Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255

www.elsevier.com/locate/compstruct

Finite element analysis of composite pressure vessels with a load

sharing metallic liner
Mohammad Z. Kabir
Department of Civil Engineering, AmirKabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran

Abstract
A numerical analysis of ®lament-reinforced internally pressurized cylindrical vessels with over-wrapped metallic liner is pre-
sented. The method uses the load-bearing liner approach and leak-before-rupture as design criteria. The structure is modeled as an
elastic, ideally plastic liner-reinforced with a quasi-isotropic elastic composite. Based on a balanced stress condition in the pressure
vessel, the head shape is obtained by a numerical solution of an elliptic integral. The winding process creates a variable thickness in
dome area and results in considerable changes in the on-axis stress distribution incorporated in this study. A 3-D, 2-node interface
element is also used to model contact at discrete points between the metallic liner and its surrounded composite shell. Numerical
results are reported for the e€ects of di€erent head shapes and the superiority of optimum geodesic head shapes in reducing the
maximum stresses is also investigated.
Incorporating the metallic liner in the analysis produces marked changes in on-axis stresses and resultant displacements. Ó 2000
Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Finite element analysis; Composite pressure vessels; Load sharing metallic liner

1. Introduction metal vessels. Based on successful development results

and the need to save weight, composite pressure vessels
Modern composites, using continuous ®bres in a resin have found many applications in space, missile and
matrix, are important candidate materials in the engi- aircraft systems.
neering of energy-ecient structures. In many applica- A number of authors have addressed various struc-
tions, ®bre/matrix materials are lighter, stronger and tural problems confronting ®lament-wound, metal-lined
more cost e€ective when compared with traditional cylinders under internal pressure. Most of these analyses
materials like metals. Many high-strength composite have concentrated on relatively thin-walled structures
products are fabricated using the ®lament winding with low-to-moderate storage capability. Solutions for
process. In this process, bands of resin-impregnated ®- multilayer pressure vessels, based on elastic limits in
bre are wound over a cylindrical mandrel using a com- connection with optimum design, have also been dis-
puter controlled ®bre placement machine. Fibre cussed in several investigations. Early work employed
application to the metallic mandrel is usually accom- netting analysis to arrive at ecient ®lament wrap an-
plished by a transverse feed head over a rotating surface, gles and end-closure shapes [6,4]. Later papers have
capable of achieving any desired winding orientation. dealt with the liner plastic ¯ow required for the more
Filament-wound tubular structures, more speci®cally compliant composite to achieve full strength and its
pressure vessels, o€er signi®cant weight saving over e€ects on cyclic burst strength, [1,3]. Sabbaghian and
conventional all metallic ones for containment of high Nandan [5] have used the maximum shear theory to
pressure gases and liquids. determine the optimum relations between internal
A rational engineering procedure has evolved for pressure, radial and tangential stresses. The numerous
minimum weight design of ®lament-reinforced metal- studies cited so far focused much on designing the
lined vessels which couples strength and strain com- composite pipes and neglected the dome-ended e€ect on
patibility analyses with experimental data. In aerospace the winding path, stress concentration at the junction of
applications, composite tanks with load-sharing liners cylinder and cap and analyzing the entire hybrid
provide signi®cant weight saving on the order of 40% or structures which is the main issue of the present study.
more over the highest performance of homogeneous One of the principal factors in¯uencing the integrity of

0263-8223/00/$ - see front matter Ó 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 2 6 3 - 8 2 2 3 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 4 4 - 6
248 M.Z. Kabir / Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255

®lament wound structures is void ratio, i.e. the number

of air pockets trapped within the matrix on manufac-
ture. Ideally, a ®lament-wound structures should follow
the mandrel surface completely with no voids or twist-
ing in the process. In other words, to achieve the most
ecient use of the reinforcement material, the ®bres
may slip during the winding process. This limits design
optimization as the winding trajectories are constrained
to follow near geodesic curves, the shortest path
between two points on a curved surface, to prevent ®bre
slippage.
Stressing of the ®lament-wound composite results in
the formation of some matrix cracks in the wall that can
let the contained ¯uid leak out. To prevent this, a liner is
required. Three classes of liners used are:
1. Elastomeric, for near ambient temperature applica-
tions where some permeability is permissible.
2. Thin-metal bonded to over-wrap, the lightest weight
vessel with limited cyclic life which is used in this
study.
3. Load sharing metal with cyclic life performance are
intermediate in weight saving performance between
thin-metal/bonded liner composite tanks and homo-
geneous metal tanks.
The main attention of the present work is to measure the
on-axis stresses and reference corresponding displace-
ments created by internal pressure in a hybrid metal-
composite pressure vessel with geodesic dome-shape and
variable thickness and to compare the results from this
study with those which could be obtained with tradi-
tional solutions.

2. Analytical approach

2.1. Geodesic path

The term ``geodesic isotensoid pressure vessel'' is

applied to pressure vessel consisting entirely of ®laments
that are loaded to identical stress levels. The theory of
such a pressure vessel under internal pressure has been
discussed by Kitzmiller et al. [2] and was applied by
them appropriately to head shapes without openings. A
generalization of their results requires the ®laments lie
along geodesic lines. In the region of the cap, the ®la-
ment path is normally adapted to helical winding. Using
shell theory [7] for balanced stresses in the dome, the
®bre path needs to satisfy the following condition, Fig. 1
N/ Nh
‡ ˆ P: …1†
R 1 R2
The meridian and circumferential radii, R1 and R2 , re-
spectively, are de®ned [6] as follows:
Fig. 1. Geometrical illustration of ®lament wound cylindrical pressure
2 1
2
‰1 ‡ y 0 Š ‰1 ‡ y 0 Š2 vessels. (a) Free body diagram between membrane forces and internal
R1 ˆ ÿ ; R2 ˆ ÿx ; …2† pressure (b) Helical winding in cylindrical pressure vessels (c) Geo-
y 00 y0 metry of a ®lament-wound dome.
 M.Z. Kabir / Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255 249

where y0 and y00 are the ®rst and second derivatives of y 2.2. Load-sharing thin metallic liner
with respect to x, respectively. x and y are the coor-
dinates of each point on the contour. N/ and Nh are For vessels with metallic liners, the ®lament stress±
the meridional and circumferential forces, respectively, strain curve is linearly elastic to the proof strain and
and are de®ned using the previous transforming even beyond to bursting. However, on the pressurization
relations cycle, the metal stress±strain curve shows yield and
plastic ¯ow, Fig. 2, as the liner is forced into compres-
N/ ˆ ru t cos2 a; Nh ˆ ru t sin2 a; …3† sion by ®laments trying to return elastically to their
original size. Thus, at zero pressure after proof loading,
where a is the winding angle, (Fig. 1), and ru the ulti- the metal is in compression and the ®laments are in
mate tensile strength of the composite in the ®bre tension. Thus, the metal operates elastically from com-
direction. The relation between meridian and circum- pression to tension while the ®laments operate in a
ferential radii are simpli®ed as tension±tension mode. The primary objectives in de-
signing a ®bre reinforced metal pressure vessel are,
R2
ˆ 2 ÿ tan2 a: …4† therefore, to obtain maximum operating performance at
R1 a minimum weight and to provide safe-life design fea-
Eq. (4) is valid for tan2 a < 2 and can be transformed tures. Fig. 2 shows the loading and unloading cycles.
into Design development is related to
(a) Equilibrium and strain compatibility of two types
xy 00 of materials are de®ned as follows, respectively.
1=2
ˆ 2 ÿ tan2 a: …5†
y 0 …1 ‡ y 02 †
rl tl ‡ rc tc ˆ PR;
The condition of ®laments lying along geodesic lines   
Ec 1 ÿ ml …11†
holds true, Fig. 1, when rc ˆ rl ;
El 1 ÿ mc
X sin a ˆ X0 ˆ Const:; …6†
where rl and rc are average hoop stresses, ml and mc
where x0 is the boss radius. If the ®laments are to be are poisson ratios in liner and composite, respectively,
wound continuously for an opening x0 , then the con- tl and tc are the thicknesses of liner and composite,
stant in Eq. (6) can be evaluated, because the ®lament respectively. P is the internal pressure and R the in-
must be tangent at the opening. Consequently ternal radius of the metal liner, El liner elastic mod-
X0 ulus and Ec composite equivalent elastic modulus in
sin a ˆ : …7† reference axes, axial and hoop directions, and is in-
x
troduced in terms of on-axis material principal con-
Substituting Eq. (7) into Eq. (5) gives the following stants in the following forms, respectively.
di€erential equation

xy 00 2x2 ÿ 3X02
ˆ 2 : …8†
y 0 …1‡y † 02 x ÿ X02
The solution of the above equation becomes the fol-
lowing elliptic integral of the third kind which can be
solved by a computer [8]
Z
x3 dx
yˆÿ 1=2
‡ C; …9†
‰…1 ÿ x2 †…x2 ÿ a1 †…x2 ÿ a2 †Š

where
" 1=2 #
1 1 ‡ 4X02
a1 ˆ ÿ1 ;
2 1 ÿ X02
" 1=2 # …10†
1 1 ‡ 4X02
a2 ˆ ÿ ‡1 :
2 1 ÿ X02

The constant of integration is evaluated from the fact Fig. 2. Metal-composite relationship in load sharing ®lament-rein-
that y ˆ 0 when x ˆ 1. forced metal composite cylinders.
250 M.Z. Kabir / Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255

1 n b
‡  1: …14†
Eaxial N 
   
1 4 E11 4 1 E11 2 In this equation, n is the loading cycles, N is the num-
ˆ cos a ‡ sin a ‡ ÿ 2m12 sin 2a ;
E11 E22 4 G12 ber of fatigue cycles at the maximum operating strain
1 range that would produce fatigue failure,  the maxi-
Ehoop mum strain capability of the virgin material and b
    the strain at required burst pressure.
1 E11 1 E11
ˆ sin4 a ‡ cos4 a ‡ ÿ 2m12 sin2 2a :
E11 E22 4 G12
2.3. Finite element modelling
…12†
(b) Metal shell compressive strength is adequate so The ®nite element software, Numerical Integrated
that adhesive bonding is not required to prevent met- System Analysis (NISA-II), is employed in this study.
al shell buckling. The minimum liner thickness The 3D laminated composite general shell element,
against buckling may be calculated from the follow- NKTP ˆ 32, is chosen for this purpose. NISA-II trans-
ing equation lates the loads (internal pressure), boundary conditions
1=2 and material speci®cation from the ®nite element pre-
3rl …1 ÿ m2 †
tl ˆ R: …13† and post-processor code for an accurate stress analysis of
El the cylinder. The 3D shell element includes the defor-
(c) Fatigue control is obtained under following com- mations due to membrane, bending and membrane-
patibility equation bending coupling and transverse shear e€ects and is

Fig. 3. Finite element modeling assembly of metal/gap/composite pressure vessel. (a) 3D gap/friction element (NKTP ˆ 50) (b) Finite element mesh
for metal-composite pressure vessels.
 M.Z. Kabir / Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255 251

suited for modelling moderately thick to thin laminated

composite shells. The element consists of a number of
layers of perfectly bonded, orthotropic materials. The
3D general isotropic shell element, NKTP ˆ 20, with
nonlinear capability and incorporating Von Mises elas-
tic±perfect plastic nonlinear behaviour for the metal
liner, is also used. The 3D Gap/Friction element,
NKTP ˆ 50, is a 2-node interface element which may be
used in 3D problems to model contact at discrete points
between two bodies, is inserted between metal liner and
composite shell. The Gap element has the translational
degrees of freedom (Ux , Uy , Uz ) at each node. The ele-
ment is nonlinear and can resist normal compressive
force and tangential shear forces which are represented
by coupled nonlinear springs, one in normal direction
and two in orthogonal tangential directions to interface.
The axial sti€ness of the gap, Kn , is taken 3 orders of
magnitude higher than the sti€ness of the adjacent ele-
ments, composite or steel; the tangential, Kr is taken Fig. 4. Over-wrap cross section.
equal to Kn . The element con®guration and ®nite element
mesh for the half-cylinder is shown in Fig. 3(a) and (b).
strength of the composite in ®bre direction, ru , and
2.4. Geometrical consideration on head shape region winding angle, r0 , as
PR
A winding pattern includes many wraps with di€erent t0 ˆ : …17†
2ru cos2 a0
wrap angles. The desirable winding pattern, as explained
earlier to satisfy isotensoid condition, is calculated from
Eq. (6). The determination of the overall geometry and 3. Numerical evaluation
elastic constant of a composite involves the calculation
of the local wrap angle of each wrap and its corre- The hybrid pressure vessel comprised of a stainless
sponding cross sectional thickness. By assuming the steel liner reinforced by a Kevlar 49/Epoxy composite
wrap angle at the juncture of cylinder and head shape, has a 150 mm inside diameter with a 50 mm diameter at
a0 , and using Eq. (6), the local wrap angle correspond- the polar boss, the total length is 742 mm and the cy-
ing to any point on the geodesic pro®le, (x, y), can be lindrical portion is 642 mm. The maximum operating
determined as pressure is 22 Mpa and the proof pressure factor is 1.5.
R This study ignores the cycles for fatigue life. The elastic
sin an ˆ sin a0 ; …15†
x constants of the composite material are: E11 ˆ 90 GPa,
where R is the cylindrical internal radius and x a radial E22 ˆ 4.115 GPa, m12 ˆ 0.29, G12 ˆ 1.8 GPa, and
distance from the longitudinal axis at each level to
maximum value R. The curve of the head shape has a
point of in¯ection at x ˆ 1.22X0 and Eq. (9) is not ap- Table 1
plicable for smaller X0 . Consequently, for region Coordinates of geodesic head contour
X0 6 x 6 1:22X0 , the vicinity of the opening, additional y (mm) x (mm) Thickness (tn ) Winding angle an °
reinforcement is required in the form of an insert to (mm)
distribute the meridional load. In this study, for sake of 0 75 2.373 19.5
simplicity, the head shape curve for this region is ob- 6 74.54 2.427 19.62
tained as a tangent to the geodesic curve at x ˆ 1.22X0 . 11.87 73.19 2.595 20
17.47 71 2.91 20.6
A cross section of the over-wrap along the reference
22.71 68.03 3.443 21.6
meridian is shown in Fig. 4. The local thickness (tn ) at 27.5 64.38 4.381 22.9
x ˆ 1.22X0 is given by 31.78 60.15 6.345 24.6
35.53 55.44 14.955 26.8
R cos a0
tn ˆ t0 ; …16† 38.74 50.34 11.415 29.8
x cos an 41.44 44.96 10.958 33.8
where t0 is the total thickness of the helical layers and 43.67 39.37 10.467 39.5
can be determined from basic thin-walled pressure ves- 45.41 32 9.937 51.5
54 25 9.359 90
sels relations in terms of internal pressure, P, ultimate
252 M.Z. Kabir / Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255

(ru )t ˆ 2.35 GPa. The elastic constants of the steel liner

are: E ˆ 4.115 GPa, m ˆ 0.3, ry ˆ 345 MPa. Using
Eq. (7), the winding orientation is obtained (‹19.5°) for
helical layers in the cylindrical portion. The preliminary
calculation of the required helical and circular layers are
based on netting analysis and can be found in following
equations:
The minimum number of helical layers is:
PR
Nh ˆ …18†
2tru cos2 a
and the minimum number of circular layers in the cy-
lindrical portion is
PR
Nc ˆ …2 ÿ tan2 a†; …19†
2tru
where t is the ®bre band thickness. In this analysis, 6
Fig. 5. Comparison of di€erent head shapes for principal on-axis stress helical layers and 9 circular layers, in order to satisfy
distribution. longitudinal and hoop stresses, are calculated. There-

Fig. 6. Resultant displacement of internally pressurized composite vessel, P ˆ 220 bars (a) Dome with variable thickness (b) Dome with constant
thickness.
 M.Z. Kabir / Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255 253

fore, the cylindrical portion is made up of a total of 15 geodesic path, however, it is seen that the maximum
layers and the cap comprises 6 helical layers. In the head stress at the junction between cylinder and cap, from
area, the geometrical properties change as the helical 1430 MPa in the cylinder with dome head, drops to 570
angle varies from the tangent plane, 19.5°, to the boss MPa for the cylinder with geodesic head. It can ob-
neck, 90°, Eq. (15). The various helical angles and re- served that, for all three head shapes, the stresses in the
spective material properties, e.g. layer thickness, for all cylindrical portion are almost the same but, in the
elements in dome section were obtained following the neighbourhood of the cylinder/cap junction (about
geodesic solution and tabulated in Table 1. The longi- 300 mm from the centre of the vessel), the di€erences be-
tudinal stress, Sxx , representing material principal (on- tween the stress contours is marked. The geodesic path
axis) stress in ®bre direction for layer number one has a lower ¯uctuation compared with the spherical and
(helical winding 19.5°) is depicted in Fig. 5 for three dome heads. The novelty of this work is including
di€erent closed-end shapes, hemispherical, shell cap variable thickness and winding angle, Eqs. (15) and (16),
which is called a dome in the literature and the geodesic of the head area in the analysis for geodesic path.
head with constant and variable thickness, respectively. Fig. 6(a) and (b) also compare the resultant dis-
It can be observed that at the junction of cylinder and placement of the composite vessel, which is internally
cap, as a result of sudden change in geometry, stress pressurized to 220 bars, for constant and variable
concentrations occurred for the cases of spherical and thickness in the head area. It is seen that incorporating
dome heads. In these cases, early burst failure may take the variable thickness in the analysis limits markedly
place in this area. Fig. 5 clearly reveals the eciency of the deformation of the structures. The development of
the optimum path by shifting the stress concentration plastic ¯ow in the metallic liner by increasing of internal
from the critical zone toward the polar opening boss for pressure is depicted in Fig. 7(a). The horizontal axis is
constant thickness. For variable thickness with the represented the distance from the centre of the vessel

Fig. 7. Plasticity development for an elastic±perfectly plastic metallic Fig. 8. Comparison of axial and radial displacement of composite
liner under internal pressure. (a) Plasticity development of metallic pressure vessels. For three di€erent cases: (1) bare composite shell; (2)
liner in a longitudinal section (b) History of e€ective stress in composite shell with fully elastic liner; (3) composite shell with elasto-
metallic liner. plastic liner. (a) Axial displacement (b) Radial displacement.
254 M.Z. Kabir / Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255

and the vertical axis represents the maximum e€ective

stress created by internal pressure in the metal liner. As
can be observed, plasticity grows from the polar boss
opening side towards the cylindrical cap junction. After
certain amount of internal pressure, e.g. 110 bars, the
total metal liner yields into plastic zone. Fig. 7(b) also
shows the history of developing of maximum stress for
di€erent stages of pressurizing for two di€erent locations
on the vessel, one on the head, node number 342, and
the other on the cylinder, node number 681. It is seen
that the cap area of the metal liner becomes plastic faster
than the cylindrical part. This result may indicate the
sensitivity of the cap area in cycling loading for low
pressure. Some additional results regarding the load
sharing liner can be listed as follows:
1. The axial and radial displacements of three models; Fig. 10. Principal on-axis transverse stress value in a longitudinal of
vessel section (helical layer).
elastic±perfectly plastic (considered as lower bound
plasticity behaviour) metallic over-wrapped liner with
interface gap element, fully elastic (upper bound plas-
ticity limit) liner surrounded by composite shell and a
composite pressure vessel without liner are compared
with each other through Fig. 8(a) and (b). In general,
the analysis of ®nite element models with interface gap
element i.e. liner bonded a composite, results in higher
strains in the dome area for the metallic liner with el-
asto-plastic behaviour for axial deformation, Fig. 8(a),
and conversely, in radial deformation for the one with-
out liner, Fig. 8(b).
2. Fig. 9 represents the principal on-axis ®bre direc-
tion stress, Sxx , for a longitudinal section of vessel under
internal pressure, P ˆ 220 bars, in helical layer for,
again, the above three cases. It is observed that, incor-
porating the metallic liner in the analysis, the maximum
stress drops from 460 to 330 MPa. For a mandrel with a
high elastic modulus, which can be assumed as a fully Fig. 11. Principal on-axis in-plane shear stress value in a longitudinal
of vessel section (helical layer).

Fig. 9. Principal on-axis ®bre direction stress value in a longitudinal of Fig. 12. Principal on-axis ®bre direction stress value in a longitudinal
vessel section (helical layer). of vessel section (circular layer).
 M.Z. Kabir / Composite Structures 49 (2000) 247±255 255

elastic liner, the sharing with mandrel in carrying the used in the analysis. The numerical results obtained from
load is remarkable and it reduces the maximum stress, NISA-II ®nite element software reveal that:
Sxx , to 250 MPa. The variation of the principal on-axis · Incorporating the variable thickness in the analysis
transverse stress, Syy , and in-plane shear stress, Sxy , limits considerably the deformations of the struc-
versus longitudinal section of vessel for three mentioned tures.
cases are depicted in Figs. 10 and 11, and are both less · The metallic liner produces a remarkable drop in the
sensitivity to the in¯uence of the elasto-plastic liner in principal on-axis stress, Sxx , in both helical and hoop
dropping the maximum stress. wound layers.
Fig. 12 presents those comparisons in a hoop layer, Although the methods presented in this report are an-
a ˆ 90°. As mentioned, the hoop layer exists only on the alytically justi®able, their accuracy must be veri®ed by
cylindrical portion; for the head area only helical layers test data.
are possible. Taking into account elasto-plastic and fully
plastic behaviour as two extreme cases, it is seen that the
reduction of maximum on-axis stress, Sxx , which takes Acknowledgements
place at the junction of cylinder and cap, would be from
700 MPa for composite shell without liner, to 500 MPa The author would like to acknowledge ®nancial
for the assembly of metal-composite with elasto-plastic support from Prof. M. Pandey and assistance from Prof.
liner and 300 MPa for the hybrid assembly with fully A.N. Sherbourne for the writing of this manuscript
elastic liner. The obtained results represent an important during a short visit to the University of Waterloo.
role for metallic liners in strengthening composite pres-
sure vessels and could be useful for inclusion in design
speci®cations.
References

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