5/7/2024

Thin Walled Pressure

Vessels

Introduction
• Thin walled pressure vessels
are used for storage and
transportation of liquids and
gases
• Two cases will be studies
• Cylindrical pressure vessel
• Spherical pressure vessel
• Thin walled if t/r < 0.1
• Walls offers little resistance to
bending
• Stresses do not change
through the thickness
• Plane stress situation

1
 5/7/2024

Assumptions
• Wall thinness
• Wall is 10 percent or less of the radius.
• Symmetries
• The geometry and loading are cylindrically (Spherically)
symmetric. The stresses are independent of the
angular coordinates.
• Uniform internal pressure
• Internal pressure p is uniform and positive everywhere.
• Ignoring end effects
• Supports and end caps are ignored.

Cylindrical vessel
• Consider a cylindrical vessel
of inner radius r, thickness t,
and having pressure p
• Normal stresses are
• Hoop 1
• Axial 2
• Detach a portion of vessel
along with its contents as
shown
F z 0  1 2tx   p2rx   0

pr
1 
t

2
 5/7/2024

Cylindrical vessel
• For determination of axial stress
• Detach a portion of vessel along
with its contents as shown and
sum forces in x direction

F x 0  2 2 rt   p  r 2   0
pr
2 
2t
1
 max (in  plane )   1   2   1  2  pr
2 2 4t
pr
 max ( out of plane )  2 
2t

Spherical vessel
• Consider a spherical vessel of
inner radius r, thickness t, and
having pressure p
• Normal stresses are equal
• 1 = 2
• Detach a portion of vessel along
with its contents as shown
F x 0  2 2 rt   p  r 2   0
pr
1   2 
2t
1 pr
 max ( out of plane )   1 
2 4t

3
 5/7/2024

Question
• The bulk storage tank shown, has an outer
diameter of 3.3 m and a wall thickness of
18 mm. At a time once internal pressure
of the tank is 1.5 M Pa, determine
maximum normal stress and maximum
shearing stress in the tank

Solution
d  3.3m t  18  103 m r  12 d  t  1.632 103 m p  1.5 MPa

• Maximum normal and shear stresses are,

pr 1.5 106 1.632
1   3
 136 106 Pa  136MPa
t 18 10
 max  12  1  68MPa This shear is out of plane

Question
• A spherical pressure vessel has an outer diameter of 3m and a wall
thickness of 12 mm. Knowing that for steel used all = 80 MPa,
E = 200 GPa, and  = 029, determine (a) the allowable gage
pressure, (b) the corresponding increase in the diameter of the
vessel

Solution
d  3m t  12  103 m r  12 d  t  1.488 103 m  all  8 MPa
• Using the relationship,
pr 2t 1 2  12  103 mm  80 MPA
 1   2   all  p   1.29 MPa
2t r 1.488 103 mm
• Using the relationship,
1  1
E  1  2   1E  1  200
1 0.29
109  8 106  28.4 106
 d  d  1  85.2 103 m  85.2 mm

4
 5/7/2024

Any Questions