Non-cylindrical Gas Container with Composite Wrapping
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Solution Overview
Problem
High pressurized gas storage containers, typically cylindrical in shape, add significant size and weight to vehicles, limiting their practicality and economy for powering vehicles due to the need for thin walls to manage pressure, and cylindrical designs are prone to failure at high pressures.
Innovation Solution
A non-cylindrical container design featuring a shell with opposing apertures and tubes, wrapped with Kevlar and carbon fiber strands, coated with resin, and equipped with a bi-directional pressure valve, allowing for high-pressure gas storage without the weight and size constraints of traditional cylindrical containers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stress or pressure
If cylindrical storage containers are used to hold high-pressure gas, then the container can maintain high pressure, but the container adds significant size and weight to the vehicle
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials by wrapping the shell with Kevlar fiber and carbon fiber strands. These composite materials provide high strength-to-weight ratio, enabling the container to maintain high pressure capacity while significantly reducing the overall weight compared to traditional steel cylindrical containers.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the container structure into a shell component and a wrapping component. The shell provides the basic enclosure, while the Kevlar and carbon fiber wrapping provides the reinforcement. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently for its specific function.
2Weight of moving object
If the container walls are made thin to reduce weight, then the vehicle weight is reduced, but the pressure and capacity of the container are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The thin shell is reinforced with composite materials (Kevlar and carbon fiber strands) that provide the necessary strength to contain high pressure. This allows the shell to remain thin for weight reduction while the composite wrapping compensates for the reduced wall thickness by providing distributed structural reinforcement.
Solution Approach 2:
The composite wrapping provides localized reinforcement at critical stress points. The Kevlar and carbon fiber strands are distributed throughout the shell structure, providing enhanced strength where needed while maintaining overall thinness. This local quality enhancement allows thin walls to safely contain high pressure.
3Stress or pressure
If the entire cylindrical container is wrapped to increase pressure capacity, then the pressure capacity increases, but the container tends to blow out at high pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The dual-layer composite wrapping (Kevlar and carbon fiber) provides distributed structural reinforcement that prevents stress concentration. This composite structure increases pressure capacity while the uniform distribution of reinforcement materials prevents localized failure modes that would cause the container to blow out.
Solution Approach 2:
The wrapping structure provides localized reinforcement at stress concentration points. The Kevlar and carbon fiber strands are strategically distributed to reinforce areas prone to stress concentration, preventing the initiation and propagation of cracks that would lead to container failure at high pressure.
4Strength
If cylindrical shape is used for the container, then the container can maintain structural integrity, but the use of pressurized gas to power vehicles becomes impractical due to size and weight
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the container into a shell and a wrapping system. This segmentation allows the shell to be shaped for optimal vehicle integration (non-cylindrical) while the wrapping system provides the structural integrity normally requiring a cylindrical shape. The wrapping acts as an independent structural reinforcement layer.
Solution Approach 2:
The composite material wrapping provides structural reinforcement that compensates for the non-cylindrical shape. The Kevlar and carbon fiber strands create a distributed reinforcement structure that maintains structural integrity regardless of the shell's geometric shape, enabling practical vehicle integration.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables the storage of high-pressure gas in a lightweight, non-cylindrical shape, enhancing safety and efficiency by distributing pressure loads effectively and allowing for higher pressure capacity without the risk of container failure.
Implementation Method 1
distributing pressure loads effectively
Implementation Method 2
Strands of Kevlar fiber and strands of carbon fiber cover the shell by wrapping the strands from the outer perimeter edge over an outer surface of the first side through one of the tubes over an outer surface of the second side and around the outer perimeter edge
Implementation Method 3
Resin covers the shell, by coating the strands of Kevlar fiber and carbon fiber and fills the tubes
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus to hold pressurized gas is disclosed. Shell halves having opposing apertures with inserted tubes are combined to create an enclosed pressure vessel. Strands of Kevlar fiber and strands of carbon fiber cover the shell by wrapping the shell through the tubes. Resin coats the wrapped strands and fills the tubes. Pressurized gas is injected and retrieved from the pressure vessel.