THIN WALLED PRESSURE

VESSELS
(Lecture 3)
Mechanics of Deformable Bodies
 PRESSURE VESSELS
• A pressure vessel is a pressurized container in which its
walls resists the pressure acting on the inner surface.

• Mainly resisted by tensile stresses: Tangential

(Hoop/Circumferential) Stress and Longitudinal Stress.

• Thin-Walled Vessels
– Containers in which wall thickness t is sufficiently small
compared to the radius r of the vessel, that tends
stresses to be almost uniform throughout the wall
thickness
– Thickness t should be at most 10% of the radius.
 CYLINDRICAL AND SPHERICAL
VESSELS
(1) Cylindrical Vessels
A. Tangential Stress σT

F = P (L x D)
T = σT ( T x L)

The forces acting are the total pressures caused by the internal pressure p and
the total tension in the walls T.
F = 2T
P (L x D) = 2 σT ( t x L)
PD
σT =
2t
σL =
B. Longitudinal Stress σL

The total force acting at the rear of the tank F

must equal to the total longitudinal stress on
the wall PT = σLAwall. Since t is so small
compared to D, the area of the wall is close to
πDt

π
F=P ( D2)
4
PT = σL πDt

F = PT
1
π 2
P ( D ) = σL πDt
4
PD
σL =
4t
 CYLINDRICAL AND SPHERICAL
VESSELS
(2) Spherical Vessels:
F=

If a spherical tank of diameter D and thickness t contains gas under a

pressure of p = pi - po, the stress at the wall can be expressed as:
PROBLEM #1
A steam pipe was holding a 3.5 mPa as shown in the figure . A gasket is inserted between
the flange at one end of the pipe, and a flat plate is used to cap the end.
a. How many 40-mm-diameter bolts must be used to hold the cap on if the allowable
stress in the bolts is 80 MPa, of which 55 MPa is the initial stress?
b. What circumferential stress is developed in the pipe?

F P
430mm

π F=P
a) F = 3.5 N/mm2 ( 4 (430 mm))2
= 508, 270. 42 N n = 16.72 or 17 bolts
π (40 mm))2
P = n ( 80 – 55)N/mm2
4
b) 3.5 N/mm2 (1000mm)(430mm) = 2 σT ( 10mm x 1000mm strip)
σT = 75. 25mPa