Abstract Mobile tank are widely used for transport various goods not only liquids but also gases, material in bulks an

Edward Lisowski

Mariusz Domaga

Mobile tank are widely used for transport various goods not only liquids but also gases, material in bulks and even cryogenic liquids. Such tanks have to fulfil a number of requirements arising from operational as well as design aspects, they have to resist on high pressure load and extremely low temperatures in case of cryogenic tanks. Mobile tank used on railway, vehicles or as a container on ships have to fulfil requirements for dynamic load that arising from interaction of fluid at tank. A lot of standards defines requirements for various mobile tanks and defines design procedures. One of most difficult is the interaction between fluid and tank structure during tank operation. Available standard defines a lateral and longitudinal acceleration as a dynamic load that tank has to fulfil. Standards like ADR or EN defines a simplified method of evaluating strength of tank structure on dynamic load. This paper presents a method of evaluating interaction of sloshing liquid on tank structure using FSI (Fluid Structure Interaction) with the use of CFD and FEM tool. Ansys Workbench environment simulation was used to evaluate influence of liquid motion on tank structure. CFD allowed simulating liquid sloshing at the tank at simultaneous longitudinal and lateral short peak of acceleration. Than these results were applied to structural simulation, for checking tank structure strength under loading with sloshing liquid

Domagała, M.

Lisowski, E.

Biblioteka Nauki - repozytorium artykuÅÃ³w

Interaction of liquid motion on mobile tank structure

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Journal of KONES Powertrain and Transport, Vol. 18, No. 3 2011 
 
 
 
INTERACTION OF LIQUID MOTION ON MOBILE TANK STRUCTURE  
 
Mariusz Domaga a, Edward Lisowski 
 
Cracow University of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering 
Jana Paw a II Street 37, 31-864 Kraków, Poland 
phone:+48 12 3743654,.+48 12 3743351, fax: +48 12 3748267 
e-mail: domagala@mech.pk.edu.pl, lisowski@mech.pk.edu.pl 
 
Abstract 
Mobile tank are widely used for transport various goods not only liquids but also gases, material in bulks and 
even cryogenic liquids. Such tanks have to fulfil a number of requirements arising from operational as well as design 
aspects, they have to resist on high pressure load and extremely low temperatures in case of cryogenic tanks. Mobile 
tank used on railway, vehicles or as a container on ships have to fulfil requirements for dynamic load that arising 
from interaction of fluid at tank. A lot of standards defines requirements for various mobile tanks and defines design 
procedures. One of most difficult is the interaction between fluid and tank structure during tank operation. Available 
standard defines a lateral and longitudinal acceleration as a dynamic load that tank has to fulfil. Standards like ADR 
or EN defines a simplified method of evaluating strength of tank structure on dynamic load. This paper presents a 
method of evaluating interaction of sloshing liquid on tank structure using FSI (Fluid Structure Interaction) with the 
use of CFD and FEM tool. Ansys Workbench environment simulation was used to evaluate influence of liquid motion 
on tank structure. CFD allowed simulating liquid sloshing at the tank at simultaneous longitudinal and lateral short 
peak of acceleration. Than these results were applied to structural simulation, for checking tank structure strength 
under loading with sloshing liquid. 
Keywords: mobile tank, FSI simulation, liquid sloshing simulation 
 
1. Introduction  
 
Mobile tanks are used from decades to transport various goods, from liquid to goods in bulk 
and even cryogenic liquid. They were a subject of a lot of research work what lead to provide 
adequate standards depending on tank assignment. All of them define design requirements and 
strength requirements that shall be fulfilled. For example standard [1] and [2] specified detailed 
requirement for various tank design but they have one common requirement: tank structure shall 
resist specified load defined by lateral, vertical or longitudinal acceleration. Both standards define 
this acceleration as 2g in vertical and longitudinal direction and 1g in lateral direction. Nowadays 
mobile tanks are subjected not only for one liquid but the whole family, which may vary in density 
and due to the limit in total weight it may happen that tank is not filled to its nominal capacity. In 
such cases tank has to be provided with swash plates to eliminate unfavourable dynamic load of 
sloshing liquid on tank structure. Therefore swashing plates as well as tank structure has to resist 
these dynamic loads arising from liquid motion. Standards define the load from sloshing liquid as 
an equivalent pressure that should acts on swash plates as well as tank walls. This is very 
conservative approach and sometimes do not allow to investigate phenomena caused by sloshing 
liquid in a correct way. Available on the market design and simulation tools offer a rich 
possibilities but investigation of influence of liquid in motion on tanks is not easy task. There are 
few various approach for simulation of such problem. One of them is FSI (Fluid Structure 
Simulation) which combine phenomena of liquid motion with consideration tank structure. It can 
be performed using two independent codes (CFD and FEA) or one that have possibilities to use 
Eulerian-Lagrangian approach [3]. Both of them have advantageous and disadvantageous. CAE 
systems supporting Eulerian-Lagrangrian elements avoid problems with exchanging data from 
fluid simulation to structure but offer less possibilities in flow simulation. Using independent CFD 
 
M. Domaga a, E. Lisowski 
and FEA tools requires appropriate translators for exchanging data.  
There are two types of FSI simulation: one way, when information from flow simulation is 
transferred into structure and two way simulation, where data are exchanged between both: fluid 
and structure. In this paper was presented using one way FSI simulation to investigate influence of 
liquid motion on typical, atmospheric tank on its structure. For this purpose Ansys Workbench 
environment was used.  
 
2. Object of study 
 
As an object of study was selected tank that is used to storage and transport liquids under 
atmospheric pressure like oil products, water, milk, etc. The tank is presented in Fig. 1. It consists 
of three chambers separated by swash plates with capacity ca. 26 m3. The tank has ellipsoidal cross 
section (1200x900) and length 8000 [mm]. The tank is subjected for transport liquids under 
atmospheric pressure and can be assembled to the road vehicle underframe at the tank saddles. The 
thickness of tank shell as well as swash plate is 3 [mm]. Swash plates divide tank volume into 
three more or less equal parts and due to single filling and emptying system allow liquid flowing 
between chambers. According to standard recommendation the swash plate has a cross section of 
75% of the tank.  
 
swash plate
tank saddle
tank saddle
 
Fig. 1. Investigated model of tank 
 
The tank has two saddles welded to the tank shell which are placed between swash plates and 
tank head.  
 
3. FSI simulation of the tank 
 
Investigation of influence of liquid motion on tank structure was performed by FSI simulation 
in Ansys Workbench simulation environment. Applied way use two independent CFD and FEA 
codes, therefore, two computational models of tank was prepared, one for CFD one for FEA. 
These models are presented in Fig. 2 and 3. 
CFD model presented on Figure 2 was prepared by Ansys mesh tool and consist of hexahedral 
3D cells. While FEA model presented in Fig. 3 was prepared using shell, quadrilateral shape 
element with 4 nodes. At both models an interface for transferring information between CFD and 
FEA codes was applied to the internal surface of tank and to both plates. As the deformation of 
tank shell have a minority influence on liquid motion one way FSI simulation was used in the way 
presenting in Fig. 4. 
68
 
Interaction of Liquid Motion on Mobile Tank Structure  
 
Fig. 2. CFD model of the tank, 3D hexahedral cells 
 
Fig. 3. FEA model of the tank, quadrilateral shell elements 
 
 
Fig. 4. One way FSI simulation of the tank 
 
Flow simulation was conducted for the following conditions:  
- liquid is water with properties at normal ambient temperature, 
- tank is filled to half its nominal capacity, 
- flow is two phase (water and air), homogenous with standard model of free surface, 
- tank walls are ideal smooth, 
- model is in thermal equilibrium, there is no heat exchange between fluids and environment, 
69
 
M. Domaga a, E. Lisowski 
- simulation is in transient conditions with acceleration peak of 2 g in longitudinal direction and 
1g in lateral, duration of acceleration is 0.2 [s], 
- flow is turbulent with RNG k-  model, 
- simulation time is 5 [s]. 
At the first stage CFD analysis was conducted in which is able to find shape of sloshing water 
at each stage of simulation, the peak pressure values appearing on tank walls, forces acting on tank 
shell, etc. As an example, below figure shows shape of water surface at time 0.3 [s].  
 
Fig. 5. Shape of water surface at time 0.3 [s] 
 
At the next step the peak value of pressure caused by sloshing liquid was imported to FEA 
model of the tank. Fig. 6 shows pressure distribution imported from CFD simulation applied to 
tank shell and to the swash plates as well. 
 
  
Fig. 6. FEA model, imported pressure 
 
Defined in Ansys Workbench FSI simulation allows to import pressure value at defined 
interface between fluid and structure for any simulation time. In presented results was selected 
maximal values appearing during simulation. Below figures show selected results of FEA results, 
as an equivalent Von Mises stress and total displacement. This allows capturing maximal values of 
stresses and deformation that may appear during tank operation. 
 
Fig. 7. FEA results, equivalent stress [N/mm2] 
70
 
Interaction of Liquid Motion on Mobile Tank Structure  
 
Fig. 8. FEA results, total displacement [ mm] 
 
Presented results shows maximal values of stress and deformation that appears on defined 
acceleration load. Investigation of these results allows finding the critical points of tank structure 
at any time of duration of liquid motion. 
 
4. Summary 
 
This paper presents FSI simulation of tank for transport oil products or other liquid under 
atmospheric pressure. Presented one way FSI simulation was conducted in Ansys Workbench 
simulation environment by using Ansys CFX and Ansys Structural codes. Prepared FSI model of 
tank allowed testing tank structure on dynamic load caused by liquid motion under inertial 
excitation of value 2g in longitudinal direction combined with lateral acceleration 1g. Defined 
simulation FSI model enable to obtain peak pressure values under defined excitation and check its 
influence on tank structure.  
FSI simulation seems to be very efficient design tool for mobile tanks especially under 
dynamic load caused by liquid motion. It allows not only capturing maximal values of stresses and 
displacement but also estimating stress variations under changeable dynamic load (caused by 
sloshing liquid) which next might be used to assess fatigue strength. It also allows determining 
pressure changes depending on excitation conditions (acceleration value, direction, duration) and 
its influence on tank structure. Such simulations might not only be used for mobile tank but also 
for stationary tank when liquid motion has significant meaning. Such case appears for tanks which 
have to fulfil requirements for seismic load. 
FSI allows to capture phenomena caused with liquid motion much wider for tanks used in road, 
railway and see transport systems to optimize tank structure. 
 
References 
 
[1] EN13530-2 Cryogenic vessels–Large transportable vacuum insulated vessels–Part 2: Design, 
fabrication, inspection and testing. 
[2] ADR 2005. 
[3] Legaya, A., Chessab, J., Belytschko, T., An Eulerian–Lagrangian method for fluid–structure 
interaction based on level sets, Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering, 
Vol. 195, Is. 17-18, pp. 2070-2087, 2006. 
[4] Cloete, S., Olsena, J. E, Skjetne, P., CFD modeling of plume and free surface behavior 
resulting from a sub-sea gas release, Applied Ocean Research Vol. 31, 220-225, 2009. 
[5] Domagala, M., Simulation of liquid motion in mobile tank, Technical Transactions, Krakow 
2011. 
 
71


INTERACTION OF LIQUID MOTION ON MOBILE TANK STRUCTURE

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INTERACTION OF LIQUID MOTION ON MOBILE TANK STRUCTURE

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