PVElite ®

Pressure Vessel Design &

Analysis Software
Rigorous Pressure Vessel
Design and Evaluation
Made Simple
PV Elite is a complete solution for the quick and PVElite has Learn about these
comprehensive
comprehensive design of new pressure vessels the answer: PV Elite capabilities
for the process industry. PV Elite also evaluates in this brochure:
COMPLETE
and re-rates existing vessels including Fitness PV Elite provides the most comprehen- Extensive Content
sive mechanical design methods for • Vessel and Component Design Codes
for Service analysis. The program considers the widest range of pressure vessel • Local Wind and Seismic Standards
applications throughout the world. • Extensive Material Databases
the whole vessel, addressing all of the wall • Structural Steel Databases
• Default and Carry-forward Data
EASY TO USE
thickness rules and stress analysis requirements Structured Data Collection
Developing a model for evaluation is
• Input Organization
for vertical towers, horizontal vessels and heat easy in PV Elite. Substantial interactive
• General Vessel Categories
help is available throughout the
• Defining the Vessel through Elements
exchangers. Or, individual pressure vessel process. Each step of the analysis • Completing the Elements with Details
is displayed as it occurs and output • Standalone Vessel Components
components may be modeled and evaluated is clear and complete. Even for the • Model Display
occasional user, the process is easy.
according to current safety codes. Vessel Analysis
• Continuous On-the-fly Analysis
A C C U R AT E • Rigorous Structural Load Sets
The program’s 3D graphical represen- • Design, Evaluate and Re-rate Modes
PV Elite provides engineers, designers, tation of the vessel builds confidence • Wall Thickness for Pressure
• Wall Thickness for Total Load
in the accuracy of the model. Inter-
estimators, fabricators and inspectors around mediate calculations clearly show the
•
•
Fitness for Service Assessment
Special Analysis
steps taken to derive the final results.
the world with solutions that match their Individual Component
pressure vessel design requirements. Because GLOBAL Evaluation
PV Elite is popular around the world • Shells and Heads
• Conical Sections
the program is easy to learn and use, it is because it incorporates international • Nozzles
standards and includes a great • Flanges
perfect for both full-time vessel designers and quantity of localized data. • Nozzle Loads
• Base Rings
for those occasional users who require quick RELIABLE
•
•
Saddles
Vessel Attachments
The program has been proven reliable • Tubesheet and Flanged Extension
start up and confidence in their safety code by many years of real world use and • Floating Heads
• Flanged and Flued Expansion Joints
calculations. through constant updates and • Metal Bellows Expansion Joints
enhancements. Users everywhere • Fabricated Piping Intersections
have confidence in the program and • Rectangular and Non-circular Vessels
the results it provides. • Large Openings in Flat Heads
Whether it’s a simple component check or a • Half-pipe Jackets on Cylindrical Shells

complete vessel design, PV Elite’s input, analysis CURRENT Results Presentation

PV Elite is updated annually to include • Design Mode Control
and output have been designed to be clear, the latest rules in vessel codes and • Complete Calculation Reports
standards and to offer the latest • Equations with Substitutions
accurate and concise. technologies available. You know you
• Design Drawings

are always up-to-date with PV Elite. Links to Design and

Analysis Packages
Extensive • ASME/ANSI B16.5 and B16.47
standards for pipe flanges and
Content flanged fittings, including equiva-
lent pressure due to applied loads
PV Elite includes a wealth of localized plus pressure ratings for flanges
content to address most any vessel from the DIN standard.
project. Most obvious is its application • ASME Section UHX, PD 5500 and
of the design rules and criteria of the Tubular Exchanger Manufacturers
world’s major pressure vessel safety Association (TEMA) standards for
codes. Tables of local wind and seis- designing and analyzing
mic load data are ready for use in tubesheets and expansion joints
these analyses. And, detailed material in heat exchangers.
and structural steel specification is • ASME B31.3 rules for replacing
simplified through database selection. area around fabricated tees.
Units of measure, nominal pipe sizes, • ASME STS code for stack analysis.
flange classes and even bolt sizes can • Welding Research Council (WRC)
be customized to suit your needs. It is Bulletins 107, 297, 368 and PD
easy to turn this commercial package 5500 Annex G rules for calculating
into a customized tool for your own local stresses in and around vessel
application. attachments (lugs and nozzles). Heat Exchanger Analysis
PV Elite can model and analyze a variety of heat exchangers, vertical
Vessel and Component Design Codes Local Wind and Seismic Standards or horizontal.
PV Elite keeps pace with worldwide Many regional building codes define
vessel design codes and standards, the magnitude and application of Extensive Material Databases PV Elite offers input for units of
incorporating code changes as they wind and earthquake loads for their Proper specification of material data— measure (U.S. Customary, S.I., and
become mandatory. All of the major jurisdictions. These load tables can be such as allowable stress versus User-defined), pipe size and schedule
codes and standards are included. entered explicitly or, as a convenience, temperature, yield stress versus and flanges by class. The program will
• European Norm (EN) 13445 rules they can be selected from a standards temperature, external pressure charts, also carry-forward entered data from
for the analysis of unfired pressure database. Wind and/or seismic data UNS number and product form—is a one element to the next including
vessels. can be selected for: critical step in pressure vessel design. shell diameter, finished thickness,
• ASME BPV Code Section VIII, • Australia & New Zealand corrosion allowance, temperatures,
Divisions 1 & 2 for the design • Canada (NBC) PV Elite features material libraries pressures and vessel material.
and analysis of vessels and heat • Europe from around the world and offers easy
exchanger components. selection of over 3600 materials.
• British Standard PD 5500 guide-
•
•
India
Mexico PV Elite lists these properties just as Structured Data
lines for the analysis of unfired
fusion welded pressure vessels,
•
•
United States (ASCE 7 , UBC, IBC)
UK (BS 6399)
they appear in their respective codes,
all sorted alphabetically for quick
Collection
heat exchanger components and search and selection. You can view all PV Elite’s input processor is organized
tubesheets. properties for a selected material at to collect data to design, analyze
the click of a button. A database and evaluate a wide range of pressure
editor allows you to permanently add vessels and individual pressure
special materials or materials from components. As construction proceeds,
other codes to the standard database PV Elite displays a 3D model to
for future use in model creation. confirm the model layout. At the touch
of a button, on-line help is always
Structural Steel Databases available with code references, illus-
Leg supports and stiffening rings for trations and input recommendations.
pressure vessels are made of struc-
tural steel, and proper definition of the Logical Input Organization
steel size and shape is important in PV Elite segments the large amount
designing the vessel. As structural of input into logical groups, each in
steel shapes and sizes vary around its own section. Obviously, the section
the world, PV Elite includes the details holding the vessel model is primary
for the national standards of: to the input. The general control of the
• Australia analysis—the vessel code to apply,
• Germany selecting new design versus re-rate
• India (setting the wall thickness versus
• Japan resetting the MAWP), setting the
• Korea hydrotest position—is set in the
• North America Design Constraints tab. The compre-
• South Africa hensive list of vessel loads consisting
• UK of various combinations of pressure,
weight and wind or seismic loads can
Default and Carry-forward Data be manipulated in the Load Cases
Clear, Concise Output PV Elite eliminates errors and data tab. Other sections hold the specifica-
The output from PV Elite is easy to read, review and understand. search by offering a selection of stan- tion of wind loads, seismic loads and
It is also color coded showing problem areas at a glance. dard values from common datasets. other selections.
 Visual Model Display • Weight – new or corroded
As the vessel is built, a rendered 3D • Horizontal – wind (including vortex
presentation of the vessel model is shedding) and seismic
displayed as each major element is
added. The graphic includes vessel Design, Evaluate and Re-rate Modes
details throughout the model. By For a new vessel, PV Elite can identify
clicking on the element or detail, the critical load condition for each
PV Elite will display the input data for element and set its required shell
that component. You can also drag thickness. To confirm an existing
and drop a detail to another location vessel design, the program can
in the model and the graphical display simply check all existing thicknesses
updates instantly along with the data and stresses. To re-rate a vessel in
for that item. Other important geome- service, you need only update the
tries such as base ring layout and measured corrosion allowance or
nozzle orientation are also displayed change the temperature and pressure
as their input is collected. requirements, and PV Elite will
re-calculate the vessel’s MAWP,
PV Elite’s 3D graphic presentation including attached flanges.
validates the integrity of the model at
any time during the design. You can Wall Thickness for Pressure
turn the 3D model in any direction. Establishing wall thickness is a basic
Choose a 3D cutaway to see internal task of the pressure vessel designer,
components, all of which are to scale. and PV Elite determines required
Vertical Vessel Analysis
Vessels of all sizes and configurations can be modeled, including those This presentation is a great help in element wall thicknesses for internal
types that have intermediate skirts. identifying potential mistakes during pressure. To address external pressure,
the input data phase, thus saving PV Elite also considers total unsup-
time, money and potential problems ported shell length and strength of
General Vessel Categories and are assembled as horizontal or
downstream. stiffener rings in setting wall thickness.
Pressures vessels fall into two vertical vessels. Elements include:
categories—horizontal and vertical. • Cylindrical shells The 3D image can be saved and Wall Thickness for Total Load
Each vessel type has its own special • Elliptical, spherical, torispherical, distributed as HTML, providing full Vessel elements experience more than
considerations and PV Elite addressed conical and flat heads graphic manipulation to the recipient. simple pressure loads, so PV Elite will
these for both. For example, saddle • Conical sections (including those also consider overall vessel wall
supports are integral to horizontal with knuckles) stresses due to the many combinations
vessels while leg and skirt supports
are found on vertical vessels. The
• Body flanges (standard and custom) Vessel Analysis of 1) pressure (internal, external or
• Skirts with base ring details test), 2) deadweight (erected, operat-
PV Elite input processor identifies PV Elite performs all the calculations
necessary for the stress analysis of ing or hydrostatic test conditions), and
these categories and collects the Completing the Elements
vertical columns, horizontal vessels 3) wind or earthquake loads. PV Elite
appropriate data. Vertical vessels with Details
and heat exchangers. sums the weights of each element
may also include intermediate heads Details are added to each of these and all its details to calculate the
(to build stacked vessels) and hori- elements to finish out the vessel
Continuous, On-the-fly Analysis compressive stresses in the vessel
zontal vessels may include eccentric model. These details set the total
PV Elite provides continuous, real-time wall. The program also analyzes the
reducers (to model kettles). weight of each element and also
calculations during the input session. effects of bending due to wind and
highlight other design and analysis seismic loads. By basing these stress
Vessels identified as heat exchangers As you construct or change an ele-
concerns for the vessel. calculations on the total structural
can include all of the major mechani- ment, critical results are immediately
Details include: load, PV Elite ensures sufficient wall
cal details found in those units. displayed. The status bar shows the
• Stiffening rings* element’s required thickness for both thickness for the vessel in its operat-
This integrated approach produces a
• Nozzles and flanges* internal and external pressure, MAWP ing environment and proper design
complete set of calculations in accor-
• Applied forces and moments and maximum allowable pressure in of the vessel supports.
dance with ASME Part UHX, TEMA or
PD 5500. Fixed, floating and U-tube • Platforms the new and cold condition (MAPnc).
• Trays and packing This allows for quick on-screen Fitness for Service Assessment
arrangements can be included in the
• Saddles, legs and lugs* “what if” calculations at any time PV Elite uses the API 579 approach to
tubesheet evaluation. Components
• Fluid during the design and highlights input determine remaining operational life
such as expansion joints and floating
• Insulation and lining errors. Similar intermediate results of pressure vessels. Taking into
heads will also be analyzed. The heat
• Tubesheets* are displayed during the entry of account the current corroded condition
exchanger can then be assessed for
nozzles and stiffening rings. of the vessel, the current MAWP
a variety of structural loads such as * PV Elite will also analyze and
and the corrosion rate, PV Elite can
start-up, shut-down and hydrotest evaluate these details.
Rigorous Structural Load Sets estimate the remaining life of the unit.
conditions.
Standalone Vessel Components PV Elite evaluates the response of Where flaws are excessive, PV Elite
Vessel elements and details need not the vessel to a comprehensive list of will also compute the de-rated MAWP
Defining the Vessel
be assembled into a complete vessel possible load sets provided by the of the component as it currently exists.
through Elements
In PV Elite, all vessels can be quickly to be evaluated. Individual components program. These loads are defined by
modeled from a basic set of elements. can be modeled alone or in groups the user and can have a pressure
PV Elite collects these general data to (as in a group of flanges) for analysis. term, a weight term and a horizontal
build the vessel structure. These Also, PV Elite addresses special vessel load term:
elements hold data such as material, components such as rectangular
• Pressure – internal, external and
temperature, pressure and diameter vessels, half-pipe jackets and
hydrostatic
fabricated pipe intersections here.
 Vessel Attachments Complete Calculation Reports
Stresses on legs, supporting lugs, PV Elite compiles output into a set
trunnions and lifting lugs taking into of logical calculation groups. Major
account their allowable limits and groups include an input echo and
stresses on cap type and continuous an accounting of all weight
top support rings (girder rings). followed by thickness/stress results
for the internal pressure, external
Tubesheet and Flanged Extension pressure and structural load calcu-
Required thickness using TEMA, ASME lations. Reports are tabulated on
or the PD 5500 method and allowable an element-by-element basis and
tube stresses, tube-to-tubesheet joint clearly identify the intermediate
loads and allowable loads. steps that produced the end results.
Summaries gather overall results
Floating Heads such as vessel MAWP (including
Required head thickness and resulting attached flanges), nozzle schedule,
flange bending moments per ASME total weight and a bill of materials.
Section VIII, Division 1, Appendix 1 Color-coding highlights trouble
for floating heads under internal or spots. The level of report detail
external pressure. can be controlled by the user, and
Flanged and Flued Expansion Joints the output can be sent directly to
Stress, cycle life and spring rate in Microsoft Word.
Interactive Calculations accordance with ASME Section VIII,
Division 1 and TEMA Standards. Equations with Substitutions
For many items such as nozzle design, PV Elite performs calculations as
the data is typed in, allowing “what if” scenarios to be explored quickly.
PV Elite will not only quote the
Metal Bellows Expansion Joints source of safety code equations
Stress and cycle life for both rein- (e.g. wall thickness calculation) but
Special Analysis Shells and Heads forced and non-reinforced bellows also print out the equation used
PV Elite performs a variety of other MAWP or the required thickness for a per ASME Section VIII, Division 1, and replace parameters with actual
important calculations for evaluating specified internal or external working Appendix 26. data from the analysis. This is a
vessels. These include: pressure, Appendix 9 for jackets and great source of fabrication docu-
• Zick analysis (horizontal drums vessels, and the API 579 capability for Fabricated Piping Intersections mentation for the inspector.
on saddle supports) calculating vessels that have an Required thickness due to internal
• Natural frequency calculations identified flaw. pressure, required and available area Design Drawings
and modal seismic analysis of reinforcement and MAWP accord- Reports may be augmented with
• Critical wind speed calculations Conical Sections ing to ANSI B31.3. vessel plots including PCX and DXF
• Wind loads due to vortex shedding MAWP, the thickness required for file formats. Vessel and component
specified internal or external working Rectangular and Non-circular
• Area and moment of inertia drawings direct from PV Elite
pressures and the discontinuity Vessels
checks for cone reinforcement provide a quick starting place for
stresses at cone-to-cylinder junctures. MAWP and stress, including stayed
and stiffening rings the designer, saving both time
or reinforced geometry, per ASME
• Local shell stresses at nozzles Nozzles and money.
Section VIII, Division 1, Appendix 14.
and attachments Area of replacement, minimum design
• Fatigue analysis of openings Large Openings in Integral
(e.g. nozzles) per ASME, EN 13445
metal temperature, minimum neck
thickness, weld strength, minimum Flat Heads Links to Design
and PD 5500
• Rigging analysis when the vessel
weld size, large nozzle and hillside Stresses and allowable stresses
based on ASME Section VIII, Division 1,
and Analysis
calculations.
is to be erected Appendices 2 and 14. Packages
• Thick wall (flanged and flued) Flanges
expansion joints on heat exchangers Required thickness, MAWP and code- Half-pipe Jackets on PV Elite provides links that allow
• Influence of test position on defined stresses using ASME Section Cylindrical Shells vessel designers and engineers
hydrotest pressure VIII - Appendices 2 and Y for stress Required thickness and MAWP to pass design and analysis data
• Evaluation of large openings in and rigidity calculations. based on ASME Section VIII, Division between these packages with
flat heads 1, Appendix EE. no data loss:
Nozzle Loads
• Plant Design (CAD):
Local stresses due to external loads
Individual according to WRC Bulletins 107, 297, Results CADWorx Equipment

Component and 368 as well as PD 5500 Annex G.

Allowable stresses are also computed.
Presentation • Finite Element Analysis:
Nozzle Pro
Calculations** Base Rings
Continuous Design Mode Control
PV Elite will interrupt the analysis • Thermal & Process Design:
With PV Elite, you can easily analyze Required thickness of the gusset, output when a thickness change is Xist
individual components without having skirt and annular baseplates due to indicated and request the user’s • Foundation Design:
to create a complete vessel model. wind or seismic moments and the confirmation of the design change. Foundation3D
Quick checks of individual vessel local stress and required thickness Upon continuation, previous analysis
components address the following: of the top plate. steps will be rerun with the new data • Fabrication: ProFab

Saddles (e.g. vessel weight). Reports will • Inspection/Maintenance:

Stresses at key points on the vessel clearly indicate program-generated Visions Enterprise
and saddles for various conditions, design modifications.
** These individual component calculations
are also offered as a stand-alone package including wind and seismic loads,
in COADE’s CodeCalc program.
using Zick Analysis.
 Clear Reports
Output includes code formula references
with numbers inserted into the equations.

Support
Comprehensive On-line Support: Get quick and
accurate answers to technical support questions
at the touch of a button.

Dedicated Technical Support from COADE:

Technical support at COADE is provided by
trained and experienced product developers and
programmers who are employees of COADE. This
ensures the most complete and personalized
software support, exactly when you need it and
by a person who understands your specific needs.

Constant Development: Like all COADE products,

PV Elite is continually updated as codes and stan-
dards change. Other enhancements are made with
each release to ensure PV Elite continues to be
the best solution for vessel design and evaluation.

Software Requirements
• Microsoft Windows (2000, XP or later)
Operating System
• Microsoft Internet Explorer (5.0 or later)

PV Elite Licenses
All software licenses provide the following
as standard:
• Complete program
• One complete set of program manuals
• Online technical newsletter
• Phone, fax, web site and e-mail access
for technical support

Full License Provides:

• Perpetual single license with no limit on the
amount or duration of use
• One full year of automatic upgrades from
date of purchase
• Eligibility for annual extensions of automatic
COADE, INC.
upgrades
• Eligibility for discounts on additional
12777 Jones Road, Suite 480 ©2006 COADE, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
PV Elite, CodeCalc and CADWorx are
Full License purchases Houston, Texas 77070 USA trademarks of COADE. Microsoft, Windows,
Phone: +1 281-890-4566 Internet Explorer, and Word are trademarks
Monthly Lease Provides: Fax: +1 281-890-3301
of Microsoft Corporation. NozzlePro is a
• Full License copy on a monthly rental basis trademark of Paulin Research Group.
Toll Free: +1 800-899-8787 Foundation3D is a trademark of
• Option to apply first month lease when Dimensional Solutions, Inc. ProFab is a
converting to a Full License purchase E-mail: [email protected] trademark of Applied Productions, Inc.
Web: www.coade.com Visions Enterprise is a trademark of
Metegrity, Inc. Xist is a trademark of HTRI.