International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 79 (2002) 841846 www.elsevier.

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Minimization of stress concentration factor in cylindrical pressure vessels with ellipsoidal heads
K. Magnuckia,b,*, W. Szyca, J. Lewinskia
a

Institute of Applied Mechanics, Poznan University of Technology, ul. Piotrowo 3, 60-965 Poznan, Poland b Institute of Rail Vehicles TABOR, ul. Warszawska 181, 61-055 Poznan, Poland Received 17 April 2002; revised 11 September 2002; accepted 11 September 2002

Abstract The paper presents the problem of stress concentration in a cylindrical pressure vessel with ellipsoidal heads subject to internal pressure. At the line, where the ellipsoidal head is adjacent to the circular cylindrical shell, a shear force and bending moment occur, disturbing the membrane stress state in the vessel. The degree of stress concentration depends on the ratio of thicknesses of both the adjacent parts of the shells and on the relative convexity of the ellipsoidal head, with the range for radius-to-thickness ratio between 75 and 125. The stress concentration was analytically described and, afterwards, the effect of these values on the stress concentration ratio was numerically examined. Results of the analysis are shown on charts. q 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Ellipsoidal head; Pressure vessel; Stress concentration factor; Head convexity; Internal pressure

1. Introduction Circular cylindrical vessels are usually closed with convex heads of torispherical or ellipsoidal type. The heads disturb the membrane stress state occurring in the cylindrical vessels loaded with uniform pressure. Bachut [1] numerically and experimentally investigated the stress and strain distribution in the elastic plastic state of torispherical heads loaded by internal pressure. Soric and Zahlten [2] carried out similar numerical studies of torispherical shells. Bachut and Ramachandra [3] and Bachut et al. [4] extended the studies to shakedown loads. Magnucki and Szyc [5] numerically investigated the stress and strain distributions in elastic and plastic states of ellipsoidal heads for internal and external pressure. They also determined internal and external critical pressure values of these heads. Bachut and Galletly [6] presented the results of experimental and numerical studies of torispherical and hemispherical shells made from bre-reinforced plastic and loaded with external pressure. Bachut and Galletly [7]
* Corresponding author. Address: Institute of Applied Mechanics, Poznan University of Technology, ul. Piotrowo 3, 60-965 Poznan, Poland. Tel.: 48-61-6652301; fax: 48-61-6652307. E-mail address: jerzy.lewinski@put.poznan.pl (K. Magnucki).

investigated the inuence of local shape imperfections on the elastic buckling of torispheres and hemispheres. Bachut and Jaiswal [8] widened the studies to ellipsoidal and toroidal shells. Ross [9] investigated vibration and elastic buckling of thin-walled hemi-ellipsoidal domes under uniform external pressure. Bachut [10 12] determined optimal proles of torispherical heads under buckling constraints. Then the studies were extended to parabolic and cubic splines together with arcs to approximate the meridional shapes of multisegmental, axisymmetric, externally pressurized domes. Further generalization consists in description of meridional shapes by a set of functions. Magnucki and Lewinski [13,14] dened optimal shapes of heads of cylindrical pressure vessels under strength and geometric constraints. Wilczynski [15] numerically determined by means of FEM an optimal shape of thin elastic shells of revolution loaded by internal pressure. Magnucki [16] optimized cylindrical vessels with ellipsoidal and special shapes of heads and discussed [17] the problems of strength, stability, and optimal shaping of thin-walled vessels. He paid attention to stress concentration in heads and cylindrical shells of pressure vessels. Kedziora and Kubiak [18], using FEM, numerically calculated the stress distribution in pressure tanks. Magnucki and Monczak [19] provided an analytical concentration of

0308-0161/02/$ - see front matter q 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 3 0 8 - 0 1 6 1 ( 0 2 ) 0 0 1 0 1 - 1

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stresses in cylindrical tanks, and dened minimal thickness values of the ellipsoidal head and the cylindrical shell. Zioko and Mikulski [20] investigated the effect of head shape on stress state in a cylindrical pressure tank. The present paper describes the effect of wall thickness ratio of the ellipsoidal head and cylindrical shell, as well as the relative convexity of the ellipsoidal head on the stress concentration factor in circular cylindrical pressure vessels. Maxima of equivalent stresses occur in the ellipsoidal head and in the cylindrical shell. The maximal values are different and depend on the head and cylindrical shell thicknesses and on convexity of the head. The effective cylindrical pressure vessel might be dened as the one, in which maximal values of the equivalent stresses are equal.

written u0 up a1 Q0 a1 M0 ; 0 11 12 1

q1 qp a1 Q0 a1 M0 ; 0 0 12 22
where " up 0  2 # a p0 a2 22n2 ; b 2Et1

qp 0; 0

cn 31 2 n2 1=4 ;  3=2 2 a a1 cn ; 11 E t1   4 3 a 1=2 1 a22 2 cn ; t1 Et1

a1 2 12

2 2a c ; Et1 n t1

2. Stress state in the cylindrical pressure vessel with ellipsoidal heads The subject of the analysis is a pressurized cylindrical vessel with ellipsoidal heads. The radius of the cylindrical shell is a, thickness of its wall t2, convexity of the ellipsoidal head is b and its thickness t1. The vessel is loaded by uniform internal pressure p0. At the boundary between the ellipsoidal head and the cylindrical shell, a longitudinal force Nz ap0 =2 occurs, and unknown shear force Q0 and the bending moment M0 (Fig. 1). The quantities Q0 and M0 reect an interaction between the connected parts of the pressure vessel and may be determined from the theory of boundary disturbance, the use of which in the eld of strength analysis of thin-walled vessels was discussed by Magnucki [17]. The radial displacement u0 and the rotation angle q1 of 0 the boundary u p=2 of the ellipsoidal shell-head mat be

with E being Youngs modulus and n being Poissons ratio. The deection w0 and the rotation angle q2 of the 0 boundary z 0 of the circular cylindrical shell are w0 wp a2 Q0 a2 M0 ; 0 11 12 2

q2 qp a2 Q0 a2 M0 ; 0 0 12 22
where wp 2 2 n 0 p0 a2 ; qp 0; 0 2Et2  3=2 2 a 2 2a 2 cn ; a2 2 c ; 12 E t2 Et2 n t2  1=2 4 a 2 2 c3 : n t2 Et1

a2 11 a2 22

At the boundary connecting both shells the condition of consistency of displacements should be met: u0 w0 ;

q1 q2 : 0 0

The above makes a system of two algebraic equations, enabling evaluation of the shear force Q0 and the bending moment M0. Then the stress state in the pressure vessel may be determined. ^u The dimensionless meridional s1 and circumferential 1 ^ sw stresses in the ellipsoidal shell-head are ^u s1 ^w s1 x1 x2 1 1 p ^ fuBD exp2c1 ; 2b 1 x sin2 u 4

x x 1 2 x sin2 u 1 1 2 p 2 fwBD exp2c1 ; 2b 1 x sin2 u

where
1 fuBD s1 cos c1 sin c1 2 M

Fig. 1. Connection of ellipsoidal and cylindrical shells.

3 1 s sinc1 ; c2 Q n

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843

1 fwBD

# ! ! c2 c2 n n 7 n cos c1 2 ^ n sin c1 3 3   3n 1 2 sQ cos c1 7 2 sin c1 ; cn

s1 M

"

6M0 p Q ; s1 2cn x1 x2 0 ; Q 2 t1 t1 r p=2 x x du c1 c n 1 2 ; b 1 x sin2 u5=4 u

s1 M

^eq;max ^eq;max ^ where seq;max maxs1 ; s2 : maximal equivalent p ^eq;0 stress in the pressure vessel, s2 3=2x2 : the equivalent stress of the cylindrical shell in the membrane state. The value of the stress concentration factor (8) may be adjusted by means of the dimensionless parameters x1, x2, and b. The pressure vessel is effectively designed, when the maximal equivalent stresses in the ellipsoidal head and the cylindrical shell are equal: ^eq;max ^eq;max s2 : s1 9

the upper sign corresponding to the internal surface, the lower sign to the external one. ^z The dimensionless longitudinal s2 and circumferential 2 ^ sw stresses in the cylindrical shell follow as ^z s2
1 2 x2 2 ^ fzBD exp2c2 ;

This condition will serve for determining effective values of the dimensionless structural parameters (x1ef, bef) of pressure vessels.

3. Numerical analysis Numerical calculation enables tracing the stresses in the ellipsoidal and cylindrical shells of the vessel. Example results of such calculations are shown in Fig. 2 in the form of charts presenting the values of dimensionless equivalent stresses of Eq. (7) in both shells of the vessel, at their external and internal surfaces, versus u for the ellipse and z=t2 for the cylinder. The results shown here are related to a cylindrical vessel with ellipsoidal head of relative convexity b 0:5; with equal thicknesses of both shells of the vessel x1 1; with the parameter x2 100: One can remark that the maximal stress value occurs at the external surface of the ellipsoidal head, near the boundaries of both shells and clearly exceeds the values existing in the cylindrical part of the vessel. Such a solution is ineffective; therefore, an ellipsoidal head of greater thickness x1 , 1 or bigger relative convexity b . 0:5 should be applied. Any of the approaches may lead to equalization of maximal values of the equivalent stress in both parts of the vessel. Adjusting the thickness ratio, e.g. to x1 0:595 shall lead to the desired effect, that is shown in Fig. 3. However, such a solution is disadvantageous in practice, as in order to meet the condition of Eq. (9) the cylindrical part of the vessel is to be connected with a head of thickness nearly 1.7 greater.

2 ^w s2 x2 2 fwBD exp2c2 ;

where
2 fzBD s2 cos c2 sin c2 M

2 fwBD

3 2 s sin c2 ; c2 Q n " # ! ! c2 c2 n n 2 7 n cos c2 2 ^ n sin c2 sM 3 3   3n s2 cos c2 7 2 sin c2 ; Q cn 6M0 ; 2 t2 p Q s2 2cn x2 0 ; Q t2 cn z c2 p : x2 t 2

s2 M

The following dimensionless parameters of the structure are used here: x1 t2 =t1 the ratio of wall thicknesses, x2 a=t2 the characteristic ratio of the thin-walled cylindrical shell, b b=athe relative convexity of the ellipsoidal head of the pressure vessel. The meridional or longitudinal and circumferential stresses are the products of respective dimensionless stresses and the uniform pressure p0. Then ^j si si p0 ; j for i 1; j u; w; and i 2; j z; w: The equivalent stress q si si 2 2 si si si 2 : w w eq j j 6

4. Effective values of relative convexity of the ellipsoidal head and the ratio of wall thickness Suitable numerical procedures have been developed in order to enable searching for the cases exactly satisfying the condition (9) in the space of the x1 and b parameters for an imposed value of x2. Results of the search are depicted by the curve shown in Fig. 4, being a pattern of the points satisfying the condition (9) with x2 100: Coordinates of the points belonging to b; x1 may be considered as effective bef ; x1ef : Corners in lower and upper parts of the curve are also justied. The lower corner is a result of a change in location of the maximal

The stress concentration factor is dened in the following form

aSC

^ seq;max ^eq;0 s1

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Fig. 2. Equivalent stresses in ellipsoidal and cylindrical shells (b 0:5; x1 1; x2 100).

value of the equivalent stress in the cylindrical shell from its border, i.e. the place of connection with the head (for smaller b values), to the area located at a distance equal to more than ten thicknesses t2 (for greater b values). The reason for the occurrence of the upper corner of the curve, in which the maximal value existing in its top part (for smaller b values) is less than the value at the shell edge (for greater b values), is similar. Assuming that wall thicknesses of joined shells are to be equal, one could easily state that the best relative head convexity should amount to b 0:6: Small changes in x1 (up to ^ 10%) do not considerably affect the selected value of the relative convexity.

Should the thicknesses t1 and t2 of both shells differ considerably from each other, their connection might give rise to technological difculties and, therefore, would not be suitable. Moreover, a better solution would be characterized by a possibly smaller value of stress concentration factor, Eq. (8). Therefore, the changes in the value of the stress concentration factor should be analyzed, with regard to selected effective values of the b and x1 parameters. As x1ef is closely related to bef (Fig. 4), it is sufcient to interrelate the asc values of one of these parameters. Results of such an analysis for x2 100 are shown in Fig. 5. For bef , 0:5 the values of the stress concentration factor are

Fig. 3. Equalization of maximal equivalent stresses (b 0:5; x1 0:595; x2 100).

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5. Conclusions The calculations and analysis enable the following notes and conclusions to be formulated in the case of equal wall thicknesses of the cylindrical part of the vessel and its ellipsoidal head x1 1 the most effective geometry will be a head of relative convexity b 0:6; the use of ellipsoidal heads of smaller convexities induces an increase of the head thickness, that increases the value of the stress concentration factor asc; in the range 0:5 # b # 0:6 the increase remains small, but becomes very high for b , 0:5; head convexities in the range 0:48 , b , 0:86 produce maximal equivalent stresses beyond the boundary between both shells, i.e. beyond the welding zone, a suitable variant of the pressure vessel (having the most advantageous parameters) may be selected on the grounds of other accepted criteria, e.g. minimal mass of the vessel. The results of calculation analyses presented in the present paper were related exclusively to the characteristic ratio x2 100: However, verication calculations in the range x2 75 125 did not show any considerable changes.

Fig. 4. Effective thickness ratio x1 versus relative convexity b x2 100:

undesirably high, while for bef 0:5 0:65 the asc values remain nearly unchanged. In spite of the above, selection of optimal wall thickness ratio x1 is relatively difcult. The range x1ef 0:8 1:0 seems to be the most reasonable. However, in order to appraise a given variant accurately another criterion of economic character should be formed and optimization procedure undertaken, aimed at obtaining more detailed results.

References
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Fig. 5. Stress concentration factor asc for effective parameters of the vessel x2 100:

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