natural coordinates, then [67]
∂Ni /∂x= (∂Ni /∂ξ)(∂ξ /∂x)+ (∂Ni /∂η)(∂ η /∂x) …(4.127a)
and
86
∂Ni /∂y= (∂Ni /∂ξ)(∂ξ /∂y)+ (∂Ni /∂η) (∂η /∂y) …(4.127b)
However, as the partial derivatives of the natural coordinates with respect to the
physical coordinates are not explicitly known, a different approach must be
taken [67].
The partial derivatives of the shape functions with respect to the natural
coordinates are found first, i.e.
∂Ni /∂ ξ= (∂Ni/∂x)(∂x /∂ξ)+ (∂Ni/∂y)(∂y/∂ ξ)
and
∂Ni /∂ η= (∂Ni/∂x)(∂x/∂ η)+ (∂Ni/∂y) (∂y/∂η)
or in matrix form
∂Ni/∂ξ ∂x/∂ξ ∂y/∂ξ ∂Ni/∂x
= …(4.128)
∂Ni/∂η ∂x/∂η ∂y/∂η ∂Ni/∂y
The vector on the left-hand side is known, since the interpolation functions are
expressed explicitly in the natural local coordinates. Similarly, the coefficient
matrix on the right-hand side is known via Eq. (4.126). The square matrix is
known as the Jacobian matrix, denoted by [J], and is given by [67]
∂x/∂ξ ∂y/∂ξ ∑ (∂Ni/∂ξ) xi ∑ (∂Ni/∂ξ) yi
[J] = = …(4.129)
∂x/∂η ∂y/∂η ∑ (∂Ni/∂η) xi ∑ (∂Ni/∂η) yi
In compact form [J] can be written as
J11 J12
[J] = …(4.130)
J21 J22
If the inverse of the Jacobian matrix can be determined, Eq. (4.129) can be
solved for the partial derivatives of the interpolation functions with respect to
the global coordinates as
∂Ni/∂x ∂Ni/∂ξ
= [J]-1 …(4.131)
∂Ni/∂y ∂Ni/∂η
where
87
J22 - J12
[J]-1 = (1/|J|) …(4.132)
- J21 J11
in which |J| is the determinant of the Jacobian matrix, given by
|J|= J11 J22 – J12 J21 …(4.133)
From Eq. (1.131) it can be proved that the strain vector {ε} can be written as
∂u/∂ξ
∂u/∂η
{ε}= [G] …(4.134)
∂v/∂ξ
∂v/∂η
where {ε} is as given in Eq. (4.109),
J22 -J12 0 0
[G]= (1/|J|) 0 0 -J21 J11 …(4.135)
-J21 J11 J22 -J12
and
∂u/∂ξ
∂u/∂η
= [N/] {δ} …(4.136)
∂v/∂ξ
∂v/∂η
where
∂N1/∂ξ 0 ∂N1/∂ξ 0 ∂N1/∂ξ 0 ∂N1/∂ξ 0
∂N1/∂η 0 ∂N1/∂η 0 ∂N1/∂η 0 ∂N1/∂η 0
[N/]= …(4.137)
0 ∂N1/∂ξ 0 ∂N1/∂ξ 0 ∂N1/∂ξ 0 ∂N1/∂ξ
0 ∂N1/∂η 0 ∂N1/∂η 0 ∂N1/∂η 0 ∂N1/∂η
and {δ} is as given by Eq. (4.106). So that Eq. (4.134) can be written as
{ε}= [B]{δ} …(4.138)
where [B] is the strain nodal displacement matrix given by
[B]= [G][N/] …(4.139)
88
Element matrices:
The stiffness matrix can be determined by substituting for the strain-
nodal displacement matrix [B] from Eq. (4.139) and for the material elastic
properties matrix given by Eq. (4.117) into Eq. (4.28). It should also be noted
that [67]
dx dy = |J| dξ dη
So that the stiffness matrix will be
[k]= h ∫ ∫ [B]T[D][B] |J| dξ dη …(4.140)
The mass matrix is determined by a similar method to be
[m]= h ρ ∫ ∫ [N]T [N] |J| dξ dη …(4.141)
The equations for the stiffness and mass matrices, as in the rectangular matrix,
are determined using the numerical (Gauss) integration.
4.9.3.2 Plate element:

The plate element is geometrically similar to that of the 2-D plane stress
problem, but it usually carries only transverse loads that lead to bending
deformations.
For simplicity a rectangular element having four nodes at the corners is
first considered. Each node has three degrees of freedom; transverse
(perpendicular to plane of element) deflection w, rotation about x-axis θx and
rotation about y-axis θy. The element lies in the local xy plane, so that w is in the
local z-axis, as shown in Fig. (4.5-a). A local natural coordinates system with its
y θy4 θy3
η
4 (-1,+1) (+1,+1)
θx4 w4 w3 3 θx3
4 3
θx1 1 2 θx2 ξ
1 2
w2
w1 θy1 θy2 (-1,-1) (+1,-1)
z
x
89
origin in the centre of area of the element is used to formulate the element
Figure
equations, as shown in (4.5): Rectangular plate element
Fig. (4.5-b).
The Kirchhoff’s plate theory assumes that straight lines normal to the
middle (neutral) plane remain straight and normal to the middle plane during
deformation. This implies that out-of-plane shear strains are zero, i.e.
γxz= 0 and γyz= 0 …(4.142)
Secondly, the displacements parallel to the undeformed middle plane u and v at
a distance z from the centroidal axis can be expressed by [57]
u= -z θy … (4.143a)
and v= -z θx …(4.143b)
The angle of rotation (for small deflection theories) equal to the slope of the
deflected shape, i.e.
θy= ∂w/∂x …(4.144a)
and θx= ∂w/∂y …(4.144b)
So that, Eqs. (4.143) reduce to
u= -z ∂w/∂x …(4.145a)
and v= -z ∂w/∂y …(4.145b)
The strains are related to the displacements by equations similar to that of
the plane stress problem, i.e.
εx= ∂u/∂x,
εy= ∂v/∂y, and …(4.146)
γxy= ∂u/∂y + ∂v/∂x
and the substitution of Eqs. (4.145) into Eqs. (146) leads to [72]
εx= -z ∂2w/∂x2
εy= -z ∂2w/∂y2 and …(4.147)
γxy= -2z ∂2w/∂x∂y
90

{ε}= -z {L} w …(4.148)
where {ε} is the strain matrix given by
εx
{ε}= εy …(4.149)
γxy
and [L] is the derivative operator vector, defined by [72]
∂2 /∂x2
{L}= ∂2 /∂y2 …(4.150)
2 ∂2 /∂x∂y
Shape functions:
The variation of the deflection w can be written as a function of the
values of deflection and angles of rotation at the nodes of the element. Local
natural coordinates ξ and η defined by Eqs. (4.101) are used for convenience.
As there are 12 values of dependent nodal variables, then a polynomial of ξ and
η with 12 unknown constants can be used. Certain terms must be omitted from a
complete fourth-order polynomial. One choice of the polynomial is [72]
w= α1+ α2 ξ+ α3 η+ α4 ξ2+ α5 ξ η+ α6 η2+ α7 ξ3
+ α8 ξ2 η+ α9 ξ η2+ α10 η3+ α11 ξ3η+ α12 ξ η3 …(4.151)
where α1 to α12 are unknown constants,
w= [P] {α} …(4.152)
in which
[P]= [1 ξ η ξ2 ξη η2 ξ3 ξ2 η ξη2 η3 ξ3η ξη3] …(4.153)
and {α}T= { α1 α2 α3 α4 α5 α6 α7 α8 α9 α10} …(4.154)
The constants α1 to α12 can be evaluated by writing down the 12
simultaneous equations linking the values of w and its slopes at the nodes when
91
the coordinates take their appropriate values. This means that the application of
Eq. (4.151) and its derivatives in node i, where i= 1, 2, 3, 4 gives
wi= α1+ α2 ξi+ α3 ηi+ α4 ξi2+ α5 ξi ηi+ α6 ηi2+ α7 ξi3
+ α8 ξi2 ηi+ α9 ξi ηi2+ α10 ηi3+ α11 ξi3 ηi+ α12 ξ ηi3 …(4.155)
θxi = (∂w/∂y)i = (1/b)(∂w/∂η)i
= (1/b)( α3 + α5 ξi+ 2α6 ηi+ α8 ξi2+ 2α9 ξi ηi
+ 3α10 ηi2+ α11 ξi3 + 3α12 ξi ηi2) …(4.156)
and
θyi = (∂w/∂x)i = (1/a)(∂w/∂ξ)i
= (1/a)( α2 + 2α4 ξi+ α5 ηi+ 3α7 ξi2+ 2α8 ξi ηi
+ α9 ηi2+ 3α11 ξi2 ηi+ α12 ηi3) …(4.157)
The resulting 12 simultaneous equation can be written in matrix form as
{δ}= [C] {α} …(4.158)
where {δ} is the vector of nodal displacements of the element, given by
{δ1}
{δ2}
{δ}= …(4.159)
{δ3}
{δ4}
in which {δi} is the displacement vector at node i, given by
wi
{δi}= θxi i==1, 2, 3, 4 …(4.160)
θyi
[C] is 12 x 12 matrix depending on nodal coordinates, and {α} is a vector of the

12 unknown constants. The inverse of Eq. (4.158) gives
{α}= [C]-1{δ} …(4.161)
The displacement w within the element can be written in terms of the
displacement nodal values as
92
w= [N] {δ} …(4.162)

where [N] is the matrix of shape functions, given by
[N]= [P] [C]-1 …(4.163)
Strain matrix:
{ε}= -z {L} [N] {δ}
= -z {L} [P] [C]-1{δ} …(4.164)
which can be written in the standard form as
{ε}= [B] {δ}
where [B] is the strain matrix, given by
[B]= -z [Q][C]-1 …(4.165)
where [Q] is defined as
[Q]={L} [P]
in which the operator of derivatives vector {L} can be written in terms of the
natural coordinates using the chain rule to be
(1/a2) ∂2 /∂ξ 2
{L}= (1/b2) ∂2 /∂η2
(2/ab) ∂2 /∂ξ ∂η
so that matrix [Q] will be
0 0 0 2/a2 0 0 6ξ/ a2 2η/a2 0 0 6ξη/a2 0
[Q]= 0 0 0 0 0 2/b2 0 0 2ξ/b2 6η/b2 0 6ξη/b2
0 0 0 0 2/ab 0 0 4ξ/ab 4η/ab 0 6ξ2/ab 6η2/ab
Constitutive Equation:
The relation between stresses and strains is given by Hooke’s law as
{σ}= [D] {ε} …(4.166)
93
where {σ} is the stress vector, defined as

σx
{σ}= σy …(4.167)
τxy
in which σx, and σy are the normal stress in the x and y- directions and τxy is the
shear stress in the xy-plane. [D] is the matrix of material elastic properties given
as [57]
1 µ 0
[D] = E/(1- µ2) µ 1 0 …(4.168)
0 0 (1- µ)/2
Element matrices:
The substitution of strain- nodal displacement matrix [B] and material
elastic properties matrix [D] from Eqs. (4.165) and (4.168) respectively, into
Eq. (4.28) leads to the expression of element stiffness matrix, as
[k]= ∫V [B]T[D][B] dV
since dV= dx dy dz= a b dξ dη dz, then
[k]= ab ∫∫∫ [B]T[D][B] dξ dη dz
= ab ∫∫∫ z2 [C]-1 [Q]T[D][Q][C]-1 dξ dη dz
= ab (h3/12) ∫∫ [C]-1 [Q]T[D][Q][C]-1 dξ dη
which can be written as

[k]= ab (h3/12) [C]-1 ( ∫∫ [Q]T[D][Q] dξ dη) [C]-1 …(4.169)
where h is the thickness of plate, and the limits of integration for z are from –h/2
to +h/2. The remaining integrations in Eq. (4.169) are evaluated using
numerical integration.
The mass matrix can be determined by the substitution of Eq. (4.163) into
Eq. (4.40), i.e.
94
[m]= ρ∫ [N]T [N] dV
= ab ∫∫∫ [C]-1 [P]T [P] [C]-1 dξ dη dz
= abh ∫∫ [C]-1 [P]T [P] [C]-1 dξ dη
or
[m]= abh [C]-1( ∫∫ [P]T [P] dξ dη) [C]-1 …(4.170)
which should also be determined by numerical integration.
Linear quadrilateral elements:

Linear quadrilateral elements can be used to discretize non-rectangular
plates. In formulating the element matrices, coordinate mapping and Jacobian
matrix will be required, as for plane stress problem. The other steps are
generally identical to that for a rectangular plate element.
4.9.3.3 Shell element:

As previously concluded, it is more convenient to construct flat shell
element matrices by superimposing the element matrices for a plane stress
element and a plate element, in stead of developing the element matrices of the
shell directly [57, 72].
Similar to the space frame element there are six degrees of freedom at a
node for the shell element, three translational displacements in the x, y and z-
directions, and three rotational deformations with respect to the x, y and z- axes.
The displacement vector for the element can thus be written as
{δ1}
{δ2}
{δ}= …(4.171)
{δ3}
{δ4}
95
where {δ} is the vector of element nodal displacements, {δ1}, {δ2}, {δ3} and {δ4}
are the vector of displacements at nodes 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively, in which
ui
vi
wi
{δi}= i=1, 2, 3, 4 …(4.172)
θxi
θyi
θzi
where ui, vi, wi are the translational displacements in the x, y, and z- directions,
θxi, θyi and θzi are the rotational displacements with respect to the x, y, and z-
axes, respectively.
The stiffness matrix for a 2-D plane stress element is used for dealing
with the membrane effects corresponding to the two independent degrees of
freedom u and v. This matrix can be written in a compact form as
[km]11 [km]12 [km]13 [km]14
m
[km]21 [km]22 [km]23 [km]24
[k ]= …(4.173)
[km]31 [km]32 [km]33 [km]34
[km]41 [km]42 [km]43 [km]44
where [km] is the stiffness matrix of the plane stress (membrane) element, and
[km]ij, i,j=1, 2, 3, 4 is a sub-matrix have a dimension of 2 x 2, corresponding to
the two degrees of freedom u and v. The superscript m refers to the membrane
action.
The stiffness matrix for the plate element is used for the bending effects
corresponding to degrees of freedom w, θx and θy. This bending stiffness matrix
can be expressed in terms of sub-matrices according to the nodes as
[kb]11 [kb]12 [kb]13 [kb]14
[kb]21 [kb]22 [kb]23 [kb]24
[kb]= …(4.174)
[kb]31 [kb]32 [kb]33 [kb]34
[kb]41 [kb]42 [kb]43 [kb]44
96
where [kb] is the stiffness matrix of the plate element, Each sub-matrix has a
dimension of 3x3. The superscript b refers to the bending effect.
The stiffness matrix for the shell element can thus be formulated by
combining Eqs. (4.173) and (4.174) as
[km]11 0 0 [km]12 0 0 [km]13 0 0 [km]14 0 0
0 [kb]11 0 0 [kb]12 0 0 [kb]13 0 0 [kb]14 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
m
[k ]21 0 0 [km]22 0 0 [km]23 0 0 [km]24 0 0
0 [kb]21 0 0 [kb]22 0 0 [kb]23 0 0 [kb]24 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
[kb]= …(4.175)
[km]31 0 0 [km]32 0 0 [km]33 0 0 [km]34 0 0
0 [kb]31 0 0 [kb]32 0 0 [kb]33 0 0 [kb]34 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
m
[k ]41 0 0 [km]42 0 0 [km]43 0 0 [km]44 0 0
0 [kb]41 0 0 [kb]42 0 0 [kb]43 0 0 [kb]4 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
The stiffness matrix for a rectangular or quadrilateral shell element has a

dimension of 24 x 24. The components related to θz, i.e. the 3rd, 6th, 9th and 12th
rows and columns in Eq. (4.175), are zeros because there is no θz term in the
local coordinate system. Inserting this DOF into the stiffness matrix in the local
coordinate system facilitates the transformation of the matrix into the global
coordinate system [57].
Similarly, the mass matrix for the rectangular or quadrilateral shell
element can be obtained in the same way as the stiffness matrix. The mass
matrices of the 2-D plane stress solid element and the plate element are
expressed by sub-matrices according to the nodes. These matrices are then
combined together to form the shell element mass matrix,
97
[mm]11 0 0 [mm]12 0 0 [mm]13 0 0 [mm]14 0 0

0 [mb]11 0 0 [mb]12 0 0 [mb]13 0 0 [mb]14 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
m
[m ]21 0 0 [mm]22 0 0 [mm]23 0 0 [mm]24 0 0
0 [mb]21 0 0 [mb]22 0 0 [mb]23 0 0 [mb]24 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
[mb]= m
..(4.176)
[m ]31 0 0 [mm]32 0 0 [mm]33 0 0 [mm]34 0 0
0 [mb]31 0 0 [mb]32 0 0 [mb]33 0 0 [mb]34 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
m
[m ]41 0 0 [mm]42 0 0 [mm]43 0 0 [mm]44 0 0
0 [mb]41 0 0 [mb]42 0 0 [mb]43 0 0 [mb]4 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
where [mb] is the mass matrix of the shell element, [mm]ij and [mb]ij i,j= 1, 2, 3, 4
are sub-matrices in the 2-D plane stress element mass matrix and plate element
mass matrix, respectively.
The terms corresponding to θz are also zero for the same reason as
explained for the stiffness matrix.
4.9.3.4 Element matrices in global coordinate system:

The stiffness and mass matrices derived in the previous section are in the
element local coordinate system. These matrices should be transformed to the
global coordinate system. Transformation of coordinates to a common global
system (which will be denoted by XYZ with the local system as xyz) is necessary
to make it possible to assemble the elements of the whole structure. The element
stiffness matrix in global coordinates is
[K(e)]= [T]T [k] [T] …(4.177)
and the element mass matrix in global coordinates is
[M(e)]= [T]T [m] [T] …(4.178)
98
where [T] is the transformation matrix defined as [57]

[T1] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 [T1] 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 [T1] 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 [T1] 0 0 0 0
[T]= …(4.179)
0 0 0 0 [T1] 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 [T1] 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 [T1] 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 [T1]
and where the sub-matrix [T1] is given by [72]

cos(x,X) cos(x,Y) cos(x,Z)
[T1]= cos(y,X) cos(y,Y) cos(y,Z) …(4.179)
cos(z,X) cos(z,Y) cos(z,Z)
in which cos(x,X) is the cosine of the angle between the local x-axis and the
global X-axis, and so on.
The superposition of the matrices for 2-D solid element and plate element
is performed by assuming that the membrane effects are not coupled with
bending effects in the elemental level. This implies that the membrane forces
will not result in any bending deformation, and bending forces will not cause
any in-plane displacement in the element. For a shell structure in space, the
membrane and bending effects are actually globally coupled, meaning that the
membrane forces in an element may result in bending deformations in the other
elements, and the bending forces in an element may create in-plane
displacements in other elements. The coupling effects are more significant for
shell structures with a strong curvature. Therefore, for those structures, a finer
mesh should be used [57].
99
4.9.4 Three dimensional solid element:

A three dimensional solid element can be considered to be the most
general of the solid finite elements. The three dimensional solid element may
have a variety of shapes such as tetrahedron, wedge and hexahedron. The
hexahedron element, also known as brick element, has a minimum of eight
nodes at its corners, as shown in Fig. (4.6). Each node in the element has three
translational degrees of freedom, u, v and w in the x, y and z- directions,
respectively. So that, the brick element has a total of 24 degrees of freedom.
Again it is useful to define a natural coordinate system (ξ, η, ζ) with its
origin at the centre of the transformed cube, which can be obtained by a
coordinate mapping in a similar manner as for a quadrilateral element.
5 8
6
7
1 4
2 3
Figure (4.6): Brick element
Coordinate mapping:
The physical local coordinates x, y and z can be interpolated from the
nodal coordinates as
x= ∑ Ni xi
y= ∑ Ni yi i=1, 2, .. 8 …(4.180)
z= ∑ Ni zi
where Ni is a shape function defined as [57]
100
N1= 1/8 (1-ξ)(1-η)(1-ζ) N2= 1/8 (1+ξ)(1-η)(1-ζ)

N3= 1/8 (1+ξ)(1+η)(1-ζ) N4= 1/8 (1-ξ)(1+η)(1-ζ)
…(4.181)
N5= 1/8 (1-ξ)(1-η)(1+ζ) N6= 1/8 (1+ξ)(1-η)(1+ζ)
N7= 1/8 (1+ξ)(1+η)(1+ζ) N8= 1/8 (1-ξ)(1+η)(1+ζ)
or in a concise form,
N1= 1/8 (1+ξ ξi)(1+η ηi)(1+ζ ζi) …(4.182)
where ξi, ηi and ζi denote the natural coordinates of node i. xi, yi and zi are the
physical local coordinates of node i, i=1, 2, …8
From Eq. (4.181) it can be seen that the shape functions vary linearly in
the ξ, η and ζ- directions, therefore, these shape functions are called tri-linear
functions.
The displacement vector {u} can be written in terms of the displacement
nodal values as
{u}= [N] {δ} …(4.183)
where the displacement vector {u} is
u
{u}= v …(4.184)
w
[N] is the matrix of shape functions given by
[N]= [N1] [N2] [N3] [N4] [N5] [N6] [N7] [N8] …(4.185)
in which each sub-matrix [Ni] is given by
Ni 0 0
[Ni]= 0 Ni 0 i=1,2,..8 …(4.186)
0 0 Ni
The nodal displacement vector {δ} is given by
101
{δ1}
{δ2}
{δ3}
{δ4}
{δ}= …(4.187)
{δ5}
{δ6}
{δ7}
{δ8}
in which {δi} is the displacement vector at node i, defined as
ui
{δi}= vi i=1, 2, …,8 …(4.188)
wi
The strain vector of the 3-D solid element is given by
{ε}= [L] {u} …(4.189)
where {ε} is the strain vector, given by [73]
{εx} ∂u/∂x
{εy} ∂v/∂y
{εz} ∂w/∂z
{ε}= = …(4.190)
{εxy} ∂u/∂y+ ∂v/∂x
{εyz} ∂v/∂z+ ∂w/∂y
{εxz} ∂u/∂z+ ∂w/∂x
The derivative matrix is defined as
102
∂ /∂x 0 0
0 ∂ /∂y 0
0 0 ∂ /∂z
[L]= …(4.191)
∂ /∂y ∂ /∂x 0
0 ∂ /∂z ∂ /∂y
∂ /∂z 0 ∂ /∂x
The substitution of Eq. (4.183) into Eq. (4.189) leads to

{ε}= [B] {δ} …(4.192)
where [B] is the strain matrix defined as
[B]= [B1] [B2] [B3] [B4] [B5] [B6] [B7] [B8] …(4.193)
whereby
∂Ni /∂x 0 0
0 ∂Ni/∂y 0
0 0 ∂Ni /∂z
[Bi]=[L][Ni]= i=1, 2, …,8 …(4.194)
∂Ni /∂y ∂Ni /∂x 0
0 ∂Ni /∂z ∂Ni /∂y
∂Ni /∂z 0 ∂Ni /∂x
As the shape functions are defined in terms of the natural coordinates ξ, η

and ζ, then to obtain the derivatives with respect to the physical coordinates x, y
and z in the strain matrix, the chain rule needs to be used, i.e.
∂Ni /∂ξ= (∂Ni /∂x)(∂x /∂ξ)+ (∂Ni /∂y)(∂y /∂ξ)+ (∂Ni/∂z)(∂z /∂ξ)
∂Ni /∂η= (∂Ni /∂x)(∂x /∂η)+ (∂Ni /∂y)(∂y /∂η)+ (∂Ni/∂z)(∂z /∂η) …(4.195)
∂Ni /∂ζ= (∂Ni /∂x)(∂x /∂ζ)+ (∂Ni /∂y)(∂y /∂ζ)+ (∂Ni/∂z)(∂z /∂ζ)
which can be expressed in the matrix form
103
∂Ni /∂ξ ∂Ni /∂x

∂Ni /∂η = [J] ∂Ni /∂y …(4.196)
∂Ni /∂ζ ∂Ni /∂z
where [J] is the Jacobian matrix defined by [57]

∂x/∂ξ ∂y/∂ξ ∂z/∂ξ
[J]= ∂x/∂η ∂y/∂η ∂z/∂η …(4.197)
∂x/∂ζ ∂y/∂ζ ∂z/∂ζ
The substitution of Eq. (4.180) into Eq. (4.197) leads to

[J]= [N/] [X] …(4.198)
in which
∂N1/∂ξ ∂N2/∂ξ ∂N3/∂ξ ∂N4/∂ξ ∂N5/∂ξ ∂N6/∂ξ ∂N7/∂ξ ∂N8/∂ξ
[N/]= ∂N1/∂η ∂N2/∂η ∂N3/∂η ∂N4/∂η ∂N5/∂η ∂N6/∂η ∂N7/∂η ∂N8/∂η …(4.199)
∂N1/∂ζ ∂N2/∂ζ ∂N3/∂ζ ∂N4/∂ζ ∂N5/∂ζ ∂N6/∂ζ ∂N7/∂ζ ∂N8/∂ζ
and
x1 y1 z1
x2 y2 z2
x3 y3 z3
x4 y4 z4
[X]= …(4.200)
x5 y5 z5
x6 y6 z6
x7 y7 z7
x8 y8 z8
Equation (4.196) can be re-written as

∂Ni /∂x ∂Ni /∂ξ
∂Ni /∂y = [J]-1 ∂Ni /∂η …(4.201)
∂Ni /∂z ∂Ni /∂ζ
104
which is then used to compute the strain matrix [B] in Eq. (4.193) and (4.194),
by replacing all the derivatives of the shape functions with respect to x, y and z
to those with respect to ξ, η and ζ.
Constitutive equations:
The relation between stresses and strains in a 3-D solid is given by
{σ}= [D] {ε} …(4.202)
where {σ} is the stress vector defined as
{σ}T= { σx σy σz τxy τyz τxz } …(4.203)
and [D] is the material elastic properties matrix [73]

1- µ µ µ 0 0 0
1- µ µ 0 0 0
1- µ 0 0 0
[D]= E1 …(4.204)
(1-2µ)/2 0 0
Symmetric
(1-2µ)/2 0
(1-2µ)/2
where
E1= E /((1-2µ)(1+µ))
and in which E is the elastic modulus.
Element matrices:
As the strain-nodal displacement matrix [B] and the matrix of material
elastic properties [D] have been obtained, the stiffness matrix can be
determined from Eq. (4.28),
[k]= ∫V [B]T[D][B] dV
in which dV= |J| dξ dη dζ , thus
[k]= ∫∫∫ [B]T[D][B] |J| dξ dη dζ …(4.205)
105
where the limits of integration are from -1 to +1.

The strain-nodal displacement matrix is a function of ξ, η and ζ, so that
the evaluation of the integrations in Eq. (4.205) can be very difficult. Therefore,
the integrals are performed using a numerical integration scheme. Gauss
integration is often used to carry out these integrals. For three dimensional
integrations, the Gauss integration is sampled in three directions, as follows:
I= ∫∫∫ f(ξ, η, ζ) dξ dη dζ= ∑i ∑j ∑k Hi Hj Hk f(ξi, ηj, ζk) …(4.206)
where Hi, Hj and Hk are the weights at the ξi, ηj and ζk, respectively. The
summations are carried out from i=1, j=1 and k=1 to n1, n2 and n3, respectively.
The values of n1, n2 and n3 depend on the degree of the integrand. In the present,
case the integrand is of fourth degree, so that three sampling points are required
in each direction which implies that a total of 27 sampling points are required.
The mass matrix is obtained by the substitution of the matrix of the shape
functions into Eq. (4.40),
[m]= ρ∫ [N]T [N] dV
= ρ ∫∫∫ [N]T [N] |J| dξ dη dζ …(4.207)
The above integration is also carried out using Gauss integration scheme. In this
case the integrated quantity is of second degree, so that two sampling points are
used in each direction, thus a total of 8 sampling points are required.
4.9.4.1 Element matrices in global coordinates:

To make the obtained element matrices capable to be assembled, they
must be transformed into the global coordinate system of the whole structure.
The resulting matrices will be the global element stiffness matrix,
[K(e)]= [T]T [k] [T]
and the global mass matrix
[M(e)]= [T]T [m] [T]
where [T] is the transformation matrix given by Eq. (4.179).
106
4.10 ANSYS 5.4 program:

ANSYS is a comprehensive general – purpose finite element modelling
package for numerically solving a wide variety of mechanical problems. These
problems include static and dynamic structural analysis (both linear and non-
linear), heat transfer, and fluid problems, as well as acoustic and
electromagnetic problems [74].
ANSYS was released for the first time in 1971, by Swanson Analysis
Systems Inc., and has been a leading FEA program for well over 25 years [52].
The program contains over 100,000 lines of code. It is widely used in many
engineering fields, including structural, mechanical, aerospace, automotive,
electronic, and nuclear engineering. ANSYS 5.4 is a very powerful and
impressive engineering tool that may be used to solve a variety of problems.
However, the user should be familiar with the FEM. In concerning the vibration
analysis, ANSYS 5.4 is used by many investigators [23, 62, 75, 76].
In the present work ANSYS 5.4 program is adopted to perform the modal
analyses of the liquid storage tank system. This is because of its flexibility in
modelling various structural components and boundary conditions, and its high
accurate reliability in solving large FE problems.
In general, a finite element solution may be broken into the following
three stages [74]:
1. Preprocessing (defining the problem):
The major steps in the preprocessing are:
i. defining key-points, lines, areas, and volumes,
ii. defining element type and material and geometric properties, and
iii. meshing lines, areas, and volumes as required.
2. Solution (assigning loads, constraints, and solving):
The loads and constraints (translational and rotational) are specified.
Finally the resulting set of equations is solved using an appropriate method.
107
3. Post-processing (viewing the results):

In this stage the list of nodal displacements, element forces and moments,
deflection plots, and stress contour diagrams are viewed.
4.10.1 FEA using ANSYS:

In ANSYS, there are more than 100 different types of element that can be
used in the various fields of analysis. In concerning with structural analysis,
elements of different types and configurations are available to model the
structural members. In the following, an explanation is given for the element
used in each part of the liquid storage tank system.
1- Mass element (MASS21-Structural Mass):

This element is used to model the added mass of the contained liquid.
The “MASS21” element is a point element having up to six degrees of freedom:
translations in the nodal x, y, and z directions and rotations about the nodal x, y,
and z axes [71].
The mass element is defined by a single node, concentrated mass
components in the element coordinate directions, and rotary inertias about the
element coordinate axes. In the present analysis the rotary inertia is not taken.
The mass element has no stiffness matrix, and thus has only mass matrix, given
as
a 0 0 0 0 0
0 b 0 0 0 0
0 0 c 0 0 0
[m]=
0 0 0 d 0 0
0 0 0 0 e 0
0 0 0 0 0 f
108
where a, b, and c are the mass components in the x, y, and z directions, and d, e,
and f are the rotary inertia components about the x, y, and z axes, respectively.
2- Spring element ( COMBIN14 - Spring-Damper):

This element is used to model the soil reaction under the tank base. The
element has both spring and damper properties. The “COMBIN14” element
also has longitudinal or torsional capabilities in one, two and three dimensional
applications. The element has two nodes with up to three degrees of freedom
per node [71].
In the present analysis, no damping is considered, and only the
longitudinal stiffness is used. This implies that only translational degrees of
freedom in the x, y, and z- directions are considered. Only the displacement
along the local x- direction will induce a stress in the element.
The element has no mass and thus only stiffness matrix is present.
3- Shell element ( SHELL63 - Elastic Shell):

The shell element is implemented to model the cylindrical wall and the
flat base of the tank. The “SHELL63” element is a two dimensional flat
element which has both bending and membrane capabilities. The element is of
quadrilateral shape with four nodes. Each node has six degrees of freedom:
translations in the nodal x, y, and z- directions and rotations about the nodal x, y,
and z- axes [71].
The element has both stiffness and mass matrices.
4- Three dimensional brick element (SOLID45 - 3D Structural Solid):

This element has been used to model the continuous foundation reaction.
The “SOLID45” element is three dimensional of hexahedron shape. The
109
element is defined by eight nodes having three degree of freedom at each

node: translations in the x, y, and z- directions [71].
5- Space beam element (BEAM4 3-D Elastic Beam):

The space frame or beam element is used in the present work to represent
the ring stiffeners. The “BEAM4” element is a uniaxial element with
tension, compression, torsion, and bending capabilities. The element has two
nodes, with six degrees of freedom in each node: three translations in the
nodal x, y, and z- directions and three rotations about the nodal x, y, and z-
axes [71]. The stiffness and mass matrices are as previously given for the
beam element.
110
Chapter Five Applications, Results, & Discussion
CHAPTER FIVE
APPLICATIONS, RESULTS, AND
DISCUSSION
5.1 General:
In the preceding chapter the finite element modelling of the
components consisting the circular cylindrical liquid storage tank system is
formulated. Thin flat shell elements are used to model the wall and the base
of the tank, while the roof is neglected. Space beam elements are selected
to model the ring stiffeners. The supporting soil is represented by
Winkler’s spring model. A suggested continuous spring medium model is
used in addition to the classical discrete springs’ model. Furthermore, a
new method is also proposed to model the liquid effect. A series of modal
analyses are conducted on the liquid storage tank system. A general
purpose FE program, i.e. ANSYS 5.4, is selected to perform these analyses.
Firstly, a verification of the efficiency of the modelling method and
the reliability of the selected program in manipulating such models is done.
This is achieved via the re-analysis of several cases of shells for which the
vibration characteristics were already determined by other researchers. For
this purpose, a freely supported shell and a tank with fixed base are
considered. Then the present modelling procedure is applied to a variety of
cases to explore the effects of certain properties on the free vibration
characteristics of the liquid storage tank system. In the following articles, a
description of the cases studied is detailed.
111
5.2 Case study I: Freely supported shell

This case is selected as an introductory basic model of the circular
cylindrical tank. It was also investigated in a previous work of Dym [55],
so that, the validity of the present solution may be examined. The case
represents a thin shell of circular cylindrical shape, open and freely
supported at the two ends. The term freely supported refers to the state
when the tangential and radial displacements are restricted, while the
longitudinal displacement is allowed. The radius of the shell is R= 1 m,
the length is L= 2π m and the wall thickness is h= 0.011 m. These values
are adopted to insure that the range of shell parameters, such as the
thickness to radius ratio h/R, coincides with that investigated by Dym.
Young’s modulus E=200 GPa, Poisson’s ratio υ= 0.3 and mass density
ρ= 7850 kg/m3 are used.
The shell is analysed by the finite element method using ANSYS
program. The shell is modeled using 15360 4-noded flat shell elements
denoted as “SHELL63” in the program. The freely supported state is
provided by making the radial and tangential displacements for all nodes at
the two ends equal to zero. The functions to be determined are the mode
shapes and the natural frequencies. The mode shapes are defined by two
parameters; the circumferential wave number n and the axial wave length
parameter λ, defined as
λ = m π R/ L …(5.1)
in which m is the number of axial half waves. The natural frequency is
given implicitly by the frequency factor Ω, given by
Ω2= ((1-µ2) ρ R2/E) ω2 …(5.2)
where ω is the angular natural frequency (rad/s).
Schematic views of the elastic shapes for several selected modes are
shown in Fig. (5-1). The figure shows the perspective views and some
112
selected top and front views of the deformed shapes. From these views the
overall shape and the numbers of axial and circumferential waves can be
determined. The values of the natural frequency for the selected mode
shapes and the corresponding values of the frequency factor together with
the values determined by Dym are listed in Table (5-1). A comparison of
the results for the first axial mode, i.e. m= 1 is given in Fig. (5-2). From the
table and the figure it can be noted that the results of the present analysis
agree very well with the results of Dym. Therefore, it can be concluded
that the present modelling procedure is reliable in determining the modal
characteristics of the cylindrical shells.
After the accuracy of the used model has been proved, it is possible
now to investigate the effect of certain shell properties on the vibration
characteristics.
5.2.1 Effect of wall thickness:

A study is made to explore the effect of shell thickness on the mode
shape and natural frequency. Different values of thickness of 0.1, 0.6875,
1.375, 2.75, 5.5, 11.0, 22.0, and 44.0 mm are used. For each thickness, a
modal analysis using the FEM is conducted to determine the mode shape
defined by the two parameters m and n and natural frequency as well as the
frequency factor for the first 25 modes. The mode shapes, natural
frequencies, and frequency factors for the selected values of wall thickness
are listed in Tables (5-2) to (5-9). The tables show the values of the natural
frequencies corresponding to the various combinations of the values of m
and n. The results are ordered in each table according to the value of
natural frequency starting from the minimum one.
From the results it can be found in general that, for the fundamental
frequency, the circumferential wave number n decreases as shell thickness
113
h increases. For the considered dimensions the reduction, if occurs, in the

value of n is one when the shell thickness is duplicated. The fundamental
natural frequency f, on the other hand, increases with the increase of wall
thickness. The percentage increase ranges from 16% to 52% when h
increases to 2h. This can be justified as that the increment in shell
thickness enhances the stiffness of the shell, and hence enhances the
natural frequency. The variations of n and f of the first mode for some
selected values of m, with the wall thickness are shown in Figs. (5-3) and
(5-4), respectively.
The variation of n and f in the various modes shows that, for certain
shell dimensions, f is minimum in the first mode at some value of n which
is not necessarily being the smaller one. For the next modes, n takes values
on both sides of this value. This can be explained by considering Table (5-
7) as an example. In this table the fundamental mode has n= 3 which
corresponds to a minimum frequency of 44.599 Hz., the second mode has
n= 4, and the third has n=2 each of them corresponds to a frequency
greater than 44.599 Hz. The relation between n and f for the various axial
modes is shown in Fig. (5-5) for the case of h= 11 mm. From the figure it
can be noted that the variation of n on both sides of the first value occurs
gradually, i.e. the difference between any two adjacent successive values
of n on each side of the value of the first mode is always a unity. This leads
to the conclusion that for certain shell properties, there is a value of n
corresponding to a minimum energy (which gives a minimum natural
frequency). This energy is then increases for the successive modes as n
changes. The increase in the energy, and hence in natural frequency, is
found to increase with the increase of the difference of n from that for the
first mode.
114
From this figure it can also be observed that both of the

fundamental frequency and the corresponding value of n increases as the
axial half wave number m increases. Also it is noted that the values of
natural frequency for different axial modes, tend to converge to each other
as n increases. This means that the effect of axial mode shape tends to
vanish as the circumferential mode shape becomes more complicated.
The values of the natural frequency of the beam and torsion modes are
almost found to be independent on the shell thickness. This can be
observed from the natural frequency of the beam mode, i.e. when m= 0 and
n= 1, which has approximately a constant value of about 109.9 Hz. for
various shell thicknesses (Tables (5-6) to (5-9)). The torsion mode, which
corresponds to m= 0 and n= 0, is found to have a natural frequency of
about 249 Hz. for two different values of shell thickness (Tables (5-8) and
(5-9)).
5.2.2 Effect of shell diameter:

To investigate the effect of the variation of shell diameter on the
mode shape and natural frequency, five values of shell diameter are
examined. The diameter values are 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 m, while the shell
length and thickness are kept constant at 2π m, and 11 mm respectively.
The results of mode shapes and natural frequencies for the first five modes
are listed in Table (5-10), which shows the values of the mode shape
parameters m and n and the corresponding values of natural frequency for
these modes.
From this table it is clear that n for the first mode increases when
the diameter of shell increases. The value of n increases from 2 to 3 when
the diameter changes from 1.0 to 2.0 m, and from 8 to 13 when the
115
diameter changes from 8.0 to 16.0 m. The variation of n with D for the first
mode is shown in Fig. (5-6).
The fundamental natural frequency is found to decrease as the
diameter increases. The reduction in the frequency ranges from about 20%
when D changes from 1.0 to 2.0 m and to 28% when D changes from 8.0
to 16.0 m. The relation between D and f for the various modes is shown in
Fig. (5-7). The figure also shows that the frequency values for the various
modes converge to each other as the diameter increases and tend to reach a
certain value. This means that the frequency tends to become independent
of diameter and mode shape for large values of diameter.
The beam mode for D= 1.0m has a natural frequency of 65.560 Hz.
which is less than the value for D= 2.0m. This leads to the conclusion that
the natural frequency of the beam mode decreases as the diameter
decreases.
5.2.3 Effect of shell length:

The effect of shell length on the mode shapes and natural
frequencies is explored by examining five values of length 1.5, 3.0, 6.0,
9.0, and 12.0 m. The shell diameter and wall thickness are fixed at 2m and
11mm respectively. The mode shapes and natural frequencies for the first
five modes are listed in Table (5-11).
From the table, it can be observed that both of n and f for the first
mode are decreased as shell length L increases. A maximum reduction in
the circumferential wave number of 2 is noted when L increases from 1.5
to 3.0 m. The natural frequency is found to decrease by 52 – 54% when
shell length is doubled. The relation between shell length and n for the first
mode is shown in Fig. (5-8), and the variation of f with L for the various
modes is shown in Fig. (5-9).
116
By analyzing the results it is found that the natural frequency for a

certain value of length (L) and a mode shape defined by m and n is equal to
the natural frequency for a shell of length (2L) and mode shape identified
by 2m and n. For example, the natural frequency at the first mode f=
64.890 Hz for L=3.0 which corresponds to m=1 and n=4, is equal to the
natural frequency at the fifth mode for L=6.0 which corresponds to m=2
and n=4. This means that, when other parameters remain the same, the
natural frequency will not change if the axial wave length (L/m) remains
constant, irrespective of the absolute values of L and m.
The natural frequency of the beam mode for the case of L= 12m, i.e.
f= 35.706 Hz. is less than that for the case of L=2.0m. This means that the
natural frequency of the beam mode decreases as the shell length increases.
5.3 Case Study II: Tank fixed at base

This case is investigated to verify the ability of the present modeling
method to represent a tank with different boundary conditions at the two
ends. This case was previously explored analytically by Stillman [34] and
also experimentally and analytically by Sewall and Pusey (as cited in Ref.
[34]). The tank is of circular cylindrical shape having a radius R= 0.3048
m, a length L= 0.595 m, and a wall thickness h= 0.8128 mm. Young
modulus, Poisson’s ratio and mass density are 68.98 GPa, 0.3, and 2768
kg/m3, respectively. The tank is clamped at the bottom end and free at the
top.
The tank is modeled by finite element using ANSYS program, where
four node flat shell elements denoted as SHELL63 are used. A modal
analysis is conducted to determine the mode shapes and natural
frequencies. The results are given in Table (5-12) together with those
obtained by Sewall and Pusey and by Stillman. The table lists the values of
117
the natural frequency and the corresponding circumferential wave

numbers, for the first eleventh modes of the cases of m= 1 and m= 2.
Schematic views of the first six vibration modes are shown in Fig. (5-10).
A comparison of the results is shown in Figs. (5-11) and (5-12).
From the table and the figures it is found that the present model
gives results which are almost identical with the experimental and
theoretical findings of the previous work. This leads to the conclusion that
the used model is efficient in manipulating the modal analysis of the
cylindrical tanks.
5.3.1 Parametric study:

Circular cylindrical tanks fixed at the base and free at the top are
considered. This case represents an empty tank fully anchored to a large
rigid or piled foundation. The purpose of studying such cases is to evaluate
the effects of the variations in wall thickness, diameter, and length on the
mode shapes and natural frequencies of empty liquid storage tank. For this
reason combinations of three values of length 3, 6, and 12 m, four values
of diameter 8, 16, 32, and 64 m, and eight values of wall thickness 5, 10,
15, 20, 25, 30, 35, and 40 mm are examined. That is, a total of 96 different
cases of tanks are studied.
The wall of the tanks is made of steel sheets of uniform thickness
without longitudinal or transverse stiffeners. The base plate is neglected
since there is no interaction between the wall and the base because the
lower edge of the tank is fixed. Since most of the previous works [34]
ignored the effect of the top cover, this effect is also not considered in this
analysis.
The tank is modeled by finite element using SHELL63 flat shell
element in ANSYS program. The number of finite elements used to model
118
the structure depends on the dimensions of the tank. In this context, for
each set of dimensions a number of trial meshes starting from coarse mesh
is conducted until convergence of the results is obtained. The criterion
adopted is that the maximum difference in the natural frequency values
between two successive trials does not exceed 1% of the lower value. The
optimum number of finite elements is found to range between about 7000
to 16000 elements. The results are given in Tables (5-13) to (5-24), which
list the values of the natural frequencies and the corresponding
circumferential wave numbers for the first five modes of each case. For all
these cases the first five modes correspond to the first axial mode, i.e. m=1,
so the values of m are not included in the tables.
From these tables it can be found that n for the first mode decreases
as the shell thickness h increases. The reduction ranges from 0 to 10 when
h is doubled. The maximum reduction of 10 is observed when h increases
from 5 to 10mm for the case of L= 3m and D= 64m. While a minimum
reduction of 0 is observed when h increases from 20 to 40mm for the case
of L= 6m and D= 8m and when h increases from 15 to 30mm for the case
of L= 12m and D= 8m. The relation between n for the first mode and h is
shown in Fig. (5-13) for the case of L= 3m and for various values of
diameter. The variation of n with h for the first three modes of a selected
case is shown in Fig. (5-14). From this figure it can be shown that the
values of n for the higher modes have unstable variation with thickness,
and they are oscillating about the values of first mode.
The natural frequency f is found to increase with increasing wall
thickness. An increase in the fundamental natural frequency of about 34 –
43% takes place when the wall thickness is doubled. The maximum
increase is noted when h is doubled from 15 to 30 mm for the case of L=
12m and D= 8m. The minimum increase is observed when h is doubled
119
from 5 to 10 mm for the case of L= 3m and D= 8m. Figure (5-15) shows

the relation between h and f for a tank having L= 3m for various values of
diameter. The variations of the natural frequency with wall thickness for
the first five modes and for selected cases are shown in Figs. (5-16) to (5-
21). From these figures it can be shown that the differences between the
values of natural frequency for the various modes decrease as the diameter
increases. This can be noted by comparing Figs. (5-16) to (5-19). This
means that the effect of the circumferential wave number on the natural
frequency lightens as the diameter increases. The degree of coincidence of
the frequency values in the various modes is more obvious for shells of
small length than those of larger lengths, as can be noted from a
comparison of Figs. (5-19), (5-20), and (5-21). The differences in natural
frequencies between the fifth and first modes for tanks having L= 3m are 8
– 37% and 0.5 – 1.3% for the cases of D= 8m and D= 64m, respectively.
While these differences for tanks with L= 12m are 29 – 134% and 3 – 7%
for D= 8m and D= 64m, respectively. From these findings it can be
concluded that the effect of the circumferential wave number on the natural
frequency vanishes as the ratio of shell length to diameter L/D decreases.
The relation between f and n is similar to that for freely supported
shells. The effect of variation in circumferential wave number on the
natural frequency increases with increasing the shell thickness, as can be
noted from Fig. (5-22).
It is also clear from the results that n for the first mode increases as
D increases. The value of n for certain tank dimensions increases by 2 – 19
when the tank diameter is doubled. The maximum increase in n is observed
for the case of L= 3m and h=5 mm, when D increases from 32 to 64 m. The
relations between the tank diameter and n for the three values of L are
shown in Fig. (5-23). From the figure it can be noted that n decreases as L
120
increases. The range of reduction in the value of n is from 1 to 13 when L

increases to 2L. The maximum reduction is found when L changes from 3
to 6m, for the case of D= 64 m and h= 5mm.
The value of the fundamental natural frequency decreases as the
tank diameter increases. The natural frequency reduces by about 26 – 32%
when D is increased to 2D. Maximum reduction is noted when D increases
from 8 to 16 m, for the case of L= 3m and h= 5mm, while minimum
reduction is found when D increases from 8 to 16 m, for the case of L=
12m and h= 20 mm.
The effect of doubling the tank length is to decrease the
fundamental natural frequency by 48 – 52%. The variation of f with D for
various values of L for wall thickness h= 10 mm is shown in Fig. (5-24).
5.3.2 Effect of tank’s relative dimensions:

Analyzing of the results for the various tank dimensions, leads to
the conclusion that the circumferential wave number of the fundamental
mode remains the same and the corresponding fundamental natural
frequency is reduced to the half, when all of the tank length, diameter, and
thickness are doubled, i.e.
n (2L, 2D, 2h)= n(L, D, h) …(5.3)
and
f (2L, 2D, 2h)= ½ f(L, D, h) …(5.4)
For example for L= 3m, D= 8m, and h= 10mm then n= 9 and f = 18.707
Hz., and when the dimensions are doubled, i.e. L= 6m, D= 16m, and h=
20mm, it is found that n= 9 and f = 9.353 Hz.
This means that, when all other properties remain unchanged, the
circumferential wave number remains unchanged if the relative values of
121
tank dimensions remain constant, irrespective of the absolute values of

these dimensions.
5.3.3 Suggested formulae:

The values of the circumferential wave number and the natural
frequencies are obtained for tanks fixed at the base having a wide range of
combinations of length, diameter, and wall thickness. From these values
and their variations with tank properties, two approximate formulae
expressing the value of n and f for the first mode are developed. These
formulae give the values of n and f in terms of tank length, diameter, and
wall thickness. Each formula is derived by considering the variation of the
considered function with each dimension separately. A logarithmic relation
is assumed between the function, i.e. n or f, and the considered dimension.
The effects of the three dimensions are obtained by multiplying the three
separate effects. These formulae are:
n= integer (6.73 D0.7/(h0.3 . L0.43)) …(5.5)

and
f= 52.16 h0.48/(D0.511. L0.985) …(5.6)
These two formulae can be used in preliminary design stages for tanks
with fixed base, to obtain approximate values of n and f for tanks having
dimensions within the considered range. Since the values of L, D, and h
used in the study cover a wide range of actual storage tank dimensions,
these formulae can be used for almost all tank dimensions.
A comparison of the results obtained by the above equations with
those obtained by the FEM is given in Table (5-25). The comparison
shows that the results obtained by the suggested formulae agree very well
with those obtained by the FEM. This means that an excellent
122
approximation of the mode shapes and natural frequency values can be

obtained by using a simple formulae, rather than using the complicated
finite element analysis. These equations provide a simple tool for
predicting the vibration characteristics for a preliminary design purposes.
5.4 Case study III: Cylindrical tank hinged at base

In this case, thin-walled empty tanks without top cover but with base
plates are investigated. The tanks are assumed to be fully anchored to a
rigid foundation. So that no displacement is allowed at all nodes of the
finite element simulating the base, but rotation can take place. Uniform
wall thickness, without longitudinal or transverse stiffeners is assumed.
The effects of tank length, diameter, wall thickness, and base plate
thickness on the vibration characteristics are explored.
The wall is modelled by using four-noded flat shell elements, while
the base plate is modeled using three and four-noded flat shell elements,
both with extensional and flexural rigidities. For this purpose SHELL63
element in ANSYS program is selected to model the wall and base.
Three values of tank length, 3.0, 6.0, and 12 m, four values of tank
diameter, 8, 16, 32, and 64 m, eight values of wall thickness, 5, 10, 15, 20,
25, 30, 35, and 40 mm and three values of base plate thickness 10, 20, and
30 mm are examined. The results are given in Tables (5-26) to (5-37).
These tables list the values of the circumferential wave number and natural
frequency for the first five modes for each combination of tank
dimensions. For all these cases it is found that m= 1 for the five modes.
The values of n for all cases are found to be exactly the same as
those obtained for the tank fixed at the base. For the natural frequencies it
is found that there are negligible discrepancies from the values obtained
for tanks fixed at the base. This means that the allowed rotation at the base
123
is of negligible effect on the vibration characteristics of the cylindrical

tanks. Consequently, the suggested formulae given by Eqs. (5.5) and (5.6)
can also be used to estimate the mode shapes and natural frequencies.
5.4.1 Effect of base plate thickness:

The effect of the base plate thickness is explored by the
determination of the vibration characteristics of the tank for three different
values of this thickness. Four combinations of shell dimensions are
considered. The results are given in Table (5-38), which shows the values
of the natural frequency for the first five modes, determined for the four
tank cases.
For each case of tank dimensions, the comparison of the results
implies that a very little increase of less than 4%, takes place in the values
of natural frequency when the base plate thickness is increased three times
from 10 to 30 mm. This small increase is found to increase as tank
diameter increases and to decrease with increasing tank length. This leads
to the conclusion that the effect of the variation in base plate thickness on
the vibration characteristics is of minor importance and can be practically
neglected. It is worth noted that the mode shapes are not affected by the
changes in base plate thickness absolutely.
5.5 Case study IV: Cylindrical tank supported by soil

In this case the flexibility of the support to storage tank is
introduced. The soil is modelled using Winkler method, in which the soil
reaction is represented by a large number of discrete elastic springs. The
stiffness of the spring is the equivalent substitution of the soil subgrade
reaction. The wall and base plate are modeled using the aforementioned
SHELL63 elements.
124
5.5.1 Modeling of soil reaction:

The base plate is divided into elements of same areas. This can be
done only by radially dividing the base plate into small same areas, such
that each area will represent a single element. This means that each node
(except those at the circumference) is surrounded by four equal areas. If a
spring element is connected to this node, then the required value of spring
stiffness, which should be equivalent to the soil reaction, is equal to the
value of the modulus of subgrade reaction of the soil multiplied by the area
of a region contains four quarters of the four elements connected at the
considered node. Since all areas are equal, then the spring stiffness is
simply equals to the modulus of subgrade reaction multiplied by the
element area, i.e.
kspring = ksoil . a …(5.7)
where kspring is the spring stiffness, ksoil is the soil modulus of subgrade
reaction, and a is the area of the element, given by
a= A/N …(5.8)
in which A is the total area of the base of tank and N is the number of small
areas.
The values of stiffness of springs connected to internal nodes
corresponding to various values of soil modulus of subgrade reaction and
base diameter are given in Table (5.-39). For nodes at the circumference,
only two areas are connected in each node, and the spring stiffness should
be reduced to the half.
Two nodes elastic spring elements denoted as “COMBIN14” in the
used program are used to model the Winkler springs. One node of the
element is connected to a node in the base plate while the other node is
clamped.
125
5.5.2 Modal analysis:

Two values of tank length 3m and 12m, two values of tank diameter
8m and 32m, three values for the wall thickness 5, 15, and 35 mm, and
three values of base plate thickness 10, 20, and 30mm are used in this
analysis. The effect of soil flexibility is examined by using three values of
the modulus of subgrade reaction; 6, 24, and 128 MN/m3 pertaining to very
soft, medium, and very stiff soils respectively [59].
The resulting values of the circumferential wave number and the
corresponding values of natural frequency for the first five modes are
listed in Tables (5-40) to (5-47). The comparison of the results with those
obtained for tanks hinged to rigid base, shows that the effect of including
the soil flexibility is to decrease the circumferential wave numbers and
natural frequencies of the fundamental modes. A maximum reduction in
the circumferential wave number of 16 is found in the case when ksoil= 6
MN/m3, L= 3m, D= 32m and h=5mm. The percentage decrease of f for the
case of ksoil= 6 MN/m3 ranges from 70 – 88% from the values of similar
tank hinged to a rigid base. The maximum reduction is found for the case
of L= 3m, D= 8m, and h= 35mm.
The circumferential wave number of the fundamental mode
increases with increasing soil stiffness. The increase is found to be less as
the ratio L/D increases. For example when the soil condition changes from
very weak to very stiff, i.e. from ksoil= 6 MN/m3 to ksoil= 128 MN/m3, an
increase of 5 takes place for a broad tank of L= 3m and D= 32m, while this
increase is zero for a tall tank of L= 12m and D= 8m, as can be seen from
Tables (5-43) and (5-44). The variation of the circumferential wave
number with the soil stiffness for the various cases is shown in Fig. (5-25).
The fundamental natural frequency is also found to increase as soil
stiffness increases (Fig. (5-26)). This is due to the increased rigidity of the
126
support, which in turn increases the stiffness of the tank. The maximum
increase in the value of f when the soil stiffness changes from ksoil= 6
MN/m3 to ksoil= 128 MN/m3, is found to be about 128% for the case of L=
12m and D= 8m and h= 35 mm.
The effect of the base plate thickness on the natural frequencies is
found to be more sensible than in tanks hinged to rigid base. This effect is
shown in Fig. (5-27) for a selected case. It is observed that increasing the
base plate thickness three times from 10 to 30 mm will increase the natural
frequency by 8 – 22%, for soil of moderate stiffness. This increase is less
as soil stiffness increases.
5.5.3 Elastic medium:

A new method is suggested to represent the soil reaction, as detailed
in chapter four. The soil reaction is represented by a three dimensional
continuous elastic solid instead of the discrete springs. The main advantage
of using this model is the simplicity of modelling the soil subgrade
reaction without the need to divide the base into equal areas. This means
that the proposed continuous medium can model the soil irrespective of the
shape of tank base and the distribution of the nodes in the base. The value
of the elastic modulus of the suggested medium is such that to produce the
same effect as for the discrete springs. The expression for determining this
elastic modulus is given by
Eb = ksoil hb …(5.9)
where Eb is the elastic modulus of the suggested medium , ksoil is the soil
modulus of subgrade reaction, and hb is the thickness of the medium.
The proposed three dimensional continuous medium is modeled by a
three dimensional brick element named as “SOLID45” in ANSYS program.
127
Only the elastic modulus determined from the above equation is required
to be defined for the assumed medium.
A comparison of the mode shapes and natural frequencies for the
case of a cylindrical tank of length L=3m, and diameter D=8m is given in
Table (5-48). The values are determined for base plate thickness of 20 mm,
subgrade reaction modulus of 24 MN/m3, and medium thickness of 5 mm.
Figure (5-28) compares the relations between wall thickness and natural
frequency determined by the two methods. From these results it is found
that the discrepancy in the values is very small. For the frequency the
difference is less than 8%. Consequently, using the proposed model gives
results that are in general agreement with those obtained by using the
traditional discrete springs’ model.
The effect of the medium thickness on the results is examined by
using three values for the thickness 5, 50, and 500 mm. The natural
frequencies are determined for a tank with length L= 3m, diameter D= 8m,
base plate thickness 20mm, wall thickness h= 5mm, and soil modulus of
subgrade reaction ksoil = 6 MM/m3. The results are depicted in Table (5-49).
From this table it is clear that the results obtained by using the three media
thicknesses, are almost identical, as the maximum difference between the
results is less than 2%. This leads to the conclusion that the continuous
elastic media can be used with any preferred thickness, without affecting
the results, provided that ksoil= E / hb, is kept constant.
5.6 Case study V: Cylindrical tank with stiffeners

To investigate the effects of the number, location and rigidity of ring
stiffeners on the mode shape and natural frequency a number of stiffened
tanks are considered. The considered stiffeners are steel sections of equal
128
leg angle shape. They are assumed to be completely connected to the tank
wall.
The stiffeners are modeled by a one dimensional beam element
denoted as “BEAM4” in the used program. The element has two nodes
each with six degrees of freedom. These are the translations along three
directions and the rotations about the three axes. The required information
to completely define the element is the elastic modulus, Poisson’s ratio,
cross sectional area, moments of inertia about the cross sectional axes, and
mass per unit length.
Two typical dimensions of empty tank are examined, the first is of
length L= 3m and the second is of length L= 12m. Both tanks have a
diameter D= 32m, wall thickness h= 15mm, and base plate thickness
20mm. The two tanks are considered to be supported on a medium soil
have a modulus of subgrade reaction of 24 MN/m3.
Only ring stiffeners at various height locations are explored. For the
first tank, three cases of stiffener location are studied; at top only, at top
and bottom, and at top, mid-height and bottom. Four cases of stiffeners
location are considered for the second tank, including the three previously
mentioned cases in addition to the case in which five evenly spaced
stiffeners are used. In order to investigate the effect of the rigidity of the
stiffeners on the vibration characteristics, five different angle steel sections
are considered. The selected rolled sections have properties covering
almost all the available equal leg angle sections [77]. The properties of the
used sections are listed in Table (5-50).
The results of the analysis are given in Tables (5-51) to (5-57),
which list the natural frequencies and circumferential wave numbers for
the first five modes, for the various combinations of tank dimensions and
stiffeners’ locations and section properties. The fundamental natural
129
frequencies are found to increase as the number and rigidity of stiffeners

increase, due to the increased stiffness of the structure. For tank having
L/D= 0.09375, i.e. a tank with L= 3m and D= 32m, the increase in f attains
60, 69, and 73%, for the cases of stiffeners at top, at top and bottom, and at
top, bottom, and mid-height, respectively with respect to the tank without
stiffeners. In the tank with L/D= 0.375, i.e. a tank of L= 12m and D= 32m,
the increase in f for the same cases are 91, 96, and 99%, respectively, while
it may reach 104% for the case when five stiffeners evenly spaced are
used. The variations of the natural frequencies with stiffeners’ rigidity for
the various cases are shown in Figs. (5-29) and (5-30). From the results it
can be concluded that the effect of adding ring stiffeners on the natural
frequency becomes larger as the length to diameter ratio L/D of the tank
increases. A comparison of the increase in percentage for the two tanks for
the case of stiffeners at top is given in Fig. (5-31).
It is also noted that adding stiffeners at the bottom and intermediate
levels, increases the natural frequencies by a small percentage comparing
with the stiffeners at top level. While the increase in natural frequency due
to adding stiffeners at top level ranges from 60 – 91%, the further increase
when additional stiffeners are installed at the intermediate levels will be 6-
14%.
The curves relating the natural frequency f with the moment of
inertia of the stiffeners Iy, as shown in Figs. (5-29) and (5-30), are found to
have greater slope in the range of small values of Iy. Beyond some value of
Iy (about Iy= 1500 cm4), these curves tend to be flat, which means that the
rate of increase in f decreases.
From the latter two conclusions it may be possible to say that an
optimum use of stiffeners is at the top edge of tank and of moderate section
properties.
130
Finally, the effect of adding stiffeners is found to decrease the values

of the circumferential wave number of the fundamental mode due to the
increased stiffness. The reduction may reach 6 and 2 for tanks with L/D=
0.09375 and L/D= 0.375, respectively. The variations of n with Iy for the
two tanks and for various stiffeners location are shown in Figs. (5-32) and
(5-33).
5.7 Case study VI: Cylindrical tank filled with water:

The effect of the contained water on the vibration of storage tanks is
explored, by analyzing fully and partially liquid filled tanks. The effect of
the contained water is summarized by the effects of its two parts. The first
is a mass moving instantaneously with the vibrating tank, causing an
impulsive pressure on the tank’s wall, so that it is called the impulsive
mass. The second part is a mass which oscillates due to an initial motion
of the tank and continues in oscillation, thus developing a convective
pressure, so that this mass is denoted as the sloshing or convective mass.
In the present work, the free surface effects, i.e. convective pressures, are
neglected. This may be justified as the natural frequencies of the tanks are
very high compared to the natural frequencies of free the surface
phenomena, accordingly, coupling between the shell modes and the liquid
free-surface modes may be expected to be weak [6]. This means that the
sloshing mass frequency does not affect the vibration of the tank wall, and
can usually be neglected, which is the case in most of the previous works
[6, 19, 56]. This implies that only the effect of the impulsive mass is to be
considered.
The effect of the impulsive mass is modelled by the added mass
approach. A new suggested geometric representation of the impulsive
mass is developed. In the present model the impulsive mass is represented
131
by the liquid body below a spherical surface, forming the assumed path of
the sloshing mass at the top, as detailed in the preceding chapter. This
lower mass is divided into circular discs of thickness equal to the height of
the shell elements at that ordinate, then each disc is divided into a number
of sectors, equal to the number of elements at the circumference. The mass
of each sector is determined and divided equally and added to the nodes at
the four corners of the shell element at the external face of the sector.
A single point mass element denoted as “MASS21” is used. The
element has three degrees of freedom which are the three translations in
the three directions. The only single property required to be defined for
this element is its mass.
Most of the available previous works on the vibration of liquid filled
tanks, assumed the tank base to be clamped. So that, all the liquid filled
tank cases in the present work will have the same type of boundary, i.e. the
lower edge is fixed. The tank wall is modeled using “SHELL63” element,
while the base is neglected. Before proceeding in exploring the effect of
liquid on vibration of tanks having various dimensions, it is to examine the
accuracy of the suggested method, by comparing its results with those
from previous works.
5.7.1 Broad tank filled with liquid:

The broad liquid filled tank investigated by Krishna and Ganesan [37]
and also by Ramasamy and Ganesan as cited in Ref. [37] is reanalyzed to
examine the accuracy of the proposed method. The tank has a length L=
12.2m, a diameter D= 36.58m, and wall thickness h= 25.4mm. The tank is
fixed at the base and completely filled with water of mass density ρ= 1000
kg/m3. The tank wall is divided in the longitudinal direction into 40
divisions, and in the circumferential direction to 300 divisions. The values
132
of the mass to be added to the nodes at each ordinate in the wetted surface
of the tank are determined using Eqs. (3.20) and (3-21) and are listed in
Table (5-58).
The determined mass at each ordinate is added to the nodes at the
circumference at that location using the mass element. The tank is then
analysed to determine the vibration characteristics. The resulting mode
shapes and natural frequencies compared with those obtained in the
previous works, are shown in Fig. (5-34). It is clear that the suggested
method gives results which are in general agreement with the results of
Krishna and Ganesan [37] and of Ramasamy and Ganesan as cited in the
same reference.
5.7.2 Tall tank filled with water to various depths:

The effect of the contained liquid on the vibration characteristics of
a tall tank is explored. This case had been previously investigated by Wu
and also Stillman [34]. The tank has a length L= 1.0668m, a diameter D=
0.1524m, and two values of wall thickness h= 6.35, and 0.508mm. Five
cases of liquid depth are considered, 0, L/4, L/2, 3L/4, and L. For each case
the added mass at each node is calculated using Eqs. (3-16) to (3-19). The
natural frequency is determined for the first mode corresponding to the
second circumferential mode, i.e. n=2. The results are shown in Figs.(5-35)
and (5-36) alongside those from previous works [34].
From the figures it is noted that the proposed model gives results for
the natural frequency lying between the experimental and analytical
results, and they are very close to the analytical results.
From the above two cases (for broad and tall tanks) it can be
concluded that the present proposed method has an adequate accuracy in
modelling the effect of liquid on the vibration characteristics of the liquid
133
storage tanks. And upon its simplicity, it can be considered to be an

efficient method for modelling liquid in modal analyses.
As the new proposed method has been proved to be sufficiently
accurate in modelling liquid effects, it is now possible to study new cases,
to explore the effects of various liquid filled tank parameters on the mode
shape and natural frequency.
5.7.3 Tanks completely filled with liquid:

The effect of liquid on the vibration of liquid storage tanks are
investigated by conducting modal analyses on tanks having various
dimensions. Two values of length 3, and 12m, three values of diameter
8, 16, and 32m, and four values of wall thickness 5, 15, 25, and 35mm
are examined. All tanks are completely filled with water of mass density
ρ= 1000 kg/m3. Equations (3.16) to (3.21) are used in determining the
added masses at various node locations.
The mode shapes and the corresponding natural frequencies for the
various cases are detailed in Tables (5-59) to (5-64). From these results it
can be noted that the effect of the contained liquid is to considerably
reduce the natural frequencies of the various modes, as compared with
empty tanks. The percentage reduction is found to be less as wall thickness
increases. For example, the fundamental natural frequency for 5mm wall
thickness decreases by about 66 – 86%, while for 35mm wall thickness the
reduction is 32 – 65% from the corresponding values for empty tanks. The
variation of natural frequencies with the wall thickness for a selected case
compared with that for an empty tank is shown in Fig. (5-37).
For broad tanks having L/D < 1.0, the effect of the contained liquid
on the natural frequencies is found to increase as the tank diameter
increases. This can be observed for the tank having L= 3m, in which the
134
reduction in f ranges from 32 – 66% for D= 8m, and from 65 – 86% for D=
32m. The relation between f and D for a selected case is compared in Fig.
(5-38) with that for an empty tank.
In broad tanks also, it is found that the effect of the contained liquid
is slightly lightened as the tank length increases. The reduction in natural
frequency for tanks having D= 32m ranges from 65 to 86% for the tank
with L= 3m, and from 56 to 81% for the tank with L= 12m. The variation
of the natural frequency with the tank length for selected tank dimensions
both for empty and liquid filled cases is shown in Fig. (5-39).
The circumferential wave number is almost not affected by the
presence of the contained liquid. Most values of n for different tank
dimensions and for all modes are equal to that for empty tanks. A
comparison of the variations of n between the empty and liquid filled tank
is given in Fig. (5-40).
5.7.4 Liquid filled tank with stiffeners:

The effect of adding stiffeners on the vibration characteristics of
tanks completely filled is explored by considering a ring stiffened broad
tank. The tank is of length L= 3m, diameter D= 32m, and wall thickness h=
15mm. The tank is completely filled with water of mass density of ρ=
1000kg/m3. Ring stiffeners are installed in two different fashions, at top
only and at top, bottom, and mid-height. Two extreme values of moment
of inertia are used for the stiffeners, 19.6 and 3686 cm4.
The mode shapes and natural frequencies for the two cases are listed
in Table (5-65), for the first five modes, for which m= 1. The results show
that an increase of up to about 47% when using stiffeners at top, and of up
to about 100% when using stiffeners at the three levels, can occur in the
fundamental natural frequencies as compared to that for similar tank
135
without stiffeners (Table (5-64)). So, it seems that adding stiffeners at mid-
levels has a considerable effect on the values of natural frequencies. This
finding is in contrast with what was found in the case of empty tanks, in
which the middle stiffeners have a very slight effect on the natural
frequencies.
From Table (5-65) the circumferential wave number of the
fundamental mode is found to increase from 20 to 26 as Iy of stiffeners is
increased from 19.6 to 3686 cm4 for the case of stiffeners at top. However,
for the case of stiffeners at three levels, the circumferential wave number
decreases from 20 to 10 for the fundamental frequency when Iy of
stiffeners increases as above.
Comparing Table (5-65) with Table (5-61), it is clear that n for tanks
without stiffeners is greater than that for tanks with top stiffeners of small
Iy. But, big sections for this stiffener increase the value of n for stiffened
tanks to become larger than that for tanks without stiffeners.
Also, it is found that using big sections for stiffeners in three levels
makes the n value to decrease considerably as compared to all other cases.
136
Table (5-1): Comparison of values of frequency factor
Present FE Solution Dym Results [55]

m n λ f (Hz) Ω Ω (exact) Ω (app.)
1 4 0.5 41.290 0.04903 0.05181 0.05344
1 2 0.5 42.616 0.05060 0.05123 0.05771
2 4 1.0 61.627 0.07318 0.07523 0.07771
1 6 0.5 93.089 0.11054 0.11342 0.11482
2 6 1.0 97.177 0.11539 0.11812 0.11981
4 6 2.0 129.493 0.15377 0.15606 0.15843
2 2 1.0 142.385 0.16908 0.16928 0.19144
4 4 2.0 163.157 0.19374 0.19438 0.20100
1 8 0.5 167.672 0.19910 0.20163 0.20321
`
Table (5-2): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for freely supported shell of
wall thickness = 0.1 mm
m n f(Hz) Ω m n f(Hz) Ω m n f(Hz) Ω

1 10 3.120 0.003705 1 6 5.526 0.006562 2 17 7.549 0.008964
1 9 3.130 0.003717 1 16 6.229 0.007397 1 5 7.812 0.009276
1 11 3.344 0.003971 2 13 6.262 0.007436 1 18 7.859 0.009332
1 8 3.457 0.004105 2 14 6.273 0.007449 2 18 8.253 0.009800
1 12 3.732 0.004432 2 15 6.524 0.007747 2 10 8.282 0.009835
1 7 4.200 0.004987 2 12 6.548 0.007776 1 19 8.756 0.010397
1 13 4.239 0.005034 2 16 6.963 0.008268 2 19 9.053 0.01075
1 14 4.833 0.005739 1 17 7.016 0.008331
1 15 5.499 0.00653 2 11 7.196 0.008545
137

1 6 7.974 0.009469 2 7 17.854 0.021201 3 11 25.040 0.029734
1 5 8.784 0.010431 2 10 18.393 0.021841 3 9 25.572 0.030366
1 7 8.940 0.010616 1 11 20.040 0.023797 3 12 27.114 0.032197
1 8 10.928 0.012977 1 3 20.588 0.024448 1 13 27.989 0.033236
1 4 12.228 0.01452 2 11 21.140 0.025103 2 13 28.477 0.033815
1 9 13.536 0.016074 2 6 22.220 0.026386 3 18 29.193 0.034666
2 8 16.217 0.019257 1 12 23.842 0.028312 3 13 30.200 0.035861
1 10 16.596 0.019707 3 10 24.366 0.028934
2 9 16.598 0.01971 2 12 24.553 0.029156

1 5 11.129 0.013215 1 9 26.735 0.031747 1 11 39.978 0.047473
1 6 12.837 0.015244 2 9 28.573 0.033929 2 11 40.713 0.048345
1 4 12.955 0.015384 2 5 31.361 0.03724 1 2 41.945 0.049808
1 7 16.457 0.019542 1 10 33.011 0.039199 3 11 43.141 0.051228
1 3 20.712 0.024595 2 10 34.121 0.040518 2 4 46.045 0.054677
1 8 21.184 0.025155 3 8 34.669 0.041168 4 10 46.045 0.054677
2 7 22.701 0.026957 3 9 34.799 0.041323 4 9 46.871 0.055658
2 6 24.476 0.029064 3 10 37.937 0.045049
2 8 24.491 0.029082 3 7 38.695 0.045949
138

1 4 15.525 0.018435 1 8 42.026 0.049904 4 8 64.607 0.076719
1 5 17.697 0.021015 2 8 44.124 0.052396 1 10 65.931 0.078291
1 3 21.198 0.025172 2 4 46.906 0.055699 2 10 66.842 0.079373
1 6 23.866 0.02834 3 7 48.189 0.057223 4 9 67.197 0.079794
2 6 31.942 0.03793 3 8 50.986 0.060544 3 5 67.234 0.079838
1 7 32.162 0.038191 3 6 52.677 0.062552 4 7 69.248 0.08223
2 5 34.408 0.040858 1 9 53.300 0.063292 3 10 69.434 0.082451
2 7 36.076 0.042839 2 9 54.591 0.064825
1 2 41.978 0.049847 3 9 58.638 0.069631

1 3 23.038 0.027357 2 7 66.689 0.079191 4 6 94.432 0.112135
1 4 23.104 0.027435 3 6 67.619 0.080295 3 4 98.413 0.116862
1 5 32.719 0.038853 3 5 73.482 0.087257 4 8 100.268 0.119065
1 2 42.106 0.049999 3 7 74.974 0.089029 1 9 106.514 0.126482
2 5 44.558 0.052911 2 3 76.664 0.091036 2 9 107.867 0.128088
1 6 46.785 0.055556 1 8 83.880 0.099605 0 1 109.977 0.130594
2 4 50.197 0.059607 2 8 85.648 0.101704 3 9 111.121 0.131952
2 6 52.009 0.061759 3 8 90.497 0.107462
1 7 63.943 0.07593 4 7 91.202 0.108299
139

1 3 29.264 0.03475 2 6 97.177 0.115394 2 2 142.385 0.169077
1 4 41.290 0.04903 3 4 105.631 0.125433 4 7 149.684 0.177745
1 2 42.616 0.050605 3 6 108.451 0.128782 3 3 153.866 0.182711
2 4 61.627 0.07318 0 1 109.978 0.130595 5 6 159.666 0.189598
1 5 64.029 0.076032 1 7 127.692 0.15163 4 4 163.157 0.193743
2 5 72.050 0.085557 4 6 129.493 0.153769 1 8 167.672 0.199105
2 3 79.101 0.09393 2 7 130.477 0.154937 5 7 168.941 0.200612
1 6 93.089 0.11054 4 5 130.859 0.155391
3 5 94.420 0.112121 3 7 137.171 0.162886

1 2 44.599 0.05296 2 2 143.254 0.170109 5 5 222.734 0.264489
1 3 46.463 0.055173 3 5 151.573 0.179988 4 3 242.023 0.287394
1 4 79.928 0.094912 3 3 160.064 0.190071 5 4 244.803 0.290695
2 3 88.177 0.104707 4 5 181.778 0.215855 5 6 245.963 0.292073
2 4 94.389 0.112084 4 4 183.660 0.21809 0 0 249.053 0.295742
0 1 109.981 0.130599 1 6 185.927 0.220782 1 7 255.274 0.303129
1 5 127.338 0.15121 2 6 190.769 0.226532 2 7 259.478 0.308121
3 4 130.565 0.155042 3 6 201.279 0.239012
2 5 134.210 0.15937 4 6 219.465 0.260607
140

1 2 51.771 0.061476 0 0 249.134 0.295838 4 5 310.904 0.369188
1 3 85.822 0.101911 4 4 249.286 0.296019 5 3 354.697 0.421191
0 1 109.994 0.130614 1 5 254.258 0.301923 5 5 351.610 0.417525
2 3 117.657 0.139714 2 5 263.178 0.312515 1 6 371.645 0.441316
2 2 146.674 0.17417 4 3 263.220 0.312565 6 4 374.532 0.444744
1 4 158.467 0.188174 3 2 263.817 0.313274 4 2 374.746 0.444998
2 4 171.292 0.203404 3 5 281.366 0.334113 2 6 379.631 0.450799
3 3 182.744 0.217002 0 1 296.81 0.352452
3 4 201.455 0.239221 5 4 309.020 0.366951
Table (5-10): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for freely

supported shell with h= 11.0 mm, L= 6.283 m.
Mode Diameter (m)

Number 1.0 2.0 4.0 8.0 16.0
m 1 1 1 1 1
1 n 2 3 5 8 13
f(Hz) 36.518 29.264 22.278 16.137 11.561
m 0 1 1 1 1
2 n 1 4 4 9 14
f(Hz) 65.560 41.290 25.095 16.807 11.591
m 1 1 1 1 1
3 n 3 2 6 7 12
f(Hz) 82.435 42.616 26.011 17.278 11.996
m 2 2 1 1 1
4 n 2 4 7 10 15
f(Hz) 89.202 61.627 33.359 18.761 12.009
m 2 1 1 1 1
5 n 3 5 3 6 15
f(Hz) 92.927 64.029 38.328 20.798 12.739
141
Table (5-11): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for freely supported shell
with h= 11.0 mm, D = 2.0 m.
Mode Length (m)

Number 1.5 3.0 6.0 9.0 12.0
m 1 1 1 1 1
1 n 6 4 3 2 2
f(Hz) 134.521 64.890 30.607 22.394 14.097
m 1 1 1 1 1
2 n 5 5 4 3 3
f(Hz) 138.696 73.486 41.675 22.932 21.243
m 1 1 1 1 2
3 n 7 3 2 4 3
f(Hz) 152.966 85.414 46.354 39.643 30.680
m 1 1 1 2 0
4 n 4 6 5 3 1
f(Hz) 174.460 97.906 64.174 44.473 35.706
m 1 1 2 2 1
5 n 8 7 4 4 4
f(Hz) 185.676 130.993 64.890 46.196 39.227
Table (5-12): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for the first two axial modes
Natural frequency (Hz)

No. of
First axial mode Second axial mode
circum.
waves Present Sewall and Stillman Present Sewall and Pusey Stillman
(n) Pusey [34] [34]
work [34] work [34]
Exper. Theor. Exper. Theor.
2 388.7 396 396 1814 1308
3 216.1 206 219 219.5 877 874
4 136.5 132 138 136 596.8 614 612
5 102.3 101 103 103.5 439.5 429 450 449
6 97.2 97 98 98 339.9 326 346 346
7 111.6 113 112 112 279.7 274 284 283.5
8 137.6 140 138 138 249.9 247 253 252.5
9 170.8 174 171 171 244.9 244 247 247
10 209.4 215 210 210 259.4 262 261 261
11 252.9 258 254 253.5 288.3 292 290 289.6
12 300.8 308 302 301.5 327.6 335 329 329
142
Table (5-13): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for fixed base tank having
L = 3m and D = 8m.
Mode Wall Thickness (mm)

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 11 9 8 7 7 7 6 6
1
f(Hz) 13.960 18.707 22.702 26.322 28.872 31.701 34.077 35.973
n 10 10 9 8 8 6 7 7
2
f(Hz) 13.766 19.310 23.511 26.385 30.460 32.336 34.740 37.941
n 12 8 7 9 6 8 5 5
3
f(Hz) 13.798 19.632 24.137 28.909 30.775 34.791 38.489 39.418
n 13 11 10 6 9 5 8 8
4
f(Hz) 14.805 21.084 26.019 29.421 34.623 37.654 39.292 43.911
n 9 7 6 10 5 9 9 4
5
f(Hz) 15.076 22.422 28.303 33.190 36.917 40.518 46.525 49.275
L = 3m and D = 16m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 18 15 13 12 11 11 10 10
1
f(Hz) 9.443 13.177 16.010 18.342 20.441 22.230 23.932 25.461
n 19 14 14 13 12 10 11 9
2
f(Hz) 9.510 13.342 16.116 18.535 20.513 22.515 24.166 25.912
n 17 16 12 11 10 12 9 11
3
f(Hz) 9.569 13.370 16.444 18.842 21.233 22.880 24.834 26.219
n 20 17 15 14 13 9 12 8
4
f(Hz) 9.746 13.873 16.693 19.327 21.337 23.850 25.389 27.706
n 16 13 11 10 14 13 8 12
5
f(Hz) 9.911 13.909 17.480 20.110 22.792 24.322 26.979 28.004
143
L = 3m and D = 32m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 30 24 22 20 18 17 16 16
1
f(Hz) 6.615 9.220 11.187 12.525 14.274 15.576 16.789 17.908
n 29 25 21 19 19 18 17 15
2
f(Hz) 6.632 9.228 11.196 12.858 14.304 15.627 16.817 17.949
n 31 23 23 21 17 16 15 17
3
f(Hz) 6.642 9.300 11.295 12.945 14.435 15.746 17.013 18.138
n 28 26 20 18 20 19 18 14
4
f(Hz) 6.697 9.317 11.331 13.053 14.513 15.885 17.082 18.273
n 32 22 24 22 16 15 14 18
5
f(Hz) 6.712 9.471 11.512 13.205 14.797 16.149 17.501 18.617
L= 3m and D= 64m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 49 39 35 31 29 27 25 24
1
f(Hz) 4.619 6.429 7.811 8.977 10.009 10.946 11.816 12.620
n 48 40 34 32 28 26 26 25
2
f(Hz) 4.622 6.431 7.812 8.984 10.025 10.970 11.821 12.644
n 50 38 36 30 30 28 24 23
3
f(Hz) 4.626 6.447 7.838 9.004 10.034 10.970 11.866 12.655
n 47 41 33 33 27 29 27 26
4
f(Hz) 4.636 6.452 7.840 9.026 10.083 11.041 11.877 12.725
n 51 37 37 29 31 25 23 22
5
f(Hz) 4.644 6.485 7.890 9.067 10.099 11.041 11.970 12.749
144
L= 6m and D= 8m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 8 7 6 5 5 5 5 5
1
f(Hz) 6.724 9.527 11.408 13.425 14.550 15.814 17.185 18.641
n 7 6 5 6 6 4 4 4
2
f(Hz) 7.016 9.673 12.476 13.462 15.709 17.854 18.366 18.937
n 9 8 7 7 4 6 6 6
3
f(Hz) 7.169 10.729 12.599 15.927 17.405 18.077 20.523 23.023
n 10 5 8 4 7 7 3 3
4
f(Hz) 8.151 11.744 15.208 17.025 19.380 22.900 26.129 26.271
n 6 9 4 8 8 3 7 7
5
f(Hz) 8.453 12.786 16.718 19.842 24.539 26.002 26.460 30.044
L = 6m and D = 16m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 13 11 10 9 9 8 8 7
1
f(Hz) 4.781 6.698 8.156 9.353 10.504 11.351 12.241 13.161
n 14 10 9 10 8 9 7 8
2
f(Hz) 4.848 6.883 8.346 9.655 10.536 11.756 12.589 13.192
n 12 12 11 8 10 7 9 9
3
f(Hz) 4.922 6.899 8.516 9.816 11.290 12.068 13.079 14.455
n 15 13 8 11 7 10 6 6
4
f(Hz) 5.082 7.403 9.213 10.542 11.607 13.009 14.415 14.711
n 11 9 12 7 11 6 10 10
5
f(Hz) 5.308 7.538 9.295 11.211 12.676 14.152 14.784 16.595
145
L = 6m and D = 32m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 22 18 16 15 14 13 13 12
1
f(Hz) 3.370 4.719 5.740 6.586 7.326 8.002 8.612 9.168
n 21 19 17 14 15 14 12 13
2
f(Hz) 3.390 4.752 5.779 6.668 7.429 8.055 8.674 9.264
n 23 17 15 16 13 12 14 11
3
f(Hz) 3.399 4.783 5.843 6.682 7.445 8.219 8.837 9.418
n 20 20 18 17 16 15 11 14
4
f(Hz) 3.463 4.870 5.942 6.933 7.723 8.342 9.061 9.659
n 24 16 14 13 12 11 15 10
5
f(Hz) 3.470 4.953 6.104 6.952 7.812 8.738 9.305 10.053
L = 6m and D = 64m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 36 30 27 24 23 22 21 20
1
f(Hz) 2.366 3.305 4.016 4.608 5.122 5.591 6.018 6.410
n 37 29 26 25 22 21 20 19
2
f(Hz) 2.369 3.314 4.019 4.611 5.138 5.596 6.022 6.427
n 35 31 28 23 24 23 22 21
3
f(Hz) 2.376 3.319 4.045 4.648 5.156 5.645 6.081 6.470
n 38 28 25 26 21 20 19 18
4
f(Hz) 2.383 3.347 4.056 4.656 5.210 5.663 6.099 6.524
n 34 32 32 22 25 24 23 22
5
f(Hz) 2.398 3.353 4.104 4.734 5.237 5.753 6.205 6.599
146
L = 12m and D = 8m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 6 5 4 4 4 4 3 3
1
f(Hz) 3.383 4.697 5.679 6.412 7.245 8.147 8.752 9.051
n 5 4 5 5 3 3 4 4
2
f(Hz) 3.501 5.090 6.196 7.824 8.249 8.483 9.098 10.084
n 7 6 3 3 5 5 5 5
3
f(Hz) 3.952 5.690 7.892 8.051 9.514 11.240 12.985 14.744
n 4 7 6 6 6 2 2 2
4
f(Hz) 4.699 7.421 8.199 10.768 13.362 15.039 15.066 15.095
n 8 3 7 7 2 6 6 6
5
f(Hz) 4.917 7.775 10.989 14.582 15.016 15.969 18.582 21.200
L = 12m and D = 16m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 9 8 7 7 6 6 6 5
1
f(Hz) 2.413 3.362 4.091 4.764 5.245 5.705 6.203 6.713
n 10 7 8 6 7 5 5 6
2
f(Hz) 2.428 3.531 4.312 4.836 5.509 6.238 6.463 6.732
n 11 9 6 8 5 7 7 7
3
f(Hz) 2.616 3.585 4.492 5.365 6.040 6.300 7.122 7.965
n 8 10 9 5 8 8 4 4
4
f(Hz) 2.631 4.076 4.954 5.872 6.470 7.605 8.431 8.513
n 12 6 5 9 9 4 8 8
5
f(Hz) 2.927 4.226 5.737 6.394 7.866 8.359 8.758 9.922
147
L = 12m and D = 32m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 16 13 12 11 10 10 9 9
1
f(Hz) 1.702 2.390 2.914 3.348 3.741 4.077 4.414 4.676
n 15 14 11 10 11 9 10 10
2
f(Hz) 1.715 2.423 2.964 3.441 3.785 4.172 4.441 4.826
n 17 12 13 12 9 11 8 8
3
f(Hz) 1.737 2.460 3.007 3.449 3.956 4.257 4.749 4.907
n 14 15 10 13 12 8 11 11
4
f(Hz) 1.787 2.541 3.187 3.700 4.032 4.606 4.754 5.270
n 18 11 14 9 13 12 12 7
5
f(Hz) 1.813 2.654 3.213 3.769 4.434 4.646 5.280 5.605
L = 12m and D = 64m.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 26 22 20 18 17 16 16 15
1
f(Hz) 1.201 1.685 2.055 2.360 2.628 2.870 3.098 3.293
n 27 21 19 19 18 17 15 14
2
f(Hz) 1.203 1.695 2.060 2.377 2.658 2.890 3.100 3.335
n 25 23 21 17 16 15 17 16
3
f(Hz) 1.211 1.700 2.085 2.392 2.662 2.922 3.171 3.342
n 28 20 18 20 19 18 14 17
4
f(Hz) 1.217 1.732 2.108 2.436 2.730 2.972 3.187 3.467
n 24 24 22 16 15 14 18 13
5
f(Hz) 1.236 1.736 2.145 2.477 2.761 3.052 3.308 3.477
148
Table (5-25): Comparison of natural frequencies and circumferential wave

numbers determined by two methods
Natural frequency (Hz) Circumferential

D h
L (m) % wave number
(m) (mm) FEM Eq. (5.6)
Discrepancy FEM Eq. (5.5)
10 18.707 18.488 -1.2% 9 9
8 20 26.322 25.804 -2.0% 7 7
40 35.973 36.016 0.1% 6 6
10 13.177 12.973 -1.5% 15 15
3 16 20 18.342 18.107 -1.3% 12 12
40 25.461 25.272 -0.7% 10 10
10 6.429 6.389 -0.6% 39 39
64 20 8.977 8.918 -0.7% 31 31
40 12.620 12.447 -1.4% 24 26
10 4.697 4.719 0.5% 5 5
8 20 6.412 6.586 2.7% 4 4
40 9.051 9.193 1.6% 3 3
10 3.362 3.312 -1.5% 8 8
12 16 20 4.764 4.622 -3.0% 7 7
40 6.713 6.451 -3.9% 5 5
10 1.685 1.631 -3.2% 22 21
64 20 2.360 2.277 -3.5% 18 17
40 3.293 3.178 3.5% 15 14
Table (5-26): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for tank with hinged base
having L=3 m, D= 8 m, and 20 mm base thickness.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 11 9 8 7 7 7 6 6
1
f(Hz) 13.395 18.703 22.682 26.263 28.765 31.533 33.766 35.563
n 10 10 9 8 8 6 7 7
2
f(Hz) 13.766 19.307 23.497 26.340 30.380 32.117 34.503 37.628
n 12 8 7 9 6 8 5 5
3
f(Hz) 13.798 19.627 24.112 28.876 30.637 34.664 38.117 38.921
n 13 11 10 6 9 5 8 8
4
f(Hz) 14.805 21.081 26.008 29.347 34.561 37.396 39.110 43.668
n 9 7 6 10 5 9 9 4
5
f(Hz) 15.075 22.416 28.273 33.164 36.757 40.418 46.378 48.722
149
having L=3 m, D= 16 m, and 20 mm base thickness.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 18 15 13 12 11 11 10 10
1
f(Hz) 9.4430 13.172 15.984 18.271 20.292 21.990 23.546 24.946
n 19 14 14 13 12 10 11 9
2
f(Hz) 9.5096 13.336 16.093 18.474 20.379 22.248 23.822 25.345
n 17 16 12 11 10 12 9 11
3
f(Hz) 9.5691 13.366 16.415 18.762 21.068 22.667 24.411 25.760
n 20 17 15 14 13 9 12 8
4
f(Hz) 9.7454 13.869 16.674 19.273 21.222 23.559 25.083 27.103
n 16 13 11 10 14 13 8 12
5
f(Hz) 9.9102 13.902 17.448 20.023 22.689 24.136 26.532 27.595
having L= 3 m, D= 32 m, and 20 mm base thickness.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 30 24 22 20 18 17 16 16
1
f(Hz) 6.6264 9.2243 11.161 12.731 14.062 15.217 16.247 17.193
n 29 25 21 19 19 18 17 15
2
f(Hz) 6.6433 9.2333 11.167 12.758 14.105 15.284 16.302 17.212
n 31 23 23 21 17 16 15 17
3
f(Hz) 6.6544 9.3024 11.273 12.858 14.214 15.369 16.458 17.458
n 28 26 20 18 20 19 18 14
4
f(Hz) 6.7081 9.3236 11.299 12.946 14.326 15.563 16.592 17.514
n 32 22 24 22 16 15 14 18
5
f(Hz) 6.7243 9.4730 11.494 13.125 14.565 15.764 16.930 17.971
150
having L= 3 m, D= 64 m, and 20 mm base thickness

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 49 39 35 31 29 27 25 24
1
f(Hz) 4.6408 6.4375 7.7734 8.8423 9.7282 10.480 11.143 11.729
n 48 40 34 32 28 26 26 25
2
f(Hz) 4.6436 6.4403 7.7753 8.8527 9.7415 10.501 11.154 11.759
n 50 38 36 30 30 28 24 23
3
f(Hz) 4.6486 6.4544 7.7996 8.8659 9.7591 10.514 11.189 11.766
n 47 41 33 33 27 29 27 26
4
f(Hz) 4.6573 6.4624 7.8030 8.8981 9.7941 10.569 11.216 11.850
n 51 37 37 29 31 25 23 22
5
f(Hz) 4.6666 6.4918 7.8545 8.9263 9.8308 10.590 11.294 11.862

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 8 7 6 5 5 5 5 5
1
f(Hz) 6.7266 9.5304 11.408 13.414 14.530 15.785 17.147 18.594
n 7 6 5 6 6 4 4 4
2
f(Hz) 7.0630 9.6733 12.471 13.460 15.703 17.800 18.295 18.848
n 9 8 7 7 4 6 6 6
3
f(Hz) 7.1719 10.733 12.603 15.932 17.369 18.067 20.509 23.005
n 10 5 8 4 7 7 3 3
4
f(Hz) 8.1541 11.743 15.216 17.004 19.384 22.902 26.026 26.141
n 6 9 4 8 8 3 7 7
5
f(Hz) 8.4539 12.793 16.709 19.850 24.549 25.925 26.459 30.041
151

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 13 11 10 9 9 8 8 7
1
f(Hz) 4.7810 6.6967 8.1516 9.3407 10.482 11.307 12.182 13.064
n 14 10 9 10 8 9 7 8
2
f(Hz) 4.8473 6.8816 8.3398 9.6454 10.507 11.723 12.513 13.118
n 12 12 11 8 10 7 9 9
3
f(Hz) 4.9216 6.8980 8.5123 9.7996 11.273 12.013 13.035 14.399
n 15 13 8 11 7 10 6 6
4
f(Hz) 5.0820 7.4019 9.2058 10.535 11.571 12.985 14.323 14.592
n 11 9 12 7 11 6 10 10
5
f(Hz) 5.3079 7.5362 9.2922 11.191 12.663 14.084 14.750 16.551

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 22 18 16 15 14 13 13 12
1
f(Hz) 3.3717 4.7203 5.7363 6.5724 7.2960 7.9473 8.5358 9.0549
n 21 19 17 14 15 14 12 13
2
f(Hz) 3.3914 4.7538 5.7765 6.6524 7.4037 8.0077 8.5864 9.1659
n 23 17 15 16 13 12 14 11
3
f(Hz) 3.4006 4.7832 5.8379 6.6712 7.4097 8.1567 8.7713 9.2917
n 20 20 18 17 16 15 11 14
4
f(Hz) 3.4649 4.8718 5.9406 6.9243 7.7022 8.3028 8.9642 9.5745
n 24 16 14 13 12 11 15 10
5
f(Hz) 3.4725 4.9536 6.0981 6.9338 7.7715 8.6686 9.2496 9.9136
152

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 36 30 27 24 23 22 21 20
1
f(Hz) 2.3698 3.3078 4.0131 4.5892 5.0819 5.5220 5.9130 6.2673
n 37 29 26 25 22 21 20 19
2
f(Hz) 2.3726 3.3163 4.0150 4.5949 5.0954 5.5233 5.9149 6.2760
n 35 31 28 23 24 23 22 21
3
f(Hz) 2.3792 3.3218 4.0430 4.6275 5.1188 5.5812 5.9830 6.3351
n 38 28 25 26 21 20 19 18
4
f(Hz) 2.3866 3.3487 4.0508 4.6410 5.1638 5.5859 5.9843 6.3655
n 34 32 32 22 25 24 23 22
5
f(Hz) 2.4014 3.3567 4.1024 4.7116 5.2038 5.6939 6.1153 6.4732
Table (5-34): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for tank with hinged
base having L= 12 m, D= 8 m, and 20 mm base thickness.

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 6 5 4 4 4 4 3 3
1
f(Hz) 3.3828 4.6972 5.6783 6.4101 7.2419 8.1431 8.7391 9.0354
n 5 4 5 5 3 3 4 4
2
f(Hz) 3.5007 5.0899 6.1952 7.8228 8.2420 8.4737 9.0931 10.078
n 7 6 3 3 5 5 5 5
3
f(Hz) 3.9520 5.6899 7.8901 8.0467 9.5133 11.238 12.983 14.741
n 4 7 6 6 6 2 2 2
4
f(Hz) 4.6995 7.4213 8.1985 10.768 13.362 15.022 15.043 15.066
n 8 3 7 7 2 6 6 6
5
f(Hz) 4.9166 7.7741 10.989 14.582 15.004 15.968 18.581 21.198
153

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 9 8 7 7 6 6 6 5
1
f(Hz) 2.4133 3.3625 4.0902 4.7625 5.2403 5.6976 6.1941 6.6945
n 10 7 8 6 7 5 5 6
2
f(Hz) 2.4280 3.5306 4.3120 4.8333 5.5064 6.2263 6.4480 6.7212
n 11 9 6 8 5 7 7 7
3
f(Hz) 2.6160 3.5852 4.4901 5.3643 6.0319 6.2965 7.1173 7.9593
n 8 10 9 5 8 8 4 4
4
f(Hz) 2.6305 4.0764 4.9541 5.8673 6.4692 7.6036 8.4090 8.4852
n 12 6 5 9 9 4 8 8
5
f(Hz) 2.9273 4.2261 5.7346 6.3941 7.8657 8.3422 8.7558 9.9194

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 16 13 12 11 10 10 9 9
1
f(Hz) 1.7020 2.3903 2.9135 3.3460 3.7354 4.0690 4.3989 4.6580
n 15 14 11 10 11 9 10 10
2
f(Hz) 1.7157 2.4236 2.9628 3.4377 3.7806 4.1611 4.4304 4.8134
n 17 12 13 12 9 11 8 8
3
f(Hz) 1.7374 2.4605 3.0069 3.4472 3.9482 4.2511 4.7299 4.8842
n 14 15 10 13 12 8 11 11
4
f(Hz) 1.7872 2.5409 3.1856 3.6996 4.0296 4.5919 4.7467 5.2603
n 18 11 14 9 13 12 12 7
5
f(Hz) 1.8136 2.6536 3.2131 3.7642 4.4327 4.6423 5.2747 5.5763
154

No. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
n 26 22 20 18 17 16 16 15
1
f(Hz) 1.2008 1.6856 2.0546 2.3570 2.6214 2.8588 3.0822 3.2711
n 27 21 19 19 18 17 15 14
2
f(Hz) 1.2032 1.6954 2.0589 2.3741 2.6475 2.8801 3.0830 3.3090
n 25 23 21 17 16 15 17 16
3
f(Hz) 1.2114 1.7001 2.0848 2.3880 2.6539 2.9084 3.1580 3.3224
n 28 20 18 20 19 18 14 17
4
f(Hz) 1.2174 1.7321 2.1020 2.4335 2.7249 2.9632 3.1664 3.4476
n 24 24 22 16 15 14 18 13
5
f(Hz) 1.2361 1.7361 2.1451 2.4727 2.7522 3.0372 3.2969 3.4506
Table (5-38): Effect of base plate thickness on natural frequency for h=20 mm
Length Diameter Base plate Mode number

(m) (m) thickness (mm) 1 2 3 4 5
10 26.126 26.235 28.796 29.177 33.101
8 20 26.263 26.340 28.876 29.347 33.164
30 26.302 26.369 28.898 29.395 33.181
3
10 8.589 8.604 8.6088 8.655 8.666
64 20 8.842 8.853 8.866 8.898 8.926
30 8.939 8.948 8.965 8.992 9.026
10 6.407 7.822 8.041 10.767 14.581
8 20 6.410 7.823 8.047 10.768 14.582
30 6.411 7.823 8.049 10.768 14.582
12
10 2.352 2.369 2.382 2.429 2.466
64 20 2.357 2.374 2.388 2.434 2.473
30 2.359 2.376 2.391 2.435 2.476
155
Table (5-39): Values of spring stiffness for tanks resting on elastic soil.
Modulus of subgrade
Tank No. of Stiffness of spring, kspring
reaction of the soil, ksoil
diameter m elements N (N/m)
(MN/m3)
6 74800
8 4032 24 299199
128 1595730
6 897598
32 5376 24 3590391
128 19148755
Table (5-40): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for cylindrical tank having
L= 3 m, D= 8 m, and base plate thickness = 20 mm.
Coefficient of Sub-grade Reaction (MN/m3)

Mode 6 24 128
No. Wall Thickness (mm)
5 15 35 5 15 35 5 15 35
f(Hz) 2.970 3.537 4.127 3.777 4.888 6.042 5.009 6.396 7.848
1
n 5 3 2 5 4 3 7 4 3
f(Hz) 3.186 4.503 5.580 3.779 5.011 6.640 5.102 7.009 9.808
2
n 4 4 3 6 3 2 6 5 4
f(Hz) 3.415 5.302 9.374 4.382 6.528 9.447 5.645 8.885 12.419
3
n 6 2 4 7 5 4 8 3 2
f(Hz) 4.220 6.427 14.235 4.813 8.910 14.257 6.039 9.071 14.344
4
n 7 5 5 4 6 5 5 6 5
f(Hz) 4.649 8.876 20.109 5.336 9.091 20.122 6.688 11.871 20.155
5
n 3 6 6 8 2 6 9 7 6
156
L=3 m, D= 8 m, and wall thickness = 15 mm.

Mode 6 24 128
No. Base Plate Thickness (mm)
10 20 30 10 20 30 10 20 30
f(Hz) 3.089 3.537 4.060 4.370 4.888 5.338 5.749 6.396 7.084
1
n 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4
f(Hz) 4.165 4.503 4.867 4.478 5.011 5.693 6.627 7.009 7.408
2
n 4 4 4 4 3 3 5 5 5
f(Hz) 4.623 5.302 5.883 6.242 6.528 6.807 7.774 8.885 9.305
3
n 2 2 2 5 5 5 3 3 6
f(Hz) 6.165 6.427 6.677 7.935 8.910 9.096 8.821 9.071 9.942
4
n 5 5 5 2 6 6 6 6 3
f(Hz) 8.667 8.876 9.054 8.693 9.091 9.997 11.688 11.871 12.020
5
n 6 6 6 6 2 2 7 7 7
L=3 m, D= 32m, and base plate thickness = 20 mm.

Mode 6 24 128
5 15 35 5 15 35 5 15 35
f(Hz) 1.836 2.642 3.115 2.269 3.308 4.054 3.082 4.486 5.682
1
n 14 8 6 16 10 7 20 13 9
f(Hz) 1.843 2.684 3.274 2.286 3.373 4.242 3.093 4.510 5.832
2
n 13 9 5 17 11 8 19 12 8
f(Hz) 1.870 2.791 3.393 2.301 3.401 4.314 3.118 4.597 5.898
3
n 15 7 7 15 9 6 21 14 10
f(Hz) 1.905 2.837 3.875 2.344 3.544 4.681 3.159 4.712 6.358
4
n 12 10 8 18 12 9 18 11 11
f(Hz) 1.938 3.060 4.211 2.393 3.728 5.265 3.195 4.814 6.517
5
n 16 11 4 14 8 10 22 15 7
157
Table (5-43): Mode shapes and natural frequencies for cylindrical tank having L=3 m,
D=32m, and wall thickness = 15 mm.

Mode 6 24 128
10 20 30 10 20 30 10 20 30
f(Hz) 2.250 2.642 2.980 2.979 3.308 3.569 4.223 4.486 4.644
1
n 8 8 8 10 10 10 13 13 13
f(Hz) 2.294 2.684 2.983 3.046 3.373 3.601 4.251 4.510 4.686
2
n 9 9 9 11 11 11 12 12 12
f(Hz) 2.406 2.791 3.101 3.078 3.401 3.698 4.338 4.597 4.739
3
n 7 7 10 9 9 9 14 14 14
f(Hz) 2.460 2.837 3.170 3.229 3.544 3.745 4.462 4.712 4.907
4
n 10 10 7 12 12 12 11 11 11
f(Hz) 2.702 3.060 3.293 3.414 3.728 3.970 4.562 4.814 4.940
5
n 11 11 11 8 8 13 15 15 15
L=12 m and D= 8 m, with base plate thickness = 20 mm.

Mode 6 24 128
5 15 35 5 15 35 5 15 35
f(Hz) 0.972 1.048 1.140 1.178 1.367 1.549 1.803 2.229 2.597
1
n 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
f(Hz) 2.365 2.371 2.395 2.384 2.401 2.439 2.468 2.527 2.618
2
n 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
f(Hz) 4.475 4.478 4.491 4.478 4.482 4.497 4.493 4.502 4.527
3
n 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
f(Hz) 7.201 7.203 7.211 7.201 7.204 7.213 7.205 7.208 7.220
4
n 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
f(Hz) 10.533 10.535 10.541 10.533 10.535 10.542 10.535 10.537 10.544
5
n 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6
158
L=12m, D= 8m and wall thickness = 15 mm.

Mode 6 24 128
10 20 30 10 20 30 10 20 30
f(Hz) 0.928 1.048 1.374 1.342 1.367 1.559 1.712 2.229 2.159
1
n 2 2 2 3 2 2 3 2 2
f(Hz) 1.237 2.371 3.540 1.478 2.401 3.553 2.346 2.527 3.614
2
n 3 3 3 2 3 3 4 3 3
f(Hz) 2.252 4.478 6.710 2.270 4.482 6.712 2.716 4.502 6.721
3
n 4 4 4 4 4 4 2 4 4
f(Hz) 3.609 7.203 10.797 3.613 7.204 10.798 3.632 7.208 10.800
4
n 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
f(Hz) 5.274 10.535 15.794 5.275 10.535 15.794 5.281 10.537 15.795
5
n 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6
L=12m, D= 32m and base plate thickness = 20 mm.

Mode 6 24 128
5 15 35 5 15 35 5 15 35
f(Hz) 0.505 0.6713 0.819 0.668 0.897 1.113 0.958 1.287 1.614
1
n 8 6 4 10 6 5 12 8 6
f(Hz) 0.508 0.677 0.958 0.686 0.902 1.210 0.975 1.346 1.699
2
n 9 5 5 9 7 4 11 7 5
f(Hz) 0.555 0.790 1.098 0.701 1.032 1.340 0.990 1.377 1.849
3
n 10 7 3 11 8 6 13 9 7
f(Hz) 0.562 0.905 1.282 0.769 1.091 1.725 1.056 1.565 2.265
4
n 7 4 6 12 5 7 10 10 8
f(Hz) 0.629 0.977 1.702 0.770 1.234 1.892 1.061 1.619 2.305
5
n 11 8 7 8 9 3 14 6 4
159
L=12m, D= 32m and wall thickness = 15 mm.

Mode 6 24 128
10 20 30 10 20 30 10 20 30
f(Hz) 0.630 0.6713 0.707 0.862 0.897 0.934 1.271 1.287 1.312
1
n 5 6 6 6 6 7 8 8 8
f(Hz) 0.642 0.677 0.733 0.879 0.902 0.946 1.325 1.346 1.383
2
n 6 5 5 7 7 6 7 7 7
f(Hz) 0.770 0.790 0.813 1.015 1.032 1.052 1.364 1.377 1.393
3
n 7 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 9
f(Hz) 0.825 0.905 0.987 1.035 1.091 1.164 1.555 1.565 1.576
4
n 4 4 4 5 5 5 10 10 10
f(Hz) 0.961 0.977 0.992 1.221 1.234 1.248 1.590 1.619 1.671
5
n 8 8 8 9 9 9 6 6 6
Table (5-48): Natural Frequencies and circumferential wave number determined by

two methods of soil representation. L= 3m, D= 8m, base plate thickness= 20mm and
ksoil = 24 MN/m3.
Wall thickness (mm)

Mode 5 15 35
No. Method of soil modeling
Spring Medium Spring Medium Spring Medium
f(Hz) 5 6 4 4 3 3
1
n 3.777 4.052 4.888 5.251 6.042 6.318
f(Hz) 6 5 3 3 2 2
2
n 3.779 4.281 5.011 5.752 6.640 7.574
f(Hz) 7 7 5 5 4 4
3
n 4.382 4.536 6.528 6.718 9.447 9.569
f(Hz) 4 8 6 6 5 5
4
n 4.813 5.423 8.910 9.030 14.257 14.347
f(Hz) 8 4 2 2 6 6
5
n 5.336 5.644 9.091 10.431 20.122 20.197
160
Table (5-49): Natural Frequencies determined using different thicknesses of the elastic
media. L= 3m, D= 8m, h= 5mm, ksoil = 6 MN/m3, and base plate thickness= 20mm.
Thickness of the elastic media (m)

Mode
0.005 0.050 0.500
Number
1 3.253 3.257 3.310
2 3.567 3.569 3.596
3 3.692 3.700 3.798
4 4.307 4.308 4.321
5 5.315 5.315 5.322
Table (5-50): Section properties of ring stiffeners
B.S. Nominal Mass per Area of Section Moment of inertia

Size (mm) meter (kg) (cm2) Ix = Iy (cm4)
51 x 51 6.85 8.72 19.6
76 x 76 15.5 19.74 99.6
102 x 102 27.57 35.12 317
152 x 152 49.32 62.83 1321
203 x 203 76.0 96.81 3686
Table (5-51): Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top.
L=3 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base plate thick=20 mm
Moment of Inertia about Vertical Axis Iy (cm4)

Mode
19.6 99.6 317 1321 3686
No.
n f (Hz) n f (Hz) n f (Hz) n f (Hz) n f (Hz)
1 10 3.346 9 3.632 8 4.025 7 4.772 6 5.285
2 9 3.363 8 3.694 7 4.177 6 4.933 5 5.785
3 11 3.490 10 3.821 9 4.264 8 5.242 7 5.793
4 8 3.616 7 4.127 10 4.757 5 6.014 8 6.924
5 12 3.743 11 4.178 6 4.902 9 6.910 4 7.662
161
Table (5-52): Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top and bottom.
L= 3 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base plate thick=20 mm

Mode
19.6 99.6 317 1321 3686
No.
1 10 3.356 9 3.668 8 4.106 7 4.957 6 5.579
2 9 3.372 8 3.728 7 4.255 6 5.125 7 6.026
3 11 3.499 10 3.856 9 4.340 8 5.400 5 6.090
4 8 3.624 7 4.155 10 4.827 5 6.170 8 7.098
5 12 3.753 11 4.211 6 4.966 9 6.234 4 7.858
Table (5-53): Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top, bottom and mid-
height. L=3 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, t=15 mm, and base plate thick=20 mm

Mode
19.6 99.6 317 1321 3686
No.
1 9 3.383 8 3.780 8 4.282 6 5.165 6 5.715
2 10 3.389 9 3.787 7 4.311 7 5.192 5 5.960
3 11 3.553 10 4.037 9 4.620 8 5.784 7 6.355
4 8 3.612 7 4.138 6 4.894 5 5.987 4 7.417
5 12 3.827 11 4.449 10 5.195 9 6.735 8 7.563
Table (5-54): Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top. L=12 m,
D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base plate thick=20 mm

Mode
19.6 99.6 317 1321 3686
No.
1 6 0.906 6 0.972 6 1.137 5 1.414 4 1.710
2 7 0.930 7 1.059 5 1.155 4 1.587 5 1.854
3 8 1.078 5 1.098 7 1.342 6 1.677 3 2.426
4 5 1.084 8 1.270 4 1.548 7 2.161 6 2.446
5 9 1.298 9 1.554 8 1.668 3 2.500 7 3.243
162
Table (5-55): Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top and bottom.
L=12 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base plate thick=20 mm

Mode
19.6 99.6 317 1321 3686
No.
1 6 0.907 6 0.975 6 1.144 5 1.435 4 1.761
2 7 0.931 7 1.062 5 1.163 4 1.612 5 1.888
3 8 1.078 5 1.101 7 1.347 6 1.693 6 2.466
4 5 1.084 8 1.272 4 1.556 7 2.172 3 2.482
5 9 1.299 9 1.556 8 1.672 3 2.519 7 3.554
Table (5-56): Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at top, bottom and mid-
height. L=12 m, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, t= 15 mm, and base plate thick=20 mm

Mode
19.6 99.6 317 1321 3686
No.
1 6 0.909 6 0.994 5 1.180 5 1.500 4 1.787
2 7 0.938 7 1.098 6 1.195 4 1.614 5 2.005
3 5 1.083 5 1.104 7 1.432 6 1.820 3 2.425
4 8 1.090 8 1.324 4 1.546 7 2.361 6 2.667
5 9 1.314 4 1.554 8 1.790 3 2.472 7 3.554
Table (5-57): Natural frequencies for tank with ring stiffener at quarter points.
L=12, D= 32 m, ksoil =24 MN/m3, wall thick=15 mm, and base plate thick=20 mm

Mode
19.6 99.6 317 1321 3686
No.
1 6 0.915 6 1.036 5 1.217 4 1.614 4 1.835
2 7 0.955 5 1.110 6 1.301 5 1.626 5 2.220
3 5 1.079 7 1.176 4 1.522 6 2.062 3 2.305
4 8 1.116 8 1.438 7 1.604 3 2.369 6 3.029
5 9 1.351 4 1.533 8 2.028 7 2.714 7 4.071
163
Table (5-58): Values of the added mass at nodes for broad tank.
Added Added Added Added

y (m) y (m) y (m) y (m)
mass (kg) mass (kg) mass (kg) mass (kg)
0 1068.5 3.355 679.9 6.71 363.2 10.065 118.3
0.305 1030.2 3.66 648.1 7.015 337.9 10.37 99.7
0.61 992.5 3.965 616.9 7.32 313.3 10.675 81.6
0.915 955.4 4.27 586.4 7.625 289.3 10.98 64.1
1.22 918.8 4.575 556.4 7.93 265.8 11.285 47.2
1.525 882.9 4.88 527.0 8.235 243.0 11.59 30.8
1.83 847.6 5.185 498.2 8.54 220.7 11.895 15.1
2.135 812.9 5.49 467.0 8.845 199.0 12.2 0
2.44 778.7 5.795 442.4 9.15 178.0
2.745 745.2 6.1 415.4 9.455 157.5
3.05 712.2 6.405 389.0 9.76 137.6
Table (5-59): Natural frequency values for tank filled with water. L=3 m, D= 8 m.
Wall thickness (mm)

Mode No. 5 15 25 35
n f (Hz) n f (Hz) n f (Hz) n f (Hz)
1 11 4.693 8 12.079 7 18.050 6 23.229
2 12 4.790 9 12.453 8 18.985 7 23.829
3 10 4.826 7 12.754 6 19.069 5 25.957
4 13 5.040 10 13.524 9 21.203 8 26.696
5 9 5.253 6 14.712 5 22.450 9 30.870
Wall thickness (mm)

Mode No. 5 15 25 35
1 18 2.018 13 5.501 11 8.630 10 11.506
2 19 2.028 14 5.540 12 8.682 11 11.655
3 17 2.044 12 5.625 10 8.900 9 11.847
4 20 2.068 15 5.714 13 9.010 12 12.222
5 16 2.110 11 5.929 9 9.521 8 12.716
164
Wall thickness (mm)

Mode No. 5 15 25 35
1 30 0.955 21 2.658 18 4.272 16 5.850
2 29 0.957 22 2.661 19 4.291 17 5.878
3 31 0.959 20 2.681 17 4.302 15 5.901
4 28 0.966 23 2.688 20 4.358 18 5.979
5 32 0.967 19 2.732 16 4.385 14 6.033
Wall thickness (mm)

Mode No. 5 15 25 35
1 6 0.722 4 2.013 4 3.159 3 4.353
2 5 0.755 5 2.153 3 3.599 4 4.480
3 7 0.815 6 2.646 5 3.947 5 5.924
4 8 0.940 3 2.776 6 4.947 2 7.322
5 4 1.010 7 3.161 7 6.108 6 7.540
Table (5-63): Natural frequency values for tank filled with water. L=12 m, D= 16m.
Wall thickness (mm)

Mode No. 5 15 25 35
1 10 0.572 7 1.578 6 2.473 6 3.278
2 9 0.579 8 1.619 7 2.539 5 3.430
3 11 0.594 6 1.735 8 2.785 7 3.597
4 12 0.623 9 1.741 5 2.830 8 4.003
5 8 0.634 10 1.857 9 3.023 4 4.377
165
Table (5-64): Natural frequency values for tank filled with water. L=12 m, D= 32m.
Wall thickness (mm)

Mode No. 5 15 25 35
1 16 0.319 12 0.898 10 1.430 9 1.926
2 15 0.323 11 0.915 11 1.440 10 1.932
3 17 0.323 13 0.918 9 1.507 11 2.040
4 18 0.333 14 0.964 12 1.512 8 2.059
5 14 0.337 10 0.980 13 1.617 12 2.202
Table (5-65): Natural frequency values for tank completely filled with liquid, having
ring stiffeners. L=3 m, D= 32 m, wall thick=15 mm.
Stiffener at top Stiffeners at three levels

Mode Moment of Inertia about Vertical Axis Iy (cm4)
No. 19.6 3686 19.6 3686
1 20 2.822 26 3.917 20 2.889 10 5.303
2 21 2.829 27 3.919 19 2.899 11 5.321
3 19 2.844 25 3.929 21 2.909 9 5.417
4 22 2.860 28 3.935 18 2.941 12 5.440
5 18 2.896 24 3.954 22 2.954 13 5.620
166
1st mode 1st mode-Top
2nd mode 3rd mode
3rd mode-Top 3rd mode-Front
Figure (5-1): Mode shapes for Freely supported shell
167
4th mode 5th mode
6th mode 7th mode
8th mode 9th mode
Figure (5-1): Continued
168
0.25
0.2
Frequency factor
0.15
0.1
0.05 Dym - exact [55]

Dym - approximate [55]
Present FE solution
0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Circumferential wave number
Figure (5- 2): Circumferential wave number versus frequency factor for
the first axial mode. L= 2π m, D= 2m, h= 11mm.
14
m= 1
Circum ferential w ave num ber
12
m= 2
10
m= 3
8
m= 4
6
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
Wall thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 3): Circumferential wave number versus wall thickness.

L= 2π m, D= 2m.
169
300
m= 1
m= 2
250
m= 3
Natural frequency (Hz )
m= 4
200
150
100
50
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
Wall thickness (mm)
Figure (5-4): Relation between wall thickness and natural frequency.

L= 2π m, D= 2m.
180
160
140
120
100
80
m= 1
60
m= 2
40
m= 3
20
m= 4
0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Circumferential wave no.
Figure (5- 5): Circumferential wave number versus natural frequency.

L= 2π m, D= 2m, h= 11mm.
170
Circum ferential wave num ber 14
12
10
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Diameter (m)
Figure (5-6): Circumferential wave number versus diameter.

L= 2π m, h= 11 mm.
100
1st Mode
90
2nd Mode
80
3rd Mode
70
4th Mode
60
5th Mode
50
40
30
20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20
Diameter (m)
Figure (5- 7): Relation between diameter and natural frequency.

L= 2π m, h= 11 mm.
171
Circum ferential wave num ber 7
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Length (m)
Figure (5- 8): Circumferential wave number versus length.

D= 2 m, h= 11 mm.
200
1st Mode
180
2nd Mode
160
3rd Mode
140
4th Mode
120
5th Mode
100
80
60
40
20
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Length (m)
Figure (5- 9): Relation between Length and natural frequency.

D= 2 m, h= 11 mm.
172
1st mode 2nd mode
3rd mode 4th mode
th 6th mode
5 mode
Figure (5- 10 ): Mode shapes for shell with fixed base
173
450
400
350
F re q u e n c y (H z )
300
250
200
150 Present w ork
100 Sew all experimental [34]
Sew all theoritica [34]
50
Stillman [34]
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
circumferential wave number
Figure (5- 11): Circumferential wave number versus natural frequency for
the first axial mode
2000
Present w ork
1800
Sew all experimental [34]
1600
Sew all theoritical [34]
F r e q u e n c y (H z )
1400
Stillman [34]
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
circumferential wave number
Figure (5- 12): Circumferential wave number versus natural frequency for the
second axial mode
174
60
D= 8 m
Circu m feren tial w ave n u m b er
50 D= 16 m
40 D= 32 m
D= 64 m
30
20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Wall thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 13): Circumferential wave number versus wall thickness for the first
mode for various values of diameter, for L=3m of tank with fixed base.
14
1st mode
C irc u m fe re n tia l w a v e n u m b e r
12
2nd mode
10
3rd mode
8
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Wall thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 14): Circumferential wave number versus wall thickness for tank with
fixed base. L= 3 m, D= 8 m.
175
40
35
30
25
20
15
10 D= 8m
D= 16 m
5 D= 32 m
D= 64 m
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
Wall thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 15): Relation between wall thickness and natural frequency for the first
mode for various values of diameter and L=3 m of tank with fixed base.
60
50
Frequency (Hz)
40
30
1st mode
20 2nd mode
3rd mode
10 4th mode
5th mode
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
Thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 16): Relation between wall thickness and natural frequency for tank
with fixed base. L=3m, D=8m.
176
30
25
Frequency (Hz)
20
15
1st mode
10 2nd mode
3rd mode
5 4th mode
5th mode
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
Thickness (mm)
20
18
16
14
Frequency (Hz)
12
10
1st mode
8
2nd mode
6
3rd mode
4
4th mode
2
5th mode
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
Thickness (mm)
177
14
12
10
Frequency (Hz)
6 1st mode
2nd mode
4 3rd mode
2 4th mode
5th mode
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
Thickness (mm)
5
Frequency (Hz)
3
1st mode
2 2nd mode
3rd mode
1 4th mode
5th mode
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
Thickness (mm)
178
3.5
3
Frequency (Hz)
2.5
1.5 1st mode

2nd mode
1 3rd mode
0.5 4th mode
5th mode
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
Thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 21): Relation between wall thickness and natural frequency for tank with
fixed base. L= 12m, D= 64m.
60
t= 10 mm
50 t= 20 mm
N a tu ra l fre q u e n c y (H z)
t= 40 mm
40
30
20
10
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Figure (5- 22): Circumferential wave number versus natural frequency for tank
179
45
40
Circu mferen tial w ave n u mb er
35
30
25
20
15 L= 3m
10 L= 6m
5
L= 12m
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Diameter (m)
Figure (5- 23): Circumferential wave number versus tank diameter for the first mode
for various values of length and h =10 mm of tank with fixed base.
20
L= 3m
18
L= 6m
16
L= 12m
14
Frequency (Hz)
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Diameter (m)
Figure (5- 24): Relation between tank diameter and natural frequency (1st mode) for
various values of length and h =10 mm of tank with fixed base.
180
14 L=3m, D=8m
12
Circum ferential wave num ber
L=3m, D=32m
10
L=12m, D=8m
8
L=12m, D=32m
6
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
3
Modulus of subgrade reaction (MN/m )
Figure (5- 25): Circumferential wave number versus modulus of subgrade reaction.
Wall thick = 15mm, base plate thick =20mm.
7
L=3m, D=8m
6
L=3m, D=32m
N a tu ra l fre q u e n c y (H z )
5
L=12m, D=8m
4
L=12m, D=32m
3
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Modulus of subgrade reaction (MN/m3)
Figure (5- 26): Relation between modulus of subgrade reaction and natural
frequency. Wall thick = 15mm, base plate thick =20mm.
181
1.4
1.2
0.8
0.6
0.4
k= 6 MPa/m
0.2 k= 24 MPa/m
k= 128 MPa/m
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Base plate thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 27): Relation between base plate thickness and natural frequency.
L=12 m, D= 32 m, and h= 15mm.
6
Natural Frequency (Hz)
2
Spring
1
Media
0
0 10 20 30 40
Wall thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 28): Comparison of natural frequency values determined by two methods.
L= 3m, D= 8m, ksoil = 24 MN/m3, base plate thickness= 20mm.
182
6
3
Top
2
Top and bottom
1
Top, bottom and midheight
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000
Moment of Inertia (cm4)
Figure (5- 29): Relation between moment of inertia Iy of ring stiffeners and the
2
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
1
Top
0.8
0.6 Top and bottom
0.4 Top, bottom, and midheight
0.2 At quarter height points
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000
Figure (5- 30): Relation between moment of inertia Iy of ring stiffeners and the
183
100
90
Frequency increment (%)
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
L=3m, D=32m
10
L=12m, D=32m
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000
Figure (5- 31): Relation between moment of inertia Iy of ring stiffener at top
and the percentage increment in natural frequency.
14
C ir c u m fe r e n tia l w a v e n u m b e r
12
10
4 Top
2 Top and bottom

Top, bottom, and mid-height
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000
Figure (5- 32): Circumferential wave number versus moment of inertia Iy of ring
stiffeners. L=3m, D= 32m.
184
7
Circu m feren tial w ave n u m b er
6
3
Top
2 Top and bottom
1 Top, bottom and midheight

At quarter points
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000
Figure (5- 33): Circumferential wave number versus moment of inertia Iy of

ring stiffeners. L= 12m, D= 32m.
6
Ramasamy and Ganesan [37]
5 Krishna and Ganesan [37]
N atu ral freq u en cy (H z )
Present method
4
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Figure (5- 34): Comparison of the natural frequency values of completely filled tank.
R=18.29m, L=12.2 m, and h=25.4 mm.
185
400
Stillman [34]
350
Wu [34]
Natural frequency (Hz.)
300
Present method
250
200
150
100
50
0
0 0.125 0.25 0.375 0.5 0.625 0.75 0.875 1
Liquid depth ratio
Figure (5- 35): Comparison of the natural frequency values for various liquid
45
40 Stillman [34]
Natural frequ en cy (Hz )
35 Present method
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
Liquid depth ratio
Figure (5- 36): Comparison of the natural frequency values for various liquid depths.
R= 0.1524m, L= 1.0668 m, and h=0.508 mm.
186
18
16
N a tu ra l fre q u e n c y (H z)
14
12
10
8
6
4
Empty
2
Liquid filled
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Wall thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 37): Natural frequency of empty and completely filled tank.
L= 3m, D= 32m.
25
Liquid Filled
Empty
20
Natural frequency (Hz )
15
10
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Diameter (m)
L= 3m, h= 15 mm.
187
12
Liquid filled
10
Natu ral freq u en cy (Hz)
Empty
8
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Length (m)
D= 32m, h= 15 mm.
35
C irc u m fe re n tia l w a v e n u m b e r
30
25
20
15
10
5 Empty
Liquid filled
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Wall thickness (mm)
Figure (5- 40): Circumferential wave number of empty and completely filled tank.
L= 3m, D= 32m.
188
Chapter Six Conclusions and Recommendations
CHAPTER SIX
CONCLUSIONS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
6.1- Conclusions:
Liquid storage tanks have been analysed to determine the mode shapes
and the corresponding natural frequencies. Linear theory is adopted and
elastic materials are assumed throughout the study. Circular cylindrical shells
and tanks having various boundary conditions are investigated. The effects of
the variations in shell length, diameter, and wall thickness alongside the base
plate thickness on the vibration characteristics of tanks are investigated. The
effect of soil flexibility and the contained liquid are also explored.
The finite element method is used to model the various components
consisting the liquid storage tank system. The wall and the base plate of the
tank are modeled using linear shell elements, and space beam elements are
used to model the ring stiffeners. The soil reaction is represented by
Winkler’s model. For this purpose, the usual discrete springs as well as a
suggested continuous elastic medium are used. Finally, the contained liquid is
represented using the added mass method. In this context, a new suggested
approach is developed to predict the shape of the liquid surface, and upon
which the equivalent mass of the liquid at each node is determined and
added.
ANSYS 5.4, the general purpose finite element package is used to
conduct the modal analyses. A total of 365 different cases of cylindrical shell
have been analysed. The mode shapes and natural frequencies for the first
selected modes are determined and discussed. From the results of the various
cases the followings notes are concluded:
189
1. The fundamental natural frequency of tank f increases as wall thickness

increases and decreases with increasing the tank diameter and length.
An increase of about 34 – 43%, decrease of about 26 – 33%, and
decrease of 48 – 52% can takes place in the value of f for empty tanks
fixed at base when wall thickness, diameter, and length are
respectively doubled.
2. The circumferential wave number of the fundamental mode increases
as the tank diameter increases and decreases as tank thickness and
length increase, and is found to depend on the ratios between theses
dimensions.
3. For certain tank dimensions, the natural frequency has a minimum
value in the fundamental mode at some value of circumferential wave
number which is not the smaller one. The natural frequency for the
next modes increases as the difference in the circumferential wave
number from that of the first mode increases.
4. The circumferential wave number and natural frequency of the
fundamental mode can be estimated by the two suggested formulae in
terms of the tank length, diameter and wall thickness.
5. The soil flexibility is found to decrease the fundamental natural
frequency by about 70 – 88%.
6. Use of a continuous elastic representation of Winkler’s model
facilitates the modelling procedure and yields results in general
agreement with those obtained by the usual discrete representation.
7. The natural frequency can increases by up to about 104% when ring
stiffeners are added.
8. A new method is developed to represent the effect of the contained
liquid on the vibration characteristics of the storage tanks. The method
190
is proved to give results agreeing very well with those given in the
previous works.
9. The effect of the contained liquid is to considerably reduce the values
of the natural frequencies. This effect is found to decrease as the wall
thickness increases and to increase as the tank diameter increases. The
fundamental natural frequency of the completely filled tank can be
reduced by 32 – 86% from that for empty tank.
10. The contained liquid has a negligible effect on the circumferential
wave number.
6.2- Recommendations for future work:

The subject still contains large complexities that require to be
investigated by further works. The following are some suggestions that are
recommended for future work:
1. The vibration of horizontal cylindrical tanks resting on soil.
2. The effect of roof on the vibration characteristics.
3. The vibration analysis for tanks having spherical, conical, and other
shapes.
4. The storage tanks having variable wall thickness.
5. The effect of longitudinal stiffeners on vibration characteristics.
6. The effect of the contained liquid using fully coupled model.
7. The analysis of non-linear vibrations of storage tank.
8. The response of liquid storage tanks during forced vibration.
191
192
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200
Appendix A Frontal Solution
Appendix A
Frontal Solution
A.1- Introduction:
The first phase of the finite element analysis includes the derivation
and calculation of the equilibrium equations of the considered system. This
also includes the selection and calculation of efficient elements and
efficient assemblage of the matrices into the global finite element system
matrices. However, the overall effectiveness of an analysis depends to a
large degree on the numerical procedure used for the solution of the system
equilibrium equations. The accuracy of the analysis can, in general, be
improved if a more refined finite element mesh is used. Therefore, in
practice, the analyst tends to employ larger and larger finite element
systems to approximate the actual structure. However, this means that the
cost of the analysis and its practical feasibility depend to a considerable
degree on the algorithms available for the solution of the resulting systems
of equations. Because of the requirement that large systems be solved,
much research effort has gone into optimizing the equation solution
algorithms. During the early use of the finite element method, equations of
the order 10,000 were considered of large order. Currently, equations of the
order 100,000 are solved without much difficulty [69].
Essentially, there are two different classes of methods for the
solution of the equations system, direct solution techniques and iterative
solution methods. In a direct solution the equations are solved using a
number of steps and operations that are predetermined, whereas iteration is
used when an iterative solution method is employed [69].
201
The most effective direct solution techniques are basically

applications of Gauss elimination. However, although the basic Gauss
solution scheme can be applied to almost any set of simultaneous linear
equations, the effectiveness in finite element analysis depends on the
specific properties of the assembled finite element matrices: symmetry,
positive definiteness, and bandedness [69].
Instead of first assembling the complete structure matrices, the
equations may be assembled and reduced at the same time. A specific
solution scheme proposed by B. M. Irons called the frontal solution method
has been used effectively [69].
A.2- Frontal solution method:

In this method only those equations that are actually required for the
elimination of a specific degree of freedom are assembled, the degree of
freedom considered is statically condensed out, and so on. As an example,
the analysis of the plane stress finite element is considered. There are two
equations associated with each node of the finite element mesh, namely, the
equations corresponding to u and v which are the displacements in the x
and y- directions, respectively. In the frontal solution scheme the equations
are statically condensed out in the order of the elements, i.e. the first
equations considered will be those corresponding to nodes 1, 2,… etc. To
be able to eliminate the degrees of freedom of node 1 it is only necessary to
assemble the final equations that correspond to that node. This means that
only the stiffness matrix of element 1 needs to be calculated, after which
the degree of freedom corresponding to node 1 are statically condensed out.
Next (for the elimination of the equations corresponding to node 2), the
final equations corresponding to the degrees of freedom at node 2 are
required, meaning that the stiffness matrix of element 2 must be calculated
202
and added to the previously reduced matrix. Then the degrees of freedom
corresponding to node 2 are statically condensed out, and so on.
It may now be realized that the complete procedure consists of
statically condensing out one degree of freedom after the other and always
assembling only those equations that are actually required during the
specific condensation to be performed. The finite elements that must be
considered for the static condensation of the equations corresponding to
one specific node define the wave front at that time.
In principle, the frontal solution is Gauss elimination and the
important aspect is the specific computer implementation. Since the
equations are assembled in the order of the elements, the length of the wave
front and therefore the half band width dealt with are determined by the
element numbering. Therefore, an effective ordering of the elements is
necessary [69]
The technique is descried with reference to Fig. (A.1), which shows
an assemblage of one dimensional bar elements. For this simple example, it
is known that the system equations are of the form [67]
k11 k12 0 0 0 0 U1 F1
k12 k22 k23 0 0 0 U2 F2
0 k23 k33 k34 0 0 U3 F3
= …(A.1)
0 0 k34 k44 k45 0 U4 F4
0 0 0 k45 k55 k56 U5 F5
0 0 0 0 k56 k66 U6 F6
where kij is the force at node i due to the unit displacement at node j, Ui is
the displacement at node i, and Fi is the force at node i.
5 4 3 2 1 x
5 4 3 2 1
6
Figure (A-1): A system of bar elements
203
Clearly, the stiffness matrix is banded and sparse (many zero-valued

terms). In the frontal solution technique, the entire system stiffness matrix
is not assembled as such. Instead, the method utilizes the fact that a degree
of freedom (an unknown) can be eliminated when the row and the column
of the stiffness matrix corresponding to that degree of freedom are deleted.
In this context, eliminating a degree of freedom means that it is possible to
write an equation for that degree of freedom in terms of other degrees of
freedom and forcing functions. When such an equation is obtained, it is
written to a file and removed from memory. As is shown, the net result is
triangularization of the system stiffness matrix and the solutions are
obtained by simple back substitution.
For simplicity of illustration, each element in Fig.(A.1) is assumed
to have characteristic stiffness k. The element stiffness matrix for element 1
can be written as
k -k 0 0 0 0 U1 F1
-k k 0 0 0 0 U2 F2
0 0 0 0 0 0 U3 F3
= …(A.2)
0 0 0 0 0 0 U4 F4
0 0 0 0 0 0 U5 F5
0 0 0 0 0 0 U6 F6
Since U1 is associated only with element 1, displacement U1 appears in

none of the other equations and can be eliminated now. To illustrate the
effect on the matrix, the degree of freedom will not eliminated from the
equations. The first row of Eq.(A.2) is
k U1 - k U2 = F1 …(A.3)
and can be solved for U1 once U2 is known. Mathematically eliminating U1
from the second row, gives
204
k -k 0 0 0 0 U1 F1
0 0 0 0 0 0 U2 F1+F2
0 0 0 0 0 0 U3 F3
= …(A.4)
0 0 0 0 0 0 U4 F4
0 0 0 0 0 0 U5 F5
0 0 0 0 0 0 U6 F6
Next, element 2 is processed and the element stiffness matrix terms are
added to the appropriate locations in the coefficient matrix to obtain
k -k 0 0 0 0 U1 F1
0 k -k 0 0 0 U2 F1+F2
0 -k k 0 0 0 U3 F3
= …(A.5)
0 0 0 0 0 0 U4 F4
0 0 0 0 0 0 U5 F5
0 0 0 0 0 0 U6 F6
Displacement U2 does not appear in any remaining equations and is now

eliminated to obtain
k -k 0 0 0 0 U1 F1
0 k -k 0 0 0 U2 F1+F2
0 0 0 0 0 0 U3 F1+F2+F3
= …(A.6)
0 0 0 0 0 0 U4 F4
0 0 0 0 0 0 U5 F5
0 0 0 0 0 0 U6 F6
205
In sequence, processing the remaining elements and following the

elimination procedure results in
k -k 0 0 0 0 U1 F1
0 k -k 0 0 0 U2 F1+F2
0 0 k -k 0 0 U3 F1+F2+F3
= …(A.7)
0 0 0 k -k 0 U4 F1+F2+F3+F4
0 0 0 0 k -k U5 F1+F2+F3+F4+F5
0 0 0 0 -k k U6 F6
It is worth to note that the last equation in the above system of equations is
a constraint equation (and could have been ignored at the beginning). The
procedure has triangularized the system stiffness matrix without formally
assembling that matrix. If the constraint equations are taken out, the
remaining equations are easily solved by back substitution.
The frontal solution method has been described in terms of one
dimensional mode for simplicity. In fact, the speed and efficiency of the
procedure are of most advantage in large two and three dimensional models
[67].
206
Appendix B Numerical Integration
Appendix B
Numerical Integration
B.1-Numerical integration:
In subsequent formulation of element characteristic matrices, i.e. the
stiffness and mass matrices, integrations of functions of polynomial forms
have been faced. A simple polynomial is relatively easy to integrate in
closed form. In many cases, however, the integrands are rational functions,
that are ratios of polynomials; and these are quite tedious to integrate
directly. In other case, in the finite element context where large number of
elements is employed and hence huge number of integrations is required,
analytical methods are not efficient [67]. In addition for the more complex
distorted elements the analytical integration could be troublesome and thus
numerical integration is essential. Finite element software packages do not
incorporate explicit integration of the element formulation equations.
Instead, they use numerical techniques, the most popular of which is
Gaussian (or Gauss-Legendre) quadrature. Quadrature is an alternative
term to numerical integration.
B.2- Newton-Cotes Quadrature:

In the most obvious procedure, points at which the function is to be
found are determined (usually at equal intervals) and a polynomial passed
through the values of the function at these points is exactly integrated.
As n values of the function define a polynomial of degree n-1, the
errors will be of order O(hn) where h is the element size. The integrals can
be written as [73].
207
⌠+1
I= f(ξ) dξ = ∑i Hi f(ξi) …(B-1)
⌡-1
where the summation is conducted from i=1 to n, and Hi is the coefficient
of the function at ξi. For example, if n= 2, the result is the well known
trapezoidal rule:
I= [f(-1) + f(+1)]
for n= 3, the result is the Simpson’s (one-third) rule:
I= [ (1/3) f(-1) + (4/3) f(0)+ (1/3) f(+1)]
The values of the coefficients of the various terms for different values of n
are given in Table (B-1) [69].
Table (B-1): Coefficients of Newton-Cotes quadrature

Number of
intervals H1 H2 H3 H4 H5 H6 H7
(n)
1 1 1
2 1/3 4/3 1/3
3 1/4 3/4 3/4 1/4
4 7/45 32/45 12/45 32/45 7/45
5 19/144 75/144 50/144 50/144 75/144 19/144
6 41/420 216/420 27/420 272/420 27/420 216/420 41/420
To obtain a greater accuracy in the integration using Newton-Cotes

formulas a smaller interval h should be used, i.e. to include more evaluation
of the function to be integrated [69].
B.3- Gauss Quadrature:

If in place of a prior specification of the position of sampling points,
these points are allowed to be located at points to be determined so as to
aim for best accuracy, then for a given number of sampling points
increased accuracy can be obtained. For the integration
208
⌠+1
I= f(ξ) dξ = ∑i Hi f(ξi) …(B-2)
⌡-1
If a polynomial expression is assumed, it is obvious that for n sampling
points there will be 2n unknowns (Hi and ξi) and hence a polynomial of
degree 2n-1 could be constructed and exactly integrated. The error is thus
of order O(h2n) [73].
The simultaneous equations involved are difficult to solve, but some
mathematical manipulation shows that the solution can be obtained
explicitly in terms of Legendre polynomials. Thus this particular process is
frequently known as Gauss-Legendre Quadrature. Table (B-2) shows the
positions and weighting coefficients for Gaussian integration.
Table (B-2): Abscissae and weight coefficients for the different numbers of
sampling points of the Gaussian quadrature.
Number of
Abscissa (ξi) Weight coefficient (αi)
sampling points (n)
1 0 2.000 000 000 000 000
2 ± 1/√3 1.000 000 000 000 000
± 1/√0.6 5/9
3
0 8/9
± 0.861 136 311 594 953 0.347 854 845 137 454
4
± 0.339 981 043 584 856 0.652 145 154 862 546
± 0.906 179 845 938 664 0.236 926 885 056 189
5 ± 0.538 469 310 105 683 0.478 628 670 499 366
0 0.568 888 888 888 889
± 0.932 469 514 203 152 0.171 324 492 379 170
6 ± 0.661 209 386 466 265 0.360 761 573 048 139
± 0.238 619 186 083 197 0.467 913 934 572 691
209
B.3.1- Two dimensional integration:

The most obvious way to obtain the integral
⌠+1 ⌠+1
I= f(ξ, η) dξ dη …(B-3)
⌡-1 ⌡-1
is to first evaluate the inner integral keeping η constant, i.e.
⌠+1
f(ξ, η) dξ = ∑j Hj f(ξj,η)= ψ(η) …(B-4)
⌡-1
The evaluation of the outer integral is done in a similar manner
⌠+1
I= ψ(η) dη= ∑i Hi ψ(ηi) …(B-5)
⌡-1
= ∑i Hi ∑j Hj f(ξj, ηi)
= ∑i ∑j Hi Hj f(ξj, ηi) …(B-6)
in which the first summation is conducted from i=1 to i=n1 and the second
is from j=1 to j=n2.
B.3.2- Three dimensional integration:

By similar procedure the three dimensional integration
⌠+1 ⌠+1 ⌠+1
I= f(ξ, η, ζ) dξ dη dζ …(B-7)
⌡-1 ⌡-1 ⌡-1
can be written as
I= ∑i ∑j ∑j Hi Hj Hk f(ξj, ηi, ζi) …(B-8)
B.4- Appropriate order of numerical integration:

With numerical integration used in place of exact integration, an
additional error is introduced into the calculation and the first impression is
that this should be reduced as much as possible. In the practical use of the
numerical integration procedures basically two questions arise, namely,
what kind of integration scheme to use, and what order to select. In using
the Newton-Cotes formula n sampling points are required to integrate
without error a polynomial of order (n-1). On the other hand, if Gauss
quadrature is used, a polynomial of order (2n-1) is integrated exactly with n
210
sampling points. In each case of course any polynomial of lower order than
(n-1) and (2n-1), respectively. is also integrated exactly [69].
In finite element analysis a large number of function evaluations, i.e.
sampling points, directly increases the cost of analysis, and the use of
Gauss quadrature is attractive. However, the Newton-Cotes formula may be
efficient in nonlinear analysis [69].
211
212
‫ﺍﳋﻼﺻﺔ‬
‫اﻟﺨﻼﺻﺔ‬
‫ﺗﻢ ﻓﻲ هﺬﻩ اﻟﺪراﺳﺔ أﺟﺮاء ﺗﺤﻠﻴﻞ اﻻهﺘﺰاز ﻟﺨﺰاﻧﺎت اﻟﺴﻮاﺋﻞ اﻷﺳﻄﻮاﻧﻴﺔ اﻟﺪاﺋﺮﻳﺔ‪ .‬وﺗﻢ‬
‫اﻋﺘﻤﺎد اﻟﻨﻈﺮﻳﺔ اﻟﺨﻄﻴﺔ ﻣﻊ اﻓﺘﺮاض أن ﺗﺼﺮف اﻟﻤﻮاد ﻳﻜﻮن ﻣﺮﻧﺎ‪ .‬رآﺰت اﻟﺪراﺳﺔ ﻋﻠﻰ‬
‫اﻟﺨﺰاﻧﺎت اﻟﻔﻮﻻذﻳﺔ ﺗﺎﻣ ُﺔ اﻟﺮﺑﻂ وذات اﻟﻤﺤﻮر اﻟﺸﺎﻗﻮﻟﻲ‪ .‬وﻧﻮ ِﻗﺶ ﺗﺄﺛﻴﺮ اﻟﺘﻐﻴّﺮ ﺑﺎﻟﺼﻔﺎت اﻟﻤﺨﺘﻠﻔﺔ‬
‫ﻟﻠﺨﺰاﻧﺎت ‪ -‬ﻣﺜﻞ ﺳﻤﻚ اﻟﺠﺪران واﻟﻄﻮل واﻟﻘﻄﺮ وﺳﻤﻚ اﻟﻘﺎﻋﺪة ‪ -‬ﻋﻠﻰ ﺷﻜﻞ ﻧﻤﻂ اﻻهﺘﺰاز وﻋﻠﻰ‬
‫اﻟﺘﺮدد اﻟﻄﺒﻴﻌﻲ‪ .‬و ﺗﻢ أﻳﻀًﺎ اﺳﺘﻘﺼﺎء ﺗﺄﺛﻴﺮ ﻋﺪد وﻣﻮﻗﻊ وﺻﻼدة اﻟﻤﺠﺴﺌﺂت )اﻟﻤﺴﺎﻧﺪ( اﻟﺤﻠﻘﻴﺔ‪ .‬و‬
‫درﺳﺖ ﻇﺮوف ﻣﺘﻨﻮﻋﺔ ﻟﻠﺘﺮﺑﺔ اﻟﺴﺎﻧﺪة ﺗﺘﺮاوح ﻣﻦ ﺿﻌﻴﻔﺔ ﺟﺪًا إﻟﻰ ﺗﺎﻣﺔ اﻟﺼﻼدة‪ .‬و ﺷﻤﻠﺖ‬
‫اﻟﺪراﺳﺔ اﻟﺨﺰاﻧﺎت اﻟﻔﺎرﻏﺔ وآﺬﻟﻚ اﻟﻤﻤﻠﻮءة ﻷﻋﻤﺎق ﻣﺨﺘﻠﻔﺔ ﺑﺎﻟﺴﺎﺋﻞ وﻟﺤﺎﻻت ﻣﺨﺘﻠﻔﺔ ﻟﻺﺳﻨﺎد‪.‬‬
‫اﺳﺘﺨﺪﻣﺖ ﻃﺮﻳﻘﺔ اﻟﻌﻨﺎﺻﺮ اﻟﻤﺤﺪدة ﻟﺘﻤﺜﻴﻞ ﻣﺨﺘﻠﻒ ﻣﻜﻮﻧﺎت اﻟﺨﺰان‪ .‬ﻓﻤﺜﻠﺖ اﻟﺠﺪران‬
‫واﻟﻘﺎﻋﺪة ﺑﻮﺳﺎﻃﺔ ﻋﻨﺼﺮ ﻗﺸﺮة‪ ،‬ﻓﻲ ﺣﻴﻦ اﺳﺘﺨﺪم ﻋﻨﺼﺮ ﻋﺘﺐ ﻓﺮاﻏﻲ ﻟﺘﻤﺜﻴﻞ اﻟﻤﺠﺴﺌﺎت اﻟﺤﻠﻘﻴﺔ‪.‬‬
‫أﻣﺎ اﻟﺘﺮﺑﺔ ﻓﻘﺪ ﺗﻢ ﺗﻤﺜﻴﻠﻬﺎ ﺑﺎﺳﺘﻌﻤﺎل ﻧﻤﻮذج ‪ .Winkler‬وﻣﺜﻞ ﺗﺄﺛﻴﺮ اﻟﻤﺎء داﺧﻞ اﻟﺨﺰان ﺑﻄﺮﻳﻘﺔ‬
‫اﻟﻜﺘﻠﺔ اﻟﻤﻀﺎﻓﺔ‪ .‬وﻗﺪ أﺳﺘﺨﺪم ﺑﺮﻧﺎﻣﺞ ‪ ANSYS‬ﻣﺘﻌﺪد اﻷﻏﺮاض ﻷﺟﺮاء هﺬﻩ اﻟﺪراﺳﺎت‪ .‬ﺣﻴﺚ‬
‫دُرﺳﺖ ‪ 365‬ﺣﺎﻟﺔ ﻣﺨﺘﻠﻔﺔ ﻣﻦ اﻟﺨﺰاﻧﺎت‪ ،‬ﻟﻜﻞ ﻣﻨﻬﺎ ﺗﻢ إﻳﺠﺎد اﻟﺘﺮدد اﻟﻄﺒﻴﻌﻲ وﺷﻜﻞ اﻻهﺘﺰاز‪.‬‬
‫وﺟﺪ ﻣﻦ هﺬﻩ اﻟﺪراﺳﺔ أن اﻟﺘﺮدد اﻟﻄﺒﻴﻌﻲ ﻟﻠﺨﺰان ﻳﺰداد ﺑﺰﻳﺎدة اﻟﺴﻤﻚ وﻳﻘﻞ ﺑﺰﻳﺎدة اﻟﻘﻄﺮ‬
‫واﻟﻄﻮل‪ .‬ﺣﻴﺚ وﺟﺪ ﻟﻠﺨﺰاﻧﺎت اﻟﻔﺎرﻏﺔ اﻟﻤﺜﺒﺘﺔ ﻋﻨﺪ اﻟﻘﺎﻋﺪة ﺑﺄن زﻳﺎدة ﺑﻤﻘﺪار ‪% 43 – 34‬‬
‫وﻧﻘﺼﺎن ﺑﻤﻘﺪار ‪ %33 – 26‬وﻧﻘﺼﺎن ﺑﻤﻘﺪار‪ %52 – 48‬ﻳﻄﺮأ ﻋﻠﻰ اﻟﺘﺮدد ﻋﻨﺪ ﻣﻀﺎﻋﻔﺔ‬
‫اﻟﺴﻤﻚ و اﻟﻘﻄﺮ واﻟﻄﻮل ﻋﻠﻰ اﻟﺘﻮاﻟﻲ‪ .‬آﺬﻟﻚ وﺟﺪ ﺑﺄن اﻟﺘﺮدد اﻟﻄﺒﻴﻌﻲ ﻳﻜﻮن ﻓﻲ ﻗﻴﻤﺘﻪ اﻟﺼﻐﺮى‬
‫ﻋﻨﺪ ﻗﻴﻤﺔ ﻣﺎ ﻟﻌﺪد اﻷﻣﻮاج اﻟﻤﺤﻴﻄﻴﺔ‪ .‬وﻋﺪد اﻷﻣﻮاج اﻟﻤﺤﻴﻄﺔ وﺟﺪ ﺑﺄﻧﻬﺎ ﺗﺰداد ﺑﺰﻳﺎدة اﻟﻘﻄﺮ وﺗﻘﻞ‬
‫ﺑﺰﻳﺎدة آﻞ ﻣﻦ اﻟﻄﻮل واﻟﺴﻤﻚ‪ .‬وآﺬﻟﻚ وﺟﺪ ﺑﺄﻧﻪ ﻟﻠﺨﺰاﻧﺎت اﻟﺘﻲ ﺗﻜﻮن ﻟﻬﺎ ﻧﺴﺒﺔ اﻟﻄﻮل إﻟﻰ اﻟﻘﻄﺮ‬
‫ﺻﻐﻴﺮة ﺟﺪا‪ ،L/D < 0.1 ،‬ﻓﺄن اﻟﺘﺮدد اﻟﻄﺒﻴﻌﻲ ﺗﻘﺮﻳﺒﺎ ﻻﻳﻌﺘﻤﺪ ﻋﻠﻰ ﻋﺪد اﻷﻣﻮاج اﻟﻤﺤﻴﻄﻴﺔ‪.‬‬
‫وأﻳﻀﺎ وﺟﺪ ﺑﺄن ﻋﺪد اﻷﻣﻮاج اﻟﻤﺮاﻓﻖ ﻷﺻﻐﺮ ﺗﺮدد ﻳﻌﺘﻤﺪ ﻋﻠﻰ اﻟﻘﻴﻢ اﻟﻨﺴﺒﻴﺔ ﻷﺑﻌﺎد اﻟﺨﺰان‬
‫وﻟﻴﺲ ﻋﻠﻰ ﻗﻴﻤﻬﺎ اﻟﻤﻄﻠﻘﺔ‪.‬‬
‫أن ﻣﺮوﻧﺔ اﻟﺘﺮﺑﺔ اﻟﺴﺎﻧﺪة ﻳﻜﻮن ﺗﺄﺛﻴﺮهﺎ هﻮ ﺗﻘﻠﻴﻞ ﻗﻴﻤﺔ اﻟﺘﺮدد اﻟﻄﺒﻴﻌﻲ ﺑﻤﻘﺪار ﻗﺪ ﻳﺼﻞ إﻟﻰ‬
‫‪ .%88‬وأن إﺿﺎﻓﺔ اﻟﻤﺴﺎﻧﺪ اﻟﺤﻠﻘﻴﺔ ﺗﺮﻓﻊ ﻗﻴﻤﺔ اﻟﺘﺮدد ﺑﻤﻘﺪار ﻳﺼﻞ إﻟﻰ ‪ .%104‬أﻣﺎ اﻟﻤﺎء داﺧﻞ‬
‫‪i‬‬
‫ﺍﳋﻼﺻﺔ‬
‫اﻟﺨﺰان ﻓﺄن ﺗﺄﺛﻴﺮﻩ هﻮ ﺧﻔﺾ ﻗﻴﻤﺔ اﻟﺘﺮدد ﺑﺤﺪود ‪ ،%86 – 32‬ﻓﻲ ﺣﻴﻦ ﻻ ﻳﺆﺛﺮ ﻋﻠﻰ ﻋﺪد‬
‫اﻷﻣﻮاج اﻟﻤﺤﻴﻄﻴﺔ‪.‬‬
‫أﻗﺘﺮﺣﺖ ﻣﻌﺎدﻟﺘﻴﻦ ﻹﻳﺠﺎد ﻗﻴﻢ اﻟﺘﺮدد اﻟﻄﺒﻴﻌﻲ اﻷﺻﻐﺮ وﻋﺪد اﻷﻣﻮاج اﻟﻤﺤﻴﻄﻴﺔ اﻟﻤﺮاﻓﻘﺔ‪،‬‬
‫ﺑﺪﻻﻟﺔ اﺑﻌﺎد اﻟﺨﺰان‪ .‬وﻗﺪ وﺟﺪ ﺑﺄن اﻟﻨﺘﺎﺋﺞ اﻟﻤﺴﺘﺤﺼﻠﺔ ﺑﻮاﺳﻄﺔ هﺎﺗﻴﻦ اﻟﻤﻌﺎدﻟﺘﻴﻦ ﺗﺘﻔﻖ ﺗﻤﺎﻣﺎ ﻣﻊ‬
‫اﻟﻨﺘﺎﺋﺞ اﻟﺘﻲ ﺗﻢ اﻟﺤﺼﻮل ﻋﻠﻴﻬﺎ ﺑﺎﺳﺘﺨﺪام اﻟﺘﺤﻠﻴﻞ اﻟﺪﻗﻴﻖ ﺑﻄﺮﻳﻘﺔ اﻟﻌﻨﺎﺻﺮ اﻟﻤﺤﺪدة‪ .‬ﻟﺬا ﻳﻤﻜﻦ‬
‫اﻋﺘﺒﺎرهﻤﺎ آﺄداة ﺳﻬﻠﺔ ﻟﻐﺮض ﺗﺨﻤﻴﻦ ﺗﻠﻚ اﻟﻘﻴﻢ ﻓﻲ اﻟﻤﺮاﺣﻞ اﻷوﻟﻰ ﻟﻠﺘﺼﻤﻴﻢ‪ .‬ﺗﻢ أﻳﻀﺎ اﻗﺘﺮاح‬
‫ﺗﻤﺜﻴﻞ ﻣﺴﺘﻤﺮ ﻟﻨﻤﻮذج وﻧﻜﻠﺮ‪ .‬وهﺬا اﻟﻤﻘﺘﺮح ﻳﺴﻬﻞ ﻋﻤﻠﻴﺔ ﺗﻤﺜﻴﻞ رد ﻓﻌﻞ اﻟﺘﺮﺑﺔ‪ .‬وأﻗﺘﺮﺣﺖ أﻳﻀﺎ‬
‫ﻃﺮﻳﻘﺔ ﺟﺪﻳﺪة ﻟﺘﻤﺜﻴﻞ ﺗﺄﺛﻴﺮ اﻟﻤﺎء داﺧﻞ اﻟﺨﺰان ﻋﻠﻰ ﺧﻮاص اﻻهﺘﺰاز‪ .‬ﺣﻴﺚ ﺑﻮاﺳﻄﺔ هﺬﻩ‬
‫اﻟﻄﺮﻳﻘﺔ ﺗﻢ إﻳﺠﺎد آﺘﻞ اﻟﻤﺎء اﻟﻤﻜﺎﻓﺌﺔ اﻟﺘﻲ ﺗﻀﺎف إﻟﻰ ﺟﺪار اﻟﺨﺰان‪ .‬أن اﻟﻨﺘﺎﺋﺞ اﻟﺘﻲ أﺳﺘﺤﺼﻠﺖ‬
‫ﺑﺎﺳﺘﺨﺪام هﺬﻩ اﻟﻄﺮﻳﻘﺔ ﺗﺘﻄﺎﺑﻖ ﺗﻘﺮﻳﺒﺎ ﻣﻊ اﻟﻨﺘﺎﺋﺞ اﻟﻤﻮﺟﻮدة ﻓﻲ اﻟﺪراﺳﺎت اﻟﺴﺎﺑﻘﺔ‪.‬‬
‫‪ii‬‬
‫ﺘﺤﻠﻴل ﺍﻻﻫﺘﺯﺍﺯ‬
‫ﻟﺨﺯﺍﻨﺎﺕ ﺍﻟﺴﻭﺍﺌل ﺍﻷﺴﻁﻭﺍﻨﻴﺔ ﺍﻟﺩﺍﺌﺭﻴﺔ‬
‫ﺒﺎﺴﺘﺨﺩﺍﻡ ﺘﻘﻨﻴﺔ ﺍﻟﻌﻨﺎﺼﺭ ﺍﻟﻤﺤﺩﺩﺓ‬
‫ﺭﺴﺎﻟﺔ ﻤﻘﺩﻤﺔ ﺇﻟﻰ‬

‫ﻜﻠﻴﺔ ﺍﻟﻬﻨﺩﺴﺔ – ﺠﺎﻤﻌﺔ ﺍﻟﺒﺼﺭﺓ‬
‫ﻜﺠﺯﺀ ﻤﻥ ﻤﺘﻁﻠﺒﺎﺕ ﻨﻴل ﺩﺭﺠﺔ ﺩﻜﺘﻭﺭﺍﻩ ﻓﻠﺴﻔﺔ ﻓﻲ‬
‫ﺍﻟﻬﻨﺩﺴﺔ ﺍﻟﻤﺩﻨﻴﺔ )ﺇﻨﺸﺎﺀﺍﺕ(‬
‫ﻤﻥ ﻗﺒل‬
‫ﻋﺒﺩﺍﻷﻤﻴﺭ ﻋﻁﺎﺍﷲ ﻜﺭﻴﻡ‬
‫ﺤﺯﻴﺭﺍﻥ ‪2008‬‬

Vibration Analysis of Circular Cylindric

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Vibration Analysis of Circular Cylindric

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VIBRATION ANALYSIS

I certify that the thesis titled (Vibration Analysis of Circular

In view of the available recommendations, I forward this thesis

‫ﺻ‪‬ﺪ‪‬ﻕَ ﺍﻪﻠﻟُ ﺍﻟﻌ‪‬ﻈﻴﻢ‬

A vibration analysis of circular cylindrical liquid storage tanks is

The finite element method is used to model the various components

Within the investigated range, the soil flexibility is found to decrease

Simple formulae are suggested to estimate the natural frequency and

I am most grateful and highly indebted to my supervisor Dr.

Abdulamir Atalla Karim

Chapter One: Introduction

Chapter Two: Review of Literature

Chapter Three: Free Vibration Analysis

Chapter Four: Finite Element Formulation

Chapter Five: Applications, Results, and Discussion

Chapter Six: Conclusions and Recommendations

5-1 Comparison of values of frequency factor 137

1-1 Base uplift of unanchored tanks 4

3-1 Circumferential and axial waves and nodal pattern of circular 46

[A] The dynamic matrix

constant or variable thickness. Longitudinal and/or circumferential stiffeners

1.2 Vibration analysis of liquid storage tanks:

1.3 Aim of study:

1.4 Layout of thesis:

At rest During Vibration

Liquid height Rotation

Figure (1-1): Base uplift of unanchored tanks

2.2 Historical development of vibration analysis:

mutually perpendicular strips, each strip regarded as functioning as a beam.

2.3 Vibration of shells:

2.4 Liquid Storage Tanks:

2.5 Fluid – Structure Interaction:

2.6 Soil – Structure Interaction:

2.7 Liquid - Soil – Structure Interaction:

vibration problems. The seismic equilibrium equation was solved by Wilson

by solving the boundary value problem including the deformed configuration of

2.8 Concluding remarks:

3.2 The tank wall:

3.2.1 Thin shell theory:

3.2.2 Equation of motion:

curvature. In addition to the added complexity of curvature, shells are further

3.2.3 Basic assumptions:

3.2.4 Circular cylindrical shell:

R2 ∂2u/∂x2+ ½ (1-µ) ∂2u/∂θ2+ ½ R(1+µ) ∂2v/∂x∂θ – µ R ∂w/∂x = k1 ∂2u/∂t2 (3.1a)

½ R(1+ µ) ∂2u/∂x∂θ+ ½ R2(1-µ) ∂2u/∂x2+ ∂2v/∂θ2–∂w/∂θ =k1 ∂2v/∂t2 (3.1b)

µR ∂u/∂x+ ∂v/∂θ- w – k2 (R4 ∂4w/∂x4+2R2 ∂4v/∂x2∂θ2+ ∂4w/∂θ4)= k1 ∂2w/∂t2 (3.1c)

3.3 Modal analysis:

3.4 Eigenvalues and eigenvectors:

3.5 Free vibration of circular cylindrical shells:

characteristics is important for the general understanding of the fundamentals of

u = ∑m ∑n Amn (cos (mπx/L) cos nθ sin ωt) …(3.6 -a)

v = ∑m ∑n Bmn (sin (mπx/L) sin nθ sin ωt) …(3.6 -b)

w = ∑m ∑n Cmn (sin (mπx/L) cos nθ sin ωt) …(3.6 –c)

[Ω2– ((1-µ)/2)n2 –λm2] Amn + [(1+ µ)/2]n λm Bmn – µ λm Cmn = 0 … (3.7-a)

[(1+ µ)/2]n λm Amn + [Ω2– ((1-µ)/2)λm2 –n2] Bmn + n Cmn = 0 … (3.7-b)

- µλm Amn + n Bmn +[ Ω2–H(λm2+ n2)2-1] Cmn= 0 … (3.7-c)

[(1+ µ)/2]n λm Ω2– ((1-µ)/2)λm2 – n2 n = 0 (3.9)

3.6 The base plate:

3.6.1 Equation of motion:

3.6.2 Circular plates:

equation of motion for the free vibration, in terms of transverse displacements

3.7 The soil-structure interaction:

observation [39]. In this context, simplicity of models, in many cases becomes a