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Silos and tanks in research and practice: State of the art and current
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Article · January 2009

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Proceedings of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) Symposium 2009, Valencia
Evolution and Trends in Design, Analysis and Construction of Shell and Spatial Structures
28 September – 2 October 2009, Universidad Politecnica de Valencia, Spain
Alberto DOMINGO and Carlos LAZARO (eds.)
Silos and tanks in research and practice: state of the

art and current challenges
J. Michael ROTTER*
*Institute for Infrastructure and Environment, University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

William Rankine Building, King’s Buildings, Edinburgh EH9 3JU
[email protected]
Abstract
Silos and tanks are probably the commonest form of large engineering shell structure in
service, but their placement on industrial sites and out of the public eye often leads them to
be neglected by researchers and the public alike. The high rate of structural failure in these
structures is a strong indication of the extensive range of issues that must be understood by
the designer and the complexity of their behavior. This paper outlines some of the most
critical aspects of the loading, structural behavior and failure modes of silos and tanks, and
points in many places towards the need for additional research to permit better regulation of
these very varied and complex structures.
Keywords: Silo, tank, steel shell, concrete shell, loading, earthquake design, failure modes,
buckling, plasticity, multi-segment shell.
1. Introduction
Silos and tanks are widely used in a great many different industries for storing a huge range
of different solids and liquids. The sizes of engineered silos may vary from capacities less
that ten tonnes to the largest containing as much as 100,000 tonnes. Tanks similarly vary
greatly in size from a few metres in diameter to over 100 metres. The size of the structure
has a strong bearing on the number of different considerations that must be taken into
account in structural design: small silos and tanks usually do not present significant
structural problems, but large silos and tanks lead to very varied situations where many
different aspects need careful attention.
Tanks can take on a huge range of structural forms, and not infrequently have distinctive
architectural features to take advantage of their visibility (Figure 1). By contrast, although
the designs used for silos vary very much (Figure 2), they are chiefly confined to industrial
locations and rarely exploited for publicity purposes. In some industries (e.g. on-farm grain
storage), there is a competitive industry producing standard silo products which function
extremely well and cost-effectively provided the conditions remain those anticipated in
their design. In other industries (e.g. cement and mineral ore storage or port facilities) very
65
large silos are used and every silo must be individually designed for the special conditions.
It should be noted that each silo is normally designed to contain a very limited range of
solids, and that the use of a silo designed for one kind of solid to store different solids can
easily cause damage. Bulk solids vary very much in their properties, and a silo that is
perfectly adequate to store one material may be very dangerous for another.
a) Large oil tanks, Czech Republic b) Elevated water c) Concrete elevated

tank, USA water tank, France
Figure 1: Different geometries and sizes of tank
This paper refers extensively to the provisions of the recently developed European
standards for actions on silos and tanks (EN 1991-4 [5]), for structural design of metal
shells (EN 1993-1-6 [6]), silos (EN 1993-4-1 [7]) and tanks (EN 1993-4-2 [8]), for which
the author was a chief contributor and editor. Further useful information relating to the
structural design of silos may be found in Rotter [16] and extensive information and
background material relating to the buckling of metal shells is given in the recently
published 5th Edition of ECCS Recommendations on the Stability of Steel Shells [21].
2. Loading on silos and tanks

2.1. Storage loads in silos and tanks
For tanks, the storage loads are generally simple and are often governed by the need for a
water test. By contrast, storage and discharge loads in silos are complex and depend on a
huge range of conditions, from the stored material and its propensity to develop cohesion,
to the method of deposition, the potential for segregation, the pattern of flow of the solids,
and the properties of the silo walls, as well as the geometry of the container.
2.2. Discharge loads in silos
Silo design is dominated by discharge loading conditions, which remain significantly
unpredictable even in the early 21st century. The most comprehensive design standard for
these loads is the new Eurocode EN 1991-4 [5] which defines different classes of silo by
size, aspect ratio, wall roughness and construction material, as well as requiring a range of
properties to be considered for the stored solids and requiring several different loading
66
conditions to be examined in design calculations. Overall, this is probably the most

complex part of silo design, and failures in silos are very commonly attributed to errors due
to misinterpretation of the stored solid rather than errors in structural assessment.
a) 10,000 tonne steel grain b) Corrugated steel c) Rectangular concrete silo

storages, Australia storage, Germany battery, Austria
d) Older concrete and newer steel e) Salt storage with f) FRP farm silo, France
silos, France control room, Italy
Figure 2: Different geometries and sizes of silo
67
However, the discharge loads on silos defined in all standards correspond to extreme
simplifications of experimental measurements. These measurements (e.g. Figure 3) usually
show a relatively stable set of pressures after filling and during storage, but very erratic
behavior is observed during discharge. The physical explanations for these erratic
pressures have been numerous, and a variety of quasi-static analyses have been offered in
the past to try to quantify the magnitudes of the peak pressures. However, both
computational modeling and analytical theories [1] currently do not predict the observed
behavior, and do not provide a quantitative basis for silo design.
Pressure cell readings up one vertical line in a test silo: ESRCFC5
8
A5 B5 C5 D5 F5 G5 H5
7
H 6
Wall pressure (kPa)
G Filling end:
p 5 31mins
F
E 4
pressure
cells D 3
C
B 2
A 1 Discharge start:
57mins
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Time (mins)
a) test silo b) measured pressures during filling and discharge

Figure 3: Typical experimental silo and trace of pressures on the wall
It may be noted that it is not simple to deduce what should be done with a test record like
that in Figure 3. Traditional experimentalists have taken the highest observed pressure at
each cell position and drawn an envelope over them, in the simple expectation that the
highest pressure at each point must somehow be a worst case. Unfortunately this is far
from the truth [20]. Unsymmetrical pressure patterns, even with low pressures, are far
more damaging to the structure than uniform high pressures [18], so the actual patterns at
different instants in Figure 3 need to be examined to determine the extent of loss of
symmetry. This is a major task which the silo and shell structures research communities
are only beginning to address. Moreover, the major loss of symmetry in silo pressures
appears to be completely missing in all computational models for silo pressures to date [1].
2.3. Wind and partial vacuum loads
During discharge of a tank or silo, inadequate venting of the airspace above the stored
materials can lead to a partial vacuum which the structure is not easily able to sustain. This
is a relatively simple load case.
68
When a tank or silo is wholly or partly empty, it is very susceptible to buckling in a

windstorm. The wind exerts a non-uniform pressure on the shell, with the stagnation
pressure at the windward generator rapidly decaying away from that location around the
structure (Figure 4a). The pattern of pressure has commonly been regarded in the past as a
fixed distribution, but more recent research has shown that it depends on the aspect ratio of
the complete structure [12], varies with height and is affected by the roof geometry [14].
Further, it is clear that a group of tanks or silos in a line facing the wind experience a much
larger zone of inward pressure (Figure 4b), and this promotes buckling failures more
powerfully. A further problem of wind loading occurs when a large set of shells in a
rectangular block are subjected to wind. Recent studies [3] have shown that those situated
at a corner of the group are particularly strongly loaded by the wind. However, the design
standards (e.g. EN 1991-2-4 [4]) are far behind on these aspects and much additional
research is needed to upgrade them.
dc 2
1
Wind
45º 90º 135º 180º
Cp θ
θ
−1
−2
a) Single cylindrical tank or silo
1
Wind
45º 90º 135º 180º
Cp θ
θ
−1
−2
b) Group of silos or tanks

Figure 4: Typical wind pressure distribution on a cylindrical tank or silo
2.4. Seismic loads

Earthquakes pose different problems to both silos and tanks according to the principal
geometry of the structure. Where the structure is elevated (as in Figure 1b, 1c, 2a, 2d and
69
2e), the structure and its contents behaves very much as an inverted pendulum, with a very
large mass supported above a spring of well defined stiffness. The natural period of such
structures is usually long when full, but the level of filling changes the mass radically, so it
can vary far more than other structures. This variation is important in seismic assessments.
However, the behaviour of the contents is less significant in this structural form.
By contrast, when a tank is ground-supported (Figure 1a), the phenomenon of sloshing of
the fluid becomes critically important, and careful assessments must be made of the
convective and impulsive pressures, together with additional pressures induced by the
deformations of the structure (see EN 1998-4 [9]).
3. Failure modes in tanks

3.1. Introduction
The critical design considerations for a structure are chiefly revealed by the instances of
structural failures. Here, the chief design problems in tanks and silos are identified by
consideration of specific failure situations.
3.2. Buckling under wind and partial vacuum
The commonest failure mode in tanks is buckling under wind (Figure 5a), or under partial
vacuum induced by rapid discharge of the contents or temperature reduction in the air
above the liquid (Figure 5b). An inadequate tensile holding down detail at the wall base,
where the deformable shell experiences greatly elevated local stresses, can cause complete
loss (Figure 5c).
a) Windstorm b) Partial vacuum, c) Tank separation d) Elephant’s foot:

buckling, USA Finland from foundation, USA seismic action
Figure 5: Tank failures under wind, partial vacuum and seismic action
3.3. Elevated metal tanks

Where a metal tank is elevated (Figure 1b), the junction between the storage vessel (usually
a conical shell) and the supporting column is a point of discontinuity combined with high
meridional compression and internal pressure. The conditions under which failure occur
are relatively complicated and are described in the ECCS Recommendations [11].
70
3.4. Seismic failure modes in tanks

Ground supported tanks are particularly susceptible to failures under seismic action because
of the sloshing behavior of the stored liquid. The commonest failure is an elephant’s foot
buckling mode (Figure 5d), involving plastic instability under higher pressures [15].
Accurate prediction of this failure mode depends chiefly on a careful evaluation of the
acting pressures.
4. Failure modes in silos

4.1. Introduction and bursting
As for tanks, the chief criteria for silo design can be seen in the record of failure modes. As
with a tank, the most obvious condition is internal pressure, but this rarely governs the
design of a silo because vertical compressive forces in a thin metal shell are induced by
both friction between the solid and the wall and unsymmetrical components of pressure.
The latter also cause damaging local bending in concrete silos.
4.2. Bending in concrete silos
Unsymmetrical pressures in reinforced and pre-stressed concrete silos induce local
circumferential bending of the wall, leading to severe cracking and sometimes to rupture.
The most severe of these unsymmetrical pressure conditions is during eccentric discharge
of the silo, when a channel of flowing solid against a small part of the wall causes very low
pressures, with high pressures on either side. This condition was first codified in the new
Eurocode EN 1991-4 [5], but less serious conditions also arise under apparently
symmetrical flow (Figure 3), and these are currently dealt with using “patch” loads. The
quantification and justification for the size, shape and magnitude of these patch load
pressure patterns remains a significant research challenge.
4.3. Axial compression in metal silos
The commonest failure mode in cylindrical metal silos is buckling under axial compression.
This failure mode is often catastrophic where it occurs under relatively symmetrical
loading, but where locally elevated stresses cause such a buckle, it can be stable.
Unsymmetrical pressures, and especially those associated with eccentric discharge, cause
serious and catastrophic failures where the silo is sufficiently tall. Examples of such
buckles are shown in Figure 6. This mode of buckling is very sensitive to the accuracy
with which the structure has been built, so the new Eurocode EN 1993-4-1 [7] defines three
Fabrication Quality Classes, which have different tolerance requirements and different
defined strengths. However, for conditions of locally elevated axial compression, there is a
significant dearth of knowledge and such failures remain slightly tricky to predict.
71
a) Uniform b) Unsymmetrical c) Eccentric d) Eccentric

compression, Scotland compression discharge, Scotland discharge, Poland
Figure 6: Metal silo failures in buckling under axial compression
4.4. Wind and partial vacuum

When a silo is empty, the same problems arise as were described above for tanks. Tanks
tend to be of larger diameter and thinner than silos, so wind buckling is commoner in tanks.
a) Hopper b) Hopper rupture, c) Hopper rupture, d) Hopper buckling, UK

rupture, UK Germany Australia
Figure 7: Collapse of hoppers leads to total loss of the contents
4.5. Hopper collapse and buckling

The conical hopper in the lower part of a silo is there to facilitate discharge of the solids.
Steep hoppers are needed when the stored solid is prone to the development of a small
cohesion (e.g. flour). The silo is normally supported at the transition between the cylinder
and hopper, putting the conical hopper into biaxial tension under both pressures and
frictional tractions from the solid. Shells in biaxial tension are strong [16], and failures
here normally only arise either because the solids pressures are badly misjudged or the
designer has a poor understanding of shell theory. Examples of hopper rupture failures are
shown in Figure 7. It is common for the roof or walls to be destroyed by the partial vacuum
72
induced by the extremely rapid discharge of solids. Figure 7b also shows a buckling failure
in a hopper, which is unexpected since the hopper is designed for biaxial tension. This type
of failure arises either when structures connected to the hopper exert horizontal forces at the
hopper base, or eccentric discharge flows cause unsymmetrical pressures, both of which
lead to compressive stresses on one side [16].
4.6. Ring beam and support structure failures
The transition between the cylinder and hopper in a metal silo is not only a location of high
circumferential compression due to the hopper tension, but it is also the zone in which local
discrete supports are commonly introduced. These two roles lead to considerable
complexity in the stress patterns, and lead most designers to exercise great caution. Both
plastic collapse [23] and buckling failures [24] are possible, but the junction between a
conical and cylindrical shell is a particularly stiff location, so simple analyses tend to
underestimate the strength. Consequently, there are few failures, but there is great scope
for an increased efficiency and reduced costs by using engaged columns [25] or bracket
supports [2]. Much further research is needed to obtain good rules for design.
4.7. Differential settlement beneath silos and tanks
Both silos and tanks that are ground-supported are susceptible to buckling problems when
differential settlements occur beneath them or adjacent to them. Such problems arise either
because the tank or silo is built on land where earlier similar storage structures had caused
long term settlement of part of the supported perimeter [10], or where only an adjacent silo
is built too close at a later date and causes local settlements. This cause of damage is
sometimes attributed when there is really a different reason, but it can be quite difficult to
resolve such cases beyond all doubt. In metal silos, the consequent dimples appear to be
relatively benign and not a cause for concern [10], but the consequent cracking damage to
concrete silos can damage the stored product or cause leakage of liquid.
4.8. Seismic failure modes in silos
Elevated silos are similar to elevated tanks, and function as inverted pendulum structures.
Ground-supported silos are less susceptible to failures under seismic action than tanks
because a significant proportion of the forces exerted on the stored solid by horizontal
accelerations are transferred directly to the ground [19]. This is a beneficial effect of the
static frictional behavior of granular solids. The commonest failure is again the elephant’s
foot buckling mode (Figure 5d), involving plastic instability under higher pressures [15].
73
5. Current needs for research

5.1. Introduction
The above review of the critical loading and structural design considerations for silos and
tanks indicates a number of vital areas for research over the next years. A few are
highlighted here because of their critical importance.
5.1. Pressure characterization in silos
The structural design of a silo depends strongly on the pressure regime assumed to be
applied by the stored solid. However, all current codes for design are based on very simple
concepts and very approximate empirical rules derived solely from tests, and the tests
themselves are extremely difficult to interpret [20]. Only a very few attempts have been
made to perform statistical treatments of silo pressure measurements [13] and even then it
is difficult to decide how to translate the outcome into useful design rules. Much further
thoughtful research is needed in this area.
5.2. FEM or DEM quantitative predictions of silo pressures and solids flow
As noted above, current silo design is based on very empirical treatments of test records,
because no computational models appear yet able to capture the phenomena seen in tests
(Figure 3), let alone to quantify them well enough to give guidance on the development of
better rules for design. Both continuum finite element and discrete element treatments have
been used to try to overcome this problem, but to date the success has been rather limited.
Research aimed at finding predictive techniques that can capture the phenomena, perhaps
using stochastic variations of properties within a single body of material, would be most
valuable and would represent a significant scientific advance in the field of granular solids.
5.3. Buckling in silos under local stress states
Most research on the buckling of metal shell structures has concentrated on simple load
cases of uniform compression, uniform external pressure and uniform torsional shear, with
further studies of global bending and translational shear [6]. However, many silo and tank
structures are commonly subject to much more complex load cases, and it is possible to use
nonlinear computational modeling to obtain good predictions for any given set of
conditions [6]. The problem of imperfection sensitivity, and how it varies with stress state,
imperfection form and amplitude [17] makes even these individual studies onerous.
However, the generalization of these predictions into understanding and expressions
suitable for design calculations is a challenging and complicated task, and much research
effort is needed in this area in the coming years.
5.4. Locally supported cylindrical vessels
The support arrangements for elevated silos and tanks are currently designed more by
experience than by science. In small structures, engaged columns and local brackets are
used without significant calculations to justify them. In larger structures, such supports are
rarely used, since the scientific basis is missing and designers err on the safe side. A
significant research effort is needed here, but there are so many parameters that interact in
determining the strength that such studies are far from simple [26].
74
5.5. Imperfection measurement criteria, methods and significance

The buckling strength of a shell structure is often very sensitive to minor geometric
imperfections. In construction, these must be controlled to limit them to the values that
have been assumed in the design process. This is particularly important now that EN 1993-
1-6 [6] has permitted three quality classes of fabrication. But the huge range of different
imperfection forms and their different effects on the strength of the structure make this
control difficult to exercise. Current rules for tolerances in construction use crude methods
of measurement, but are not yet calibrated against nonlinear computational assessments. Is
a deep imperfection always bad? Does this dent matter? Much research is needed to bring
together the science of imperfection sensitivity to tolerances measures needed in practice.
5.6. Relationship between tolerance measurements and strength
Current tolerance measurements do not relate well to computationally defined amplitudes
of imperfections. Much work is also needed to establish the relationships between
tolerance measurement systems and the corresponding strength. For example, it is
insufficient to say that an eigenmode imperfection with amplitude of one wall thickness
was used in design, since the constructor has no way of assessing how to make tolerance
measurements that relate to a defect mode that he cannot see or assess.
Acknowledgement
The author is especially indebted to Profs Herbert Schmidt and Richard Greiner in relation
to structural issues, and to Dr Jörgen Nielsen in relation to silo pressures and solids flow.
References
[1] Brown, C.J. and Nielsen, J. (eds) Silos: Fundamentals of Theory, Behaviour and
Design, Spon, 1998.
[2] Doerich, C. and Rotter, J.M. Behavior of cylindrical steel shells supported on local
brackets, Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, 2008; 134(8); 1269-1277.
[3] Dooms, D. Fluid-structure interaction applied to flexible silo constructions, PhD
thesis, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium, 2009.
[4] EN 1991-2-4 (2005) Eurocode 1: Basis of design and actions on structures Part 2.4:
Wind loads, Comité Européen de Normalisation, Brussels.
[5] EN 1991-4 Eurocode 1: Basis of Design and Actions on Structures, Part 4 - Silos and
Tanks, Eurocode 1 Part 4, CEN, Brussels, 2007.
[6] EN 1993-1-6 Eurocode 3: Design of steel structures, Part 1.6: General rules -
Strength and stability of shell structures, Eurocode 3 Part 1.6, CEN, Brussels, 2007.
[7] EN 1993-4-1 Eurocode 3: Design of steel structures, Part 4.1: Silos, Eurocode 3 Part
4.1, CEN, Brussels, 2007.
[8] EN 1993-4-2 Eurocode 3: Design of steel structures, Part 4.2: Tanks, Eurocode 3
Part 4.2, CEN, Brussels, 2007.
75
[9] EN 1998-4 Eurocode 8: Design provisions for earthquake resistance of structures-

Part 4: Silos, tanks and pipelines, CEN, Brussels, 2006.
[10] Holst, J.M.F.G. and Rotter, J.M. Axially Compressed Cylindrical Shells with Local
Settlement, Thin-Walled Structures, 2005; 43(5); 811-825.
[11] Lagae, G., Guggenberger, W. and Vanleare, W. Liquid-filled conical shells supported
from below, Chapter 14 in European Recommendations for Steel Construction:
Buckling of Shells, 5th edition, eds J.M. Rotter and H. Schmidt, European Convention
for Constructional Steelwork, Brussels, 2008; 281-308.
[12] MacDonald, P.A., Kwok, K.C.S. and Holmes, J.D. Wind Loads on Circular Storage
Bins, Silos and Tanks: I. Point Pressure Measurements on Isolated Structures, Journal
of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 1988; 31; 165-188.
[13] Ooi, J.Y., Rotter, J.M. and Pham, L. Systematic and Random Features of Measured
Pressures on Full-Scale Silo Walls, Engineering Structures, 1990; 12 (2); 74-87.
[14] Portela, G. and Godoy, L.A. Wind pressures and buckling of cylindrical steel tanks
with a dome roof, Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 2005; 61; 808-824.
[15] Rotter, J.M. Local Inelastic Collapse of Pressurised Thin Cylindrical Steel Shells
under Axial Compression, J. Structural Engrg, ASCE, 1990; 116(7); 1955-1970.
[16] Rotter, J.M. Guide for the Economic Design of Circular Metal Silos, Spon, 2001.
[17] Rotter, J.M. Buckling of cylindrical shells under axial compression, in Buckling of
Thin Metal Shells, eds J.G. Teng & J.M. Rotter, Spon, 2004; 42-87.
[18] Rotter, J.M. Silo and hopper design for strength, Chapter 3 in Bulk Solids Handling-
Equipment Selection and Operation, ed D. McGlinchey, Blackwell, 2008, 99-134.
[19] Rotter, J.M. and Hull, T.S. Wall Loads in Squat Steel Silos during Earthquakes,
Engineering Structures, 1989; 11(3); 139-147.
[20] Rotter, J.M., Pham, L. and Nielsen, J. On the Specification of Loads for the Structural
Design of Bins and Silos, Proc., 2nd Int. Conf. on Bulk Materials Storage Handling
and Transportation, Inst. Engrs, Aust., Wollongong, 1986, 241-247.
[21] Rotter J.M. and Schmidt, H. (eds) Stability of Steel Shells: European Design
Recommendations: 5th Edition, ECCS, Brussels, 2008.
[22] Rotter, J.M., Ooi, J.Y. and Zhong, Z. Critical pressure conditions in silos, Proc. 5th
Int. Conf. for Conveying & Handling of Particulate Solids, Sorrento, 2006, 6pp.
[23] Teng, J.G. and Rotter, J.M. Plastic Collapse of Restrained Steel Silo Hoppers, Journal
of Constructional Steel Research, 1989; 14(2); 139-158.
[24] Teng, J.G. and Rotter, J.M. Plastic Buckling of Rings at Steel Silo Transition
Junctions, Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 1991; 19(1); 1-18.
[25] Vanlaere W., Van Impe R., Lagae G. and De Strycker M., Stringer stiffened cylinders
on local supports – the plastic buckling behavior. Key Engineering Materials, 2007;
340-341; 1303-1308.
[26] Wallner, S. Modellbildung und plastische Tragfähigkeit diskret gelagerter
Stahlsilokonstrucktionen mit Auflagerlängssteifen, DTW thesis, TU Graz, 2002.
76
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Article · January 2009

Shell buckling design philosophy View project

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Silos and tanks in research and practice: state of the

*Institute for Infrastructure and Environment, University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

a) Large oil tanks, Czech Republic b) Elevated water c) Concrete elevated

2. Loading on silos and tanks

conditions to be examined in design calculations. Overall, this is probably the most

a) 10,000 tonne steel grain b) Corrugated steel c) Rectangular concrete silo

a) test silo b) measured pressures during filling and discharge

When a tank or silo is wholly or partly empty, it is very susceptible to buckling in a

a) Single cylindrical tank or silo

b) Group of silos or tanks

2.4. Seismic loads

3. Failure modes in tanks

a) Windstorm b) Partial vacuum, c) Tank separation d) Elephant’s foot:

3.3. Elevated metal tanks

3.4. Seismic failure modes in tanks

4. Failure modes in silos

a) Uniform b) Unsymmetrical c) Eccentric d) Eccentric

4.4. Wind and partial vacuum

a) Hopper b) Hopper rupture, c) Hopper rupture, d) Hopper buckling, UK

4.5. Hopper collapse and buckling

5. Current needs for research

5.5. Imperfection measurement criteria, methods and significance

[9] EN 1998-4 Eurocode 8: Design provisions for earthquake resistance of structures-

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