Mechanics of Materials II

UET, Taxila
Lecture No. (6)
 Cylinders & Pressure vessels
Cylindrical or spherical pressure
vessels are commonly used in
industry to carry both liquids
and gases under pressure.
 Classification of applications
 Cylinders find many applications, two
of the most common categories
being :
a- fluid containers such as :
pressure vessels, hydraulic
cylinders, gun barrels, pipes, boilers
and tanks.
b- interference-fitted bearing bushes,
sleeves and the like.
 Other applications
 Cylinders can act as beams or
shafts eg. ( load building blocks)
but in the present chapter
cylinders are loaded primarily by
internal and external pressures
due to adjacent fluids or to
contacting cylindrical surfaces.
 Pressure Loading
When the pressure vessel is
exposed to this pressure, the
material comprising the vessel
is subjected to pressure
loading, and hence stresses,
from all
directions.
 Factors that affect stresses
The normal stresses resulting from this
pressure are function of :
1- the radius of the element under
consideration,
2- the shape of the pressure vessel
(i.e., open ended cylinder, closed end
cylinder, or sphere)
3- the applied pressure.
Two types of analysis are commonly
applied to pressure vessels.
The most common method is based
on a simple mechanics approach
and is applicable to “thin wall”
pressure vessels which by definition
have a ratio of inner radius (r), to
wall thickness (t) of r/t ≥ 10.
The second method is based on
elasticity solution and is always
applicable
regardless of the r/t ratio and can
be referred to as the solution for
“thick wall” pressure vessels.
 Limiting proportions (approx)

Thin Thick
d/t > 20 d/t < 20

t/d < 1/20 t/d > 1/20

t/d < 0.05 t/d > 0.05

 Where d = Di = inner diameter

 t = Cylinder thickness
 Thin-Walled Pressure Assumptions
Several assumptions are made in this
method.
1) Plane sections remain plane
2) r/t ≥ 10 with t being uniform and
constant
3) The applied pressure, p, is the gauge
pressure (where p is the difference
between the absolute pressure and the
atmospheric pressure)
 4) Material is linear-elastic,
isotropic and homogeneous.
 5) Stress distributions

throughout the wall thickness will

not vary
 6) Element of interest is remote

from the end of the cylinder and

other geometric discontinuities.
 7) Working fluid has negligible

weight.
THIN CYLINDERS AND SHELLS

1- THIN CYLINDERS
Thin cylinder representation
 Classifications of Cylinders
Cylinders are classed as being
either :
 open - in which there is no
axial component of wall stress,
or
 closed - in which an axial

stress must exist to equilibrate

the fluid pressure.
Different types of open & closed Cylinders
 When a thin-walled cylinder is
subjected to internal pressure,
three mutually perpendicular
principal stresses will be set up
in the cylinder material.
 Types of stresses
Namely:
1- The circumferential or
hoop stress.
2- The longitudinal stress.
3- The radial stress.
 Provided that the ratio of
thickness to inside diameter of
the cylinder is less than 1/20,
it is reasonably accurate to
assume that the hoop and
longitudinal stresses are
constant across the wall
thickness.
 Also, the magnitude of the
radial stress set up is so
small in comparison with
the hoop and longitudinal
stresses that it can be
neglected.
 This is obviously an
approximation since, in
practice, it will vary from
zero at the outside surface
to a value equal to the
internal pressure at the
inside surface.
 For the purpose of the initial
derivation of stress formulae it is
also assumed that the ends of the
cylinder and any riveted joints
present have no effect on the
stresses produced; in practice they
will have an effect and this will be
discussed later.
Thin cylinders under internal
pressure
Hoop or circumferential stress
 1- Hoop or circumferential stress

 This is the stress which is

set up in resisting the
bursting effect of the applied
pressure and can be most
conveniently treated by
considering the equilibrium
of half of the cylinder.
 It is required to calculate
the hoop stress in terms
of:
 Pressure (p)

 Inner diameter (d)

 Thickness (t)
Final form of hoop stress
Longitudinal stress
 Longitudinal stress

 Consider now the cylinder shown in

Next Figure.

Cross-section of a thin cylinder.

End Section of Cylindrical Thin-Walled Pressure
Vessel Showing Pressure and Internal Axial
Stresses
Longitudinal stress final form
Changes in
dimensions:
 (a) Change in length

 The change in length of

the cylinder may be
determined from the
longitudinal strain by
neglecting the radial
stress.
From Hooke’s Law
And change in length =
longitudinal strain x original
length
Then change in length =
 (b) Change in diameter

As above, the change in

diameter may be
determined from the
strain on a diameter, i.e.
the diametral strain.
 Now the change in diameter
may be found from a
consideration of the
circumferential change.
 The stress acting around a

circumference is the hoop or

circumferential stress H
giving rise to the circumferential
strain H.
Change in Diameter