TYPE -IV PRESSURE VESSELS || COMPOSITE

Written by: Mr. Suryawanshi Saurabh

Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute, Mumbai, India

PRESSURE VESSEL

A pressure vessel is a container designed to hold gaseous or liquid at different pressure.

TYPE-IV COMPOSITE PRESSURE VESSELS

Type IV: An all-composite construction featuring a polymer (typically high-density polyethylene, or HDPE) liner with carbon fibre or hybrid carbon/glass fibre composite.

COMPOSITE

A material produced from two or more constituent material with different physical and chemical properties. the individual elements remain separate and distinct, Within the finished structure, distinguishing composites from mixtures and solid solutions.

MATRIX

The matrix binds the fibre reinforcement, transfers load between fibres, gives the composite component its net shape and determines its surface quality

REINFORCED FIBERS

* Glass / Carbon Fibre

* HDPE {High-Density Polythene Fibre}

* Polyamides

A vessel made from all carbon fibre, with an inner liner of polyamide or polyethylene plastic. Characteristics are a way lower weight and very high strength. Comparatively expensive, due to the volume of carbon fibre. Carbon fibre adds innate strength to the vessel, enabling it to require on greater loads. Carbon fibre also significantly increases the corrosion resistance and therefore the fatigue resistance of pressure vessels, which makes safety a key advantage.

1.2 MANUFACTURING PROCESS OF TYPE – IV PRESSURE VESSELS

* Type IV pressure vessels Manufacturing process include fabrication of the polymeric or metallic liner, followed by filament winding of the composite shell, then thermal processing of the resin then pressurization and at last leak tests, and therefore the subsequent assembly of various components.

* Seamless polymer liners for type IV vessels are manufactured by a thermoplastic blow, rotational, or injection molding process that permits incorporation of metallic hardware into the polymer liner.

* The finished liner is employed as the mandrel during the next process step of filament winding of the composite shell. the method is undertaken with a computer-controlled multi-axis machine that can be programmed to lay down resin-impregnated fibre reinforcement material in bands with ‘helical’ and ‘hoop’ patterns.

* The is either impregnated with liquid resin during the winding process (wet winding), or a band of fibre reinforcement (carbon, glass, or organic material) pre-impregnated with a matrix resin and semi-cured before the filament winding (towpreg winding).

* From each production batch of vessels, one or two units are randomly selected and destructively tested to gauge burst pressure and fatigue life, also as to ensure that the manufacturing process stays within the control limits

ADVANTAGES

* It has high strength (carbon fibre reinforced structure)

* Lightweight and durable

* Chemical & fatigue resistance

* No thermal expansion

* x-ray translunary

* Withstand high pressure

APPLICATION

* Automotive fuel tanks for CNG and Hydrogen

* Cryogenic tank for transportation of liquefied natural gas

* Pneumatic compressor parts

* Elements of survival system for firemen, divers, mountain climbers, etc.

* Aerospace application

PRESSURE VESSELS MARKET ANALYSIS

* The worldwide pressure vessel market is projected to reach USD 59.5 billion by 2027 from an estimated market size of USD 47.1 billion in 2022, at a CAGR of 4.8% during the forecast period. The factors driving the expansion for pressure vessel is the requirements in various end-user industries and advancement in the technologies of the industrial equipment in developing economies.

PRESSURE VESSEL MANUFACTURERS

* Steelhead composites

* EKC

* NPROXX

* Timetechnoplast

* Kinceo

* INFINITE CPV