The definition of equipment connections for pipe flexibility analysis can be a challenge for many design engineers. Some typical assumptions for the stiffness of connections can be extremely conservative. There are some established design methods for determining steel tank nozzle stiffness, which are based on the assumptions of typical homogeneous materials. Due to the varied shell construction of Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP), these established design methods are not readily applicable for FRP tanks. This paper investigates the modification of these design methods for FRP tanks. Generally accepted conservative assumptions for stiffness of equipment connections will be compared to calculated shell stiffness for steel tank nozzle connections, using the established design methods, and compared to a modified approach, supported by finite element analysis, for FRP tank nozzle connections. Comparative data will be discussed to gain a better understanding and prediction of FRP tank nozzle stiffness.

Subject
Material properties, Materials, Piping, Geometry, Moduli, Nozzles, Fiber reinforced plastic, Stress, Springs, Steel, Engineers, Modulus of elasticity, Reinforcement
Keywords:
FRP, tank, nozzle, stiffness, flexibility, Rtp-1
© 2012 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
2012
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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