Limit pressure for a spherical vessel with a circumferential slot at its junction with a radial cylindrical protruding branch

Abstract

One of the requirements of the two criteria method of safety assessment of a pressure vessel with a defect is an estimate of the plastic limit pressure. Here the defect is in a spherical shell close to its junction with a protruding radial cylindrical branch. The defect is assumed to be an axisymmetric circumferential slot of uniform depth on the outer surface of the shell. Lower bounds to the limit pressure are calculated for a wide range of geometries. The material is assumed to obey the von Mises yield criterion and a non-linear programming method is used to give optimum lower bounds. Data is supplied for spherical shell radius to thickness ratios from 25 to 100, nozzle radius to vessel radius ratios from 0 to 0.4, nozzle to vessel thickness ratios from 0.25 to 1.0 and ligament thickness to vessel thicknesses (ligament efficiencies) of 0 to 1. Slot widths vary from the significant to the infinitesimal, where it becomes a crack. Vessels of some proportions were shown to have their limit pressures reduced only a little by very low ligament efficiencies.