Structural Integrity Assessment of Spherical Tanks for Propane Butane Gas Storage

Abstract

Structural integrity analysis of spherical tank is presented based on use of experimental results, together with the analytical and numerical ones. Analytical calculation of stresses in the scope of design process is shortly presented. Numerical analysis was performed by using the Finite Element Method (FEM) to identify areas with high stress concentration, indicating that stress values near supports reach the yield stress. FEM results were verified by the experiment, indicating that it was not necessary to reinforce the spherical tank supports, since its integrity was not jeopardized in normal working conditions. This was also proved by repeating the experiment after 8 months of exploitation.