Lesson 31 · When the wall is thick
Where pd/2t stops telling the truth
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Where pd/2t stops telling the truth

The thin-wall formula rests on one quiet assumption: that the hoop stress is the same all the way through the wall. Equilibrium only fixes the AVERAGE, and for a thin wall the average is all there is. The working rule is that the wall thickness tt must be less than one twentieth of the internal diameter dd, that is, less than d20\dfrac{d}{20}. It is the same as saying d/td/t is above 20. Past that line the stress at the bore climbs well above the average, and the bore is where cracks start. Hydraulic cylinders, gun barrels and high-pressure tube all live on the thick side of it.

Gabriel Lamé solved the thick cylinder in 1833. For internal pressure only, the hoop stress at any radius is σθ=piri2(r2+ro2)r2(ro2ri2)\sigma_{\theta} = \dfrac{p_i r_i^{2} \left(r^{2} + r_o^{2}\right)}{r^{2} \left(r_o^{2} - r_i^{2}\right)}, read aloud sigma-theta equals p-i r-i squared, times r squared plus r-o squared, over r squared times r-o squared minus r-i squared. The subscripts are the whole convention: i is inside and o is outside. pip_i is the internal gauge pressure in MPa, rir_i the inside radius and ror_o the outside radius, both in mm. The plain rr, with no subscript, is the radius at which you are asking, anywhere from rir_i to ror_o. σθ\sigma_{\theta} is the hoop stress there, in MPa; theta is the Greek letter for the direction around the circle.

Its companion runs through the wall: σr=piri2(r2ro2)r2(ro2ri2)\sigma_{r} = \dfrac{p_i r_i^{2} \left(r^{2} - r_o^{2}\right)}{r^{2} \left(r_o^{2} - r_i^{2}\right)}, sigma-r equals the same thing with a minus in the bracket. σr\sigma_r is the radial stress in MPa. Because rr never exceeds ror_o it is negative everywhere, which means compressive: the pressure squeezes the wall through its thickness. It equals pi-p_i exactly at the bore and exactly zero at the free outside surface.

Three facts to carry. The hoop stress is largest at the bore, where it is piro2+ri2ro2ri2p_i \dfrac{r_o^{2} + r_i^{2}}{r_o^{2} - r_i^{2}}. It falls steadily to the outside, and the drop from bore to outside is exactly pip_i, whatever the geometry. And at every radius σθ+σr\sigma_{\theta} + \sigma_{r} comes to the same constant, which is the cheapest check on both answers. One honest consequence: adding wall to a thick cylinder pays less and less, because the new metal sits where the stress is lowest.

σθ=piri2ro2ri2(1+ro2r2)\sigma_{\theta} = \frac{p_i r_i^{2}}{r_o^{2} - r_i^{2}} \left(1 + \frac{r_o^{2}}{r^{2}}\right)

  • σθ\sigma_{\theta}= Hoop stress at radius r (pressure)
  • pip_i= Internal gauge pressure (pressure)
  • rir_i= Inside radius (length)
  • ror_o= Outside radius (length)
  • rr= Radius at which the stress is wanted (length)
Lamé Hoop Stress in a Thick-Walled Cylinder solver →

σr=piri2ro2ri2(1ro2r2)\sigma_{r} = \frac{p_i r_i^{2}}{r_o^{2} - r_i^{2}} \left(1 - \frac{r_o^{2}}{r^{2}}\right)

  • σr\sigma_{r}= Radial stress at radius r (negative = compressive) (pressure)
  • pip_i= Internal gauge pressure (pressure)
  • rir_i= Inside radius (length)
  • ror_o= Outside radius (length)
  • rr= Radius at which the stress is wanted (length)
Lamé Radial Stress in a Thick-Walled Cylinder solver →