Pressure vessels

This survey article discusses several fields that had been omitted in the introductory papers of the earlier conferences on pressure vessel technology, namely a) examples of the metallurgical demands to be made on steels for thick-walled pressure vessels (segregations, directional dependence of properties), b) problems in the welding of thick steel cross-sections (influence of alloy chemistry, crack formation during stress relief annealing), c) reducing wall thicknesses by the use of higher-strength steels (toughness problems, treatment, materials selection), d) multilayer pressure vessels (systems and advantages), e) pressure vessels operated under difficult conditions - wall temperatures above 4000C (temper brittleness, fracture-mechanical analysis), - protection against chemical and electrochemical corrosion. It is well known that pressure vessels are used in all fields of energy technology and chemical engineering over a wide range of temperatures, pressures, and mechanical stresses. The present report underlines the fact that pressure vessels can be operated with a high degree of safety in spite of this. This is due, among other aspects, to experience and developments in construction, stress analysis and strength calculation, materials and production technology, testing, inspection and last but not least to the progress made in scientific-technical research and development. (orig.)