Fluid structural response of axially cracked cylinders

The fluid structural (FS) response of a cylindrical pressure vessel to a suddenly occurring longitudinal through-wall crack is predicted. The effects of vessel internals and depressurization of the compressed water on dynamic crack opening displacements are investigated. A three dimensional (3D) structural finite element model is used as a basis for the development of a two dimensional (2D) FS model. A slice of the vessel taken at the crack midspan and normal to the cylinder axis is modeled. Crack opening displacements are compared between the 2D and 3D models, between the different assumptions about fluid depressurization, and between the static and dynamic solutions. The results show that effects of dynamic amplification associated with the sudden opening of the crack in the cylinder are largely offset by the local depressurization of the fluid adjacent to the crack