Strength, Stability, and

Optimization of Pressure Vessels:

J. Błachut
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
The University of Liverpool,
Liverpool L69 3GH, UK
K. Magnucki
Institute of Applied Mechanics,
Poznań University of Technology,
ul. Piotrowo 3,
60-965 Poznań, Poland
Review of Selected Problems
Recent research effort into some aspects of strength, static stability, and structural opti-
mization of horizontal pressure vessels is reviewed in this paper. Stress concentrations at
the junction of cylinder-ellipsoidal end closures are covered in detail. This in turn estab-
lishes efficient choices for wall thicknesses in the vessel. Detailed account of stresses for
flexible supports of a horizontal cylindrical shell is provided. Dimensions of support
components, which assure the minimum stress concentrations between a horizontal shell
and its support, are calculated. In particular, the wall thickness is found for vessels being
loaded by the weight of its content and placed on two supports. Stability issues are also
reviewed in this paper. In particular, attention is paid to the stability of cylinder under
external pressure and to the stability of end closures. The latter are loaded by internal or
external pressure. Apart from buckling and plastic loads, the ultimate load carrying
capacity, i.e., burst pressure, for internally pressurized heads is also examined. On a
practical side, aboveground and underground cases are discussed. In the latter case of
underground vessels the reinforcement by internal rings is assessed. The optimization
part of this paper deals with the effective choice of the end closure depth and the shape
of its meridian. The overriding aim here is to examine the stress concentrations and the
ways in which they can be mitigated. The optimal shape of closures is also searched for,
with respect to the maximum buckling pressure for a given mass of the head. In the case
of internal pressure the maximum of plastic load is sought within a specified class of
meridional profiles. Finally, optimal sizing of whole vessels is discussed for slender and
compact geometries. Extensive references are made to relatively recent and ongoing work
related to the above topics. This paper has 287 references and 50 figures.
关DOI: 10.1115/1.2978080兴

Keywords: strength, buckling, cylindrical vessels, domed closures, aboveground vessels,

underground vessels

1 Introduction spective of the above developments, structural integrity of storage

Horizontal cylindrical tanks are designed for storing and/or for
transportation of liquids or granular materials. Reliable and safe
performance of these structures is particularly important in chemi-
cal and petrochemical industries. Design of pressure tanks per-
tains, first of all, to the strength and stability issues of shells as
well as to their optimal shaping. The analysis, design, and optimi-
zation of shell components relevant to cylindrical tanks are the
subjects of this paper. Horizontal circular cylindrical tanks may be
classified as stationary storage tanks or mobile tanks for land
transport purposes 共Fig. 1兲. Stationary storage tanks could be ei-
ther aboveground or underground. Aboveground tanks usually rest
on two supports 共Fig. 2兲. Basic loads acting in such a tank are
internal hydrostatic pressure due to self-weight and internal uni-
form pressure. An additional load may also occur as a small ex-
ternal uniform pressure caused by a suction action during empty-
ing of the tank. Design of the aboveground tanks is primarily
related to their strength and stability.
The underground tanks, on the other hand, are mainly associ-
ated with stability problems. The strength problems chiefly in-
clude stress concentration in the neighborhood of the head-
cylindrical shell joint, the saddle support-cylindrical shell joint,
and in the domed heads of the tanks. In many respects these
problems are classical in nature and they have been discussed in
detail in many monographs, e.g., Refs. 关1–11兴, as well as in
national/international standards, e.g., Refs. 关12–15兴. Recent re-
view articles devoted to storage tanks include Refs. 关16–18兴. Irre-
Published online October 7, 2008. Transmitted by Assoc. Editor J. N. Reddy.
tanks remains a subject of continuing research work, being aimed
at the effective shaping of relevant structural elements, with a
view of reducing stress concentration and of improving resistance
to buckling.
Similar strength and stability problems arise in design of mo-
bile tanks 共Figs. 3 and 4兲. Rail or road cisterns are viewed as
examples of contemporary modes of transportation. In both cases
tanks are subject to pressure of transported liquid and forces of
inertia, resulting from dynamical properties of the vehicle. Mag-
nitudes of allowed forces are defined by appropriate regulations,
l’Accord Européen Relatif au Transport International des March-
andises Dangereuses par Route 共ADR兲, 共Geneva 1957兲, and Union
Internationale des Chemins de Fer 共UIC兲.
Advanced design of tanks includes the use of theory of shells,
computer methods, adherence to specification共s兲 given by stan-
dards, and professional experience. An important problem in de-
sign of tanks is optimal shaping of the whole structure or its parts,
with respect to adopted criterion or criteria. The constraints are
usually related to geometrical, strength, and stability conditions.
Thus, for purposes of formulation of the optimization problem,
good knowledge of strength and stability issues is required. These
problems are discussed in this paper, taking into account results of
studies carried out within the last ten years or so.
In the current paper the strength of the horizontal cylindrical
tanks is discussed, in Sec. 2, on the basis of analytical and nu-
merical work. Analytical solutions are based on the theory of
shells of revolution, while detailed numerical solutions are ob-
tained via computer methods—particularly the finite element
method. Section 2 includes introduction to the theory of shells of

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Fig. 1 Classification of horizontal cylindrical tanks
revolution, the boundary disturbance theory, an analytical descrip-
tion of minimal wall thickness of the ellipsoidal head, an analyti-
cal description of wall thickness of a cylindrical shell, and nu-
merical analysis of stress state in a horizontal tank with two
flexible saddle supports.
Next, stability problems of horizontal cylindrical tanks, dis-
cussed in Sec. 3, are based on analytical and numerical ap-
proaches. Analytical solutions are based on elastic stability of
shells, while numerical solutions are based on the finite element
method. Section 3 includes introduction to stability of shells,
buckling of hemispherical, torispherical, and ellipsoidal heads un-
der external or internal pressure, and buckling of cylindrical shells
of aboveground and underground horizontal tanks. A string of
possible modes of failure in dome closures on cylindrical pressure
vessels is discussed. Critical dimensions of horizontal cylindrical
tanks are also given in this section.
Optimization problems of horizontal cylindrical tanks are
treated analytically and numerically in Sec. 4. This section con-
tains introduction to optimization of shells, minimization of stress
concentration in pressure vessels, and optimization of end clo-
sures and aboveground and underground horizontal tanks. Section
5 contains concluding remarks and includes suggestions for future
research in the area of horizontal pressure vessels.
Fig. 2 Illustration of an aboveground tank
Fig. 3 Rail cistern of transport
Fig. 4 Tank for bimodal form of transport
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This work is aimed at presenting the current problems related to
design of horizontal cylindrical pressure tanks. The strength, sta-
bility, and optimization issues related to horizontal cylindrical
tanks are being discussed. The approach to each of these problems
includes mathematical description, solution, and numerical analy-
sis. Most of the results presented in the current work are derived
from own work of the authors. All photographs included in the
present work relate to experiments that have been carried at the
Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Liver-
pool. This paper is aimed at mechanical and civil engineers, pres-
sure vessel designers, senior students of design specialty, post-
graduate students, and researchers of pressure vessels.
2 Strength of Cylindrical Vessels
A cylindrical vessel needs to be closed at both ends by some
sort of a closure. A variety of shapes have been investigated in the
past ranging from hemispherical domes to flat plates. Methods of
mitigation of stress concentration at the cylinder-flat-plate closure
were studied by Preiss 关19兴. Flat closures were also studied by
Holroyd et al. 关20兴 for portable aluminum vessels. Other work
includes that of Vilhelmsen 关21兴.
The strength of ring-stiffened horizontal cylindrical vessels
with ellipsoidal ends was investigated by Ziółko and Mikulski
关22兴 and Mikulski and Ziółko 关23兴. These vessels were for under-
ground applications and they were made from steel. Double-skin
vessels for underground applications were studied by Magnucki
et al. 关24兴. The space between the inner and outer vessels was
filled with liquid. Its role was to monitor the vessel’s pressure
tightness. Both strength and stability of double-skin vessels were
considered.
Other topics include thick-walled vessels subjected to cyclic
pressure and temperature loadings 关25兴. Heat transfer issues in
sandwich cylindrical tanks were addressed by Ciałkowski 关26兴.
The behavior of a cylindrical vessel with axial cracks was studied
by Budiman and Lagace 关27兴. General stress analysis of cylindri-
cal vessels was undertaken by Rauscher 关28,29兴. The effects of the
material and geometric nonlinearities on the stress of various
dome shapes have been revisited by Cho et al. 关30兴. A finite-
volume procedure for determining stress levels in an internally
pressurized domed pressure vessel is described by Wheel 关31兴.
Stress distribution in a vertical storage vessel loaded by the weight
of contained liquid is given by Zingoni 关32兴 for several different
shapes of the meridian.
2.1 Stress Concentration in Cylindrical Vessel With Ellip-
soidal Heads. Dished heads on circular cylindrical vessels are
traditionally in the form of torispheres, ellipsoids, or hemispheres.
A section through a horizontal torispherical dome is sketched in
Fig. 5共a兲 where the relevant radii of curvature, R1 and R2, are
shown. The depth of the dome is denoted by b and its diameter is
denoted by 2a. Similar arrangements for an ellipsoidal head are
shown in Fig. 6. It is seen from Fig. 5共b兲 that the meridional
curvature of a torispherical head is discontinuous at the junction
between the spherical cap and the knuckle. However, the meridi-
onal curvature for the ellipsoidal head is continuous as illustrated
in Fig. 6共b兲.
The principal radii of curvatures of the middle surface are given
as follows.
• For the torispherical head,
R 1共 ␪ 兲 = R 2共 ␪ 兲 = R 0 for 0 ⱕ ␪ ⱕ ␪0
R 1共 ␪ 兲 = r t, R2共␪兲 = rt + 共a − rt兲/sin ␪ for ␪0 ⱕ ␪ ⱕ ␲/2
共1兲
where R1共␪兲 is the meridional radius and R2共␪兲 is the cir-
cumferential radius.
• For the ellipsoidal head,
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 5 „a… Geometry of torispherical shell. „b… Change of meridional, R1, and
hoop, R2, radii in the spherical cap and in the knuckle parts, respectively.

a moment and also to both bending and shear in the case of clamped
R 1共 ␪ 兲 = , edge. The local nature of the resulting perturbation was pointed
␤共1 + ␹ sin2 ␪兲3/2
out by Reissner. Similar conclusion was reached by Timoshenko
and Woinowsky-Krieger 关39兴 for the case of an internally pressur-
a ized cylindrical shell with clamped ends. The general mathemati-
R 2共 ␪ 兲 = for 0 ⱕ ␪ ⱕ ␲/2 共2兲
␤共1 + ␹ sin2 ␪兲1/2 cal formulation of the theory of boundary disturbance was given
by Chernyh 关40兴. Adaptation of Chernyh’s theory to internally
where ␤ = b / a is a relative depth of the head and ␹ = ␤−2 pressurised thin-walled vessels was discussed by Magnucki 关7兴.
− 1 is a dimensionless parameter. Details about the analytical and numerical investigations of stress
concentrations in cylindrical vessels with ellipsoidal heads can be
The principal radii of curvatures of the middle surface of the
found in Refs. 关41–43兴.
circular cylindrical shell are given as follows: 1 / R1 = 0 共R1 → ⬁兲
It follows from Chernyh 关40兴 that the radial displacement w共1兲 0
and R2 = a, where a is the radius of the cylinder. At the junction
between the cylindrical shell and the torispherical or ellipsoidal and the rotation angle ␽共1兲
0 for the edge 共␪ = ␲ / 2兲 of the ellipsoidal
head there is a discontinuity of curvatures. In addition, for the head, and similarly for the edge 共z = 0兲 of the cylindrical shell
torispherical head, there is an internal discontinuity of curvature 共w共2兲 共2兲
0 , ␽0 兲, can be defined in the following form 共see also Ref.
between spherical and knuckle parts. These discontinuities of cur- 关43兴兲:
vatures disturb the membrane stress state in the pressure vessel
and they influence, for example, the strength of the torispherical w0共 j兲 = w̃0共 j兲 + ␣11
共 j兲 共 j兲
Q0 + ␣12 M0
domes. Investigations of the strength of pressure vessels with tori-
spherical heads were discussed, for example, by Galletly 关33兴, ␽0共 j兲 = ␽
˜ 共 j 兲 + ␣ 共 j 兲Q + ␣ 共 j 兲 M
0 12 0 22 0 for j = 1,2 共3兲
Galletly and Błachut 关34兴, Błachut 关35,36兴, Błachut and Ram-
achandra 关37,38兴. where
Consider a circular cylindrical vessel with an ellipsoidal head
a2 p0 a2 p0
loaded by uniform internal pressure, p0. Assume that a and t2 are w̃0共1兲 = 共2 − ␯ − ␤−2兲 , w̃0共2兲 = 共2 − ␯兲 , ˜ 共1兲 = ␽
␽ 0
˜ 共2兲 = 0
0
the radius of the cylindrical shell and the thickness of its wall. Let 2Et1 2Et2
b and t1 be the depth of the ellipsoidal head and its thickness,
respectively. At the junction between the ellipsoidal and cylindri-
cal shells one has uniformly distributed longitudinal force Nz
= ap0 / 2 and two unknown forces, i.e., shear force, Q0, and bend-
共 j兲
␣11
2
= 共− 1兲 j−1 c␯
E
a
tj
冉冊 3/2
, 共 j兲
␣12 =−
2 2a
c
Et j ␯ t j
ing moment, M 0, as illustrated in Fig. 7.
Quantities Q0 and M 0 appear as the result of an interaction
between the connected parts of the pressure vessel. The membrane
共 j兲
␣22 = 共− 1兲 j−1
4
Et2j
c␯3 冉冊
a
tj
1/2
, c␯ = 关3共1 − ␯2兲兴1/2

stress state of the pressure vessel is locally perturbed by the bend-

ing. Perturbation of the membrane state in an internally pressur- E is Young’s modulus, and ␯ is Poisson ratio; also j = 1 refers to
ized hemispherical shell was described for the first time by Reiss- the head’s edge while j = 2 corresponds to the cylinder’s edge.
ner in 1912. The edge was subjected to shear force or bending The conditions for continuity of displacements at the connect-

Fig. 6 „a… Geometry of a : b ellipsoidal dome. „b… Change of meridional, R1,

and hoop, R2, radii of curvature in a : b ellipsoidal head.

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 ␴Q共1兲 = 2c␯冑x1x2 ␴Q共2兲 = 2c␯冑x2
6M 0 Q0 Q0
␴共Mj兲 = , ,
t2j t1 t2
共j = 1 refers to the ellipsoidal head and
j = 2 refers to the cylindrical shell兲

The following dimensionless parameters of the pressure vessel

were introduced in the above expressions: x1 = t2 / t1 is the ratio of
wall thicknesses, x2 = a / t2 is the characteristic ratio of the thin-
walled cylindrical shell, and ␤ = b / a is the relative depth of the
ellipsoidal head of the pressure vessel.
Meridional or longitudinal, and circumferential stresses are the
products of dimensionless stresses and uniformly distributed pres-
sure, p0, i.e.,

Fig. 7 Forces at the junction between ellipsoidal head and cy- ␴i共 j兲 = ␴ˆ i共 j兲 · p0 for j = 1, i = ␪, ␸ and for j = 2, i = z, ␸
lindrical shell due to internal pressure 共6兲
The equivalent dimensionless stresses 共Huber–Mises stresses兲 for
the ellipsoidal head or the cylindrical shell can be written in a
ing edges of both shells are given as follows: for deflections customary form as
w共1兲 共2兲 共1兲 共2兲
0 = w0 , and for angles of rotations ␽0 = ␽0 . The solution of ␴ˆ 共eqj兲 = 冑关␴ˆ i共 j兲兴2 − ␴ˆ i共 j兲␴ˆ ␸共 j兲 + 关␴ˆ ␸共 j兲兴2
these two algebraic equations gives intensities of the transfer
shear force Q0 and the bending moment, M 0. Next, the stress state for j = 1, i = ␪ or for j = 2, i=z 共7兲
in the pressure vessel can be determined 共see Ref. 关43兴 for further
details兲. Finally, dimensionless stresses become as follows. The stress concentration factor for the pressure vessel is defined as
follows:
共1兲
• For the ellipsoidal head 共␴ˆ ␪ —meridional and
␴ˆ eq,max
␴ˆ 共1兲
␸ —circumferential stresses兲, ␣SC = 共8兲
␴ˆ 共eq,0
2兲

x 1x 2 1
␴ˆ ␪共1兲 = 共1兲
⫾ fm exp共− ␺1兲 where ␴ˆ eq,max = max兵␴ˆ 共1兲 ˆ 共2兲
eq,max , ␴eq,max其 is the maximum dimension-
2␤ 冑1 + ␹ sin2 ␪
less equivalent stress in the vessel and ␴ˆ 共j兲 eq,max is the maximum
dimensionless equivalent stress in the ellipsoidal head for j = 1 or
x1x2 1 − ␹ sin2 ␪ 冑3
␴ˆ ␸共1兲 = − f 共c1兲 exp共− ␺1兲 共4兲 in the circular cylindrical shell for j = 2. ␴ˆ 共2兲
eq,0 = 2 x2 is the equiva-
2␤ 冑1 + ␹ sin2 ␪ lent Huber–Mises dimensionless stress of the circular cylindrical
共2兲 shell in the membrane state.
• For the cylindrical shell 共␴ˆ z —longitudinal and The value of the stress concentration factor can be adjusted/
␴ˆ 共2兲
␸ —circumferential stresses兲, influenced by means of dimensionless parameters x1, x2, and ␤.
The pressure vessel is efficiently designed when the maximum
x2 equivalent stresses in the ellipsoidal head and in the cylindrical
␴ˆ z共2兲 = 共2兲
⫾ fm exp共− ␺2兲, ␴ˆ ␸共2兲 = x2 − f 共c2兲 exp共− ␺2兲
2 shell are equal, i.e.,
共5兲 共1兲
␴ˆ eq,max 共2兲
= ␴ˆ eq,max 共9兲
This condition forms the basis for determining the efficient values
where of the dimensionless structural parameters, x1ef and ␤ef, of pres-

冑 冕 ␲/2 sure vessels for a fixed value of x2.

x 1x 2 d␪ The results of selected numerical calculations for a cylindrical
␺1 = c␯
␤ ␪
共1 + ␹ sin2 ␪兲5/4 pressure vessel with a 2:1 ellipsoidal head, ␤ = 0.5, are shown in
Fig. 8. The values of dimensionless equivalent stresses from Eq.
共7兲, at external and internal surfaces, versus coordinate ␪ for el-
c␯ z lipsoidal and dimensionless coordinate z / t2 for cylindrical shell,
␺2 = 共dimensionless substitute coordinates兲
冑x2 t2 are plotted in this figure. The thicknesses of both shells are equal,
x1 = 1, as well as the characteristic ratio, x2 = 100 共the ratio of
radius of cylinder to its wall thickness兲.
共 j兲 3
fm = ␴共Mj兲共cos ␺ j + sin ␺ j兲 − 共− 1兲 j−1 ␴Q共 j兲 sin ␺ j It is seen from Fig. 8 that the maximum value of dimensionless
c␯2 stress, ␴ˆ 共1兲
eq,max = 155.8, occurs at the inner surface of the ellipsoidal
head and it clearly exceeds the maximum value, ␴ˆ 共2兲 eq,max = 102.8,
f 共cj兲 = ␴共Mj兲h共Mj兲 − 共− 1兲 j−1␴Q
共 j兲 共 j兲
hQ occurring in the cylindrical part of the vessel. Clearly this design
of the pressure vessel is not efficient. There are several possibili-

冉 冊 冉 冊
ties that can be adopted in order to reduce this disparity. For
c␯2 c␯2 example, one can have an ellipsoidal head of greater thickness t1
h共Mj兲 = ⫿ ␯ cos ␺ j − ⫾ ␯ sin ␺ j
3 3 共x1 ⬍ 1兲 or bigger relative depth ␤ 共0.5⬍ ␤兲. As an example, let us
keep depth of the head the same, i.e., ␤ = 0.5, and equate peak
3␯ stress in the head with the peak stress in the cylindrical shell. The
共 j兲
hQ = cos ␺ j ⫿ sin ␺ j for j = 1,2 equalization of maximal values of the equivalent stresses in both
c␯2 parts of the vessel occurs for effective thickness ratio x1,ef

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 Fig. 8 Plots of dimensionless equivalent Huber–Mises stresses in „a… ellipsoidal and in „b… cylindrical shells for
the cases of x1 = 1, x2 = 100, and ␤ = 0.5

= 0.645. The result of the corresponding numerical investigation is
shown in Fig. 9. The values of the maximal dimensionless equiva-
lent stresses for this case are ␴ˆ 共1兲 ˆ 共2兲
eq,max = ␴eq,max = 96.25. This magni-
tude is much smaller than previously seen in the ellipsoidal head.
The stress concentration factor given by Eq. 共8兲 for this design of
pressure vessel becomes ␣SC = 1.112.
Appropriate numerical procedures were developed in order to
search for cases that exactly satisfy the condition given by Eq. 共9兲,
for x2 within the range 75艋 x2 艋 200. The results of these calcu-
lations are plotted in Fig. 10. It is seen here that for ␤ smaller than
0.5 values of x1,ef are sensitive to magnitudes of x2. The lower
corner corresponds to the peak stress being located at the cylinder-
dome junction. For all shallower domes, i.e., with ␤ ⬍ 0.5, the
cylinder becomes stiffer and stiffer as ␤ becomes smaller and
smaller. It can be said here that horizontal cylinder behaves as if it
was clamped at its end by an “overstiffened” shallow ellipsoidal
dome. Similar situation exists at the upper corner in Fig. 10. For
domes having ␤ ⬎ 0.86 the cylinder itself becomes very stiff by
comparison with the dome. Hence this can be loosely interpreted
as the dome being clamped by the overstiffened cylinder.
Assuming that the wall thicknesses of the connected shells are
equal, one could easily find the best relative depth of head. It is
seen from Fig. 10 that this corresponds to ␤ = 0.6. Should thick-
nesses t1 and t2 of both shells differ considerably from each other,
their connection might give rise to technological difficulties and
therefore such designs would not be suitable. Generally, changes
in the value of the stress concentration factor should be analyzed
when selecting effective values of ␤ and x1 parameters. As the
effective ratio of wall thicknesses x1,ef is closely related to ␤, it is
enough to interrelate the values of ␣SC to one of these parameters.
The results of such an analysis for x2 苸 具75, 200典 are shown in Fig.
11. It is seen here that the values of stress concentration factor are
undesirably high for smaller relative depth of ellipsoidal head, i.e.,
for ␤ ⬍ 0.5. For ␤ 苸 共0.5, 0.65兲 the values of ␣SC remain almost

Fig. 9 The effect of equalization of maximal Huber–Mises equivalent stresses in „a… ellipsoid and in „b… cylinder
for the cases of x1,ef = 0.645, x2 = 100, and ␤ = 0.5

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Fig. 10 Effective wall thicknesses ratio x1,ef versus relative
depth, ␤, of ellipsoidal vessel domed end
unchanged. In spite of the above, selection of optimal wall thick-
ness ratio, x1,ef, is relatively difficult. The range x1,ef 苸 共0.8, 1.0兲
seems to be the most reasonable. However, in order to appraise a
given design accurately, another criterion, e.g., of economic char-
acter, should be considered.
Finally it is worth noting that stress concentrations at the
cylinder-ellipsoidal dome were studied wit the use of the finite
element method 共FEM兲 by Yushan et al. 关44兴 and KJdziora and
Kubiak 关45兴. Other work includes the stress concentration levels
between hemispherical, ellipsoidal, and flat heads and cylindrical
shell 关46兴.
Fig. 11 Stress concentration factor, ␣SC, versus the relative
depth, ␤, for the effective choice of parameter x1,ef and for 75
Ï x2 Ï 200
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2.2 Stress Concentration for Horizontal Cylindrical Vessel
With Saddle Supports. Three typical supports for horizontal ves-
sels used in practice are saddle supports, ring supports, and leg
supports 共Fig. 12兲. The stiffness of the supporting saddles and the
distance between them considerably influence the magnitude of
maximum stresses occurring in the structure. The problem has
been the subject of many investigations. El-Abbasi et al. 关47兴
performed a 3D FEM analysis of a pressure vessel lying freely on
two deformable supports. They developed a seven-parameter thick
shell finite element taking into account friction between the sup-
port and the vessel, as well as the changes of stresses and strains
across the shell thickness. The authors investigated the effect of
geometric parameters of the vessel and support on the state of
stress. Their goal was to minimize stresses in the shell-support
region. It was shown that the magnitude of stresses occurring in
the structure could be reduced by 50% for the case of a saddle
support with an initial gap. In this case the radius of support needs
to be 1–2% greater than the radius of the vessel. Full contact
between the support and the cylindrical shell develops during
loading.
Boutros 关48兴 briefly outlined the background to the saddle sup-
port design. It was pointed out that the current method used, for
example, in PD 5500 is based on the empirical data published by
Zick in 1951. Zick discussed the results of a parametric analysis
of deformable saddle supports of circular cylindrical vessels of
large diameter. Stresses created by stiff and deformable supports,
together with stress concentration at the saddle horn, are dis-
cussed. Numerical results are compared with PD 5500 recommen-
dations. The investigation also refers to guidelines provided by
Australian and ASME standards. Ong and Lu 关49兴 determined the
optimal radius of the support with a preliminary clearance be-
tween the cylindrical shell and the saddle. Contact between the
cylindrical shell and the saddle was assumed as constant pressure
along the vessel, but its magnitude was varying circumferentially.
The authors performed a parametric analysis aimed at reducing
the stress concentration at the saddle horn. Tooth et al. 关50兴 deter-
mined analytically and experimentally stresses in real supports of
multilayered glass reinforced plastic 共GRP兲 vessels. They divided
the region of the cylindrical shell-support contact into small areas,
assuming uniform radial and tangent pressure distributions in
each. Variable distributions of contact pressure were assumed in
the direction of support width. In the experimental part, they pre-
sented strain gauge results for three vessels with equal overall
dimensions but with different laminate layers. They investigated
two types of saddle with radii exceeding the external radius of the
vessel. A useful method for calculating the maximum strain, par-
ticularly in the absence of computer software, was proposed.
Banks et al. 关51兴 presented an approximate solution of the strain
state of a horizontal cylindrical vessel. Krupka 关52,53兴 investi-
gated the influence of flexible supports on the stress distribution in
cylindrical horizontal vessels. Magnucki et al. 关54兴 used the FEM
model for horizontal vessel with its supports. The saddle support
and the cylindrical shell of the vessel were joined by welding. The
stiffness of the support was smaller than that recommended by
European standards. They investigated the effect of the geometric
parameters of the vessel and of the saddle support on stresses in
several characteristic regions of the structure. Details of these
studies are outlined next.
Consider a typical thin-walled horizontal cylindrical vessel sup-
ported by two flexible saddle supports, welded to the vessel, and
located symmetrically near its ends with a distance, s, between
them as depicted in Fig. 13共b兲. Assume that length, L, of the
cylindrical part of the vessel and its radius, a, are variable param-
eters, while the capacity of the vessel V0 is constant. Let the
horizontal vessel be capped by two ellipsoidal heads with relative
depth ␤ = b / a = 0.5, as shown in Fig. 13. The vessel itself is made
from steel with mass density ␳s = 7.85⫻ 103 kg/ m3. It is filled
with a liquid of mass density ␳s = 1 ⫻ 103 kg/ m3, and the vessel is
additionally loaded by uniform internal pressure, p0 = 2.5 MPa.
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 12 Sketch of three typical supports for horizontal vessels „adapted from
PD 5500 †15‡…

The structure is described by ten parameters: vessel radius a,
length L, spacing between supports s, distance between vessel axis
and support base H, characteristic dimensions of the support b0, c
and e, thicknesses t1 of the head, t2 of the cylindrical shell, and t3
of supports. The shape of the saddle support described above is
sketched in Fig. 14. The support is made of steel plate, with its
hoop angle, ␸s = 120 deg 共Fig. 14共b兲兲. Additional steel lining is
introduced between the support and the cylinder. This reinforcing
patch extends by ␸c = 140 deg in the hoop direction 共see Fig.
13共a兲兲. The width of the lining plate is cn. The magnitude of the

Fig. 13 Details about arrangements in a horizontal pressure vessel with

saddle support

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 Fig. 14 Geometry of the saddle support and the corresponding FEM model
width depends on the vessel’s length. In this case it was assumed
that cn = L / 45. Numerical calculations were carried out for hori-
zontal pressure vessels with volumes of V0 = 100 m3, 200 m3, and
300 m3. Results for each volume have been produced in the form
of contour maps of equivalent Huber–Mises stresses. Their values
have been monitored in eight characteristic regions of horizontal
cylindrical vessels of given capacity, and these are shown in Fig.
13共b兲. Regions A1, A2, and B surround the saddle support of the
vessel including edges of the support’s cover plate. These are the
places where local stress concentration occurs, as a result of the
support and vessel’s skin interaction. The maximum equivalent
stress values in these regions are selected. Regions C1, C2, and C3
have also been chosen for monitoring the stress levels. They are
located at half-length cross section of the vessel at the upper/lower
surfaces, and at the half-height of the vessel. Stress values calcu-
lated in these points are also taken into account. Region D is
located in the ellipsoidal head near the joint with the cylindrical
shell, i.e., the place where large equivalent stresses occur. Region
E includes the whole saddle support and again the maximum
stresses are selected from this area. Plots of maximum values of
the equivalent stresses in each region are depicted in Figs. 15–17.
The influence of the width of support bed, b0, on the stress state of
the vessel is shown in Fig. 15. The length, b0, does not influence
Fig. 15 Influence of the width of the saddle support bed, b0, on
the stress level „V0 = 300 m3…
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the stress level in regions D 共the head兲 and C1 共half-length of the
vessel兲. Relatively small influence is in regions A1 and B 共shell-
support area兲. However, in region E 共support area兲, a distinct
minimum in the stress magnitude is noticed in the range 0.5
⬍ b0 / a ⬍ 0.6. The height of the end of the saddle support arm, e,
also influences the stiffness of the support. Changes in the level of
equivalent stress in various parts of the structure are shown in Fig.
16 for the range 0.094艋 e / a 艋 0.28. The most significant effects
were noticed in regions A1 and E. Near the support, A1, stresses
will increase with the increase of e. This suggests that an elastic
support of relatively low stiffness is the most advantageous solu-
tion for this vessel as it gives low stresses in this region of the
support. At the same time, stress level in the support, E, will
increase if the value of e is too small 共note that for e / a ⬇ 0.11
there is a local minimum of the equivalent stress兲. Hence, a rea-
sonable recommendation in this case would be to use supports
with 0.10艋 e / a 艋 0.l2. The equivalent stress values will also
change when the 共s / L兲-ratio changes, i.e., when the saddle sup-
ports moved along the length of the vessel—see Fig. 17. The
curves plotted in Fig. 17 suggest that the most favorable location
of supports would be near the ends of the vessel. For increasing
s / L the stress level decreases in almost all regions, including the
middle part of the vessel, C1. In region C3 maximal equivalent
Fig. 16 Influence of the height of the saddle support bed, e, on
the stress level „V0 = 300 m3…
Transactions of the ASME
 ends and filled with liquid 共Fig. 18兲. Let the supports be flexible,
i.e., as sketched in Figs. 13 and 14. Assume that self-weight of the
liquid is to be taken into considerations. Hence, shell is loaded by
共int兲
internal hydrostatic pressure ph in addition to uniformly distrib-
共int兲
uted internal pressure, p0 = p01. Hence, the total internal pressure
can be written as

p共␸兲 = ␥m1a共1 − cos ␸兲 + p01 共10兲

where ␥m1 is the specific weight of liquid.
Equations of equilibrium for a thin-walled circular cylindrical
shell loaded by pressure p共␸兲 have the following form:

⳵␴z ⳵␴z␸ ⳵␴z␸ ⳵␴␸ a

+ = 0, + = 0, ␴␸ = p共␸兲 共11兲
⳵z a⳵␸ ⳵z a⳵␸ t2

Let membrane stresses ␴␸, ␴z, and ␴z␸ be solutions of the above
equations. The maximum of Huber–Mises equivalent stress,
␴eq,max, occurs in the lower part of the middle cross section of the
shell, i.e., at ␸ = ␲ 共region C3, Figs. 13共b兲 and 17兲. The exact value
of ␴eq,max is given by the following expression 共see Ref. 关7兴兲:

Fig. 17 Influence of the vessel slenderness ratio, L / a, on the

stress level „V0 = 300 m3…
␴eq,max =
␥m1a2
4t2
冑冉48 1 +
1 p01
2 ␥m1a
冊 冉
2
+
1 2
2
␭ −1 冊 2
共12兲

where ␭ = L / a is the relative length of the cylindrical shell.

stresses have similar values as in C1. However, stresses in the
head region D increase slightly with the 共s / L兲-ratio. Therefore, a
reasonable compromise would be to use a slightly thicker head
and position the supports near the ends of the vessel at s / L
= 14/ 15 共note that in the current model the thickness of the head is
t1 = 16 mm and the thickness of the cylindrical shell is t2
= 14 mm兲. It is worth noting here that the use of a uniformly
In real life domed closures need to be added to horizontal cy-
lindrical shell to form a complete pressure vessel. This in turn will
perturb the membrane state of stress in the cylindrical shell. Tak-
ing into account results given in Secs. 2.1 and 2.2 one obtains the
following expression for the maximum equivalent stress, ␴eq,max,
in the complete vessel 共cylinder-domed-ends plus flexible
supports兲:

冑冉 冊 冉 冊
loaded beam being supported at two points as a substitute for a
cylindrical vessel being supported at two points is, as sometimes ␥m1a2 ␣SC p01 2
1 2 2
␴eq,max = 48 1 + + Cc ␭ −1 共13兲
found in literature, entirely inappropriate. Variation of stresses for 4t2 2 ␥m1a 2
vessels with different slenderness 共L / a兲-ratios is shown in Fig. 17
共for the case of V0 = 300 m3兲. It is seen here that with the increas-
where ␣SC is the stress concentration factor for ellipsoidal head–
ing magnitude of the 共L / a兲-ratio values of equivalent stresses in
cylindrical shell junction, Cc = 6 / 共1 + ␺2p兲 is a correction coefficient
regions B, C3, and E also increase. Similar calculations were also
taking into account the effect of saddle support on stress state, and
carried out for horizontal vessels with capacities as small as V0
␺ p = p01 / 100␥m1a is the dimensionless parameter associated with
= 15 m3. The main outcome of these calculations is that the main
uniform internal pressure.
proportions of dimensions should be maintained 共even for capaci-
The coefficient ␣SC takes into account the stress concentration
ties down to V0 = 15 m3兲. However, other rules for dimensioning
caused by the attachment of ellipsoidal heads. The coefficient Cc,
vessels and their supports may be required for the case when the
on the other hand, takes into account all regions where the stress
contribution of hydrostatic pressure is more important relative to
is raised by flexible supports, i.e., area A , B , . . . , E, as depicted in
internal pressure.
Fig. 13共b兲.
2.3 Minimal Thickness of Horizontal Cylindrical Shell. Equation 共13兲 can be used for the evaluation of minimum wall
The following monographs discuss the strength of horizontal cy- thickness of cylindrical shell. If the magnitude of allowable
lindrical tanks: Refs. 关2,4,7兴. Discussion of the strength of thick- uniaxial stress is assumed to be ␴all, then the strength condition
walled high pressure vessels can be found in Ref. 关6兴. ␴eq,max 艋 ␴all leads to the following expression for the minimum
Consider a horizontal cylindrical shell simply supported at both wall thickness of a thin-walled cylindrical vessel 关55兴:

Fig. 18 Horizontal cylindrical shell subjected to hydrostatic pressure due

to liquid self-weight and simultaneous action of internal pressure

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 关64兴, Preobrazhenski and Gritchak 关65兴, Kajuk 关66兴, Filin 关67兴,
Andrejev et al. 关68兴, Gavrilenko 关69兴, Pietraszkiewicz 关70兴, Ross
关3兴, Bažant and Cedolin 关71兴, Troger and Steindl 关72兴, Waszc-
zyszyn et al. 关73兴, Tovstik 关5兴, Błachut 关74兴, Chróścielewski 关75兴,
Libai and Simmonds 关76兴, Doyle 关77兴, Woźniak 关78兴, Ross 关79兴,
Zielnica 关80兴, and Teng and Rotter 关81兴. These monographs
complement each other and they contain the main research
achievements in stability of structures during the past five decades
or so. Despite these achievements the stability problems of cylin-
drical shells are still being researched. Selected problems of buck-
ling and post-buckling of either elastic or elastic-plastic cylindri-
cal shell under external pressure can be found in Refs. 关82–88兴.
The classical equation of stability of a circular cylindrical shell
共Donnell’s equation兲 has the following form:

Dⵜ8w +
Et2 ⳵4w
a ⳵z
2
4 0 ⳵ w
4 + ⵜ Nzz
2

⳵z
冉 0 ⳵ w
2 + 2Nz␸
2

a⳵z⳵␸
0 ⳵ w
+ N␸␸
2

⳵␸2
=0 冊
共17兲

where D = Et32 / 12共1 − ␯2兲 is the bending stiffness, w共␸ , z兲 is the

deflection of the shell, ⵜ4共 兲 = ⳵4共 兲 / ⳵z4 + 2共⳵4共 兲 / a2⳵z2⳵␸2兲
+ ⳵4共 兲 / a4⳵␸4 is the linear operator, ⵜ8共 兲 = ⵜ4关ⵜ4共 兲兴, Nzz
0
, Nz0␸, and
0
N␸␸ are prebuckling intensities of membrane forces, and a, t2 are
Fig. 19 Differences in wall thickness between the current de-
the radius and thickness of the cylindrical shell, respectively.
sign code values given by Eq. „16… and values given by Eq. „14…
for a storage tank with ellipsoidal heads Equation 共17兲 includes the following simple assumption for the
change of curvatures, i.e.,
⳵ 2w ⳵ 2w ⳵ 2w
t2,min =
␥m1a2
4␴all
冑冉
48 1 +
␣SC p01
2 ␥m1a
冊 冉2
1
+ Cc ␭2 − 1
2
冊 2
共14兲
␬zz = −
⳵z2
, ␬ z␸ = −
a⳵z⳵␸
␬␸␸ = −
a2⳵␸2
共18兲

The stability equation of a circular cylindrical shell, which in-

For a particular case, when the horizontal cylindrical vessel is cludes the exact expression for curvatures, has the following form:
loaded by internal pressure only, i.e., ␥m1 = 0, the minimum wall
thickness obtained from Eq. 共14兲 becomes
冑3
冋
Dⵜ4 ⵜ4w +
1
a
冉
2 2␯
⳵ 2w
⳵z
⳵ 2w
2 +2 2 +
a ⳵␸2 a2
w
冊册 +
Et2 ⳵4w
a ⳵z
2 4 + ⵜ Nzz
4
冋
0 ⳵ w
2

⳵z2

冉 冊册
共0兲 p01a p01Dins
t2,min = ␣SC = 共15兲 ⳵ 2w ⳵ 2w w
2 ␴all 4 + 2Nz0␸ 0
+ N␸␸ + =0 共19兲
冑3␣SC ␴all − p01 a⳵z⳵␸ a2⳵␸2 a2
The curvatures, in this case, have the form
where Dins = 2a − t2 denotes inside diameter of the shell.
It is worth noting here that the correction coefficient Cc be- ⳵ 2w ⳵ 2w ⳵ 2w w
comes inactive in Eq. 共15兲, as there are no supports for this case. ␬zz = − , ␬ z␸ = − , ␬␸␸ = − 2 + 2 共20兲
⳵z2 a⳵z⳵␸ a ⳵␸
2
a
The minimum value of the stress concentration factor for a
classical ellipsoidal head 共␤ = 0.5兲 is in the range ␣SC Zukowski 关89兴 and Magnucki 关7兴 found magnitudes of critical
苸 具1.110, 1.115典, Fig. 11. As a result, the minimum thickness of a external pressure for cylindrical vessels using Eqs. 共17兲 and 共19兲.
thin-walled cylindrical vessel with ellipsoidal heads takes the fol- The aim here was to establish differences between predictions of
lowing approximate form: buckling pressures given by both approaches. The intensities of
prebuckling membrane forces for a circular cylindrical shell sub-
共0兲 p01Dins jected to uniformly distributed external pressure p02 are as
t2,min = 共16兲
2␴all − p01 follows:
1
The above formula is recommended by PD 5500:2003 as the
0
Nzz = 2 ap02, Nz0␸ = 0, 0
N␸␸ = ap02 共21兲
minimum thickness of a pressure loaded cylindrical vessel.
Graphical comparison of thicknesses given by Eqs. 共14兲 and 共16兲, The equations of stability 共17兲 and 共19兲 can only be solved ap-
for a horizontal cylindrical vessel with ellipsoidal heads, is shown proximately. The deflection function can be assumed in the form
in Fig. 19. m␲z
w共z, ␸兲 = wa sin cos共n␸兲 共22兲
L
3 Stability of Horizontal Cylindrical Vessels
3.1 Critical Pressure of Circular Cylindrical Shell. The where wa is the amplitude of deflection, and m and n are natural
theoretical basis of thin-walled shells is inherently related to numbers.
theory of surfaces. The fundamental contributions to the develop- Substituting intensities given by Eq. 共21兲 and function 共22兲 into
ment of mathematical theory of surfaces are due to Gauss 共1777– Eq. 共17兲 or Eq. 共19兲, one obtains the following critical external
1855兲, Lamé 共1795–1870兲, Codazzi 共1824–1873兲, and Weingarten pressures.
共1836–1910兲. The general bending theory of shells was formu- From Eq. 共17兲,

再 冎冉冊
•
lated by Aron in 1874 and by Love in 1888. Important mono-
graphs dealing with the linear and nonlinear theory of shells and 共1兲 f a共1兲 t2 3
pcr = min E 共23兲
stability of thin-walled structures are due to Volmir 关56兴, Koiter m,n f b共1兲 a
关57兴, Flugge 关58兴, Baker et al. 关59兴, Brush and Almroth 关60兴,
Pielech and Suchorolski 关61兴, Yamaki 关62兴, Bushnell 关63兴, Murray where

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 f a共1兲 =
1
12共1 − ␯2兲
共 ␣ 2 + n 2兲 4 + ␣ 4
a
t2
冉冊 2 domed ends made from composite materials and to domes made
from metallic layers are also mentioned. Before discussing the
behavior of pressurized domed end closures it is worth mention-

冉 冊
ing a complete review of shell buckling analysis methods by
1 2 m␲ L Bushnell 关96,63兴 and the up-to-date and comprehensive mono-
f b共1兲 = ␣ + n 2 共 ␣ 2 + n 2兲 2, ␣= , ␭=
2 ␭ a graph on experimental approach to buckling of shells by Singer
et al. 关97兴.
From Eq. 共19兲,

再 冎冉冊
•
Let us assume that an end closure is subjected to incremental
共2兲 f a共2兲 t2 3 external pressure loading. Then the possible critical pressures
pcr = min E 共24兲 would be associated with the following elastic or inelastic modes:
m,n f b共2兲 a
共i兲 asymmetric bifurcation, 共ii兲, axisymmetric collapse/snap-
where through, or 共iii兲 asymmetric collapse. The shell is unable to sup-

冉冊
port any further load beyond pressures corresponding to 共i兲, 共ii兲, or
共 ␣ 2 + n 2兲 2 4 a
2
共iii兲. Hence these modes are frequently termed as failure modes.
f a共1兲 = 2 关共␣ + n 兲 − 共2n − 1 + 2␯␣ 兲兴 + ␣
2 2 2 2 2
12共1 − ␯ 兲 t2 The above failure modes are illustrated in Fig. 20 for the case of
metallic torispherical and hemispherical domes clamped at the

f b共1兲 = 冉 1 2
2
冊
␣ + n 2 − 1 共 ␣ 2 + n 2兲 2
edge. Figure 20共a兲 depicts the deformed shape of a geometrically
perfect torispherical shell just prior to bifurcation buckling, i.e., at
the pressure magnitude corresponding to the eigenvalue. The shell
deforms in an axisymmetric fashion with a visible bending, at the
Differences between values of critical pressures given by Eqs. spherical cap–knuckle junction in addition to the area around the
共23兲 and 共24兲 amount to 5% for practically useful vessels. How- clamped edge. The corresponding eigenshape is depicted in Fig.
ever, for long cylindrical shells 共␭ → ⬁, ␣ → 0兲, critical external 20共b兲. It is seen here that at the bifurcation buckling there are 17
pressures from expressions 共23兲 and 共24兲 become circumferential waves. In practice, this failure mode is rarely seen

共1兲
lim 关pcr
␣→0
兴 = min
n
再 n2
12共1 − ␯2兲
E
t2
a
冎冉冊 3 due to imperfections in geometry and/or in wall thickness, but see
later for a specific case where it was possible to capture it experi-
mentally 共Fig. 24共b兲兲. Figure 20共c兲 depicts a collapsed steel tori-

=
1
E
3共1 − ␯2兲 a
t2
冉冊 3
for n = 2 共25兲
spherical end closure, which had no cylindrical flange and it was
clamped at the edge. The shell deformed axisymmetrically and the
failure was due to excessive plastic straining. Finally, Fig. 20共d兲

再 冎冉冊
shows a hemispherical closure, which failed by developing a
共2兲 n2 − 1 t2 3
single inward dimple. Large plastic straining developed at the col-
lim 关pcr 兴 = min E lapse pressure and they were caused by local thinning of the wall
␣→0 n 12共1 − ␯2兲 a

冉冊
3
1 t2
= E
4共1 − ␯2兲 a
The difference between these values of critical pressures is con-
siderable, i.e., approximately 33%. It is worth to note that the
critical pressure for an infinitely long circular cylindrical shell,
given by Eq. 共26兲, was derived by Bryan in 1888.
Barrelled shells can be seen as generalizations of circular cy-
lindrical shells. Recent studies into buckling of barrelled shells
subjected to external pressure can be found in Refs. 关90–95兴.
3.2 Critical Pressure for Domed End Closures. It has al-
ready been mentioned that torispherical or ellipsoidal heads are
frequently used as end closures on cylindrical pressure vessels.
Torispherical heads are usually adopted for smaller pressures,
while ellipsoidal closures are used for larger pressures. Uniformly
distributed pressure causes, first of all, a membrane stress state in
the vessel. This is true for the region away from the head–
cylindrical shell joint. It is well known that the stress state is
disturbed by transverse shearing force and bending moment in the
vicinity of the junction. This effect considerably influences the
critical state for heads. Additionally, in torispherical ends, there is
a disturbance of membrane state away from the torisphere-
cylinder junction. Analytical treatment of the stability problems
for multishell structures, e.g., for cylindrical vessel with ellipsoi-
dal or torispherical end closures, is difficult. In such cases it is
nearly imperative to apply numerical methods—mainly the finite
element methods.
The stress distribution and static stability of pressure loaded
end closures have long history and they have been investigated for
many decades. The following two sections provide the back-
ground information to some of the early studies into stress and
static stability analyses of externally or internally pressurized
heads. This is followed by the recent developments in the strength
and static stability of pressure loaded end closures. Most of these
references are related to metallic domes. However, references to
and by local deviations from perfect shape. Both imperfections
occurred during manufacturing and they were not intentional.
for n = 2 共26兲
Internally pressurized end closures on cylindrical vessels, on
the other hand, can 共i兲 buckle by bifurcation, 共ii兲 develop large
plastic deformations, or 共iii兲 fail through burst. A lot of research
efforts have gone into all three forms of failure. The existing
controversy is associated with “large plastic deformations” mode.
More recently this has been related to plastic loads—see, for ex-
ample, Ref. 关98兴 and discussion in Sec. 3.2.2. View of a torispheri-
cal head at the bifurcation pressure is depicted in Fig. 21共a兲. A
picture of a steel head, which has not buckled but suffered exces-
sive plastic deformations, is showed in Fig. 21共b兲. None of the
previous two modes, 共i兲 or 共ii兲, resulted in the loss of load carrying
capacity, i.e., loss of pressure tightness. However, Fig. 21共c兲
shows a close view of aluminum head, which bursts at pressure
that was about 100% above the corresponding plastic load.
Detailed discussion of externally and internally pressurised clo-
sures is provided next.
3.2.1 Torispherical and Hemispherical Heads Loaded by Ex-
ternal Pressure. Early studies into the stability of externally pres-
surised metallic domed ends have revealed the lack of agreement
between theoretical predictions of failure pressure and values ob-
tained in experiments. This in turn generated a large volume of
theoretical and experimental studies. The literature review of early
work can be found in, for example, Refs. 关63,33,99–109,4兴. Also,
review papers by Błachut 关74兴, Teng 关110兴, and Błachut 关17兴 re-
port progress on externally pressurized domed end closures.
Despite a lot of progress in reducing the disparity between the-
oretical predictions and experimental test data, the design of ex-
ternally pressurized end closures still relies on an empirical ap-
proach 共see Ref. 关103兴兲. It has been known for a long time that an
accurate prediction of the bifurcation buckling, snap-through, or
collapse pressure for domed ends is elusive despite considerable
effort over many years. The existing discrepancy between com-
puted buckling loads and observed experimentally buckling loads
led to the establishment of an experimental design code based on

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Fig. 20 „a… Deformed shape of externally pressurized tori-
spherical end closure just prior to bifurcation buckling „not to
scale…. „b…. Eigenshape of externally pressurized torispherical
end closure with n = 17 circumferential waves. „c… View of CNC-
machined, mild steel torisphere after collapse by uniform exter-
nal pressure „snap-through…. „d… View of copper/steel/copper
layered hemispherical dome after collapse by external pres-
sure. Inward dimple attributed to the initial shape and wall
thickness imperfections.
a lower bound to all known test data—see Fig. 22 and Refs.
关111,4,15兴. The current version of the PD 5500 design code ap-
plies to externally pressurized spheres, hemispheres, torispheres,
and ellipsoids. There are constraints in the code on the geometry
and on the type and magnitude of permitted geometric
imperfections.
The work to eliminate the existing disparity between experi-
mental observations and theoretical predictions of the load-
bearing capacity still continues despite the existence of design
codes 共e.g., Refs. 关12,15,112兴兲. Details of many past tests on me-
tallic heads were collated and re-evaluated by Eggwertz and Sam-
uelson 关113兴 in their search for a new description of the “knock-
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Fig. 21 „a… Photograph of internally pressurized torispherical
head after buckling. „b… Side view of the aluminium torispheri-
cal head after it was pressurized to the plastic load level. „c…
Photograph of a torispherical end closure manufactured from
aluminum alloy after burst.
down” factor. Five different geometries were chosen to verify the
numerical predictions by Błachut 关114兴. These indicated that, for
shallow torispheres having 6% knuckle, the buckling loads fall
below the adopted lower bound curves 共see the insert in Fig. 22
for a definition of torisphere’s geometry兲. For each geometry, two
mild steel torispheres were carefully machined. In addition two
industrially spun, nominally identical torispheres were also tested.
It may be seen clearly, from Fig. 22, that the magnitude of the
safety margin can be significantly reduced. The ratio of experi-
mentally observed pressures to computed values pexpt / pnum varied
from 0.97 to 1.04. This closeness of experimental and theoretical
values is not unusual for carefully manufactured heads. Figure 23
depicts typical views of two collapsed models 共one machined and
one spun兲, in addition to the FE generated shape of 0.5 m diam-
eter collapsed closure. Further to the above work on shallow tori-
spheres, a separate study was carried out on approximately 0.8 m
diameter domes manufactured from HY80 steel by Błachut et al.
关115兴 and by Moffat et al. 关116兴. Eighteen pressed, petalled, and
welded torispheres and hemispheres were collapsed and all test
points were found to lie above the PD 5500 lower bound curve,
i.e., on the safe side 共see Fig. 22兲. Detailed measurements of ini-
tial geometric imperfections were carried out and they were sub-
sequently used in the FE calculations. The ratio of experimentally
observed pressure to the FE calculated value pexpt / pFE varied from
0.89 to 1.14. In view of these discrepancies, there is a need for
further refinements of the modeling and analysis tools especially
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 22 Test data for ten machined „r / D É 0.06, Rs / D É 0.75, and L / D É 0.05… and two
spun „r / D É 0.06, Rs / D É 1.0, and L / D É 0.075… torispheres plotted in the PD 5500 format
„pe = 1.21Et2 / Rs2 and pyss = 2␴ypt / Rs…, where ␴yp is the yield point…. Also, geometry of a
torispherical end closure is defined in the insert.

for large industrially manufactured heads. cal curve illustrating the sensitivity of the buckling strength of a
One of the concepts for modeling initial geometric imperfec- torispherical shell to the magnitude of local flattening 共␦0兲 is
tions evolved around a local flattening—see Refs. 关102,107兴. It shown in Fig. 24共a兲. A number of perfect and imperfect domes
has emerged from parametric studies carried out that introduction with local flat patches of increased radius were injection molded
of any flattening into hemispheres leads to a reduction of the
buckling load, while in torispheres a certain threshold magnitude
of flattening can be tolerated without any reduction of the buck-
ling load. Once the threshold imperfection is exceeded the buck-
ling load becomes sensitive to the imperfection magnitude. A typi-

Fig. 24 „a… Sensitivity of the buckling pressure to the ampli-

Fig. 23 View of failed domes: „a… machined model, „b… spun tude of increased radius and affine to eigenshape imperfec-
model SD1, and „c… numerically predicted shape of spun dome tions. Also, view of the torisphere at „b… bifurcation buckling
SD1 at collapse and „c… at collapse.

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Fig. 25 „a… Draped woven fabric over a quarter surface of tori-
spherical end closure. „b… View of the fiber distortion in the
outer ply of a 36-ply torisphere „left… and the dome before being
lowered to the test tank „right….
and collapsed by external pressure by Błachut and Galletly 关117兴.
The experimental points are superimposed in Fig. 24共a兲. The
shapes of shell’s deformed surface are depicted in Figs. 24共b兲 and
24共c兲 at bifurcation and at collapse, respectively. Good correlation
between experimental points and theory was obtained here and the
ratio of pexpt / pFE varied from 0.99 to 1.02. It remains to be
stressed that as long as the flattening remains in the spherical
portion of a torispherical shell then “the threshold insensitivity” to
initial imperfections is confirmed experimentally. The sensitivity
of buckling pressures to eigenmode deviations from the perfect
torispherical geometry was examined by Wunderlich et al. 关118兴,
Lu et al. 关119兴, and Wunderlich and Albertin 关120兴. Comparison of
buckling strength reduction caused by an eigenmode initial imper-
fection with the reduction of buckling strength due to a local flat
patch was discussed by Błachut and Jaiswal 关121兴. Contrary to
common belief, it appears that the eigenmode may not necessarily
be the worst form of initial geometric imperfection 关see also Fig.
24共a兲兴.
Interest in externally pressurized composite domed closures
stems primarily from the development of underwater vehicles as
well as from application to underground horizontal vessels. Suit-
ability of woven carbon and glass fiber in epoxy resin, for labo-
ratory scale domes, was studied by Galletly and Muc 关122兴. Bła-
chut and Galletly 关123兴 and Błachut et al. 关124兴 studied
application of pre-impregnated woven carbon fibre reinforced
plastic 共CFRP兲 for hemispherical and torispherical domed clo-
sures of approximately 1 m diameter. Similar work has been car-
ried out by Błachut et al. 关125兴 and by Błachut and Galletly 关126兴.
Application of filament winding to manufacturing of a 0.8 m di-
ameter torispherical dome is discussed by Błachut 关127兴. Feasibil-
ity studies into the use of filament wound and draped domes, of
about 0.8 m diameter, showed that the use of hand layup was the
most promising route. A number of domes were manufactured,
analyzed, and collapsed. FE modeling used an interactive failure
criterion for the prediction of the first-ply failure 共FPF兲. The post-
FPF progressive ply-by-ply failure was modeled using a degrada-
tion model in both warp and weft directions. Distortion of the
woven fabric, which occurs during draping of woven cloth on the
torispherical mandrel, was also taken into account. Figure 25共a兲
illustrates a simulation of fabric distortion when draped on tori-
spherical mandrel. Torispheres with a total of 36 plies, of 0.2 mm
thick woven fabric per ply, were manufactured and tested to de-
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struction by external pressure. View of the outer surface in one of
the models is shown in Fig. 25共b兲 where distortion of 4 ⫻ 4 weave
is marked by white lines. The appropriate algorithm for draping a
woven fabric was developed and benchmarked against experimen-
tal results. Additional details about the above work can be found
in papers by Galletly and Błachut 关108兴, Dong and Błachut 关128兴,
Błachut and Dong 关129兴, and Błachut 关36兴. Muc 关8,130兴 has also
studied composite domed closures subjected to quasistatic exter-
nal pressure.
It is worth noting a paper by Galletly and Muc 关122兴 where
multiple layers of CFRP woven fabric were bonded to the inner
surface of a geometrically imperfect dome in order to restore its
load carrying capacity. Błachut and Smith 关131兴 have recently
studied buckling of layered metallic end closures. In particular,
they manufactured and tested a number of hemispherical and tori-
spherical heads in which the wall was made from a copper-steel-
copper laminate. Finally, modeling methodologies of initial geo-
metric imperfection used for metallic heads were applied to
orthotropic hemispherical heads 关132兴.
3.2.2 Torispherical Heads Loaded by Internal Pressure. Inter-
nally pressurized end closures appear in far more varied applica-
tions than externally pressurized heads. The thinner heads are
prone to buckling and there is a sizable literature addressing bi-
furcation buckling of thin ends. The transition region between
bifurcation buckling and axisymmetric yielding has also been ac-
tively researched. Studies to develop inelastic and limit analyses
have also been carried out.
An approximate expression for the limit pressure corresponding
to appreciable plastic deformations, in internally pressurized tori-
spherical heads, was given in a paper by Shield and Drucker
关133兴. Experimental verification of plastic limit analysis was dis-
cussed by Save 关134兴, for ten torispherical and three toriconical
shells. Kirk and Gill 关135兴 reported experimental work into the
failure of 12 torispherical ends subjected to internal pressure. All
models were manufactured from aluminum alloy and some of
them failed through asymmetric bifurcation buckling while the
thicker models failed by plastic deformation. Aylward and Gal-
letly 关136兴 reported results of a parametric study into elastic buck-
ling, and first yielding, for torispherical shells. Radhamohan and
Galletly 关137兴 addressed plastic collapse of thin torispheres. The
Results of numerical studies into inelastic buckling of internally
pressurized torispheres can be found in Ref. 关138兴. Experimental
bifurcation buckling loads for spun torispherical and ellipsoidal
dished ends are compared with the predictions of numerically
computed values by Galletly 关139兴. Comparison of test and theory
was also presented by Lagae and Bushnell 关140兴, for asymmetric
bifurcation buckling of torispheres. Buckling tests on two steel
torispherical heads are reported by Miller and Grove 关141兴. These
heads were large diameter, approximately 4.8 m, shells and they
were assembled from a number of welded petals. A set of 16
buckling tests on spun steel torispheres was reported by Roche
and Autrusson 关142兴. The diameter of these heads was 0.5 m and
the ratio of the knuckle radius to diameter varied from 4% to 10%.
The effect of initial shape deviations from perfect geometry on the
bifurcation buckling was also discussed. Numerical studies of the
buckling of torispherical ends of intermediate wall thickness were
carried out by Galletly and Błachut 关34兴. The aim was to deter-
mine the regions for which bifurcation buckling controls the fail-
ure. It was found that the bifurcation buckling load is dependent
on the choice of plasticity theory: deformation theory or J2 flow
theory. Numerical results were also obtained for axisymmetric
yielding failure loads. The subsequent experimental verification
关143兴 confirmed that the predictions of deformation theory were
better for identifying the existence of buckled configurations. Fig-
ure 21共a兲, for example, depicts a torispherical dome that has de-
veloped buckles during testing as predicted by deformation theory
共with J2 flow theory predicting no bifurcation buckling for this
case兲. The agreement of experimental buckling pressures with nu-
merical ones was reasonable for the deformation theory model,
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 26 „a… Illustration showing how the ultimate plastic strain, εup, was estab-
lished for aluminum alloy 6061. „b… Comparison of load versus apex deflection
curves for internally pressurized aluminum torisphere „r / D = 0.08, Rs / D = 1.0,
and D / t = 26…. Location of experimental and computed burst pressures is also
shown.

while the flow theory model sometimes failed to predict the oc-
currence of bifurcation buckling. This study has confirmed the
existing paradox between J2 flow and deformation theories of
plasticity. While the latter remains physically unrealistic theory, it
does provide useful results in the plastic buckling analysis of in-
ternally pressurized domes. It is therefore worth reinforcing the
suggestion made by Bushnell 关96兴 that both approaches should be
used in order to establish the sensitivity of the predictions to the
two models. The above paradox belongs to a wider class of prob-
lems where the discrepancy between the two theories of plasticity
in bifurcation calculations has been studied by Giezen et al. 关144兴,
Tugcu 关145兴, Błachut et al. 关83兴, and Durban and Zuckerman
关146兴.
The finite element methodology aimed at geometrically linear
and nonlinear elastic-plastic stability analyses was given by Soric
关147–149兴 and Soric and Zahlten 关150兴. The effect of eigenshape
imperfections on the magnitude of buckling loads was also inves-
tigated in one of these papers.
The results of 190 experimental tests on internally pressurized
torispherical heads were collated and analyzed by Miller
关151,152兴. Most analyzed torispheres failed by asymmetric, elas-
tic, or inelastic bifurcation buckling. In this paper attention was
also paid to the plastic collapse and burst pressures. There is a
continuing discussion to identify the best failure criterion for tori-
spherical heads, which do not buckle. The use of plastic collapse
loads, as recommended by Gerdeen 关98兴 is a frequently adopted
approach—see also Refs. 关35,153,154兴. The above papers adopt a
common approach to evaluate a plastic load, using a graphical
evaluation of the relationship between internal pressure and apex
deflection. Gerdeen 关98兴 pointed out that the evaluation of the
plastic load should employ a more objective and justified physics
criterion, i.e., for a pressure test the relevant quantities are pres-
sure and change of internal volume. This approach was adopted
by Błachut et al. 关155兴 to obtain plastic loads for torispherical and
ellipsoidal mild steel domes. Reasonable comparison of the ex-
perimental and numerical results was obtained. However, if these
domes were to operate in the postyield range where cyclic load
could be present, the role of the plastic load is less clear than the
shakedown load. In the above study, the concept of a first-cycle
shakedown pressure was adopted to compare the relative values of
plastic and shakedown loads. Plastic and shakedown loads for
domes made from a strain-hardening material were studied by
Błachut et al. 关156兴. While the role of plastic loads for internally
pressurized heads is still being studied, it is burst pressure that is
of greater value from a practical point of view as it gives an
indication of the margin of safety. This is an important quantity,
especially, at a design stage or at an emergency situation. A recent
study into this problem is by Błachut and Vu 关157兴. It was postu-
lated to use the true plastic strain, ␧up, corresponding to the ulti-
mate tensile strength 共UTS兲 for computing the magnitude of burst
pressure. This is illustrated in Fig. 26共a兲 for the case of aluminum
alloy AA6061-T6, where it is seen that ␧up = 0.0815. One needs not
only the magnitude of plastic strain but also a place where this

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 strain is to be attained. Based on the above criterion for admissible
magnitude of plastic strain, it was further postulated to define the
burst pressure as follows: pburst is the pressure at which the
equivalent plastic strain, PEQQ, reaches the ultimate plastic
strain, ␧up, anywhere at the midsurface of a structure.
A series of calculations has been performed for mild steel shal-
low spherical caps, tested previously for buckling by Błachut
关158兴, and torispherical heads. The latter were from mild steel and
aluminum alloy. This was followed by experimental burst tests.
Typical load versus change of internal volume for aluminum tori-
sphere, TA2, is reproduced here as Fig. 26共b兲. It is seen that the
ratio 共pburst
expt
/ pburst
theor
兲 is 1.06 for this dome. Comparison with predic-
tions by other methods favors the proposed approach. Other rel-
evant work in this area is by Updike and Kalnins 关159,160兴, Tong
and Wang 关161兴, and Błachut 关162兴.
Some research has been carried out in support of design by
analysis as opposed to design by rule. Several alternative ap-
proaches to full nonlinear analysis are discussed by Mackenzie
et al. 关163兴.
Finally, Miller 关164兴 reviewed research related to internally or
externally pressurized torispherical and/or ellipsoidal dished ends
and cylindrical shells subjected to axial compression. A numerical
work into buckling problems of the general axisymmetric shells,
considering nonlinearity in the prebuckling state, was undertaken
by Hamada et al. 关165兴. Buckling of internally pressurized tori-
spherical shell served as an example, in addition to buckling of
externally pressurized spherical caps.
3.3 Critical Pressure for Ellipsoidal Heads. One particular
analytical study into static stability of ellipsoidal shells, as such, is
due to Mushtari and Galimov 关166兴. The authors solved analyti-
cally elastic buckling problem and they provided expressions for
external or internal critical pressures of closed ellipsoidal shells.
An analytical solution for critical pressure of a semi-ellipsoidal Fig. 27 Buckled shape of the ellipsoidal head under external
shell with a clamped edge was derived by Tovstik 关167兴. Wunder- pressure—linear solution
lich et al. 关118兴 provided details of the nonlinear analysis of
elastic-plastic shells of revolution. They formulated a semi-
analytical procedure for geometrically and physically nonlinear shearing force and bending moment occurring at the joint between
shells. Detailed investigation of the buckling behavior and imper- ellipsoidal and cylindrical shells were not taken into account in
fection sensitivity of various dished heads under external pressure the above expression for critical pressure.
was then carried out. Generally very little theoretical work has Numerical investigations into the stability of cylindrical vessels
been done to assess the sensitivity of buckling pressure to initial with ellipsoidal heads were carried out by Magnucki and Szyc
deviations from perfect shape in externally pressurized ellipsoidal 关175,176兴. Finite element calculations were based on the follow-
vessel heads. Recent papers discussing this subject are by Błachut ing geometry: radius of the cylindrical shell a = 2 m, length of the
and Jaiswal 关168,169兴. Equally, little experimentation has been cylindrical part L = 4 m, relative depth 0.2艋 ␤ 艋 0.5, and thick-
carried out for externally pressurized ellipsoids. The paper by Bła- nesses of both parts, which were the same, i.e., t1 = t2 = 10 mm.
chut and Smith 关170兴 documents the very few previous studies Elastic constants were assumed as Poisson’s ratio ␯ = 0.3 and
and provides theoretical and new experimental results into col- Young’s modulus E = 205.0 GPa. Critical external pressures and
lapse of mild steel, prolate ellipsoidal end closures 共see also Ref. associated buckling modes were initially obtained from linear so-
关171兴兲. Amiro and Grashev 关172兴 presented a review of papers lutions. The value of critical pressure was computed to be
related to stability problems of shells of revolution. Magnucki et 共ext-lin兲
al. 关173兴 calculated magnitudes of internal critical pressure for a pcr,FEM = 0.465 MPa for relative depth of the head, ␤ = 0.25. Buck-
semi-ellipsoidal shell with a stiffening ring at the edge. They ling mode of this particular head is shown in Fig. 27. It is seen
showed the influence of ring’s stiffness and of other shell param- here that the surface of ellipsoidal head deflects axisymmetrically
eters on the value of internal critical pressure. Ross 关3,174兴 pre- with a local indent at the apex. The magnitude of critical pressure
共ext-lin兲
sented the results of numerical and experimental analyses of thin- for this ellipsoidal shell, as given by Eq. 共27兲, is pcr,MG
walled domes of different depths. Linear and nonlinear FEM = 0.388 MPa. The difference between numerical and analytical
numerical analyses of buckling behavior of ellipsoidal heads sub- predictions amounts to 22% for the above case. The results of
ject to external or internal pressure were studied by Magnucki and further computations for heads with ␤ = 0.20, 0.25, 0.30, 0.35,
Szyc 关175,176兴. 0.40, and 0.50 are shown in Fig. 28. The values of critical pressure
obtained from the FEM calculations, within the investigated range
3.3.1 Ellipsoidal Head Loaded by External Pressure. The ex- of ␤, are 20% higher than those given by Eq. 共27兲. The above
pression for critical external pressure of an ellipsoidal shell due to FEM calculations were also repeated under the assumptions of
Mushtari and Galimov 关166兴 has the following form: geometrical nonlinearity and material nonlinearity. The nonlinear
共ext兲
pcr,MG =
2E
冉 冊
␤
冑3共1 − ␯2兲 ␣e
2
共27兲
model of the structure took into account finite displacements and
elastic-plastic properties of material with linear strain hardening,
according to the plastic flow theory with small elastic-plastic
strains. This model included the effect of transverse shearing
where ␣e = a / t1 is a parameter, ␤ = b / a is a relative depth of the force. A proportional increase in pressure loading was assumed.
ellipsoid, and t1 is the thickness of the ellipsoidal shell. Transverse The yield point of material was assumed to be ␴yp = 400 MPa with

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 „ext…
Fig. 28 Critical pressure, pcr , for ellipsoidal heads with rela-
tive depth ␤ subjected to external pressure
the tangent modulus of elasticity Et = 104 MPa. Calculations
showed that loss of stability of an ellipsoidal head with ␤ = 0.25
共ext-nol兲
occurred at pcr,FEM = 0.319 MPa. This value is 31% lower than
the value obtained from linear solution. Calculations for other
values of ␤ were also carried out, and the relevant results are
showed in Fig. 28. This figure depicts all three predictions, i.e.,
linear, nonlinear, and analytical. It is seen here that the analytical
solution of Mushtari and Galimov given by Eq. 共27兲 is bracketed
by predictions based on the nonlinear and linear FE analyses.
Deformed shape of this head is shown in Fig. 29.
Finally, it is worth noting that linear and nonlinear FEM solu-
tions discussed above were carried out for the vessel head, i.e., for
one-half of the ellipsoidal shell attached to a short cylindrical
flange. The analytical solution given by Eq. 共27兲, on the other
hand, was obtained for full ellipsoid.
Values of critical pressure obtained from the nonlinear FEM
analyses, and plotted in Fig. 28, can be approximated by the fol-
lowing expression 关175,176兴:
共ext兲
pcr =
2E
冑3共1 − ␯ 兲 ␣e
2
冉 冊
␤1.07 2
Close examination of it shows that this equation is a lower esti-
mation of the FEM values. Hence it can be useful from a practical
point of view.
3.3.2 Ellipsoidal Head Loaded by Internal Pressure. Tovstik
关167兴 as mentioned earlier, has also derived an analytical expres-
sion for critical pressure of a semi-ellipsoidal shell of small depth
loaded by internal pressure. The critical pressure, as predicted by
Tovstik, is
冉 冊冋 冑
16E ␤ 2
1 − 4␤ 2 pcr,Gal = 285 1 − 125
共inl兲
pct,Tov = 1 + Ct
冑3共1 − ␯ 兲 ␣e
2 ␣ e␤
冑
where Ct = 193/ 32冑3共1 − ␯2兲, e.g., for ␯ = 0.3 the value of this
coefficient is Ct = 1.9106.
Magnucki and Szyc 关175,176兴 have also investigated the buck-
ling behavior of internally pressurized ellipsoidal heads in cylin-
drical vessels using the FE. Domes with small depths, i.e., 0.15
艋 ␤ 艋 0.30, were considered. The geometry of these shells was the
same as in the previous section. Critical internal pressure for the
共inl-lin兲
head with relative depth ␤ = 0.25 was found to be pcr,FEM
= 5.54 MPa. The corresponding buckling form is shown in Fig.
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Fig. 29 Deformed shape of ellipsoidal head, ␤ = b / a = 0.25, un-
der external pressure—nonlinear solution. Note: Deformation
process and the loss of stability were elastic.
30. The surface of this head at buckling has a set of dents distrib-
uted over a narrow area in circumferential direction. The critical
pressure for a semiellipsoidal shell obtained from Eq. 共29兲
共inl兲
amounts to pcr,Tov = 3.83 MPa. The results of FEM predictions of
linear elastic buckling pressures are plotted in Fig. 31. Tovstik’s
analytical prediction, given by Eq. 共29兲, is also depicted in Fig.
31. Within the narrow range of dome geometries, i.e., for 0.10
艋 ␤ 艋 0.15, a good agreement between both predictions of buck-
ling pressure exists. For larger values of ␤, discrepancy between
共28兲
both predictions grows rapidly, e.g., for ␤ = 0.25 the discrepancy
reaches 44%.
In many situations buckling can occur beyond the elastic limit
and the literature survey shows that a lot of research have been
carried for elastic-plastic buckling of internally pressurized domed
ends 共e.g., Refs. 关98,139,177,178兴兲. In addition to failure through
asymmetric bifurcation one needs to consider failure through plas-
tic load. One particular paper addressing plastic load of torispheri-
cal heads of cylindrical pressure vessels was investigated by Gal-
letly 关139兴. The following formula was derived numerically for
plastic loads based on the twice elastic slope approach:
冉 冊 冉冊 冉 冊冉冊
册 共inl兲 ␴yp rt 0.84
D 1.1
t1 1.53
␴yp 共30兲
E D Rs D
共29兲
where ␴yp is the yield stress, E is Young’s modulus, rt is the radius
of the torus, Rs is the radius of the sphere, D = 2a is the diameter
of the cylinder, and t1 is the thickness of the head.
Magnucki and Szyc 关175兴, inspired by the approach used for
torispherical domes and given by Eq. 共30兲, have derived the fol-
lowing expression for critical pressure of internally pressurized
ellipsoidal head with small depths 共␤ 艋 0.3兲:
冉 冊冉 冊
共inl兲 ␴yp ␤ 0.84
1
pcr,red = 26.2␴yp 1 − 125 共31兲
E ␳s − 1 ␳s0.26␣1.53
e
NOVEMBER 2008, Vol. 61 / 060801-17
 Fig. 32 Deformed shape of the ellipsoidal head, ␤ = 0.25, under
Fig. 30 Buckled shape of ellipsoidal head, ␤ = 0.25, under in- internal pressure—nonlinear solution
ternal pressure—linear solution

that the initial portions of the load-apex deflection plots were lin-
where ␳s = 1.2共1 + ␤ 兲 / 2␤ is dimensionless parameter.
2 ear. This, as mentioned earlier, was the basis for the derivation of
plastic loads and subsequent derivation of Eq. 共32兲.
Next, they carried out a series of FEM calculations in order to
The values of critical pressure for four descriptions 共two linear
extract plastic loads of internally pressurized ellipsoidal domed
and two nonlinear兲 are compared in Fig. 31. One immediate ob-
ends. Plastic loads, in their studies, corresponded to the end of
servation is that linear elastic solutions are significantly different
linearity on the internal pressure versus apex deflection plots. Nu-
from nonlinear cases. The results based on nonlinear FEM calcu-
merical results were then approximated by a second order poly-
lations and those obtained from formula 共31兲 are very similar in
nomial, with the use of the least square method. The resulting
the range of 0.1艋 ␤ 艋 0.3.
formula for critical pressure of ellipsoidal heads has the following
form: 3.4 Critical Sizes of Aboveground Based and Under-
共inl兲
pcr,FEM = 1604␴yp 冉 1 − 125
␴yp
E
冊冋 共1 − 0.9␤兲
␤
␣e
册 2
共32兲
ground Horizontal Cylindrical Vessels. Aboveground and un-
derground horizontal cylindrical vessels, Fig. 33, are usually thin-
walled and they are susceptible to loss of stability. Ziółko 关1兴
A typical view of a deformed elliptical head subjected to inter- provided detailed principles for design of such tanks of various
nal pressure is depicted in Fig. 32. In the FE studies it was found geometries, considering their real manufacturing conditions. De-
sign rules for such vessels can be found in European Standards
EN 286-1 关14兴, EN 12285-1 关179兴, EN 12285-2 关180兴, and PD
5500 关15兴. Despite existence of these rules there are still a number
of unanswered issues about the stability of circular cylindrical
storage vessels.
3.4.1 Aboveground Horizontal Cylindrical Vessels. A horizon-
tal cylindrical vessel filled with liquid and supported at both ends
is potentially exposed to destruction by buckling due to a variety
of different loading scenarios. Huang and Redekop 关181兴 have
determined critical load for a circular cylindrical shell subjected to
bending due to three forces distributed on any surface area. This is
both analytical and numerical studies. The theoretical solution for
the elastic buckling is based on Donnell’s stability equation. Guar-
racino and Fraldi 关182兴 analytically determined the deformation of
circular cross section of a pipe subjected to pure bending. Chan
et al. 关183,184兴 and Tooth et al. 关185兴 presented results of a re-
„inl…
Fig. 31 Critical pressure, pcr , versus relative depth, ␤, of in- search related to the stability of horizontal shells pivoted at both
ternally pressurized ellipsoidal heads ends and filled with fluid. They proposed expressions for admis-

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 Fig. 33 Geometry of the aboveground and underground horizontal cylin-
drical vessels

sible stresses using known analytical solutions for axial compres- using Galerkin’s method.
sion or for pure bending of cylindrical shells. Experimental results The resulting four homogeneous linear algebraic equations
were compared with the appropriate values obtained from British need to satisfy the following condition for the existence of the
and European Standards. Kacperski 关186兴 carried out an experi- solution:
mental study into the behavior of horizontal cylindrical vessels
det
aij = 0 共36兲
filled with water and pivoted at both ends. Buckling tests were
carried out on cylinders of variable length, constant diameter, and where coefficients aij include material constants E, ␯, specific
constant wall thickness. Saal 关187兴 carried out experimental inves- weight of the liquid ␥m1, and dimensions of cylindrical shell.
tigations into buckling process of laboratory scale, horizontal thin- The total capacity of the horizontal vessel is a sum of capacities
walled cylindrical shells filled with water. A proportion between of the cylindrical shell and two ellipsoidal heads, i.e.,
dimensions of cylindrical shell for various levels of water, for
which the structure lost stability, was determined. Local buckling V0 = Vc + 2Vh 共37兲
of a cylindrical shell subjected to bending was investigated by
where Vc = ␲a ␭ is the capacity of the cylindrical shell, Vh
3
Axelrad 关188兴 and Mikkelsen and Tvergaard 关189兴. The stability
= 3 ␲a3␤ is the capacity of the ellipsoidal head, ␭ = L / a is the
2
of cylindrical tanks due to bending and filled with liquid was
studied by Danis and Kacperski 关190兴. Huang et al. 关181兴 pro- relative length of the cylindrical shell, and ␤ = b / a is the relative
vided details about the instability of a cylindrical shell subjected depth of the head. From which, the radius of the vessel can be
to bending. Experimental tests were carried out on commercial written as
steel tanks. The mechanisms of plastic collapse of bent tubes were
analyzed by Elchalakani et al. 关191兴.
Stasiewicz 关192兴 and Magnucki and Stasiewicz 关193,194兴 have
a= 冑
3
3V0
␲共3␭ + 4␤兲
共38兲

determined the critical state of a horizontal cylindrical shell filled Substituting this expression into the coefficients aij of the alge-
with liquid and supported at both ends 共Fig. 18兲. braic equation 共36兲, one can calculate the critical values of relative
Consider a ground-based vessel filled with liquid. This gives wall thickness 共t2 / a兲cr as a function of relative length ␭ = L / a for
rise to loading by a positive internal hydrostatic pressure. Assume
constant capacity 共V0 = const兲 of the vessel. Numerical calcula-
that there may be a suction action on the cylinder resulting in a
small external pressure, p02. The total pressure will therefore be tions were carried out for a family of circular cylindrical vessels
共see Fig. 18兲 with capacities V0 = 100, 200, 300 m3. Typical material constants
for steel were adopted, i.e., E = 210.0 GPa and ␯ = 0.3. Vessels
p共␸兲 = ␥m1a共1 − cos ␸兲 − p02 共33兲 were filled with water of specific weight ␥m1 = 9.81 kN/ m3 and
they were additionally loaded by external pressure,p02
Prebuckling forces can be approximately determined from lin-
= 0.01 MPa or p02 = 0.1 MPa. The results of the analysis are
ear equations of equilibrium of cylindrical shell given by Eq. 共11兲,
shown in Figs. 34 and 35.
and they are
Bottom curves are related to the capacity V0 = 100 m3 and the
4 ␲z 1
0
Nzz = t2␴zz
0
=− ␥m1L2 cos ␸ cos − ap02
␲3 L 2

4 ␲z
Nz0␸ = t2␴z0␸ = − ␥m1aL sin ␸ sin
␲2 L

4 ␲z
0
N␸␸ = t2␴␸␸
0
= ␥m1a2共1 − cos ␸兲cos − ap02 共34兲
␲ L
Assume deflection of the shell in the following form:

冋
w共z, ␸兲 = t2 w2 + 2
5

兺 w cos共i − 2兲␸
i=3
i 册 cos共n␸兲cos
␲z
L
共35兲

where wi are the parameters of deflection function 共i = 2 , 3 , 4 , 5兲

and n = 2 , 3 , 4 , . . . are natural numbers.
Using Donnell’s equation of stability of cylindrical shells given Fig. 34 Relative critical thickness of aboveground vessels
by Eq. 共17兲 one can solve them approximately for this case load with additional external pressure p01 = 0.01 MPa

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Fig. 35 Relative critical thickness of aboveground vessels
with additional external pressure p01 = 0.1 MPa
upper ones are related to the capacity V0 = 300 m3. The distance
between these curves depends on the value of additional external
共negative兲 pressure. The area below curves corresponds to un-
stable state of vessels, while the area above them corresponds to
stable configurations. The envelope of these curves, which is more
suitable for practical purposes, can be approximated by
冉冊t2
a cr
= k 1␭ k2 共39兲
where k1 and k2 are parameters.
The values of these parameters for aboveground vessels sub-
jected to additional negative pressure p02 = 0.01 MPa are k1
= 0.001142 and k2 = 0.364 共Fig. 34兲. For the case of vessels sub-
jected to larger additional negative pressure, i.e., p02 = 0.1 MPa,
the values of parameters k1 and k2 are k1 = 0.002930 and k2
= 0.401 共Fig. 35兲.
3.4.2 Underground Horizontal Cylindrical Vessels. Under-
ground horizontal cylindrical vessels are always loaded by exter-
nal pressure. The external effect of earth on the relatively thin
cylindrical shells can lead to buckling phenomena. Two load cases
for these vessels are distinguished: 共1兲 total earth pressure and
vehicle weight pressure 共typical geological condition兲, and 共2兲 hy-
drostatic lift pressure of earth with water pressure 共extreme geo-
Fig. 36 Geometry and loading of underground vessel
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logical condition兲.
The scheme of the first load case, for a horizontal underground
vessel, is sketched in Fig. 36.
The total external pressure for the underground vessel shown in
Fig. 36 can be written as 关195兴
p共␸兲 = p0 + p2 cos共2␸兲 + p3 cos共3␸兲 共40兲
1
where p0 = 4 共pu + 2pm + pd兲 is the mean effective pressure, p2
1 1
= 4 共pu − 2pm + pd兲, and p3 = 2 共pu − pd兲.
The pressure effect of heavy weight vehicle and weight of earth
have the following form:
n wQ
p共z兲 = + z␥gr f共z兲 共41兲
共b1 + 1.2z兲共b2 + 1.2z兲
where z = h0 + a共1 − cos ␸兲 is depth 共see Fig. 36兲, b1 ⫻ b2 is the
dimensions of the rectangular area of vehicle wheel, nw is the
number of wheels, Q is pressure due to a single wheel, ␥gr is the
specific weight of earth, f共z兲 = 1 for z = h0 or for z = h0 + 2a, f共z兲
= 关1 + tan2共␲ / 4 − ␥ / 2兲兴 / 2 for z = h0 + a, and ␥ is the angle of natu-
ral slip of the ground 共␥ = 2␲ / 9兲.
The values of external pressure for characteristic depth are pu
= p共h0兲, pm = p共h0 + a兲, and pd = p共h0 + 2a兲. The latter quantities,
i.e., pu, pm, and pd, can now be substituted to Eq. 共40兲. Hence the
pressure profile in cylinder portion of the vessel can be regarded
as known.
The stability condition of horizontal cylindrical vessels for the
first load case has the following form 共see Refs. 关54,195兴兲:
共 j兲
p0,cr
p0 ⱕ 共42兲
css
共j兲
where p0,cr is the critical external pressure given by Eq. 共23兲 for
j = 1 or by Eq. 共24兲 for j = 2, and css is the safety coefficient.
One can choose the wall thickness of cylindrical vessel, t2, or
its length, L, or radius, a, in order to increase the magnitude of
critical pressure, p0 共as it is clear from Eqs. 共23兲 and 共24兲兲. It is
also possible to use internal circular rings to support the cylindri-
cal shell in order to further increase the magnitude of buckling
pressure, and this would be in addition to shell’s parameters, i.e.,
t2, L, and a. In this case the total length, L, is now divided into a
number of segments of length, say, L0. Each segment of length L0
is supported by two rings at both ends—as sketched in Fig. 37.
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 37 Section of T-ring reinforced cylindrical shell in under-
ground storage vessel. Note that „30Ã t2…-length of the cylinder
is used when calculating the value of the ring’s second mo-
ment of area, Jz.

Hence the total length, L, can be written as L = 共1 + nr兲L0 共nr is the

number of rings, usually T-rings兲. Once rings are added to the
model one needs to be aware that they can buckle at a smaller
pressure than that of the cylinder. Hence buckling of the rings
must also be considered.
The critical pressure of an externally pressurize circular ring is Fig. 38 Critical thicknesses, t2,cr, of ring-stiffened under-
given by ground horizontal cylindrical vessels „nr Æ number of internal
reinforcing rings…
共ring兲 EJz
p0,cr =3 共43兲
R31L0

where Jz is the moment of inertia of the area 共second moment兲 of case, i.e., for the case of hydrostatic lift pressure of earth with
the effective cross section of the ring and R1 is the radius of the water pressure, is similar to buckling of aboveground horizontal
effective ring. cylindrical vessel. External hydrostatic pressure in this case is
It is worth noting here that when evaluating Jz for the T-ring,
some neighboring stiffness of cylinder’s wall needs to be in- p共␸兲 = − ␥m2关a共1 − cos ␸兲 + h0兴 共45兲
cluded, making T-ring an I-ring. The second flange in the I-ring is
taken as cylinder’s wall of length 30⫻ t2—as illustrated in Fig. 37 where ␥m2 is the specific weight of water.
关109,179兴. Next, the stability condition for the circular ring can Results for empty steel underground circular cylindrical vessels
finally be written as of capacities V0 = 100, 200, 300 m3 placed in soil containing water
共ring兲 and at the depth h0 = 1 m are shown in Fig. 39 关194兴.
p0,cr
p0 ⱕ 共44兲 The values of parameters k1 and k2 used in Eq. 共39兲 for under-
csr ground horizontal vessels located at the depth h0 = 1 m are k1
where csr = 2css is the safety coefficient for the ring. = 0.002613 and k2 = 0.2775 共for V0 = 100 m3兲. Also, k1 = 0.002821
Buckling of a cylindrical shell segment is not equivalent to the and k2 = 0.2715 共for V0 = 200 m3兲, and k1 = 0.003080 and k2
collapse of the entire vessel, if rings remain stable. Therefore, the = 0.2539 共for V0 = 300 m3兲.
safety coefficient for rings is adopted to be twice as large as the Interesting stability problem of an underground vessel was
safety coefficient for a cylindrical shell. With stability conditions studied by Konjuchov et al. 关196兴. It is postulated that buckles are
given by Eq. 共42兲 for cylinder and by Eq. 共44兲 for supporting not allowed to develop in the outer direction but only in the inner
rings, one can choose an appropriate set of parameters in order to direction. It is shown that buckling loads could be increased by
prevent buckling of the vessel. The ideal situation would be when more than 30%. In practice this could be achieved by appropriate
buckling pressure for cylinder has the same magnitude as buck- support media of such vessels.
ling pressure for the rings. The stability behavior of ring-reinforced cylindrical vessels for
This is now to be illustrated by an example of underground underground applications was studied by Walker and McCall
ring-stiffened steel cylindrical vessel. Consider an empty vessel 关197兴 and Tian et al. 关198兴.
with capacity V0 = 100 m3 being loaded by the mean effective ex-
ternal pressure p0, Eq. 共40兲. Assume that the underground steel
vessel is described by the following parameters: E = 2.05
⫻ 105 MPa, ␯ = 0.3, h0 = 1 m, b1 = 0.5 m, b2 = 0.76 m, nw = 6, Q
= 50 kN, and ␳gr = 1800 kg/ m3. Let us also assume that the under-
ground vessel is stiffened by circular rings with standard beam,
T80. Based on conditions 共42兲 and 共44兲 the values of critical wall
thickness, t2,cr, of vessels were calculated and they are shown in
Fig. 38. The domain above the curves in Fig. 38, for fixed number
of rings, n, corresponds to the stable state of the shell and rings.
This represents space of feasible solutions. It is seen from Fig. 38
that only wall thickness was used when buckling conditions given
by Eqs. 共42兲 and 共44兲 were evaluated for a given number of rings,
nr, in the vessel. For example, for nr = 5, there are two curves. The
first is obtained from the condition given by Eq. 共42兲 for the shell.
The second is obtained from the condition given by Eq. 共44兲 for
the ring. It is clear that there is a unique 共␭ ⬅ L / a兲-ratio where
both buckling pressures are the same. This corresponds to ␭
= 5.74 共giving, t2,cr = 5.2 mm兲. Fig. 39 Relative critical thickness of the wall of underground
Buckling problem of underground vessels for the second load cylindrical tank „h0 = 1 m…

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 4 Optimization of Horizontal Cylindrical Vessels
The design of vessels is a complex process requiring satisfac-
tion of a wide range of constraints. The natural goal of the de-
signer is to develop the best construction, as compared with al-
ready existing ones. For this purpose an appropriate criterion has
to be assumed. Such an approach to design of vessels is closely
related to problems of optimal structural design—a topic in itself
which has been actively researched for many decades. A sample
of review articles on structural optimization includes Refs.
关199–220兴. Many monographs devoted to optimization of struc-
tures including plates, and shells were also developed. The exist-
ing literature indicates that the works aimed at tank optimization
are rare. Gill et al. 关221兴 presented the mathematical foundations
of optimization. Gajewski and Życzkowski 关222兴 considered op-
timization of plates and shells under stability constraints. They
discussed the theory of structural stability and problems of opti-
mal structural design. Examples of structural optimization include
columns, arches, trusses, frames, plates, shells, and thin-walled
bars. Szyszkowski and Glockner 关223兴 searched for shape of cross
section in a floated vessel to remain in purely membrane state.
Savula and Flejshman 关224兴 studied selected problems of optimi-
zation of shells. Rysz and Życzkowski 关225兴 considered optimiza-
tion of cylindrical shells under creep stability condition. Wegner
关226兴 searched for a distribution of baffle plates in cylindrical
tanks subject to stability of a vehicle movement. Barski et al.
关227–229兴 studied optimization of axisymmetric shells subject to
static stability condition. Życzkowski et al. 关230兴 considered op-
timization of axisymmetric shells subject to stability and thermal
loading. Another set of papers dealing with stability of cylindrical
shells is by Krużelecki 关231,232兴 and Krużelecki and Trzeciak
关233–235兴 as well as by Krużelecki and Veness 关236兴. Optimal
design of internally pressurized elliptical cylindrical shell was car-
ried out by Magnucki and Szyc 关237兴. Structural constraints on
stress level and on shape were imposed while the minimum mass
was sought. Stability and optimization of sandwich cylinders were
carried out by Magnucki and Ostwald 关238兴 and by Kasperska and
Ostwald 关239,240兴. Optimization of sandwich flat baffle plates in
cylindrical vessels was carried out by Magnucki and Malinowski
关241,242兴 and Malinowski and Magnucki 关243兴. Minimum mass
of these plates was sought under stress constraints while loaded by
uniform pressure. Adeli 关244兴 made a review of design optimiza-
tion problems, e.g., mathematical theory of optimum engineering
design, optimality criteria methods, multicriterion structural opti-
mization, optimization of topology, practical shape optimization
of mechanical structures, and reliability-based structural optimiza-
tion. Błachut and Eschenauer 关245兴 addressed emerging methods
for multidisciplinary optimization: multidisciplinary optimization
procedure in design processes, old and new nongradient methods
in engineering optimization, optimal engineering design by means
of stochastic optimization methods, response surface approxima-
tions, modeling and approximation strategies in optimization, and
strategies for modeling in genetic algorithms based on multidisci-
plinary design 共see also Ref. 关246兴兲.
A structure can be described by means of a function or a finite
set of numbers, i.e., a vector
x = 共x1,x2, . . . ,xn兲 共46兲
where xi are design variables, i = 1 , 2 , . . . , n, subject to lower and
upper bounds xiL 艌 xi 艌 xiU.
The domain of feasible solutions is defined by constraints im-
posed on the structure in the form of inequality and/or quality
conditions as follows:
␾ j共x兲 ⱕ 0, j = 1,2, . . . ,m, ␺l共x兲 = 0, l = 1,2, . . . ,p
共47兲
Constraints having form of an equation reduce the number of
design variables, i.e., the dimension of vector, x. The set of fea-
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sible solutions is reduced to a common part, i.e., the product of
sets including all the constraints
m−p
⌽共x兲 = 艚 ␾ j共x兲 共48兲
j=1
The best solution from the set of admissible solutions can be
found only when an optimization criterion is selected. The choice
of the criterion is a difficult and responsible task. Its undue defi-
nition may cancel all the benefits resulting from the optimization
process.
The problem of the choice of the best solution among the ad-
missible ones is usually a multicriteria task. Ostwald 关247–249兴
discussed multicriteria optimization, paying attention to sandwich
plates and cylindrical shells. Magnucki 关250兴 confined consider-
ations to problems of truss structures, shells, and thin-walled ves-
sels, in which the problem of the choice of an optimal solution
resolved itself to a single criterion. Optimization problem consists
in finding the solution xopt from the set of admissible solutions
⌽共x兲 given by Eq. 共48兲 on the grounds of an assumed criterion. In
classical approach the criterion is defined by means of the objec-
tive function Fo共x兲. Next, the extreme value of the function is
sought, i.e.,
∀ ∃ Fo共xopt兲 ⬍ Fo共x兲 or ∀ ∃ Fo共xopt兲 ⬎ Fo共x兲 共49兲
x xopt x xopt
The first case is for minimization, while the other is for maximi-
zation of the objective function, being a n-dimension function.
Computer methods are usually necessary here. A review structural
optimization methods was provided by Gill et al. 关221兴, Kamat
关251兴, Rao 关252兴, Szymczak 关253兴, Paczkowski 关254兴, Błachut
and Eschenauer 关245兴, and Bochenek and Krużelecki 关255兴. The
aforementioned works complement each other.
4.1 Optimal Depth of Ellipsoidal Head. The stress concen-
tration factor, ␣SC, given by Eq. 共8兲 is a function of three dimen-
sionless parameters of the vessel, i.e., x1, x2, and ␤. Detailed
analysis was carried out by Magnucki and Lewiński 关256兴 for the
family of steel pressure vessels with dimensionless parameters
belonging to the following ranges: the relative depth of the ellip-
soidal head ␤ 苸 具0.3, 1.0典, the characteristic ratio of the thin-
walled cylindrical shell x2 苸 具75, 100, 125, . . . , 200典, and the ratio
of wall thicknesses, x1 ⬅ t2 / t1, belonging to the set of real num-
bers x1 苸 R. The condition given by Eq. 共9兲 facilitates an effective
design of the cylindrical pressure vessel for consecutive values of
x2 parameter. In the previous section the effective thickness ratio,
x1,ef共␤兲—seen in Fig. 10 and the minimum stress concentration
factor, ␣SC,min共␤兲—seen in Fig. 11, were defined as functions of
the relative depth ␤ of ellipsoidal head. It is worth pointing out
that for relative depth, ␤, being greater than 0.6, the effective
values x1,ef共␤兲 and ␣SC,min共␤兲 practically do not depend on the
magnitude of x2 ⬅ a / t2.
The mass, height, or both of an elliptical domed end in a hori-
zontal cylindrical storage tanks are to be subject of optimization in
what is to follow.
The mass of the ellipsoidal head can be written as follows:
␣SC
m1 = ␲␳1a2t1cm = ␲␳1a2t2共0兲 · cm 共50兲
x1,ef
where
␤2 1 + 冑1 − ␤2
cm = 1 + ln
冑1 − ␤ 2 ␤
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 41 Illustration of four types of a joint between elliptical
head and cylindrical shell. The magnitudes of the peak stress
in the ellipsoidal and cylindrical shells are the same for all four
cases.

tank are sketched in Fig. 41. The joint for the most frequent 2:1
ellipsoidal head is shown in Fig. 41共a兲. The case of the same wall
Fig. 40 Plot of dimensionless mass of ellipsoidal head versus
thickness is depicted in Fig. 41共b兲. It is seen here that the depth of
its dimensionless depth, ␤
the dome increases to ␤ = 0.6. Figure 41共c兲 depicts the solution of
Eq. 共53兲 while Fig. 41共d兲 refers to the minimum mass configura-
tion of the dome.
␣SC 共0兲 冑3 p0
t1 = t1,ef = t , t2共0兲 = a 4.2 Strength Shaping of a Dished Head. Classical tori-
x1,ef 2 2 ␴all
spherical and ellipsoidal heads disturb the membrane state of
共thickness of the cylindrical shell in membrane state兲 stresses and cause stress concentration at a junction with cylindri-
共51兲 cal part of a pressure vessel. Minimization of the stress concen-
tration was the subject of a number of past studies. Elin and Hari-
and ␳1 is mass density of the domed end’s material. tonov 关258兴 used the calculus of variations in order to determine
Hence, dimensionless mass of the ellipsoidal head is deter- the optimal variable thickness of domed head. Middleton 关259兴
mined by the following coefficient: calculated the optimal shape of internally pressurized torispherical
head with two and three radii. Mansfield 关260兴 presented the prob-
␣SC lem of optimal shaping of pressure vessel heads in the membrane
m̂1共␤兲 = cm 共52兲
x1,ef stress state. The range of minimal relative depth was found, i.e.,
0.599艋 ␤h,min 艋 0.620. Wilczyński 关261,262兴 searched for meridi-
Taking into account functions x1,ef共␤兲, plotted in Fig. 10; onal shape in order to minimize stress concentrations in thin-
␣SC,min共␤兲, plotted in Fig. 11; and Eq. 共50兲, one can obtain dimen- walled or thick-walled vessels. His approach was based on the
sionless mass of ellipsoidal domed end-closure as a function of its FEM and the use of Bezier functions. Magnucki and Lewiński
depth, ␤. This relationship is plotted in Fig. 40 共see Ref. 关257兴 for 关263,264兴 optimized the shape of dished head on the cylindrical
further details兲. pressure vessel in the membrane stress state under the condition of
Let us now consider the following two optimization criteria: 共i兲 constant wall thickness.
minimum mass of the ellipsoidal head and 共ii兲 minimum mass Consider general-ellipsoidal head of a pressure vessel, the me-
combined with minimum depth, ␤, of the head. The first criterion ridian of which is in the form of a generalized ellipse—Fig. 42.
leads to the minimum mass of the ellipsoidal head at ␤共1兲 opt = 0.85. The equation of the ellipse is assumed in the following form:
The wall thickness of the head at the optimum is t1,ef = 0.679t共0兲 2 共1 − ␨兲k + ␳2 = 1 共54兲
共see Fig. 40兲. This solution was obtained for parameter x2
苸 具75, 200典.
where ␨ = z / b and ␳ = r / a are dimensionless coordinates, and k is a
Manufacturing costs of an ellipsoidal head increase with the parameter 共2 ⬍ k兲.
increasing depth. Hence the second criterion, which takes into
The geometric relations for surface of revolution are
consideration not only the mass of the head but also its depth,
appears to be more relevant from a practical point of view. One
possible form the takes into account both parameters, i.e., mass
and height/depth of an ellipsoidal closure, can take the following
form:
min兵m̂1, ␤其 = min冑m̂21 + ␤2 共53兲
␤ ␤

This second criterion leads to the optimum at ␤共1兲opt = 0.65. The wall
thickness of the head at the optimum is t1,ef = 0.845t共0兲
2 . Again, this
solution was obtained for parameter x2 苸 具75, 200典. Both of the
above solutions have been obtained under the assumption of the
same magnitude of peak stresses in domed end and in cylindrical
shells 共as discussed in Sec. 2, Eq. 共9兲兲. Various schemes for at-
tachment of elliptical dome to the cylindrical part of a storage Fig. 42 Meridional shape of a dished dome

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 Fig. 43 Variation of principal radii in a dished head

dr
d␪
= R1 cos ␪,
dz
d␪
= R1 sin ␪, r = R2 sin ␪ 共55兲 or R̂2 冑1−
R̂2
R̂1
+ 冉冊
1 R̂2
3 R̂
1
2

ⱕ1 共59兲

Taking into account the equation of generalized ellipse given by

Eq. 共54兲, after simple mathematical transformations, the dimen- The top of the head, i.e., the point 共0,0兲 in Fig. 42, belongs to the
sionless principal radii of the middle surface are sphere that has the dimensionless radius: R̂0 = 冑3; therefore,

R̂1 =
R1
=
k 关f 1共␨兲兴3/2
, R̂2 =
R2
=
k
关f 1共␨兲兴1/2 共56兲 R̂1共0兲 = R̂2共0兲 = R̂0 = 冑3 and k = 2␤冑3 共60兲
a 2␤ f 2共␨兲共1 − ␨兲共k−2兲 a 2␤
The point 共b , a兲 共or 共␨ , ␳兲 ⬅ 共1 , 1兲兲 in Fig. 42 belongs to the gen-
where eralized ellipse described by Eq. 共54兲 and, at the same time, to the

冉 冊
f 1共␨兲 = 共1 − ␨兲2共k−1兲 + 2
␤ 2
k
关1 − 共1 − ␨兲k兴
straight portion of the cylindrical shell. It is obvious that there is a
continuity of principal curvatures at the junction between the gen-
eralized ellipsoid and the circular cylindrical shell. At the point
共1,1兲 dimensionless principal radii, as given by Eq. 共56兲, are
冉 冊冉 冊
f 2共 ␨ 兲 = 2 1 −
1
k
2
− 1 − 共1 − ␨兲k
k
R̂1共1兲 → ⬁ and R̂2共1兲 = 1—see Fig. 43.
The minimization of the relative depth ␤ = b / a of the dished
head under strength constraint given by Eq. 共59兲 involves the
and ␤ = b / a is a relative depth of the head.
criterion of the following form:
Assume that the equivalent stresses 共Huber–Mises stresses兲 in
the head do not exceed the equivalent stress in the cylindrical min关␤共k兲兴 共61兲
k
shell when both shells have the same wall thickness, i.e., t = t1
= t2. The resulting strength condition becomes
The above problem needs to be solved numerically. Calculations
冑3 a lead to the optimal solution for the closure’s depth: ␤min = 0.71.
␴共eqhead兲 ⱕ ␴共eqcyl兲 = p0 共57a兲 The variation of dimensionless equivalent stress in the optimal
2 t
ellipsoidal head is shown in Fig. 44 共note that it is plotted along
or for the case of dimensionless stresses the axial axis, ␨, and not along the closure’s arc length兲. The
optimal shape can found by the substitution of ␤min = 0.71 into the
冑3 a parameter k in Eq. 共60兲, and the obtained value for it into the
␴ˆ 共eqhead兲 ⱕ ␴ˆ 共eqcyl兲 = 共57b兲 equation defining the ellipse’s shape, i.e., Eq. 共54兲.
2 t
4.3 Optimal Domes Subject to Buckling. Once confidence
where t = t1 = t2, the thickness of the cylindrical shell, is the same has been established in numerical predictions of the buckling
as the thickness of the dished head, p0 is uniformly distributed strength, then there is considerable scope for structural optimiza-
internal pressure, and a is the radius of the cylindrical vessel. tion of buckling prone domed end closures—as pointed out in
The dimensionless, equivalent stress in the dished head is papers by Błachut 关265,266兴 and Błachut et al. 关105,125兴.

␴ˆ 共eqhead兲 = 冑␴ˆ ␪2 − ␴ˆ ␪␴ˆ ␸ + ␴ˆ ␸2 =

1 R2
2 t
冑冉 冊 冉 冊 3 1−
R2
R1
+
R2
R1
2
共58兲 4.3.1 Optimal Domes Under External Pressure. Let us assume
a stepwise distribution of the wall thickness in a torispherical
head. Błachut 关267兴, under the constraint of constant mass,
where searched for a distribution of mass in such a way that the load

␴ˆ ␪ =
1 R2
2 t
, 冉
␴ˆ ␸ = 1 −
1 R2 R2
2 R1 t
冊 carrying capacity was maximized, i.e., popt = max共min共pi兲兲, where
i = 1 corresponds to bifurcation buckling and i = 2 refers to axisym-
metric snap-through. The use of just few segments led to 15–50%
are the usual longitudinal and circumferential stresses. increase in buckling pressure above buckling pressure of equiva-
The strength condition given by Eq. 共57b兲, after substituting Eq. lent torispheres of constant wall thickness.
共58兲, has the following algebraic inequality: Even within a constant wall thickness it is not instantly clear

冑冉 冊 冉 冊
which torispherical geometry would be the best within a given set
R̂2 R̂2 R̂2
2
冑3 of constraints and range of available geometries. The following
3 1− + ⱕ case illustrates this dilemma. Let us seek solution to the following
2 R̂1 R̂1 2
two problems:

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 Fig. 44 Variation of equivalent stresses in a dished head

popt = max共min共pi/pH兲兲 and Vopt = max共VT/VH兲, i = 1,2 4.3.2 Optimal Domes Under Internal Pressure. References to
early work into structural optimization of internally pressurized
共62a兲
dome closures on cylindrical shells can be found in Refs.
and 关203,273兴. These two complementary reviews of papers devoted
to optimal design of shells quote about 1000 papers that have
popt = min共min共pi/pH兲兲 and Vopt = max共VT/VH兲 i = 1,2 appeared since the beginning of the last century. Structural opti-
共62b兲 mization of internally pressurized dome ends has played a much
larger role in many areas of pressure vessel technology than opti-
where the design vector contains the following geometrical pa- mization of externally pressurized heads. Structural optimization
rameters that define a torispherical end: 兵Rs / D , r / D , D / t其; VH and with respect to bifurcation buckling has very rarely been at-
VT are the volumes of a hemispherical and torispherical heads, tempted. Instead, optimization where buckling was to be avoided
respectively. A given amount of material WH can be utilized in was carried out. Eschenauer 关274兴 reported shape optimization of
many different ways to form an infinite number of torispherical very light satellite tanks where constraints were added for “no
end closures, all having the same weight and diameter but differ- buckling.” More frequently the problem was posed as optimiza-
ent shape and wall thickness. In turn both the buckling strength tion with stresses in mind, e.g., minimization of the maximum
stress in torisperical head—see papers, for example, by Younsh-
and internal volume VT of torispheres will vary. The above prob-
eng 关275兴, Younsheng and Ji 关276兴, and Zhu and Boyle 关277兴.
lem has been solved by Błachut 关267兴 for the following bounds on
Improvements in computer technology that have occurred recently
design variables:
have made the nonlinear analysis more affordable. This in turn
1.25 ⱕ Rs/D ⱕ 0.55 makes it feasible to carry out structural optimization of vessel
heads well into the inelastic region. The paper by Błachut 关278兴
0.06 ⱕ r/D ⱕ 0.5 addressed the problem of finding the minimum mass of domed
closure on internally pressurized cylindrical vessels. Heads were
D/t ⬎ 0 共63a兲 to be made from mild steel and mode of failure was taken to be
plastic load. Subsequently a series of eight mild steel domes was
The side constraints were assumed in the following form 共WH, CNC-machined and used to benchmark optimal solutions. All tori-
WT ⬅ weights of hemisphere and torisphere, respectively兲: spheres were finally burst and there was a substantial strength
reserve beyond the plastic load in all of them. Optimization of
0.5 ⱕ WT/WH ⱕ 1.0 共63b兲
torispherical heads subject to shakedown was reported by Błachut
The above multicriteria problem, given by Eqs. 共62a兲 and 共62b兲
subject to Eqs. 共63a兲 and 共63b兲, was converted into a scalar form
through the bounded objective function, with the buckling load
being the most important component of the objective function. As
a result, the optimum and the pesimum configurations were found
for elastic and elastic-plastic behaviors of heads. Figure 45 depicts
a sample of three contours of optimal solutions—for three initial
weights associated with hemispheres: DH / t = 100, 500, 1000. Sub-
sequently three mild steel domes were machined using a computer
numeric controlled 共CNC兲, lathe in order to verify the optimum
and the pesimum configurations 共with a hemispherical profile be-
ing the reference shape兲. The best torisphere was five times stron-
ger than the weakest one 共under the assumption that both heads
had the same diameter and the same mass兲. Figure 46共a兲 depicts
the stability contour with test points and view of the best 共opti-
mum兲 and worst 共pesimum兲 torispheres together with the refer-
ence hemisphere after the collapse—Fig. 46共b兲. Further details
can be found in Ref. 关105兴.
Other cases of optimally shaped end closures include CFRP
heads in which meridional profile was approximated by parabolic
segments, several circular segments, and generalized ellipse—see
Ref. 关268兴. Maximization of buckling strength of filament wound
dome closures was investigated by Błachut 关269兴 through optimal
shaping of meridian’s profile and optimal distribution of the wall Fig. 45 Contours of optimal solution for elastic analyses.
thickness. Other papers related to optimal shaping of dome clo- Each contour represents torispherical heads of the same
sures include Refs. 关8,74,107,170,270–272兴. weight.

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Fig. 46 „a… Contours of optimal elastic-plastic solutions for
D / t = 300. Test points 6 „reference hemisphere…, 7 „optimum…,
and 8 „pesimum… are shown. „b… Photograph of collapsed
heads in „a….
and Ramachandra 关279兴. Mild steel torispheres were considered
and the use of first cycle shakedown was adopted in the optimi-
zation process driven by genetic algorithms 共with an interim train-
ing of a neural network, 共NN兲兲. The off-line training of
NN proved to be useful for situations where the reanalyses are
expensive.
4.4 Optimal Sizes of Aboveground Horizontal Cylindrical
Vessel. Aboveground horizontal cylindrical tanks resting on two
supports are primarily used for storage of liquids. Usually the
capacity of such tanks considerably exceeds the capacity of hori-
zontal tanks designed for land transportation. Every vessel can be
manufactured as a slender or as a compact thickset, for its fixed
capacity—as sketched in Fig. 47. Under the conditions of normal
Fig. 47 A set of slender and thick aboveground horizontal cy-
lindrical tanks
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exploitation aboveground tanks are loaded mainly by internal
pressure, being a sum of hydrostatic pressure and uniform load
due to vapor pressure. At a design stage, a question of rational
ratio of the tank length to its diameter is usually associated with
tank’s mass. While seeking minimum mass of an aboveground
tank one should take into consideration both the strength and sta-
bility constraints. It is not immediately known which of these two
constraints is to be active or dominant. Equally, the interaction
between these two constraints can also influence the choice of
tank’s configuration. A procedure for minimization of mass of
aboveground tanks, subjected to strength and buckling constraints,
is described next.
The analysis is performed for aboveground horizontal cylindri-
cal vessel with two 2:1 ellipsoidal heads, ␤ = 0.5, and supported at
both ends. The vessel is to be designed for the following two load
cases:
• total internal pressure as specified by Eq. 共10兲, i.e., p共1兲
= p共␸兲 = ␥m1a共1 − cos ␸兲 + p01, and leading to the strength
constraint
• total pressure as specified by Eq. 共33兲, i.e., p共2兲 = p共␸兲
= ␥m1a共1 − cos ␸兲 − p02, and leading to the stability
constraint.
The capacity of the tank is
V0 = 2V1 + V2 共64兲
where V1 = 3 ␲a3␤ = 3 ␲a3 is the capacity of the 2:1 ellipsoidal
2 1
head 共␤ = 0.5兲, V2 = ␲a3␭ is the capacity of the cylindrical shell,
␭ = L / a is the relative length of the tank, a is the radius of the
cylindrical shell, and a = 2a is the diameter of the tank.
The above expressions lead to
V0 2
␭= − 共65兲
␲a3 3
The mass of the tank is
ms = 2m1 + m2 共66兲
where m1 = ␲␳sa2t1 · cm is the mass of the ellipsoidal head, cm = 1
+ 共␤2 / 冑1 − ␤2兲ln 共共1 + 冑1 − ␤2兲 / ␤兲 for a typical ellipsoidal head
共␤ = 0.5兲 and cm ⬵ 1.38017. m2 = 2␲␳sa2t2␭ is the mass of the cy-
lindrical shell, ␳s is the mass density of the vessel’s material, and
t1 , t2 are the thicknesses of the ellipsoidal and cylindrical shells,
respectively.
The effective thickness of the 2:1 ellipsoidal head with respect
to minimum stress concentration in the vessel 共Sec. 2.1兲 can be
written in the following, approximate form:
t1ef = ct · t2 共67兲
where ct = 1.427共1 + 0.109␣ − 0.024␣2兲 is the coefficient of effec-
tive thickness of the 2:1 ellipsoidal head, ␤ = 0.5, and ␣
= a / 100t2 is the dimensionless parameter of the cylindrical shell.
Consider minimization of mass of the vessel, i.e.,
min兵ms其 共68兲
a
where the mass is given by Eq. 共66兲. After substitutions the ob-
jective function, ms, becomes
ms = 2␲a2t2共cm · ct + ␭兲 共69兲
As mentioned earlier, only two inequality constraints are assumed
here, i.e., for the strength and for stability. The strength case of
horizontal cylindrical tanks has already been discussed in Sec. 2.3.
It was found in Sec. 2.3 that the strength condition, expressed in
terms of the thickness of the cylindrical shell of the tank, has to
satisfy the following inequality:
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 48 Sketch of a typical domain of allowable solutions for a
fixed volume of a vessel. Note how stability and strength con-
straints restrict the design space to the shaded area.

Fig. 49 Optimal proportions of length, L, to diameter, d, of

t2共1min
兲
ⱕ t2 共70兲 horizontal cylindrical tanks

where t共1兲 冑 共 2 兲
2min = ␥m1a / 4␴all 48共1 + 共␣SC / 2兲共p0 / ␥ma兲兲 + Cc 2 ␭ − 1
2 2 1 2

is the minimum thickness given by Eq. 共14兲, Cc = 6 / 共1 + ␺2兲 is the

correction coefficient related to the effect of saddle support on active 共point M 1-type兲, corresponds to vessels for which the
stress state, ␺ = p0 / 100␥m1a is the dimensionless parameter of uni- 共L / d兲-ratio does not vary significantly. It remains within the range
form internal pressure, ␥m1 is the specific weight of the vessel’s 5.10艋 共L / d兲 艋 5.35. When the strength condition alone is applied,
contents, ␳all are allowable stresses, and ␣SC is the stress concen- the minimum mass sees large changes and this in turn results in
tration factor at the joint of the ellipsoidal and cylindrical shells. large changes of the 共L / d兲-ratio, i.e., 12.35艋 共L / d兲 艋 6.92.
The stability problem of the horizontal cylindrical vessel, on the For the tank of capacity V0 = 600 m3 both points M 1 and M 2
other hand, has been discussed in Sec. 3.4. It was found there that merge. This means that both cases are equivalent and the corre-
the stability condition expressed in terms of the thickness of the sponding optimal ratio 共L / d兲opt = 5.71. For tanks of greater capac-
cylindrical shell of the horizontal tank has to satisfy the following ity 共600 m3 ⬍ V0兲 the space of allowable solutions is limited only
inequality:
by the strength condition, with stability condition remaining inac-
t2共2min
兲
ⱕ t2 共71兲 tive 共point M 2-type case兲.
An example of an optimal layout of a horizontal cylindrical
where t共2兲2min is the minimum thickness of the horizontal cylindrical
tank of the capacity V0 = 200 m3 is shown in Fig. 50.
shell supported at both ends and filled with liquid, and it is given Optimal solutions, Fig. 49, of horizontal cylindrical vessels
by Eq. 共39兲. 具50 m3 艋 V0 艋 300 m3典 are distinguished by a nearly constant 共in-
It follows from Eq. 共39兲 that for the case of additional external significantly varying兲 value of the characteristic ratio a / t2 of thin-
pressure p02 = 0.1 MPa the minimum wall thickness is t共2兲 2min
walled cylindrical shell 共Sec. 2兲, the values of which are in the
= 2.93共a / 1000兲␭0.401. following ranges:
It is seen from Eqs. 共70兲 and 共71兲 that there are two design
• 135艋 a / t2 艋 132 for two load cases—strength and stability
parameters, i.e., vessel’s radius, a, and its length, ␭. Substituting
conditions—the point M 1
the minimum thickness of the cylindrical shell given by Eq. 共70兲
• 132艋 a / t2 艋 130 for one load case—only the strength
and/or Eq. 共71兲 into the objective function 共55兲 one can determine
the domain of allowable configurations for the horizontal cylindri- condition—the point M 2 Further details regarding the above
cal vessel filled with liquid and being supported at both ends. considerations can be found in Refs. 关55,280–285兴.
Figure 46 shows a typical sketch of a domain of allowable con-
figurations for a constant value of vessel’s volume.
It is seen that the minimum value of mass corresponds to point
M 1. Point M 1 is located at the intersection of active strength and
stability conditions, given by Eqs. 共70兲 and 共71兲.
For a single load case, i.e., for internal pressure p共1兲 = p共␸兲, only
the strength condition given by Eq. 共70兲 suffices. In this case the
minimum value of the objective function is located at point
M 2—see Fig. 48.
A set of numerical calculations was carried out for steel tanks
filled with water, and with capacities varying in the range 50 m3
艋 V0 艋 300 m3. The following data were assumed in detailed cal-
culations: allowable stresses for steel ␴all = 330 MPa, and specific
density of water ␥m = 9.81 kN/ m3. The magnitude of uniform in-
ternal pressure was p01 = 2.5 MPa and the magnitude of additional
uniform external pressure was p02 = 0.1 MPa. The latter could rep-
resent suction during emptying of the vessel.
The results of these analyses are shown in Fig. 49. It is seen Fig. 50 Optimal horizontal cylindrical vessel with the capacity
here that the minimum mass, in the case of both constraints being of V0 = 200 m3

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 5 Concluding Remarks
This paper discusses the structural integrity of horizontal pres-
sure vessels subjected to the action of internal or external pressure
alone, and to combination of two, not necessarily uniform, pres-
sure profiles. The latter are associated with normal operating con-
ditions, e.g., during emptying of tanks or tanks being buried below
the earth’s surface.
Within the topics discussed above there are several problems
where there is a lack of knowledge or the knowledge is frag-
mented and insufficient. In this context, this paper indicates the
need for further research for vessels with very shallow end clo-
sures and in the extreme for vessels that have flat plate closures. A
clearer understanding and assessment of structural integrity of
vessels with closures loaded beyond plastic buckling caused by
internal pressure would be worthwhile. The role of plastic loads
still awaits resolution. Establishment of an efficient criterion, or
criteria, for the burst pressure is still open, despite a large research
effort over the recent years. Studies of vessels with other than
circular cross sections 共for strength, stability, and optimizations兲
and whole range of double-skin vessels remain grossly unex-
plored. Vessels with rectangular cross sections for underground
applications wait to be examined, especially from a structural op-
timization point of view.
Finally, a large number of topics have not been covered in this
paper. This includes, for example, corrosion of vessels, local me-
chanical damage, loads varying in time, fatigue of vessels, thermal
loading, and creep.
Appendix
Further two papers central to the topics discussed above have
just been published. They were added during the proofreading as
Refs. 关286,287兴.
Acknowledgment
The authors are thankful to the Technical University of Poznań
and the University of Liverpool for providing financial assistance
to one of them 共K.M.兲.
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关27兴 Budiman, H. T., and Lagace, P. A., 1997, “Nondimensional Parameters for
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关28兴 Rauscher, F., 2001, “Stress Analysis and Tests of Seamless Gas Cylinders
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关29兴 Rauscher, F., 2001, “Investigations on Threaded Cylinder Specimens—
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关30兴 Cho, W.-M., Lee, B.-E., Koo, S.-H., and Lee, Y.-S., 1995, “Effects of Geomet-
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关31兴 Wheel, M. A., 1996, “A Finite-Volume Approach to the Stress Analysis of
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关32兴 Zingoni, A., 1995, “On Membrane Solutions for Elevanted Shell-of-
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关33兴 Galletly, G. D., 1985, “Torispherical Shells,” Shell Structures, Stability and
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关34兴 Galletly, G. D., and Błachut, J., 1985, “Torispherical Shells Under Internal
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关35兴 Błachut, J., 1995, “Plastic Loads for Internally Pressurised Torispheres,” Int. J.
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From Woven Carbon Fabric,” Comput. Struct., 76, pp. 1–9.
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surised Vessel Heads Due to Yielding,” Proceedings of ICPVT-8, Design and
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关38兴 Błachut, J., and Ramachandra, L. S., 1997, “Shakedown and Plastic Loads for
Internally Pressurised Vessel End Closures,” Proceedings of the International
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关44兴 Yushan, Z., Wang, Z. R., and Wei, C., 1996, “Stress Analysis of Approximately
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关45兴 KJdziora, S., and Kubiak, T., 1999, “Application of FEM for Calculation of
Stresses and Strains in Pressure Tanks,” Dozór Techniczny, 4, pp. 83–85.
关46兴 Blach, A. E., 2000, “Discontinuity Stresses in Pressure Vessels,” Proceedings
of ICPVT-9, Sydney, April 9–14, Vol. 1, pp. 851–865.
关47兴 El-Abbasi, N., Meguid, S. A., and Czekanski, A., 2001, “Three-Dimensional
Finite Element Analysis of Saddle Supported Pressure Vessels,” Int. J. Mech.
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关48兴 Boutros, Y. A., 2000, “Flexible Saddle Support for Large Diameter Cylindrical
Vessels,” Proceedings of ICPVT-9, Sydney, April 9–14, Vol. 1, pp. 91–98.
关49兴 Ong, L. S., and Lu, G., 1993, “Optimal Support Radius of Loose-Fitting
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关50兴 Tooth, A. S., Banks, W. M., Seah, C. P., and Tolson, B. A., 1994, “The Twin-
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Ellipsoidal Heads,” Struct. Optim., 16, pp. 226–229.
关281兴 Magnucki, K., 2002, “Strength, Stability and Optimization of Horizontal Cy-
lindrical Tanks,” Proceedings of the 7th Conference on Shell Structures,
Theory and Applications, Gdańsk, Oct. 9–11, University of Technology,
Gdańsk, pp. 27–34.
关282兴 Stasiewicz, P., 2002, “Optimization of Cylindrical Pressure Tanks,” Proceed-
ings of the 7th Conference on Shell Structures, Theory and Applications,
Gdańsk University of Technology, Gdańsk, pp. 219–220.
关283兴 Magnucki, K., Lewiński, J., and Stasiewicz, P., 2004, “Optimal Sizes of a
Ground-Based Horizontal Cylindrical Tank Under Strength and Stability
Constraints,” Int. J. Pressure Vessels Piping, 81, pp. 913–917.
关284兴 Magnucki, K., Lewiński, J., and Stasiewicz, P., 2005, “Optimal Design of a
Ground-Based Horizontal Cylindrical Tank with Ellipsoidal Heads,” The Ar-
chive of Mechanical Engineering, LII, pp. 41–49.
关285兴 Stasiewicz, P., and Magnucki, K., 2006, “Optimization of Horizontal Cylin-
drical Pressure Vessels Under Strength and Stability Constraints,” Proceed-
ings of the International Conference and Exhibition on Pressure Vessels and
Piping, OPE 2006, Chennai, India.
关286兴 Krivoshapko, S. N., 2007, “Research on General and Axisymmetric Ellipsoi-
dal Shells Used as Domes, Pressure Vessels, and Tanks,” Appl. Mech. Rev.,
60, pp. 336–355.
关287兴 Wittenbeck, L., and Magnucki, K., 2008, “Strength Shaping of Dished Heads
of Pressure Cylindrical Vessels,” Proceedings of the 9th International Con-
ference on Computational Structures Technology, Athens, Sept. 2–5, B. H. V.
Topping and M. Papadrakakis, eds., Civil-Comp Press, UK, pp. 1–10. 共CD-
Rom, Paper 138, ISBN 978–1–905088–22–5兲.

Jan Błachut has received his MSc in Physics (1971, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland), Ph.D. in
1980, and DSc (Habilitation) in 1996. The latter two were in Mechanics and both from Kraków University
of Technology. He has recently been awarded the title of Full Professor. For nearly a decade he worked at
the Institute of Physics, Kraków University of Technology. Then he has moved to Department of Mechanical
Engineering, The University of Liverpool, UK. He has published more than 120 papers in reviewed scien-
tific journals and proceedings. Recently he was cochairmen of Euromech Colloquium in Liverpool and
CISM course in Udine—both devoted to various aspects of structural optimization. He is a full member of
the ECCS Technical Working Group 8.4 on Buckling of Shells and a member of the Sub-Committee on
Design Methods PVE/5—British Standards Institution. His research interests include buckling of shells,
integrity of pressure vessels, and structural optimization of components aimed at on land, in the sea, and in
the air applications.

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 Krzysztof Magnucki was born in Raków, n/KJpno, Poland in 1946. His father and grandfather were
blacksmiths, and it was in the smithy where as a young boy he had first contacts with mechanics. He
received his MSc(Eng) in Mechanics from the Poznań University of Technology in 1971, and simultaneously
his MSc in Mathematics from the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, 1971. He was awarded Ph.D. in
Mechanics by the Poznań University of Technology in 1978. He has been the Full Professor since 2001. He
has worked at The Railway Stock Design Centre, Poznań 1971–1975, Poznań University of Technology
1975–1995, University of Zielona Góra 1995–2002, and Poznań University of Technology, since 2002. For
many years he has co-operated with design engineers and manufacturers of storage and/or transport tanks.
At present he is the Head of Strength of Materials and Structures Division at the Institute of Applied
Mechanics, Poznań University of Technology. His research interests include strength of materials, stability
and optimization of thin-walled structures, and mathematical modeling of general sandwich structures.

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