Experimental investigations on the failure modes of ring-stiffened cylinders under external hydrostatic pressure

• Published in: International journal of naval architecture and ocean engineering Vol. 10; no. 6; pp. 711 - 729
• Main Authors: Cho, Sang-Rai, Muttaqie, Teguh, Do, Quang Thang, Kim, Sinho, Kim, Seung Min, Han, Doo-Hwan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01.11.2018; Elsevier; 대한조선학회
• Subjects: Collapse pressure; Design formula; Failure mode; Hydrostatic pressure test; Non-linear FE analysis; Ring-stiffened cylinder; 조선공학; Ring-stiffened cylinder; Failure mode; Design formula; Hydrostatic pressure test; Collapse pressure; Non-linear FE analysis
• ISSN: 2092-6782; 2092-6790
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijnaoe.2017.12.002

This paper reports on the experimental investigations on the failure modes of ring-stiffened cylinder models subjected to external hydrostatic pressure. Nine models were welded from general structural steel. The shells were initially formed by cold-rolling, and flat-bar ring frames were welded to the shell. The hydrostatic pressure tests were conducted by using water as the medium in pressure chambers. The details of the preparation and main test were briefly explained. The investigation identified the consequence of the structural failure modes, including: shell yielding, local shell buckling between ring stiffeners, overall buckling of the shell together with the stiffeners, and interactive buckling mode combining local and overall buckling. In addition, the ultimate strengths were predicted by using existing design codes. Non-linear numerical computations were also conducted by employing the actual imperfection coordinates. Finally, accuracy and reliability of the predictions of design formulae and numerical were substantiated with the test results. •A brief reports of experiments on welded steel ring-stiffened cylinder under external hydrostatic pressure.•Buckling behaviors related with various failure modes were investigated.•Collapse pressure predictions by the existing rules were substantiated with the reported test results.•A simple failure modes indicator to differentiate the collapse failure is proposed.•Non-linear finite element analyses with imperfect models agree well with the test result.