Post Buckling Behavior of Thin Walled Silo Structure.

Mechanical Engineering

Silos are special structures subjected to many different unconventional loading conditions, which result in unusual failure modes. Failure of a silo can be devastating as it can result in loss of the container, contamination of the material it contains, loss of material, cleanup, replacement costs, environmental damage, and possible injury or loss of life. The high rate of structural failure in these structures is a strong indication of the extensive range of issues that must be understood by the designer and the complexity of their behavior. This paper presents a numerical investigation into the buckling and post-buckling of silos under axial compression using a time-integrated finite element model. The numerical results generated herein are compared with test data and are found to be in good agreement. Since stiffeners have the vital role to support the pressure vessel and to maintain its stability, it should be designed in such a way that it can afford the vessel load and internal pressure of the vessel due to liquid contained in the vessel. A model of vertical pressure vessel and stiffeners is created in ANSYS. Stresses are calculated using mathematical approach and ANSYS software. The analysis reveals the zone of high localized stress at the junction part of the pressure vessel and stiffeners due to operating conditions. The results obtained by both the methods are compared with allowable stress value for safe designing. The analyses provide significant new insight into the mechanisms underpinning collapse behavior of the shells. The tests which are carried out on cylindrical silo models, the measurement of the initial imperfections and the numerical analysis of the shells are presented.

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