Heissdampfreaktor (HDR) steel-containment-vessel and floodwater-storage-tank structural-dynamics tests

Inertance (vibration) testing of two significant vessels at the Heissdampfreaktor (HDR) facility, located near Kahl, West Germany, was recently completed. Transfer functions were obtained for determination of the modal properties (frequencies, mode shapes and damping) of the vessels using two different test methods for comparative purposes. One of the vessels tested was the steel containment vessel (SCV). The SCV is approximately 180 feet high and 65 feet in diameter with a 1.2-inch wall thickness. The other vessel, called the floodwater storage tank (FWST), is a vertically standing vessel approximately 40 feet high and 10 feet in diameter with a 1/2-inch wall thickness. The FWST support skirt is square (in plan views) with its corners intersecting the ellipsoidal bottom head near the knuckle region