UNIT 5

SELECTION OF TYPE OF PRESSURE VESSEL & METHOD OF FABRICATION

LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completion of this course students will be able to:

 Analyse the classification, layout and venting of storage tanks

 Understand Tank/PV fabrication techniques,
 Evaluate liquid and solid state fusion welding and, weld joints and types

SELECTION OF TYPE OF PRESSURE VESSEL

The first step in the design of Tank/PV is the selection of the type of Tank/PV best
suited for the particular service
 Primary factors influencing the choice of Tank/PV
o The function and location
(- Heat exchanger, Absorber, storage, etc
- Space considerations and spacing between vessels)
o The nature of the fluid
(Gas or liquid)
o Operating temperature and pressure
(- High or medium or low temperature
- High internal pressure, atmospheric or vacuum pressure
o Capacity for processing or necessary volume for storage
(- Large or medium or low volume vessel/tank
- Large or medium or low throughput)

The Tank/PV may be classified according to function and service

 Functional service (Storage or heat exchanger, etc)
 Temperature and Pressure (High, medium or low temperature; High or
medium internal pressure or atmospheric or vacuum)
 Material of construction (say, carbon steel or stainless steel or aluminum, etc)
 Geometry of vessel (shape and relative arrangements of the parts of
tank/vessel)
The most common types of tanks/PV may be classified according to their
geometry as:
 Open tanks

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  Choice of use depends on the fluid/liquid to be handled
and operation e.g. non volatile and toxic liquids, surge
tanks, mixers, settling tanks, etc
 Closed tanks and vessels (Storage of toxic and combustible
liquids and gases)
 Flat-bottomed and conical or domed roof vertical
cylindrical tanks
(Economical design of closed tanks at atmospheric
pressure) Handouts: HO-5-1: Introduction to API Storage
Tanks and their Venting; & HO-5-2: Atmospheric Storage
Tanks Standards
 Cylindrical vertical and horizontal pressure vessels with
formed ends (gas/liquid storage/processing)
(Economic design of PV, stable system with low
fabrication cost)
 Spherical or modified spherical vessels (gas/liquid
storage/processing)
(Highly stable system, high cost of fabrication)

METHOD OF FABRICATION
Tanks/PVs [and many other types of equipment] are fabricated by a number of well
established methods that include:
 Brazing and soldering
 Liquid state (Fusion) and Solid state welding
o most important methods
 Casting
 Forging
 Machining
 Sheet metal forming

BRAZING AND SOLDERING

 In brazing, an alloy, known as filler, is used to join one metal to itself or to
another metal. The brazing filler metal has a melting temperature above about
450°C (e.g. aluminum-silicon, copper, magnesium, etc). Soldering is a brazing

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 process in which the filler has a melting temperature below 450°C (e.g.
antimony-tin alloys). In brazing and soldering, the metallic materials being
joined do not melt; only the filler material melts. For both brazing and
soldering, the composition of the filler material is different from that of the
base material being joined.

FUSION AND SOLID STATE WELDING

Welding is a very commonly used permanent joining process of machine
components that include tanks and Pressure Vessels, Steel structures, Flanges
welded to shafts and axles. Crank shafts, Heavy hydraulic turbine shafts, large
gears, Pulleys, Flywheels, Gear housing, Machine frames and bases, Housing and
mill-stands, etc.
FUSION WELDING
 In the fusion-welding processes, a portion of the metals to be joined is melted
and, in many instances, additional molten filler metal is added. The fusion
zone (pool of liquid metal) and heat affected zones (HAZ) [temperature above
recrystallization and grain growth] are shown in Fig. 5.3. When the fusion
zone subsequently solidifies, the original pieces of metal are joined together.
During solidification of the fusion zone, nucleation is not required. The solid
simply begins to grow from existing grains, frequently in a columnar manner.
Fast cooling rates or short solidification times promote a finer microstructure
and improved properties. Factors that increase the cooling rate include
increased thickness of the metal, smaller fusion zones, low original metal
temperatures, and certain types of welding processes. For example:
o Arc-welding processes provide a more intense heat source, thus
reducing heating of the surrounding metal and providing faster cooling.
Laser welding and electron-beam welding are exceptionally intense
heat sources and produce very rapid cooling rates and potentially
strong welds.
o Oxyacetylene welding uses a relatively low-intensity heat source and
consequently welding times are long and the surrounding solid metal,
which becomes very hot, is not an effective heat sink.
 NB: Residual stresses (differential thermal expansion and
contraction) after welding removed by annealing
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 SOLID STATE WELDING
 In solid state welding mechanical force is applied until materials deform to
plastic state. Bonds are then formed through molecular interaction. Solid state
welding processes include Cold welding, Diffusion welding and Hot forging

WELDED JOINTS AND THEIR ADVANTAGES:

1) Compared to other type of joints, the welded joint has higher efficiency. An
efficiency > 95 % is easily possible.
2) Since the added material is minimum, the joint has lighter weight
3) Welded joints have smooth appearances
4) Due to flexibility in the welding procedure, alteration and addition are possible
5) It is less expensive
6) Forming a joint in difficult locations is possible through welding

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STRENGTH OF WELDED JOINTS
The weld must have a higher strength/efficiency ˃ 95%. Factors that affect the
strength of a welded joint are:
 Crack initiation
o Cracks forming while cooling a melted metal
 Residual stresses
o Inhomogeneous heating of the base metals causing residual stresses
upon cooling
 Metallurgical transformation
o In the heat affected zone (HAZ) metallurgical properties may change
leading to weakening of the joint.
 Welding defects
o Incomplete penetration, porosity, slag inclusion etc affects the strength
of a welded joint
 Stress concentration
o Abrupt change in the geometry of structure after welding

PV WELDING STANDARDS
Pressure vessel construction material require ductility and weld-ability
A number of welding codes or standards have been established e.g. the American
Welding Society (AWS)
 The welded joint should pass the qualification test, say:
o The tensile strength should not be < 95% of that of the parent metal
o Ductility
o Soundness of the welded joint

The success of fabrication by welding depends on:

 Training and experience of welder
 Use of proper materials (welding rods)
 Welding procedure
o Handout: HO-5-3: Fabrication Techniques

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TYPES OF WELD JOINTS
There are five basic weld joints:
 Butt joint
 Lap joint
 Corner joint
 Tee joint
 Edge joint

Handout:
HO-5-4_Welder: Joint and weld types
You must read, know and understand the following:
 Types of welds
 Acceptable welds
 Groove welds
 Joint design considerations
o You are encouraged to go through the self test at the end

HO-5-5_Welder: Joint and weld types

You must read, know and understand the following:
 Types of welds
 Acceptable welds
 Groove welds
 Joint design considerations
o You are encouraged to go through the self test at the end

HO-5-6_Overview of weld joint 130

You must follow the objectives

Sample Questions
1) Explain why atmospheric tanks layout must be optimized
2) As a rule of thumb, all tanks and PVs must be fitted with relief valves. Explain
why PVs bust under high internal pressure with relief valves fitted on
3) Describe the fabrication technique(s) employed to fabricate process
equipments/units
4) Briefly describe any three (3) factors that affect the strength of a welded joint