Manufacturing Seamless Reservoirs by Tube Forming: Finite Element Modelling and Experimentation

This chapter introduces an innovative manufacturing process that is capable of shaping industrial tubes into seamless, reservoirs made from different materials and available in multiple shapes. The process offers the potential for the manufacturing of medium to large batches of, for instance, high pressure vessels, for a wide variety of industrial and commercial applications. The elimination of weld seams allows for much less non-destructive test inspection requirements with the consequent reduction in production time and avoidance of potential failures. Special emphasis is given to practical aspects related to the tools and techniques used to fabricate spherical and cylindrical reservoirs (with hemispherical and semi-ellipsoidal domes). The presentation is supported by experimental data and numerical modelling, the latter based on independently determined mechanical properties aimed at understanding the deformation mechanics, identifying the formability limits and demonstrating the overall performance and feasibility of the proposed manufacturing process.

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