Pressure Test Cell Mesh Roof and Lapped Wall Panels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pressure test cells lack adequate protection against fragment penetration and quasi-static pressure waves, leading to potential injuries and structural failures, as they are often constructed with inadequate materials like concrete or brick, which require excessive thickness for safety and may dissipate pressure by exposing the roof, posing further hazards.
Innovation Solution
A test cell design featuring metal wall panels with lapped connections and a mesh roof panel made from high-strength materials, allowing for fragment capture and quasi-static pressure dissipation while maintaining structural integrity, reducing the required wall thickness and preventing projectile hazards.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If concrete or brick enclosures are used for pressure testing, then structural protection is provided, but wall thickness must exceed 4.5m to prevent fragment penetration and scabbing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a composite structure combining steel wall panels with concrete or brick infill. The steel panels provide high strength-to-thickness ratio for fragment containment, while the infill material absorbs blast energy and prevents scabbing. This composite approach achieves adequate protection with significantly reduced wall thickness compared to solid concrete structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The design nests the steel panel structure within or alongside concrete/brick walls, creating a multi-layered protective system. The steel panels are positioned to intercept fragments first, then the outer concrete layer provides additional containment and prevents scabbing to the exterior. This nested configuration optimizes protective capability while minimizing overall wall thickness.
2Stress or pressure
If the roof is exposed or made frangible to dissipate quasi static pressure, then pressure wave dissipation is improved, but roof panels become projectiles creating new hazards
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a mesh roof panel that acts as a flexible yet containment-capable structure. The mesh allows quasi static pressure waves to pass through while its tensile strength prevents it from becoming a projectile. The mesh configuration provides pressure dissipation pathways without compromising structural integrity during overpressure events.
Solution Approach 2:
The mesh roof panel functions as a porous structure with openings that allow pressure wave transmission. The porosity enables quasi static pressure to dissipate through the roof while the solid mesh strands maintain structural continuity and prevent the roof from detaching as a projectile. The aperture size and strand configuration are optimized to balance pressure relief with fragment containment.
3Stability of the object's composition
If traditional enclosures are used, then containment is provided, but fragment scabbing creates fast-moving concrete pieces that penetrate the enclosure
Solution Approach 1:
The steel panel acts as an intermediary layer between the internal test environment and the outer concrete enclosure. It intercepts fragments before they can strike the concrete, preventing the compressive blast wave reflection that causes scabbing. The steel panel absorbs and redirects fragment energy, protecting the concrete structure from generating hazardous scabbing projectiles.
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 provides enhanced safety by containing fragments and dissipating pressure waves effectively, reducing the risk of injury and structural failure, and allowing for efficient testing of high-pressure equipment with reduced space and material requirements.
Implementation Method 1
The roof panel is capable of capturing fragments of the equipment under test, in the case of a pressure failure of the equipment
Implementation Method 2
The roof panel allows for the dissipation of the quasi static pressure arising from a pressure failure of the equipment through apertures in the mesh panel
Data Source
AI summary
A test cell (10) for containing equipment (12) subject to pressure testing comprises a plurality of metal plate wall panels (14) and a mesh roof panel (16) formed from mesh strands (26) of a high strength material. Each wall panel has a lapped connection (18) with an adjacent wall panel. The mesh panel (16) may be formed from a ballistic fabric, and the mesh strands (26) may be wire, rope and braid of steel, metal, plastic, natural or composite fiber, or a combination thereof. In the event of a pressure failure of the equipment (12) under test, the roof panel (16) captures fragments of the equipment while allowing the dissipation of pressure shock waves through the apertures (28) in the mesh. The lapped connections (18) between wall panels (14) result in increased friction between adjacent wall panels (14) and thus an increase in the strength of the connection when subject to pressure shock waves.