Temperature stresses in thick circular cylindrical shells used in nuclear reactors with and without uniform internal heat generation within the shell wall thickness

Abstract

In the thick circular cylindrical steel shield of a nuclear reactor, the attenuated radiations generate heat which develops radial temperature profiles and consequent thermal stresses. In this first paper formulae and graphs are furnished which are used to calculate heat flow, temperature and stresses in the shell, away from external constraints, due to uniformly generated heat. Previous work and formulae [1] for the case where heat is not generated inside the thickness are also recalled. Triangular and exponentially generated heat will be examined in the following paper. Finally, the principle of superposition will be used to solve cases where the generated heat paths are not uniform, triangular or exponential.