Thermoelastic Analysis of

Thick-Walled Vessels Subjected

A. E. Segall
Associate Professor,
Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering,
Washington State University-Vancouver,
Vancouver, WA 98686-9600
e-mail: segall@vancouver.wsu.edu
to Transient Thermal Loading
A closed-form solution was derived for the transient thermal fields developed in thick-
walled vessels subjected to a plausible exponential heating on the internal surface with
convection to the surrounding external environment. The resulting series representation
of the temperature distribution as a function of time and radial position was then used to
derive new relationships for the transient thermoelastic stress states. The derived expres-
sions allow an easy analysis of the significance of the exponential terms and convective
coefficient in determining the magnitudes and distribution of the resulting stress states
over time. Excellent agreement was seen between the derived temperature and stress
relationships and a finite element analysis when the thermophysical and thermoelastic
properties were assumed to be independent of temperature. 关DOI: 10.1115/1.1320818兴

Introduction for a hollow, infinite cylinder under a plausible internal exponen-

Tubular components such as pipes, radiant burners, and pres- tial boundary condition of the form H(t)⫽V(1⫺e ⫺ct ) with ex-
sure vessels are frequently subjected to a wide range of severe ternal convection to the surrounding environment. The derived
solutions allow the easy exploration of the influence of boundary
thermal and mechanical conditions. More often than not, these
conditions on the transient stress magnitudes and distributions.
applications involve severe thermal and pressure transients that
may be sufficient to induce fatigue or burst-type failures when
alloys are used. When brittle materials such as ceramics are used,
the principal threat is usually from a catastrophic, fast fracture that Analytical Considerations
may require a probabilistic methodology. Regardless of the poten- The thermoelastic analysis begins with the differential equation
tial failure mode, the ability of the designer to avoid these costly that defines the time-dependent thermal state in a hollow circular
and potentially deadly problems requires a detailed understanding cylinder subjected to mixed boundary conditions on the internal
of the underlying thermal transients and the resulting thermoelas- and external surfaces
tic stresses. While the advent of finite element techniques has
simplified the required process to some extent, the need for con- 1 ⳵ T ⳵ 2T 1 ⳵ T
⫽ ⫹ (1)
firmatory and/or exploratory closed-form solutions still exists. ␬ ⳵t ⳵r2 r ⳵r
Moreover, for the instances where the materials properties are
where T represents the temperature, r is the radial coordinate, ␬ is
temperature dependent and/or the surface temperatures change
the materials’ thermal diffusivity 共assumed to be independent of
rapidly with time, available closed-form solutions may be re-
temperature兲, and t is time. Using the generalized solution,
quired to serve as a starting point for iterative finite element Carslaw and Jaeger 关5兴, and the following boundary conditions:
studies.
To date, there have been numerous analytical models developed T 共 r,t 兲 ⫽T 0 ⫽0 t⭐0, a⭐r⭓b (2a)
to quantify the thermal transient fields and thermoelastic stresses
established in tubular components. However, these solutions have v共 t 兲 ⫽U⫽1 t⬎0, r⫽a (2b)
been primarily limited to the most severe and often unrealistic ⳵T
step or linear temperature changes over time; Nied et al. 关1兴 and k ⫹hT⫽0 t⬎0, r⫽b (2c)
Pisarenko and coworkers 关2兴, to name just a few. While the step ⳵r
and linear boundary condition has been useful for modeling se- the temperature change across the radius of the cylinder due to an
vere thermal shocks 共and will in fact be used as the kernel for the internal, unit step increase with convection to the surrounding
current solution兲, recent studies, Segall et al. 关3,4兴, have shown environment can be shown to be Vedula and coworkers 关6兴
the asymptotic nature of many thermal events and the resulting ⬁
␾ 共 r,t 兲 1⫺Bi ln共 r/b 兲 2 C 0 共 r, ␤ n 兲 C 1 共 b, ␤ n 兲
2

兺
thermoelastic stresses. Unfortunately, this may be a critical short-
⫽ ⫹␲ e ⫺ ␬␤ n t
coming when one is attempting to quantify the temporal threat of U 1⫺Bi ln共 a/b 兲 n⫽1 C 2 共 a,b, ␤ n 兲
failure because the peak stresses tend to occur later when surface (3)
heating is involved. Hence, both the step and linear solutions may
not adequately predict the time or location of a failure resulting where U is the magnitude of the internal step change 共U⬅1 for
from a thermal shock event. this analysis兲, a is the internal radius of the cylinder, and b is the
In order to help overcome these potentially significant short- external radius of the cylinder. In Eq. 共3兲, the series coefficients
comings, an analytical model of the thermal transients and ther- are functions of the cylinder dimensions and various order Bessel
moelastic stresses developed within tubular components under a functions of the first and second kind
more plausible, time-dependent boundary condition is required. C 0 共 r, ␤ n 兲 ⫽J 0 共 r ␤ n 兲 Y 0 共 a ␤ n 兲 ⫺Y 0 共 r ␤ n 兲 J 0 共 a ␤ n 兲 (4a)
Accordingly, this paper derives the thermal and stress equations
C 1 共 b, ␤ n 兲 ⫽k ␤ n J 1 共 b ␤ n 兲 ⫺hJ 0 共 b ␤ n 兲 (4b)
Contributed by the Pressure Vessels and Piping Division for publication in the
JOURNAL OF PRESSURE VESSEL TECHNOLOGY. Manuscript received by the PVP C 2 共 a,b, ␤ n 兲 ⫽ 共 k 2
␤ 2n ⫹h 2 兲关共 J 0 共 a ␤ n 兲兲 2
Division, January 3, 2000; revised manuscript received August 21, 2000. Editor: S.
Y. Zamrik. ⫺ 关 ␤ n kJ 1 共 b ␤ n 兲 ⫺hJ 0 共 b ␤ n 兲兴 2 兴 (4c)

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 where ␤ n represents the real and simple roots of the following transient temperature distribution given by Eq. 共8兲 results in the
characteristic equation: following solution for the thermoelastic stress state as a function

冋 册 冋 册
of time and radial position:

冋冉 冊
h h
J 0共 a ␤ 兲 ␤ Y 1共 b ␤ 兲 ⫺ Y 共 b ␤ 兲 ⫺Y 0 共 a ␤ 兲 ␤ J 1 共 b ␤ 兲 ⫺ J 0 共 b ␤ 兲 ␣E a2 1
k 0 k ␴ ␪⫽ 1⫹ 关 T F 共 b 兲 ⫹T 2 F 2 共 b 兲兴
1⫺ ␯ r 2 b 2 ⫺a 2 1 1
⫽0
册
(5)
1
For a plausible time-dependent boundary condition described by a ⫹ 关 T F 共 r 兲 ⫹T 2 F 2 共 r 兲兴 ⫺T 共 r,t 兲 (10a)
r2 1 1
decaying exponential, such as
H 共 t 兲 ⫽V 共 1⫺e ⫺ct 兲 (6) ␴ r⫽
␣E
1⫺ ␯ 冋冉 冊
1⫺
a2 1
关 T F 共 b 兲 ⫹T 2 F 2 共 b 兲兴
r 2 b 2 ⫺a 2 1 1

册
with V and c as constants, the response of the thick-walled cylin-
1
der can be determined by using the following form1 of Duhamel’s ⫺ 关 T F 共 r 兲 ⫹T 2 F 2 共 r 兲兴 (10b)
integral, Fodor 关7兴 r2 1 1

冕 t ⳵H共 ␶ 兲 where the axial stress is again defined as the sum of the hoop and
T 共 r,t 兲 ⫽ ␾ 共 r,t⫺ ␶ 兲 d ␶ (7) radial stresses provided no external restraints exist
⳵␶
冋 册
0
␣E 2
␴ z⫽ ␴ ␪⫹ ␴ r⫽ 关 T F 共 b 兲 ⫹T 2 F 2 共 b 兲兴 ⫺T 共 r,t 兲
Invocation of this form requires that the thermophysical properties 1⫺ ␯ b 2 ⫺a 2 1 1
be considered independent of temperature, H(0)⫽0, and that the (10c)
initial temperature is zero. Substituting Eq. 共3兲 and the derivative
of Eq. 共6兲 into Eq. 共7兲 and integrating, the temperature as a func- For the derived expressions, the time functions T 1 (t), and
tion of radius and time for an internal, exponential boundary con- T 2 (t, ␤ n ) are the boundary condition and series component taken
dition can finally be derived as from the transient thermal solution Eq. 共8兲.
T 1 共 t 兲 ⫽V 共 1⫺e ⫺ct 兲 (11)
T 共 r,t 兲 1⫺Bi ln共 r/b 兲
⫽ 共 1⫺e ⫺ct 兲 ⬁

冋 册
2
⫺ 共 ␤ n ␬ ⫺c 兲 t
1⫺Bi ln共 a/b 兲 1⫺e C 21 共 b, ␤ n 兲
兺
V
T 2 共 t, ␤ n 兲 ⫽V ␲ ce ⫺ct

冋 册
(12)
⬁ 2 共 ␤ 2n ␬ ⫺c 兲 C 2 共 a,b, ␤ n 兲
1⫺e ⫺ 共 ␤ n ␬ ⫺c 兲 t C 0 共 r, ␤ n 兲 C 21 共 b, ␤ n 兲
n⫽1
⫹ ␲ ce ⫺ct 兺
n⫽1 共 ␤ 2n ␬ ⫺c 兲 C 2 共 a,b, ␤ n 兲 The recurring functions F 1 (r) and F 2 (r) resulting from the
integration of the elasticity equations with respect to the radius r,
(8) are defined as follows:
provided ␤ 2n ␬ ⫺c⫽0 to avoid the singularity. The first term in Eq.
共8兲 represents the stationary distribution which would be estab- 冋 冉冊
共 2⫹Bi兲共 a 2 ⫺r 2 兲 ⫺2 Bi a 2 ln
a
b
⫺r 2 ln
r
b 冉 冊册
冋 冉冊 册
lished if the prescribed temperature H共t兲 would be fixed at time t, F 1共 r 兲 ⫽
a
whereas the second term accounts for the lag in the temperature 4 Bi ln ⫺1
distribution behind the stationary. As would be expected, the sec- b
ond term eventually vanishes and the solution approaches the ex- (13a)
pected logarithmic steady-state distribution at large values of
time.
Calculation of the thermoelastic stresses requires an under-
F 2共 r 兲 ⫽
r
冋
J 共 ␤ r 兲 Y 0 共 ␤ n a 兲 ⫺J 0 共 ␤ n a 兲 Y 1 共 ␤ n r 兲 ⫺
␤n 1 n
2
␲r␤n 册
standing of the relationship between the temperature distribution (13b)
and the resulting internal restraint experienced by the component. In all of the preceding equations, r must be evaluated within the
For a cylindrical geometry, the desired thermoelastic stress solu- interval a⭐r⭓b. Although not explicitly shown in Eq. 共13b兲, the
tion can then be realized by using the generalized, thermal stress function F 2 (r) must be inside of the series summation of Eq. 共12兲
relationships, Fridman 关8兴 because of the indexed roots of the characteristic equation, ␤ n .

␴ ␪⫽
␣E
1⫺ ␯ 冋冉 冊 1⫹
a2 1
r 2 b 2 ⫺a 2 冕 a
b
T 共 r,t 兲 r dr Results and Discussion
In order to verify the accuracy of the derived relationships, a

r
1
⫹ 2 冕 a
r
T 共 r,t 兲 r dr⫺T 共 r,t 兲 册 (9a)
series of finite element calculations were first performed using the
following dimensions, thermophysical and thermoelastic proper-
ties: a⫽4 cm, b⫽6 cm, k⫽42 W/cm/°C, h⫽8400 W/cm2/°C,

冋冉 冊 冕 冕 册
␬⫽0.83 cm2/s, E⫽300 MPa, ␯⫽0.3, and ␣⫽8E-6/°C. All confir-
␣E a2 1 b 1 r
␴ r⫽ 1⫺ T 共 r,t 兲 r dr⫺ T 共 r,t 兲 r dr matory calculations were performed using the ANSYS 共ANSYS
1⫺ ␯ r b ⫺a 2
2 2
a r2 a Inc., Houston, PA兲 finite-element code with a single row of 40
(9b) axisymmetric elements to simulate an infinite cylinder. For the

冋 冕 册
thermal case, the infinite cylinder assumption required the tem-
␣E 2 b
perature coupling of all corresponding nodes at any given radial
␴ z⫽ ␴ ␪⫹ ␴ r⫽ T 共 r,t 兲 r dr⫺T 共 r,t 兲 (9c)
1⫺ ␯ b 2 ⫺a 2 a
location. For the thermoelastic case, the infinite cylinder assump-
tion required that the top layer of nodes be constrained to uni-
where ␴ ␪ is the circumferential 共hoop兲 stress, ␴ r is the radial formly deform across the thickness to simulate plain-strain condi-
stress, ␴ z is the axial stress, E is the elastic modulus, ␯ is Pois- tions. To maintain linearity during the analysis, all thermophysical
son’s ratio, ␣ is the coefficient of thermal expansion, and all other and elastic materials properties, as well as the convective coeffi-
terms are as previously defined. Integration of Eqs. 共9兲 using the cient on the external surface were assumed to be independent of
temperature.
1
In the event that H(0)⫽0, a slightly different form of Duhamel’s integral can be During the modeling of the step temperature change, the inter-
used. nal surface temperature was instantaneously raised by nodal speci-

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 Fig. 1 Transient temperature distributions across the radius
of a cylinder subjected to a step temperature change on the
internal surface with convection on the outer surface
Fig. 2 Transient temperature distributions across the radius
of a cylinder subjected to exponential heating on the internal
surface of the form H „ t …Ä1„1À e À0.5t … with convection on the
outer surface
Fig. 3 Transient hoop stress distributions across the radius of
a cylinder subjected to exponential heating on the internal sur-
face of the form H „ t …Ä1„1À e À0.5t … with convection on the outer
surface
fication. In contrast, the exponential boundary conditions were
imposed in a piecewise linear fashion, using 1-s time increments,
onto the inner nodes. As can be seen in Fig. 1, excellent agree-
ment over a wide range of time was obtained between the analyti-
cal step model and the finite element predictions. The predicted
148 Õ Vol. 123, FEBRUARY 2001
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Fig. 4 Transient axial stress distributions across the radius of
a cylinder subjected to exponential heating on the internal sur-
face of the form H „ t …Ä1„1À e À0.5t … with convection on the outer
surface
Fig. 5 Transient radial stress distributions across the radius
of a cylinder subjected to exponential heating on the internal
surface of the form H „ t …Ä1„1À e À0.5t … with convection on the
outer surface
response to the exponential thermal loading of the form H(t)
⫽1(1⫺e ⫺0.5t ) is shown in Fig. 2 for the finite element and
closed-form solutions. Again, excellent agreement can be seen
over a wide range of time up to steady state. For both thermal
loading scenarios, reasonable solutions appear to be possible us-
ing only the first 100 terms of the series.
Confirmatory stress calculations were also performed using the
same axisymmetric finite element mesh. Thermal loading of the
finite element model was obtained quasi-statically by using a
‘‘frozen’’ thermal instant obtained from the transient, calculations
previously discussed. As seen by the results given in Figs. 3–5,
excellent agreement was obtained between the analytical and nu-
merical solutions over a wide range of time for the time-
dependent, exponential thermal loading. As anticipated, the inter-
nal heating coupled with external convection results in equibiaxial
stress states on both surfaces. Because of the imposed expansion
caused by the hotter inner surface, the cooler external surface is in
a state of tension. In contrast, the restrained expansion of the
internal surface results in a state of compression. The radial
stresses vanish on both surfaces to match the traction-free bound-
ary condition, and are compressive everywhere else.
Conclusions
Using Duhamel’s integral and a recently derived unit step re-
sponse for a hollow cylinder, an analytical solution has been de-
Transactions of the ASME
 rived for the transient temperature distribution across a tubular h ⫽ convection coefficient
component subject to exponential internal thermal loading with k ⫽ thermal conductivity
external convection to the surrounding environment. This solution r ⫽ radial coordinate, a⭐r⭐b
was, in turn, used to generate relationships for describing the ther- t ⫽ time
moelastic stress states experienced by a thick-walled pipe or pres- ␣ ⫽ coefficient of thermal expansion
sure vessel. Excellent agreement was seen between these solutions ␯ ⫽ Poisson’s ratio
and a finite element simulation. Because of the flexibility of the ␤n ⫽ roots of characteristic equation
exponential boundary condition used for the analysis, the derived, ␬ ⫽ thermal diffusivity
closed-form thermal solution has many practical industrial appli- ␾ (r,t) ⫽ unit step response
cations, including providing a first guess for an iterative, finite ␴␪ ⫽ circumferential 共hoop兲 stress
element analysis when materials nonlinearities are involved. The ␴r ⫽ radial stress
derived thermoelastic stress solutions are also a valuable tool for ␴z ⫽ axial stress
designers of tubular components experiencing asymptotic heating
events.
References
Nomenclature
关1兴 Nied, H. F., and Erogan, F., 1983, ‘‘Transient Thermal Stress Problem for a
Bi ⫽ Biot no., bh/k Circumferentially Cracked Hollow Cylinder,’’ J. Thermal Stresses, 6, p. 1.
C0 ⫽ recurring function, Eq. 共4a兲 关2兴 Pisarenko, G. S., Gogotsi, G. A., and Grusheuskii, Y. L., 1978, ‘‘A Method of
Investigating Refractory Nonmetallic Materials in Linear Thermal Loading,’’
C1 ⫽ recurring function, Eq. 4共b兲 Problemy Prochnosti, No. 4, p. 36.
C2 ⫽ recurring function, Eq. 4共c兲 关3兴 Segall, A. E., Hellmann, J. R., and Modest, M. F., 1991, ‘‘Analysis of Gas-
E ⫽ elastic modulus Fired Ceramic Radiant Tubes During Transient Heating,’’ J. Test. Eval., 19, p.
F0 ⫽ Fourier no., ␬ t/b 2 454.
关4兴 A. E. Segall, J. R. Hellmann, and R. E. Tressler, 1993, ‘‘Thermal Shock and
F1 ⫽ recurring function, Eq. 共13兲 Fatigue Behavior of Ceramic Tubes,’’ Proc., 10th Biennial ASME Conference
F2 ⫽ recurring function, Eq. 共13兲 on Reliability, Stress Analysis, and Failure Prevention, New Mexico, p. 81.
J i ,Y i ⫽ Bessel functions of ith order 关5兴 Carslaw, H. S., and Jaeger, J. C., 1959, Conduction of Heat in Solids, Oxford
University Press, Great Britain.
T(r,t) ⫽ temperature at radius r and time t 关6兴 Vedula, V. R., Segall, A. E., and Rangarazan, S. K., 1998, ‘‘Transient Analy-
T0 ⫽ initial temperature sis of Internally Heated Tubular Components with Exponential Thermal Load-
U ⫽ step temperature change ing and External Convection,’’ Int. J. Heat Mass Transf., 41, No. 22, pp.
V ⫽ final temperature 3675–3678.
关7兴 Fodor, G. 1965, Laplace Transforms in Engineering, Akademiai Kiado,
a ⫽ inner radius Budapest, Hungary.
b ⫽ outer radius 关8兴 Fridman, Y. B., 1964, Strength and Deformation in Nonuniform Temperature
c ⫽ exponential term Fields, Consultants Bureau.

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