Experimental Verification of Model Pressurized Thick-Walled Cylinder With Numerical and Theoretical Methods

Abstract

Pressurized thick-walled cylinders undergo repeated cycles of high stress and temperatures that may severely shorten the life of the component. Testing pressurized cylinder can help to evaluate the strength of the cylinder. This research seeks to determine the pressure to which the component is subjected by instrumenting the outside of the cylinder, and to evaluate hoop strain and hoop stress of the internal and external surface of the pressurized thick-walled cylinder. This study provides experimental results and then compares them with theoretical and numerical data for the cylinder under investigation. Using the experimental method, an axial load up to 15,000 lb is applied to the cylinder using a Landmark 370 MTS unit to generate pressure inside the cylinder wall. Lame´ equations are used to calculate hoop stress theoretically. The numerical data is obtained using finite element simulation (ANSYS) to calculate hoop stress and hoop strain at the internal and external surfaces of the cylinder. This work provides useful information for evaluating the strength of thick-walled cylindrical structures in a laboratory setting.