tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be pneumatically tested involving air

or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a much safer method of testing as it
releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not rapidly increase its volume while
rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses fail explosively). In the United States, as
with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to
Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these
vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every new vessel constructed and each vessel
has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel such as maximum allowable working
pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal temperature, what company manufactured it, the
date, it's registration number (through the National Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure
vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature

vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon

fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
1.

^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of

low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"

2.

Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular

Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

3.

Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.

4.

Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined

Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.

5.

Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.

6.

Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.

Harvey, 1998

7.

Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1

8.

Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water

collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

9.

Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.

10. Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened

Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

11. Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
12. Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
13. Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
14. Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
15. Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
16. Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
17. Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
18. Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
19. Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
20. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
21. Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

22. Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
23. Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
24. Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
25. Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
26. Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
27. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

28. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
29. Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
30. Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
31. Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
32. Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
33. Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
34. Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
35. Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

36. Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
37. Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
38. Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
39. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
40. Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
41. Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
42. Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
43. Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
44. Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
45. Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
46. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

47. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
48. Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

49. Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
50. Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
51. Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
52. Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
53. Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
54. Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
55. Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
56. Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
57. Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
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Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
58. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
59. Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

60. Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
61. Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
62. Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
63. Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
64. Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
65. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

66. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
67. Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
68. Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
69. Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
70. Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
71. Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
72. Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
73. Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

74. Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
75. Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
76. Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
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media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
77. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
78. Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
79. Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
80. Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
81. Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
82. Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
83. Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
84. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

85. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
86. Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

87. Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
88. Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
89. Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
90. Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
91. Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
92. Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
93. Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
94. Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
95. Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure

vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure

Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]

Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For

storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]

Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific

pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
96. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
97. Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
98. Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
99. Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
100.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
101.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
102.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1

103.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water

collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

104.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
105.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
106.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
107.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
108.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
109.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
110. Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
111. Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
112. Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
113. Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
114. Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification

[hide]

Containers

Contain
ers

Aerosol spray
Alternative wine closure
Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell
Corrugated box design
Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton

Food storage container

Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako
Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
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Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
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Unit load
Vial
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]

Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic

shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]

Leak before burst[edit]

Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).

A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
115. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
116. Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

117. Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
118. Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
119. Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
120.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
121.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
122.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

123.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
124.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
125.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
126.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
127.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
128.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
129.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
130.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

131.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
132.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
133.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain
ers

Aerosol spray
Alternative wine closure
Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell

Corrugated box design

Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako
Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch

Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

Authority
control

Categories:

Pressure vessels

Gas technologies

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This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;

additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of
Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

Privacy policy

About Wikipedia

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Contact Wikipedia

Developers

Mobile view

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
134.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
135.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
136.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
137.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
138.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
139.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
140.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
141.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

142.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
143.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

144.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
145.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
146.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
147.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
148.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
149.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
150.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
151.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
152.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
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up pressure
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free dictionary.
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Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
153.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
154.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

155.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
156.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
157.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
158.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
159.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
160.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

161.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
162.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
163.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
164.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
165.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
166.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
167.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
168.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

169.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
170.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
171.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
172.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
173.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
174.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
175.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
176.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
177.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
178.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
179.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

180.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
181.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

182.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
183.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
184.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
185.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
186.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
187.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
188.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
189.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
190.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.
Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every

new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and

radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
191.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
192.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
193.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
194.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
195.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
196.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
197.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
198.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

199.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
200.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

201.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
202.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
203.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
204.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
205.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
206.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
207.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
208.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
209.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
210.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
211. Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

212.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
213.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
214.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
215.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
216.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
217.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

218.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
219.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
220.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
221.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
222.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
223.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
224.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
225.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

226.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
227.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
228.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain
ers

Aerosol spray
Alternative wine closure
Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell

Corrugated box design

Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako
Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch

Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

Authority
control

Categories:

Pressure vessels

Gas technologies

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This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
229.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
230.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
231.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
232.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
233.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
234.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
235.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
236.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

237.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
238.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

239.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
240.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
241.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
242.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
243.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
244.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
245.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
246.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
247.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain

Aerosol spray

ers

Alternative wine closure

Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell
Corrugated box design
Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako

Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch
Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

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control

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This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;

additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of
Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
248.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
249.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

250.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
251.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
252.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
253.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
254.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
255.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

256.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
257.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
258.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
259.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
260.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
261.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
262.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
263.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

264.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
265.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
266.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
267.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
268.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
269.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
270.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
271.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
272.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
273.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
274.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

275.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
276.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

277.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
278.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
279.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
280.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
281.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
282.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
283.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
284.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
285.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
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free dictionary.
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Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure

vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure

Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]

Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For

storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]

Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific

pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
286.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
287.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
288.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
289.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
290.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
291.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
292.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1

293.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water

collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

294.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
295.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
296.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
297.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
298.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
299.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
300.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
301.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
302.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
303.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
304.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification

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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]

Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic

shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]

Leak before burst[edit]

Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).

A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
305.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
306.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

307.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
308.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
309.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
310.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
311. Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
312.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

313.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
314.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
315.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
316.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
317.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
318.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
319.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
320.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

321.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
322.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
323.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
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to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
324.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
325.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
326.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
327.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
328.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
329.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
330.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
331.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

332.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
333.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

334.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
335.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
336.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
337.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
338.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
339.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
340.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
341.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
342.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
343.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
344.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

345.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
346.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
347.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
348.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
349.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
350.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

351.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
352.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
353.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
354.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
355.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
356.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
357.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
358.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

359.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
360.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
361.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain
ers

Aerosol spray
Alternative wine closure
Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell

Corrugated box design

Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako
Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch

Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

Authority
control

Categories:

Pressure vessels

Gas technologies

Navigation menu

Create account

Not logged in

Talk

Contributions

Log in
Article
Talk
Read
Edit
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Go

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Upload file
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Page information
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Languages

Deutsch
Espaol

Franais
Galego

Italiano
Lietuvi
Magyar
Bahasa Melayu
Nederlands

Norsk bokml
Norsk nynorsk
Polski
Portugus

Shqip
Suomi
Svenska
Trke

Edit links

This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;

additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of
Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

Privacy policy

About Wikipedia

Disclaimers

Contact Wikipedia

Developers

Mobile view

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
362.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
363.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
364.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
365.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
366.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
367.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
368.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
369.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

370.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
371.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

372.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
373.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
374.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
375.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
376.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
377.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
378.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
379.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
380.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
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media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
381.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
382.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

383.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
384.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
385.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
386.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
387.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
388.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

389.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
390.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
391.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
392.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
393.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
394.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
395.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
396.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

397.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
398.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
399.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
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Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a

much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the

BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
400.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
401.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
402.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
403.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
404.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
405.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
406.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
407.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

408.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
409.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

410.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
411. Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
412.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
413.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
414.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
415.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
416.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
417.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
418.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
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examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Developers

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.

The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
o

5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult

for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]

Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For

storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]

Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific

pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
419.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
420.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
421.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
422.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
423.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
424.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
425.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1

426.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water

collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

427.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
428.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
429.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
430.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
431.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
432.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
433.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
434.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
435.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
436.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
437.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
Wikimedia
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media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification

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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]

Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic

shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]

Leak before burst[edit]

Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).

A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
438.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
439.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

440.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
441.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
442.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
443.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
444.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
445.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

446.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
447.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
448.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
449.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
450.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
451.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
452.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
453.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

454.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
455.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
456.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
457.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
458.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
459.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
460.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
461.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
462.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
463.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
464.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

465.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
466.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

467.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
468.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
469.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
470.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
471.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
472.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
473.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
474.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
475.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

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Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

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EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
476.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
477.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

478.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
479.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
480.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
481.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
482.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
483.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

484.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
485.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
486.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
487.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
488.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
489.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
490.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
491.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

492.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
493.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
494.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain
ers

Aerosol spray
Alternative wine closure
Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell

Corrugated box design

Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako
Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch

Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

Authority
control

Categories:

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This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;

additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of
Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

Privacy policy

About Wikipedia

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Developers

Mobile view

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
495.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
496.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
497.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
498.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
499.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
500.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
501.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
502.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

503.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
504.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

505.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
506.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
507.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
508.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
509.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
510.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
511. Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
512.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
513.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
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Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure

vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure

Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]

Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For

storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]

Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific

pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
514.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
515.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
516.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
517.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
518.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
519.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
520.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1

521.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water

collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

522.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
523.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
524.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
525.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
526.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
527.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
528.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
529.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
530.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
531.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
532.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification

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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]

Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic

shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]

Leak before burst[edit]

Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).

A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
533.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
534.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

535.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
536.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
537.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
538.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
539.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
540.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

541.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
542.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
543.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
544.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
545.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
546.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
547.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
548.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

549.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
550.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
551.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
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Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
552.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
553.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
554.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
555.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
556.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
557.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
558.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
559.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

560.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
561.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

562.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
563.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
564.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
565.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
566.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
567.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
568.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
569.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
570.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
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Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
571.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
572.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

573.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
574.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
575.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
576.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
577.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
578.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

579.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
580.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
581.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
582.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
583.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
584.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
585.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
586.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

587.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
588.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
589.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
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to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
590.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
591.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
592.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
593.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
594.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
595.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
596.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
597.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

598.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
599.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

600.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
601.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
602.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
603.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
604.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
605.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
606.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
607.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
608.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.
Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every

new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and

radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
609.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
610.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
611. Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
612.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
613.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
614.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
615.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
616.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

617.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
618.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

619.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
620.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
621.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
622.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
623.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
624.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
625.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
626.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
627.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
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media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
628.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
629.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

630.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
631.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
632.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
633.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
634.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
635.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

636.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
637.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
638.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
639.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
640.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
641.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
642.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
643.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

644.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
645.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
646.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
647.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
648.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
649.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
650.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
651.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
652.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
653.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
654.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

655.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
656.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

657.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
658.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
659.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
660.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
661.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
662.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
663.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
664.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
665.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
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Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
666.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
667.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

668.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
669.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
670.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
671.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
672.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
673.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

674.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
675.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
676.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
677.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
678.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
679.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
680.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
681.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

682.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
683.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
684.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
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media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
685.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
686.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
687.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
688.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
689.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
690.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
691.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
692.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

693.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
694.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

695.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
696.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
697.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
698.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
699.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
700.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
701.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
702.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
703.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure

vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure

Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]

Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For

storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]

Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific

pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
704.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
705.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
706.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
707.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
708.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
709.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
710.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1

711. Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water

collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

712.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
713.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
714.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
715.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
716.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
717.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
718.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
719.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
720.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
721.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
722.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification

[hide]

Containers

Contain
ers

Aerosol spray
Alternative wine closure
Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell
Corrugated box design
Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton

Food storage container

Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako
Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch
Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

Authority

NDL: 00560409

Commons

control

Categories:

Pressure vessels

Gas technologies

Navigation menu

Create account

Not logged in

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Log in
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Read
Edit
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]

Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic

shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]

Leak before burst[edit]

Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).

A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
723.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
724.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

725.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
726.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
727.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
728.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
729.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
730.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

731.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
732.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
733.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
734.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
735.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
736.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
737.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
738.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

739.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
740.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
741.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

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This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;

additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of
Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

Privacy policy

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Developers

Mobile view

Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
742.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
743.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
744.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
745.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
746.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
747.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
748.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
749.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

750.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
751.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

752.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
753.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
754.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
755.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
756.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
757.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
758.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
759.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
760.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
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up pressure
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free dictionary.
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Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
761.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
762.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

763.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
764.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
765.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
766.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
767.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
768.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

769.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
770.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
771.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
772.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
773.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
774.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
775.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
776.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

777.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
778.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
779.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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Horizontal pressure vessel in steel

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
780.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
781.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
782.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
783.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
784.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
785.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
786.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
787.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

788.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
789.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

790.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
791.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
792.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
793.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
794.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
795.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
796.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
797.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
798.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
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Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.

Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
799.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
800.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

801.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
802.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
803.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
804.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
805.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
806.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

807.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
808.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
809.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
810.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
811. Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
812.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
813.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
814.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

815.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
816.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
817.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
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Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a

much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the

BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
818.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
819.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
820.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
821.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
822.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
823.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
824.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
825.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

826.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
827.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

828.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
829.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
830.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
831.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
832.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
833.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
834.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
835.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
836.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain

Aerosol spray

ers

Alternative wine closure

Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell
Corrugated box design
Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako

Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch
Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

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References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain
ers

Aerosol spray
Alternative wine closure
Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell
Corrugated box design
Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope

Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako
Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch
Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

Authority
control

Categories:

Pressure vessels

Gas technologies

Navigation menu

Create account

Not logged in

Talk

Contributions

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Talk
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Edit
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Polski
Portugus

Shqip
Suomi
Svenska
Trke

Edit links

This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;

additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of

Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of

the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

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A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]

Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,

mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]

Leak before burst[edit]

Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).

A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
837.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
838.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

839.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
840.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
841.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
842.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
843.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
844.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

845.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
846.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
847.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
848.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
849.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
850.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
851.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
852.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

853.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
854.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
855.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

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A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a

much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the

BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
856.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
857.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
858.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
859.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
860.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
861.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
862.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
863.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

864.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
865.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

866.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
867.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
868.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
869.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
870.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
871.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
872.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
873.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
874.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain

Aerosol spray

ers

Alternative wine closure

Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell
Corrugated box design
Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako

Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch
Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

Authority
control

Categories:

Pressure vessels

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This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;

additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of
Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

Privacy policy

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References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain
ers

Aerosol spray
Alternative wine closure
Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
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A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National

Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more

accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic
shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.

Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]
Leak before burst[edit]
Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]

Pressure vessel closures[edit]

Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).
A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition
to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.

Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]

This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

.
Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.

For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.
The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,
in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.

Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a

safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
875.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
876.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13
877.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.
An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
878.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
879.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
880.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
881.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
882.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

883.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
884.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.

885.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;

DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
886.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
887.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
888.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
889.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
890.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.
891.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
892.Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
893.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com

Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the

ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
Wiktionary, the
free dictionary.
Wikimedia
Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
[hide]

Containers

Contain

Aerosol spray

ers

Alternative wine closure

Aluminium bottle
Aluminum can
Amphora
Ampoule
Antistatic bag
Bag-in-box
Barrel
Biodegradable bag
Blister pack
Bottle
Box
Box wine
Bulk box
Carboy
Carton
Chub
Clamshell
Corrugated box design
Crate
Desiccator
Drum
Envelope
Flagon
Flexible intermediate bulk container
Foam food container
Folding carton
Food storage container
Insulated shipping container
Intermediate bulk container
Jar
Jerrycan
Juicebox
Keg
Kbako

Multi-pack
Padded mailer
Pail
Plastic bag
Plastic bottle
Pressure vessel
Popcorn bag
Retort pouch
Sachet
Self-heating can
Self-heating food packaging
Shipping container
Skin pack
Spent nuclear fuel shipping cask
Spray bottle
Square milk jug
Tin can
Tobacco pouch
Tube
Unit load
Vial
Wooden box

Category

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This page was last modified on 25 September 2015, at 09:40.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;

additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of
Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

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A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different
from the ambientpressure.
The pressure differential is dangerous, and fatal accidents have occurred in the history of pressure vessel
development and operation. Consequently, pressure vessel design, manufacture, and operation are
regulated by engineering authorities backed by legislation. For these reasons, the definition of a pressure
vessel varies from country to country, but involves parameters such as maximum safe operating pressure
and temperature, and are engineered with a safety factor, corrosion allowance, minimum design
temperature (for brittle fracture), and involve nondestructive testing, such as ultrasonic
testing,radiography, and pressure tests, usually involving water, also known as a hydrotest, but could be
pneumatically tested involving air or another gas. The preferred test is hydrostatic testing because it's a
much safer method of testing as it releases much less energy if fracture were to occur (water does not
rapidly increase its volume while rapid depressurization occurs, unlike gases like air, i.e. gasses
fail explosively). In the United States, as with many other countries, it is the law that vessels over a certain
size and pressure (15 PSIg) be built to Code, in the United States that Code is the ASME Boiler and
Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), these vessels also require an Authorized Inspector to sign off on every
new vessel constructed and each vessel has a nameplate with pertinent information about the vessel
such as maximum allowable working pressure, maximum temperature, minimum design metal
temperature, what company manufactured it, the date, it's registration number (through the National
Board), and ASME's official stamp for pressure vessels (U-stamp), making the vessel traceable and
officially an ASME Code vessel.

Contents
[hide]

1 History of pressure vessels

2 Pressure vessel features

o

2.1 Shape of a pressure vessel

2.2 Construction materials

2.3 Safety features

2.3.1 Leak before burst

2.3.2 Safety valves

2.4 Maintenance features

2.4.1 Pressure vessel closures

3 Uses

4 Alternatives to pressure vessels

5 Design
5.1 Scaling

5.1.1 Scaling of stress in walls of vessel

5.1.2 Spherical vessel

5.1.3 Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends

5.1.4 Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends

5.1.5 Gas storage

5.2 Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels

5.3 Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels

5.4 Operation standards

5.4.1 List of standards

6 See also

7 Notes

8 References

9 Further reading

10 External links

History of pressure vessels[edit]

A 10,000 psi (69 MPa) pressure vessel from 1919, wrapped with high tensile steel banding and steel rods to secure
the end caps.

The earliest documented design of pressure vessels is described in the book Codex Madrid I, by
Leonardo da Vinci, in 1495, where containers of pressurized air were theorized to lift heavy weights
underwater,[1] however vessels resembling what are used today did not come about until the 1800s where
steam was generated in boilers helping to spur the industrial revolution.[1] However, with poor material
quality and manufacturing techniques along with improper knowledge of design, operation and
maintenance there was a large number of damaging and often fatal explosions associated with these
boilers and pressure vessels, with a death occurring on a nearly daily basis in the United States. [1] Local
providences and states in the US began enacting rules for constructing these vessels after some
particularly devastating vessel failures occurred killing dozens of people at a time, which made it difficult
for manufacturers to keep up with the varied rules from one location to another and the first pressure
vessel code was developed starting in 1911 and released in 1914, starting the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code (BPVC).[1] In an early effort to design a tank capable of withstanding pressures up to
10,000 psi (69 MPa), a 6-inch (150 mm) diameter tank was developed in 1919 that was spirally-wound
with two layers of high tensile strength steel wire to prevent sidewall rupture, and the end caps
longitudinally reinforced with lengthwise high-tensile rods.[2] The need for high pressure and temperature
vessels for petroleum refineries and chemical plants gave rise to vessels joined with welding instead of
rivets (which were unsuitable for the pressures and temperatures required) and in 1920s and 1930s the
BPVC included welding as an acceptable means of construction, and welding is the main means of
joining metal vessels today.[1] There have been many advancements in the field of pressure vessel
engineering such as advanced non-destructive examination, phased array ultrasonic testing and
radiography, new material grades with increased corrosion resistance and stronger materials, and new
ways to join materials such as explosion welding (to attach one metal sheet to another, usually a thin
corrosion resistant metal like stainless steel to a stronger metal like carbon steel), friction stir welding
(which attaches the metals together without melting the metal), advanced theories and means of more
accurately assessing the stresses encountered in vessels such as with the use of Finite Element Analysis,
allowing the vessels to be built safer and more efficiently. Today vessels in the USA require BPVC
stamping but the BPVC is not just a domestic code, many other countries have adopted the BPVC as
their official code. There are, however, other official codes in some countries (some of which rely on
portions of and reference the BPVC), Japan, Australia, Canada, Britain, and Europe have their own
codes. Regardless of the country nearly all recognize the inherent potential hazards of pressure vessels
and the need for standards and codes regulating their design and construction.

Pressure vessel features[edit]

Shape of a pressure vessel[edit]

Pressure vessels can theoretically be almost any shape, but shapes made of sections of spheres,
cylinders, and cones are usually employed. A common design is a cylinder with end caps called heads.
Head shapes are frequently either hemispherical or dished (torispherical). More complicated shapes have
historically been much harder to analyze for safe operation and are usually far more difficult to construct.

Spherical gas container.

Cylindrical pressure vessel.

Picture of the bottom of an aerosol spray can.

Fire Extinguisher with rounded rectangle pressure vessel

Theoretically, a spherical pressure vessel has approximately twice the strength of a cylindrical pressure
vessel with the same wall thickness,[3] and is the ideal shape to hold internal pressure. [1] However, a
spherical shape is difficult to manufacture, and therefore more expensive, so most pressure vessels are
cylindrical with 2:1 semi-elliptical heads or end caps on each end. Smaller pressure vessels are
assembled from a pipe and two covers. For cylindrical vessels with a diameter up to 600 mm (NPS of 24
in), it is possible to use seamless pipe for the shell, thus avoiding many inspection and testing issues,
mainly the nondestructive examination of radiography for the long seam if required. A disadvantage of
these vessels is that greater diameters are more expensive, so that for example the most economic

shape of a 1,000 litres (35 cu ft), 250 bars (3,600 psi) pressure vessel might be a diameter of 91.44
centimetres (36 in) and a length of 1.7018 metres (67 in) including the 2:1 semi-elliptical domed end caps.

Construction materials[edit]

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel with titanium liner.

Many pressure vessels are made of steel. To manufacture a cylindrical or spherical pressure vessel,
rolled and possibly forged parts would have to be welded together. Some mechanical properties of steel,
achieved by rolling or forging, could be adversely affected by welding, unless special precautions are
taken. In addition to adequate mechanical strength, current standards dictate the use of steel with a high
impact resistance, especially for vessels used in low temperatures. In applications where carbon steel
would suffer corrosion, special corrosion resistant material should also be used.
Some pressure vessels are made of composite materials, such as filament wound
composite using carbon fibre held in place with a polymer. Due to the very high tensile strength of carbon
fibre these vessels can be very light, but are much more difficult to manufacture. The composite material
may be wound around a metal liner, forming a composite overwrapped pressure vessel.
Other very common materials include polymers such as PET in carbonated beverage containers
and copper in plumbing.
Pressure vessels may be lined with various metals, ceramics, or polymers to prevent leaking and protect
the structure of the vessel from the contained medium. This liner may also carry a significant portion of
the pressure load.[4][5]
Pressure Vessels may also be constructed from concrete (PCV) or other materials which are weak in
tension. Cabling, wrapped around the vessel or within the wall or the vessel itself, provides the necessary
tension to resist the internal pressure. A "leakproof steel thin membrane" lines the internal wall of the
vessel. Such vessels can be assembled from modular pieces and so have "no inherent size limitations".
[6]
There is also a high order of redundancy thanks to the large number of individual cables resisting the
internal pressure.

Safety features[edit]

Leak before burst[edit]

Leak before burst describes a pressure vessel designed such that a crack in the vessel will grow through
the wall, allowing the contained fluid to escape and reducing the pressure, prior to growing so large as to
cause fracture at the operating pressure.
Many pressure vessel standards, including the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code [citation needed] and the
AIAA metallic pressure vessel standard, either require pressure vessel designs to be leak before burst, or
require pressure vessels to meet more stringent requirements for fatigue and fracture if they are not
shown to be leak before burst.[7]
Safety valves[edit]

Example of a valve used for gas cylinders.

As the pressure vessel is designed to a pressure, there is typically a safety valve or relief valve to ensure
that this pressure is not exceeded in operation.

Maintenance features[edit]
Pressure vessel closures[edit]
Pressure vessel closures are pressure retaining structures designed to provide quick access to pipelines,
pressure vessels, pig traps, filters and filtration systems. Typically pressure vessel closures allow
maintenance personnel.

Uses[edit]
Pressure vessels are used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. They appear
in these sectors as industrial compressed air receivers and domestic hot water storage tanks. Other
examples of pressure vessels are diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, pressure
reactors, autoclaves, and many other vessels in mining operations, oil
refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, submarine and space
ship habitats, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake
reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such
as ammonia, chlorine, and LPG (propane, butane).

A unique application of a pressure vessel is the passenger cabin of an airliner; The outer skin carries both
the aircraft maneuvering loads and the cabin pressurization loads.

A pressure tank connected to a water well and domestic hot water system.

A few pressure tanks, here used to holdpropane.

An expansion vessel for heating systems.

A pressure vessel used as a kier.

A pressure vessel used for The Boeing Companys CST-100 spacecraft.

Alternatives to pressure vessels[edit]

Natural gas storage

Gas holder

Depending on the application and local circumstances, alternatives to pressure vessels exist. Examples
can be seen in domestic water collection systems, where the following may be used:

Gravity controlled systems[8] which typically consist of an unpressurized water tank at an elevation
higher than the point of use. Pressure at the point of use is the result of the hydrostatic pressure
caused by the elevation difference. Gravity systems produce 0.43 pounds per square inch (3.0 kPa)
per foot of water head (elevation difference). A municipal water supply or pumped water is typically
around 90 pounds per square inch (620 kPa).
Inline pump controllers or pressure-sensitive pumps.[9]

Design[edit]
Scaling[edit]
No matter what shape it takes, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel scales with the pressure and
volume it contains and is inversely proportional to the strength to weight ratioof the construction material
(minimum mass decreases as strength increases[10]).
Scaling of stress in walls of vessel[edit]
Pressure vessels are held together against the gas pressure due to tensile forces within the walls of the
container. The normal (tensile) stress in the walls of the container is proportional to the pressure and
radius of the vessel and inversely proportional to the thickness of the walls. [11] Therefore, pressure vessels
are designed to have a thickness proportional to the radius of tank and the pressure of the tank and
inversely proportional to the maximum allowed normal stress of the particular material used in the walls of
the container.
Because (for a given pressure) the thickness of the walls scales with the radius of the tank, the mass of a
tank (which scales as the length times radius times thickness of the wall for a cylindrical tank) scales with
the volume of the gas held (which scales as length times radius squared). The exact formula varies with
the tank shape but depends on the density, , and maximum allowable stress of the material in addition

to the pressure P and volume V of the vessel. (See below for the exact equations for the stress in the
walls.)
Spherical vessel[edit]
For a sphere, the minimum mass of a pressure vessel is

,
where:

is mass,

is the pressure difference from ambient (the gauge pressure),

is volume,

is the density of the pressure vessel material,

is the maximum working stress that material can tolerate.[12]

Other shapes besides a sphere have constants larger than 3/2 (infinite cylinders take 2), although
some tanks, such as non-spherical wound composite tanks can approach this.
Cylindrical vessel with hemispherical ends[edit]
This is sometimes called a "bullet"[citation needed] for its shape, although in geometric terms it is a capsule.
For a cylinder with hemispherical ends,

,
where

R is the radius

W is the middle cylinder width only, and the overall width is W + 2R

Cylindrical vessel with semi-elliptical ends[edit]

In a vessel with an aspect ratio of middle cylinder width to radius of 2:1,

Gas storage[edit]
In looking at the first equation, the factor PV, in SI units, is in units of (pressurization) energy.
For a stored gas, PV is proportional to the mass of gas at a given temperature, thus

. (see gas law)

The other factors are constant for a given vessel shape and material. So we can see
that there is no theoretical "efficiency of scale", in terms of the ratio of pressure vessel
mass to pressurization energy, or of pressure vessel mass to stored gas mass. For
storing gases, "tankage efficiency" is independent of pressure, at least for the same
temperature.
So, for example, a typical design for a minimum mass tank to hold helium (as a
pressurant gas) on a rocket would use a spherical chamber for a minimum shape
constant, carbon fiber for best possible
possible

, and very cold helium for best

Stress in thin-walled pressure vessels[edit]

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a sphere is

,
where
is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction,
is stress
in the longitudinal direction, p is internal gauge pressure, r is the inner radius of the
sphere, andt is thickness of the sphere wall. A vessel can be considered "shallowwalled" if the diameter is at least 10 times (sometimes cited as 20 times) greater
than the wall depth.[13]

Stress in the cylinder body of a pressure vessel.

Stress in a shallow-walled pressure vessel in the shape of a cylinder is

,
,
where:

is hoop stress, or stress in the circumferential direction

is stress in the longitudinal direction

p is internal gauge pressure

r is the inner radius of the cylinder

t is thickness of the cylinder wall.

Almost all pressure vessel design standards contain variations of these two
formulas with additional empirical terms to account for wall thickness
tolerances, quality control of welds and in-service corrosion allowances.
For example, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) (UG-27)
formulas are:[14]
Spherical shells:

Cylindrical shells:

where E is the joint efficient, and all others variables as stated

above.

The factor of safety is often included in these formulas as well,

in the case of the ASME BPVC this term is included in the
material stress value when solving for pressure or thickness.

Winding angle of carbon fibre vessels[edit]

Wound infinite cylindrical shapes optimally take a winding
angle of 54.7 degrees, as this gives the necessary twice the
strength in the circumferential direction to the longitudinal. [15]

Operation standards[edit]
Pressure vessels are designed to operate safely at a specific
pressure and temperature, technically referred to as the
"Design Pressure" and "Design Temperature". A vessel that is
inadequately designed to handle a high pressure constitutes a
very significant safety hazard. Because of that, the design and
certification of pressure vessels is governed by design codes
such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code in North
America, the Pressure Equipment Directive of
the EU (PED), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS), CSAB51
in Canada, Australian Standards in Australia and
other international standards like Lloyd's, Germanischer
Lloyd, Det Norske Veritas, Socit Gnrale de Surveillance
(SGS S.A.), Lloyds Register Energy Nederland (formerly
known as Stoomwezen) etc.
Note that where the pressure-volume product is part of a
safety standard, any incompressible liquid in the vessel can
be excluded as it does not contribute to the potential energy
stored in the vessel, so only the volume of the compressible
part such as gas is used.
List of standards[edit]

EN 13445: The current European Standard, harmonized

with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC).
Extensively used in Europe.

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section VIII:

Rules for Construction of Pressure Vessels.

BS 5500: Former British Standard, replaced in the UK

by BS EN 13445 but retained under the name PD
5500 for the design and construction of export equipment.

AD Merkbltter: German standard, harmonized with

the Pressure Equipment Directive.

EN 286 (Parts 1 to 4): European standard for simple

pressure vessels (air tanks), harmonized with Council
Directive 87/404/EEC.

BS 4994: Specification for design and construction of

vessels and tanks in reinforced plastics.

ASME PVHO: US standard for Pressure Vessels for

Human Occupancy.

CODAP: French Code for Construction of Unfired

Pressure Vessel.

AS/NZS 1200: Pressure equipment.[16]

AS/NZS 3788:2006[17]

API 510.[18]

ISO 11439: Compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders[19]

IS 2825-1969 (RE1977)_code_unfired_Pressure_vessels.

FRP tanks and vessels.

AIAA S-080-1998: AIAA Standard for Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components.

AIAA S-081A-2006: AIAA Standard for Space Systems

- Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (COPVs).

B51-09 Canadian Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure

piping code.

HSE guidelines for pressure systems.

Stoomwezen: Former pressure vessels code in the

Netherlands, also known as RToD: Regels voor
Toestellen onder Druk (Dutch Rules for Pressure
Vessels).

See also[edit]

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Bottled gas

Composite overwrapped pressure vessel

Compressed air energy storage

Compressed natural gas

Demister

Fire-tube boiler

Gas cylinder

Gasket

Head (vessel)

Minimum Design Metal Temperature (MDMT)

Pressure bomb - a device for measuring leaf water

potentials

Rainwater harvesting

Relief valve

Safety valve

Shell and tube heat exchanger

Vapor-Liquid Separator or Knock-Out Drum

Vortex breaker

Water well

Water-tube boiler

Notes[edit]
894.^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Nilsen, Kyle. (2011) "Development of
low pressure filter testing vessel and analysis of
electrospun nanofiber membranes for water treatment"
895.Jump up^ Ingenious Coal-Gas Motor Tank, Popular
Science monthly, January 1919, page 27, Scanned by
Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?
id=HykDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13

896.Jump up^ Hearn, E.J. (1997). Mechanics of Materials 1.

An Introduction to the Mechanics of Elastic and Plastic
Deformation of Solids and Structural Materials - Third
Edition. Chapter 9: Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 199
203. ISBN 0-7506-3265-8.
897.Jump up^ NASA Tech Briefs, "Making a Metal-Lined
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel", 1 Mar 2005.
898.Jump up^ Frietas, O., "Maintenance and Repair of GlassLined Equipment", Chemical Engineering, 1 Jul 2007.
899.Jump up^ "High Pressure Vessels",D. Freyer and J.
Harvey, 1998
900.Jump up^ ANSI/AIAA S-080-1998, Space Systems Metallic Pressure Vessels, Pressurized Structures, and
Pressure Components, 5.1
901.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug (2005). "Domestic water
collection systems also sometimes able to function on
gravity". Harvesth2o.com. Retrieved 2009-04-17.[verification
needed]

902.Jump up^ Pushard, Doug. "Alternatives to pressure

vessels in domestic water systems". Harvesth2o.com.
Retrieved 2009-04-17.
903.Jump up^ Puskarich, Paul (2009-05-01). "Strengthened
Glass for Pipleine Systems" (PDF). MIT. Retrieved 200904-17.
904.Jump up^ Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, Jr., E. Russel;
DeWolf, John T. "7.9". Mechanics of Materials (fourth ed.).
McGraw-Hill. p. 463. ISBN 9780073659350.
905.Jump up^ For a sphere the thickness d = rP/2, where r is
the radius of the tank. The volume of the spherical surface
then is 4r2d = 4r3P/2. The mass is determined by
multiplying by the density of the material that makes up the
walls of the spherical vessel. Further the volume of the gas
is (4r3)/3. Combining these equations give the above
results. The equations for the other geometries are derived
in a similar manner
906.Jump up^ Richard Budynas, J. Nisbett, Shigley's
Mechanical Engineering Design, 8th ed., New
York:McGraw-Hill, ISBN 978-0-07-312193-2, pg 108
907.Jump up^ An International Code 2007 ASME Boiler &
Pressure Vessel Code. The Americal Society of
Mechanical Engineers. 2007.
908.Jump up^ MIT pressure vessel lecture
909.Jump up^ "AS 1200 Pressure Vessels". SAI Global.
Retrieved 14 November 2011.

910.Jump up^ "AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment - Inservice inspection". SAI Global. Retrieved September
4, 2015.
911. Jump up^ "Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: In-Service
Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration". API. June 2006.
912.Jump up^ ."Gas cylinders - High pressure cylinders for the
on-board storage of natural gas as a fuel for automotive
vehicles". ISO. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2009-04-17.

References[edit]

A.C. Ugural, S.K. Fenster, Advanced Strength and

Applied Elasticity, 4th ed.

E.P. Popov, Engineering Mechanics of Solids, 1st ed.

Megyesy, Eugene F. "Pressure Vessel Handbook, 14th

Edition." PV Publishing, Inc. Oklahoma City, OK

Further reading[edit]

Megyesy, Eugene F. (2008, 14th ed.) Pressure Vessel

Handbook. PV Publishing, Inc.: Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA. www.pressurevesselhandbook.com
Design handbook for pressure vessels based on the
ASME code.

External links[edit]
Look
up pressure
vessel in
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free dictionary.
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Commons has
media related
to Pressure
vessel.

Use of pressure vessels in oil and gas industry

Basic formulas for thin walled pressure vessels; with

examples

Educational Excel spreadsheets for ASME head, shell

and nozzle designs

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel website

Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology

EU Pressure Equipment Directive website

EU Simple Pressure Vessel Directive

EU Classification
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