ECCS International Conference "Design, Inspection, Maintenance and Operation of

Cylindrical Steel Tanks and Pipelines", Prague, Czech Republic, 810 October, 2003

AUTOMATED ANALYSIS AND DESIGN OF

THINWALLED METAL TANK AND SILO STRUCTURES
Werner Guggenberger1, Julian Zotter1, Siegfried Glnzer2
1 Institute for Steel, Timber and Shell Structures, Graz University of Technology, Lessingstr. 25, 8010 Graz, Austria
2 InternetDatenbankAnwendungen GmbH, 8130 Frohnleiten, Austria

ABSTRACT
Thin-walled metal tank and silo structures appear in many different congurations in practical engineering.
There exist many common features, i.e. geometrical shape, loading and support conditions, layout of the wall
thickness, connection of the wall segments by welding or bolting, provision of discrete stiffenening in longitudinal or circumferential direction and characteristic stressdeformation behaviour which allows for straightforward categorization of this type of structures. The main idea of the present contribution is to apply a
parametric design approach to the silo structure which enables a quick and easy built-up of a specic silo
conguration 'by the switch of a button'. Moreover, this enables a consistent and safe translation of the
construction model into a correct nite element analysis model. Nonaxisymmetric effects due to any existing
structural peculiarities as described before are automatically included by applying linear elastic general
nite element shell analysis. Analysis results are calculated at selected meridional and circumferential
generators, which are called 'design generators', and transferred to the design modul. Finally, stress design
of all structural components is automatically carried out within this design modul. This method of stress
design is compatible with the new draft of Eurocode 3, Part 1.6 'Strength and Stability of Shell Structures'
and it is performed with respect to assessing the limit states of plasticity and buckling. The actions of the
modules for parametric design, global structural analysis and stress design are controlled and coordinated by
a control modul which is complemented by an interactive input module and graphical output module. In
conclusion, a prototype computer programme for the automatic analysis and design of a great variety of
complex metal silo structures has been developed. It relies on a consistent design concept for all relevant
structural parts. This design concept is based on the 'stress design' methodology according to the new
Eurocode for the design of steel shells which are currently under development. Therefore, such type of
advanced integrated software tools are thought to be of major assistance to many silo designers in the future.

NOTATION
LA
LBA
MNA
GMNIA
FE
LS or ULS

linear analysis
linear buckling eigenvalue analysis
materially nonlinear analysis
geometrically and materially nonlinear analysis including imperfections
nite element
limit state or ultimate limite state

INTRODUCTION

bolted or
welded joints

barrel

upper roof ring

transition ring
stiffener

fullheight
stringer stiffener

roof

partial
stringer stiffener

Thin-walled metal shell structures appear in many different configurations in practical engineering. There exist
many common features, i.e. particularly with respect to geometrical shape, loading and support conditions,
layout of the wall thicknesses, connection of the wall segments by welding or bolting, provision of discrete
stiffenening in longitudinal or circumferential direction and characteristic stressdeformation behaviour. This
allows for straight-forward classification of this type of structures (tanks, silos, pipelines, chimneys, towers
and masts) which is also reflected in the structure of Eurocode 3.
In the present context the model silo shell is restricted to axisymmetric shapes, i.e. the barrel (upper part) is
cylindrical and the hopper (lower part) is conical. The storage volume is not divided into multiple parts (mono
cell silo). The silo may be ground-supported or elevated. In the first case the support is provided by a base ring
and therefore essentially axisymmetric and in the second case it is local on discrete column supports, with
variable number of columns. The vertical support loads may be introduced into the shell wall by different
mechanisms, i.e. either directly at the lower boundary of the cylindrical skirt or indirectly by support plates or
edge ring stiffeners or by external stringer stiffeners. The individual courses of the silo shell usually have
stepped wall thickness and they are connected to each other by welding or bolting. In the case of bolted lap
joints the flexibility of the connection may also play an important role and can be optionally taken into account.
The model silo structure is complemented by a base ring, transition ring at the conecylinder junction and an
upper roof ring. Optionally, additional ring stiffeners may be provided. Stringer stiffeners above the column
supports may be partial or they may extend across the full height of the cylindrical barrel and skirt. Fullheight
stiffeners at the supports are particularly important in the case of bolted connections of the wall segments in
order to provide sufficient overall stiffness and stability of the global silo structure (Fig. 1).
The most important load cases, such as silo loading (silo charge and discharge), self-weight and roof (or snow)
loading, are essentially of axisymmetric nature. Additional nonaxisymmetric load cases such as wind and
temperature loading, silo pressure patch loading and external concentrated forces are also applicable.

skirt
hopper

base
ring

base
ring

Fig. 1. Thinwalled columnsupported metal silo structures with different modes of stiffening.
One of the main ideas of the present project is to apply a constructionoriented parametric design philosophy
to the complex silo structure which enables a quick and easy built-up of a specific silo configuration 'by the
switch of a button'. This approach enables a consistent and safe automatic translation of the construction model
into a correct finite element analysis model which is needed for global finite element shell analysis including
any structural peculiarities as outlined above. Subsequently stressbased buckling design of all specified
structural components is automatically carried out according to Eurocode 3 (prEN199316 and 41, 1999).
By automation of these tedious and errorprone procedures, which usually have to be done by hand again and
again, a safer and more reliable execution of the overall design process including modelling, analysis,
design and documentation for such types of compound structures becomes possible (Guggenberger, 1999).
A prototype computer programme, called SiloDesignInteractive, has been developed for the automatic
integrated modelling, analysis and design of a great variety of forms of complex metal silo structures. A set of
ten underlying principles has been worked out on which this software is based and and which are presented
and discussed in the following. The adopted modularity of the software makes the extension of the present
approach to other types of structures a particularly straightforward and promising task. The key component of
the developed software is the user control by an interactive graphical interface. Thereby, six distinct working
modes provide the required user guidance and at the same time enable a flexible and clear program navigation.

ADVANCED PRINCIPLES
A set of advanced basic concepts was developed in order to put the processes of modelling, analysis and
design of shell structures into tight integration which goes beyond the current paradigm of purely linking
these processes together in a more or less isolated chainlike way. These advanced basic concepts were then
transformed into a prototype computer software called SDI SiloDesignInteractive which is intended for
use in engineering practice and research as well. These concepts are listed and discussed in more detail below:

relevance for practical design

paradigm of constructionoriented modelling
virtual assembly rules and assembly logics
categorization of structural modelling
product model interface
automation
global finite element analysis
Eurocode 3 compatible design strategy
technical documentation
integrated software tool

Principle No. 1: Relevance for practical design

The possible denitions of constructional models of the shell structure (tank, silo or chimney etc) are of such
a scope that all relevant details of construction met in engineering practice can be represented, as for e.g.
stepped wall thicknesses, excentric connections of the shell segments, different metal grades, any relevant
loading conditions, conical hopper with centrical or excentrical outlet, stringer stiffeners and ring stiffeners
with centrical or excentrical connection to the shell wall, exibility of the connection of the shell segments
(bolted, welded, rigid), catalogue of typical support constructions, continuous support or discrete column
support, exible support conditions with nonlinear spring characteristics, additional external structural elements attached to the silo structure, additional support conditions or concentrated loads in arbitrary directions.

Principle No. 2: Paradigm of constructionoriented modelling

Currently, it is common engineering practice to start from structural modelling considerations and further
numerical modelling considerations (finite element discretization) in order to derive a suitable analysis model
for subsequent global structural analysis (Fig. 2). This traditional approach is based on an underlying constructional model. But this background model never plays a distinct explicit role in order to serve as a useful basis
for systematic subsequent structural modelling. The structural mechanical model is nonunique and represents
a suitable idealization of the real constructional problem. There is no clear transition from the constructional
model to the structural mechanical model, i.e. no systematic rational method is currently specified which tells
how to impose these structural assumptions. In order to overcome these longterm shortcomings a novel
concept is developed which is aimed at a more constructionoriented and more holistic description of the
engineering modelling process. This conceptual integration is carried out in a twofold way, firstly, with
respect to the description of the structure (or construction) to be analyzed and, secondly, with respect to the
analysis and design procedures to be applied to the structure. The structure to be analyzed is described in terms
of the construction practice which are familiar to the structural engineer and the structural craftsman as well.
This novel approach goes far beyond the traditional approach which is usually formulated in the basic
terminology of abstract structural modelling and finiteelementoriented terminology of matrix structural
analysis. On the other hand, the consequent thinking in this constructionoriented terminology enables the
task of modelling to be carried out in a much more clear and natural way. Similar integrated approaches to
structural modelling are already used in many branches of engineering, e.g. automobile industry (Lescheticky,
2000), naval architecture (Bergan et al, 2000) and bridge construction (Pircher, 2002, Kettil & Wiberg, 2002).

construction model
constructional
model
+ structural modelling
structural mechanical model
+ product

modelling

product model
+ numerical modelling
analysis model (finite element) (finite element discretn)
global structural analysis (LA)
structural design method
Fig. 2. Hierarchy of modelling steps (right hand side) and related structural models (left hand side)

Principle No. 3: Virtual assembly rules and assembly logics

The concept of constructionoriented modelling could be efficiently realized by developing and introducing
virtual assembly rules which thus constitute a virtual assembly logics. This assembly logics describes the
complete set of possibilities of assembly of the individual components of the silo structure to the overall silo
structure by uniquely defining specific assembly rules for all types of components. Since this assembly rules
are predefined it becomes very easy to buildup the virtual construction model of any specific silo structure.
Virtual means in this context that the construction model generally refers to a planned hypothetical structure
which does not yet exist in the form of a real built structure.

Principle No. 4: Categorization of structural modelling

The construction model, introduced before, is converted to a structural mechanical model by imposing
structural modelling steps. Generally, structural modelling can be characterized by imposing kinematical
and/or constitutive restrictions to a structure or a structural element and to the connections and supports of
these structural elements. This denition permits a a categorization of all structural modelling options which
are relevant in the application to thinwalled metal tank and silo structures in particular, by introducing 3
distinct categories of structural modelling as follows:
Category 1: kinematical model, material model and connection model for each main structural part
Category 2: connection model for the connections of the main structural parts including stiffeners
Category 3: support modelling

Principle No. 5: Product model interface

The product model is a general abstract representation of the construction model at an intermediate level
which had to be introduced in order to provide a general method for the systematic and automatic translation
of the construction model into the global nite element model. The term product model is well dened in

the engineering informatics literature. However, it seems that there do not exist up to now any midsurface
related prototypes of product models for thinwalled shell structures in the literature (Romberg et al. 2002).
Therefore, a sufciently general, suitable prototype product model had to be developed with the following
distinct features and required range of applicability:

general axisymmetric multisegmental shell structure with

rigid or flexible connections of these shell segments
arbitrary nonaxisymmetric surface or line loadings
arbitrary nonaxisymmetric supports with rigid or flexible (nonlinear) characteristics
arbitrary rectangular cutouts and openings (shell panels)
arbitrary stiffening in meridional and circumferential directions (also partial and excentric stiffeners)
rigid or flexible (nonlinear) characteristics of the connections of the stiffeners with the shell walls

The conversion of the product model into the (nite element) analysis model works automatically for any shell
structure which is described in terms and in the range of applicability of the dened product model (step 2).
Therefore, the remaining task of translation of the features of the construction model, including any structural
modelling specications, into the syntax of the product model is now straightforward and easy to do (step 1).

Principle No. 6: Automation

One of the key features of the developed software SiloDesignInteractive is the idea of the hidden, black
boxlike execution of the chain of analysis processes ranging from automated finite element modelling to the
structural design procedures. Thereby, automation and integration of the modelling and analysis processes
enables the standard application of more complex analysis models and of more advanced analysis procedures
in the future, if neccessary, or if required by the new generation of code regulations (prEN 199316 and 41
etc, 1999). For silo structures with a high level of structural reliability, linear global shell analyses (LA) and
related design (stress design, see Concept No. 8 below) have to be carried out. Optionally, the effect of the
flexibility of the connections of the shell segments may be taken into account.

Principle No. 7: Global nite element analysis

Each of the methodologies of structural design (see principle No. 8) generally requires related methodologies
of global structural analysis, i.e. the more sophisticated the design procedure the more sopisticated is the analysis procedure. Generally, the availability of a general purpose finite element code for shell structural analysis
is mandatory for these purposes, capable of geometrical and material nonlinearities if required. In the present
context the Abaqus program (Hibbit et al, 2002) has been chosen as the working horse. Additional work has
to be carried out in order to implement more advanced features which are not available in Abaqus initially (by
the help of usersubroutines), such as flexible line connections and flexible line supports (both with nonlinear
characteristics), specific types of averaged geometrical constraints and the specific silo loading options etc.

Principle No. 8: Eurocode 3 compatible design strategy

Future design of metal tank and silo structures will have to be carried out in accordance with the rules of the
Eurocode 3 (prEN 199316, 199341 and 199342, 1999). Since the socalled direct design procedures
are available for elementary structural configurations and loadings only, they cannot be applied in the present
more complex cases. Therefore one of the general methods of design, against the ultimate limit states of
plasticity and buckling in particular, has to be applied (Fig. 3). The simplest and most established one is the
stress design methodology which is, firstly, based on (geometrically and materially) linear global structural
analysis of the silo shell (LA) and, secondly, on available direct design results for cylinder and cone buckling
under uniform loading in particular (Fig. 3, method 1). Analysis results are calculated at selected meridional
and circumferential generators, which are called 'design generators', for subsequent use of the shell section

forces in the design procedure. If the design of the silo structure has been completed in this way, the accuracy
and robustness of the design may be checked by applying one of the methodologies of advanced global
analysis design, preferrably in a stepwise manner. These latter advanced procedures basically rely on
nonlinear structural analysis (taking into account imperfections of varying shape and magnitude, GMNIA) and
therefore they are much more demanding and computationally intensive than the introductory simple method
and require adaequate expertise and knowledge by the structural engineer. Although linear analyses of shell
structures seem to be feasible in engineering practice in almost a routine manner, there are many important
aspects that need to be understood in order to perform an effective analysis (Chapelle et al, 2003). In this sense,
the term simple in the present context only serves as antithesis to advanced and has no further meaning.
Another simple design method is proposed by Eurocode 3, which is based on a combination of global linear
buckling eigenvalue analysis (LBA) and smalldisplacement materially nonlinear structural analysis (MNA).
However, there is a lack of practical experience in applying this alternative procedure with respect to achieving
safe and economic design. Therefore, to our opinion, the proposed method 2 (Fig. 3) currently may serve as
a useful strategy for the systematic representation of new buckling results obtained by advanced nonlinear
structural analysis. These results, obtained by comprehensive parametric studies, may subsequently be
transformed into formulae for direct design (Fig 3, arrow on the lefthand side). This method is currently
less suited to be used as a reliable welltested design strategy.

direct design

> for specific cases

method 1: LAbased stress design

method 2: LBA/MNAbased design

advanced global analysis design

simple global analysis design

(heuristic)
general methods
(most general)

Fig. 3. hierarchy of buckling design procedures (with modications, compared to prEN 199316, chap. 8)

Principle No. 9: Technical documentation

An important feature of the developed software system is the possibility of automatically producing the
technical documentation for all successful analysis and design cases of a specific silo structure, i.e. in textual,
tabular and graphical form, without any significant user interaction. This could be achieved by developing an
efficient and general purpose LaTexbased modular documentation system (Goossens et al, 1994).

INTEGRATED SOFTWARE TOOL

A software tool for the computeraided modelling, analysis and design of thinwalled metal silo structures,
called Silo DesignInteractive, has been developed which incorporates those principles, that were introduced
above, in a sensibly integrated way. The software architecture is truly modular, i.e. the software consists of
separate program modules which communicate by external data interfaces. The coordination of the execution
of these program modules is performed by an independent Internetbased program called TaskManager. An
important feature of the developed software is its Windows PCbased interactive Graphical User Interface.
Thereby, six distinct main working modes for preprocessing, analysis & design and postprocessing provide
the required user guidance through the design process. In order to maintain the uniqueness of the relationship
between the construction model and the diversity of analysis and design cases the model definition mode is
locked while the structural analysis and design monitor is active. These main working modes are as follows

project management
model definition (construction model; structural modelling and finite element modelling options)
history definition (geometric imperfections, load and load set specifications, output options)
structural analysis and design monitor
interactive results view
technical documentation view

CONCLUSION
A prototype computer programme has been developed for the automatic integrated modelling, analysis and
design of a great variety of forms of complex metal silo structures. A set of ten fundamental principles has been
presented on which this software is based. The adopted modularity of the software makes the extension of the
adopted methodology to other types of technical shell structures, like tanks, pipelines, chimneys, towers and
masts a straightforward and promising task. Without change of the developed product model, this extension
can be achieved by modification of a few module programs only, i.e. the interactive construction procedure,
the conversion of the construction model to the product model, the design procedure (if applicable) and the
technical documentation procedure. The key component of the developed software SiloDesignInteractive is
the user control by an interactive graphical interface. Thereby, six distinct working modes provide the required
user guidance through the design process and enable a flexible and clear program navigation. This type of integrated software tool is thought to be of major support to designers and analysts of shell structures in research
and practice. The application to other engineering structures is possible by enhancement of the product model.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The reseach project Silo Design is supported by a grant from the Austrian Applied Science Foundation FFF
under agreement No. 803.956. The joint cooperation and nancial support by Doubrava GmbH steel
company, AttnangPuchheim, Austria in the framework of this resarch project is also gratefully aknowledged.

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