Abstract
Optimum design considerations for an underwater storage vessel to contain liquid gases and oils led to the assessment of an axisymmetric shell of revolution—the Echinodome or drop shape. Analytical treatment of the various types of loading to which the shell could be subjected indicated that buckling was the more critical design criteria.
A small GRP spherical shell under hydrostatic pressure was investigated for its buckling behavior both experimentally and theoretically. In the experimental approach surface strains were measured using electric resistance strain-gage rosettes on the inner and outer surfaces. Predictions of critical buckling pressure were made from the experimental results using a Southwell technique and numerically by the finite-element method. The influence of the results on design procedures is discussed.
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Abbreviations
- D :
-
maximum diameter of shell
- d :
-
design head
- E :
-
Young's modulus of elasticity of shell wall
- H :
-
height of shell
- R :
-
maximum radius of shell
- t :
-
mean shell-wall thickness
- z :
-
hydrostatic head
- γ:
-
mass density of sea water
- γ s :
-
mass density of shell wall
- σ d :
-
design stress
- ν:
-
Poisson's ratio of shell wall
References
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Royles, R., Llambias, J.M. Buckling behavior of an underwater storage vessel. Experimental Mechanics 25, 421–428 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02321343
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02321343