ABSTRACT
Cylinders and spheres that act as pressure vessels are divided into two major categories, thin-walled and thick-walled. A cylindrical compressed-air vessel has an internal diameter of 50 cm and is manufactured from steel plate 4 mm thick. An application of the theory of thin cylinders and other thin and thick-walled shells may be applied to the design and manufacture of pressure vessels. These vessels could be used for food or chemical processing, the storage of gases and liquids under pressure or even the fuselage of a pressurised aircraft. The design equations that were established for the body and various heads of these vessels were primarily concerned with the minimum thickness of the material to be used under varying pressure, stress and dimensional considerations. In the design of cylindrical pressure vessels due consideration must be given to the way in which the vessels are closed at their ends.
