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Nextgenerationpressurevessels:CompositesWorld

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July2012

Nextgenerationpressurevessels
ThefirstcommercialtankintheelusiveTypeVcategoryandalargerbutlighterType
IVCNGtankpresagenewgrowthoffilamentwindinginthestorageofcompressed
gasses.
Author:MichaelLeGault

3MEngineeredProductsand
Solutions
DSMCompositeResinsAG
HyPerCompEngineering
SGLCarbonSE
TorayCarbonFibersAmericaInc.
Zones
AutomotiveComposites
CarbonFiber
FilamentWinding
MassTransit

211

Postedon:7/2/2012
HighPerformanceComposites

ClickImagetoEnlarge

Composites Technology
Developments (CTD,
Lafayette, Colo.) linerless
(Type V) pressure vessels are
made from the companys
KIBOKO epoxybased
toughened resins and
filamentwound or tape
placed carbon fiber or glass.
They are 15 to 20 percent
lighter than their Type IV
cousins (plasticlined
composite vessels). The
companys first commercial
model (pictured here) was
installed on the U.S. Air
Forces FASTRAC satellite
launched in 2010.

CTD's first commercial model

of its Type V tank (pictured
here) was installed on the
U.S. Air Forces FASTRAC
satellite launched in 2010.
Source: CTD

Theevolutionofvesselsandtanksdesignedtoholdliquidsand
gasesunderpressurehasproceededthroughfourdistinct
stages:allmetaltanks(TypeI),metalhoopwrappedcomposite
tanks(TypeII),metallinedcompositetanks(TypeIII)and
plasticlinedcompositetanks(TypeIV).Thefifthstage,anall
composite,linerlessTypeVtankhasbeenthepressurevessel
industrysHolyGrailforyears(seetheTanktypessidebarat
theendofthisarticleorclickonitstitleunder"Editor'sPicks,"at
topright).Recently,onecompany,CompositesTechnology
DevelopmentInc.(CTD,Lafayette,Colo.),successfully
designed,testedandbuiltsuchatankforarealworld
application.

SupplierCategories
CompositeStructures&Components
Materials
Primarymanufacturingequipment
Testing,gauging,monitoring,
analyticalequipmentandsoftware
Tools/toolingmaterials
Aramid

Thecompanysfirstcommercial,allcomposite,linerless
pressurevesselwasbuiltincooperationwiththeU.S.AirForce
ResearchLaboratory(WrightPattersonAFB,Ohio)andthe
UniversityofTexas(Austin,Texas).Itwasinstalledonthe
studentbuiltFASTRAC1(FormationAutonomySpacecraftwith
Thrust,Relnav,AttitudeandCrosslink)satellite,launchedin
November2010.The1.9Ltankwasapproximately6inches
(152mm)indiameter,7to8inches(178to203mm)inlength
andweighedonlyabout0.44lb(0.2kg).Thetankwasfilament
woundwithT700carbonfibersuppliedbyTorayCarbonFibers
AmericaInc.(FlowerMound,Texas)wetoutwithCTDs
proprietaryKIBOKOtoughenedepoxyresin.Ithadan
operationalpressureof200psi,aproofpressureof1,000psi,
withaburstpressurebetween2,000and2,500psi.Thetank
wasusedtostoreargongasasacomponentofthesatellites
microdischargeplasmathruster.Thethrustersuperheatsand
channelstheinertgasthroughamicrochannelnozzle,
producingamicroNewtonlevelofthrustfororbitalattitude
adjustments.
Havingprovenitslinerlesspressurevesselsmettleinspace,
CTDislookingtoexpandcommercializationofthetanktomore

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CTDs Multiple Use Precision

Extractable Tooling (MUPET)
technology enables
manufacturing of trapped
shapes, using CTDs
trademarked opencell,
shapememory TEMBO foam.
Rigid enough at room
temperature to permit it to be
overwound with composite
material, the foam is formed
to tank shape and encased in
a bladder. After the wound
tank is cured, while the
material is still warm, a
vacuum is applied and the
volume of the foam and,
therefore, the tool bladder, is
reduced, allowing it to be
extracted from the tank.
Source: CTD

The 3M Co.s (St. Paul, Minn.)

new Type IV CNG tanks are 10
to 20 percent lighter, with 10
to 20 percent more storage
capacity at the same
footprint, compared to
standard storage vessels
currently on the market.
Source: 3M

Nextgenerationpressurevessels:CompositesWorld

mainstreammarketsandapplications.Thecompanyisinthe
processofqualifyingaTypeVtankforacommercialaircraft
application.Atthetimethisarticlewenttopress,CTDwas
buildingthefirstprototypetankfortestingandhadnotdecided
whetherthefinalversionwouldbemadeofcarbonorglass.
MikeTupper,CTDsexecutiveVP,saysthegoalistohavethe
tankqualifiedinthenext10to12monthsandtomakeit
availabletotheaircraftindustryinthenexttwotothreeyears.
CTDslinerlesstanksareexpectedtorangefrom15to20
percentlighterthantheirnearestTypeIVcousins,asignificant
performancebenefitintheaerospace/aircraftindustry,whichis
sensitivetopayloadweight.Abetterweighttotankcapacity
ratio,however,isnottheonlyadvantageofalinerlesspressure
vessel,Tuppernotes.Companystudiesindicatethatafterthey
areinfullscaleproduction,linerlesstankswillcostlessto
manufacture,mostobviouslybecausethecostsoftheliner
materialandlinerfabricationwillbeeliminated.Lessobviousis
thefactthatengineersalsowillhavemoreflexibilityduring
developmenttomakedesignchanges.
Linedtanksaredifficultandcostlytomakechangestoonce
theyarebuilt,saysTupper.Hereports,forexample,thatCTD
isworkingwithanunmannedaerialvehicle(UAV)manufacturer
thatisinterestedinhavingatanksimilartotheoneusedinthe
FASTRACsatellite.CTDbuiltoneprototypeandhassince
suppliedcommercialtankstotheUAVmanufacturer.Thetanks
willbeusedtoholdfuelandwilloperateat200psi.Tuppersays
CTDwasabletoincreasethevolumeofthetankbyabout15
percentthroughasimplemodificationtothetooling.Inalined
tank,thelineristhetooland,therefore,wouldneedtobe
redesigned.
Additionally,linerfree,allcompositetankscanbemadein
conformalshapes,allowingtankdesignerstousethespacein
aircraftenvelopeswithconstrained,nonuniformgeometries.
Thisattribute,Tupperbelieves,willspeedmarketpenetrationin
theaircraftindustryafterthecompanyhasqualifiedthefirst
tank.Duringthedesignofanaircraft,thetankdesignisoften
leftuntiltheend,andyouhavetofitittotheavailable
envelope,Tupperexplains.Itismucheasiertomakea
conformabletankwithallcompositelaminatethanametaltank
oracompositetankwithametalliner.

TypeVtechnology

The Linde Groups (Munich,

Germany) lightweight GENIE
cylinders are said to hold
more gas than their much
heavier steel counterparts and
have excellent portability.
Ergonomic design and
stackable construction give it
an appearance quite different
from previous compressed gas
cylinders. Source: The Linde
Group

CTDshopesformainstream,highvolumeTypeVapplications
restwithinnovationsonthreemajortechnologicalfronts:
materials,designandtooling.Theuseofasinglematerialto
manufactureatankmeantdevelopingalaminatesystemthat
couldnotonlyprovidesufficientstructuralstrengthunder
pressurebutcriticallyimportantalsoformabarrierlayer
thatisimpermeabletogases,fuelsandothersubstances.
TuppersaysitsKIBOKOfamilyoftoughenedresins,mostly
basedonepoxy,isthekeytoCTDsdevelopmentofTypeV
vessels.

Whenyoupressurizeatank,thepressureisappliedtothe
vesselwallsinalldirections,sotheresinhastostretchto
absorbthestrainandalsoprovidestructuralsupportbybondingtothefibers,says
Tupper.HereportsthattestsconductedbythecompanyhavefoundthatKIBOKO
materialsformmicrocracksatsignificantlyhigherstrainlevels,atbothroomandcryogenic
temperatures,thandostandardindustrymaterials.AlthoughthetanksfortheFASTRAC
satelliteandtheUAVarebothwetwound,thesameresinalsoiscompatiblewiththe
vacuumassistedresintransfermolding(VARTM)process.Therearecertainapplications
whereVARTMmightbeamoresuitablewayofmakingalowvoidlaminate,saysTupper,
aslongasyoucanbeassuredofgettingareasonablefibervolumefraction.Hereports
thatthecompanyiscurrentlyleaningtowardVARTMtomanufacturethetankfor
commercialaircraft.
Asinglematerialtankthatmeetsrequisitestructuralandbarrierperformance
requirementsismadepossiblebyfinetuningthedesignparameters,suchasfiberangle,
fibervolumeandlaminatethickness,tocreatewhatTuppercallsagradedcomposite.
Althoughthelaminateactsasbothstructureandbarrierinallareasofthetank,engineers
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Nextgenerationpressurevessels:CompositesWorld

canadjustthedesignfeaturestovarythefunctionality.Theycan,forexample,emphasize
thestructuralorbarrierpropertiesinparticularlocationswithinthetankwallratherthan
applythechangetotheentiretank.
Further,vesselswithoutdiscretelinersrequireatoolingsubstratethatmustberemoved
afterthevesselhasbeencured.CTDhasworkedwithsupplierstodevelopseveralnovel
toolingtechniquesformoldingcompositeswithtrappedshapes.Tuppersaysthetanksfor
boththeFASTRACsatelliteandtheUAVaremanufacturedbywindingfilamentsaround
anunconventionalmandrel,whichischemicallydissolvedinapostprocessingstep.He
reports,however,thatthemethodissuitablefortanksmanufacturedinsmallquantities
butwouldnotbecosteffectiveforlargescaleproduction.
Thecompanyhasworkedondevelopinganew(pat.pend.)andmoreefficientmethodfor
moldingtrappedshapecomposites,calledMultipleUsePrecisionExtractableTooling
(MUPET).TheprocessusesCTDsopencell,shapememoryTEMBOFoam,whichis
encasedinabladder.Thetoolisdesignedtohavethedesiredshapeofthetank.The
foamisrigidenoughatroomtemperaturetoenablethecompositetobelaiduponthe
foamtool,evenusingfiberplacementandautomatedtapeplacementtechniques.A
compositelaminateismanufacturedaroundthemandrelusingfilamentwinding,VARTM
orprepregmaterials.
Duringcure,thebladderispressurizedtoconsolidatethecomposite.Afterthecureis
complete,whilethefoamisstillwarm,avacuumisappliedtothefoamandthevolumeof
thetoolissignificantlyreduced,whichallowsittobeextractedfromthetank.Afterthetool
isremoved,thevacuumisreleasedandthetoolreportedlyresumestheshapenecessary
toformthenexttank.CTDcanadaptthesofteningtemperatureofthetoolto
accommodatedifferentcurecycles.TheMUPETtoolalsocanbeusedtocreateawell
consolidatedcompositewhenthelayupisprepreg,withouttheuseofanautoclave.
CTDhasyettodecidewhichtoolingmethodologyitwillusetomaketanksforcommercial
aircraft,butTupperreportsthecompanyisinvestigatingwaysMUPETtechnologycould
beusedtomanufacturelargecompositetanksforNASAlaunchvehicles.Arocket
typicallyhastwometaltanks,onethatcarrriesanoxidizer(usuallyoxygen)andanother
thatcarriesfuel,suchashydrogen.Wevedemonstrated,usingourcomposite
technology,thatyoucancreateasingletankwithtwocompartments,Tuppersays,so
insteadofhavingtwotankswithatotaloffourends,youhaveamorecompact
arrangementofonetankwithtwoexternalendsandaninternalbulkhead.
TheU.S.DepartmentofTransportationsregulationsmandatelinedtanksforcompressed
naturalgas(CNG),sothisparticularhighvolumemarketremains,forthetimebeing,off
limitsforCTDslinerlesspressurevesseltechnology.Nonetheless,Tupperbelievesthat
afterthesafetyandreliabilityoflinerlesstechnologyisdemonstrated,itsbenefitscould
promptregulatorstoamendthisrequirement.Inthemeantime,thecompanyisfinding
growinginterestandopportunitiesforitslinerlesstanktechnologyinspace,aerospace
andlightrailspecialtymarkets.

Newmaterialswillcreatelighter,largerCNGtanks
IfsteelandmetalorpolymerlinedcompositetanksremainthestandardCNGstorage
vesselsfornow,thereareseveralcompellingreasonstanksupplierstothenaturalgas
andtransportationindustriesmightwanttorevisitandimprovecurrenttanktechnology.
First,thefueltankonaCNGpoweredvehicleiscurrentlythesinglemostexpensive
vehiclecomponent.Second,becausenaturalgasisdomesticallyabundant,cheaperthan
gasolineandburnscleaner,itisincreasinglyviewedasaviableautofuelalternative.CNG
consumptionintheU.S.hasincreased145percentinthepastsixyears,accordingtothe
ConsumerEnergyCenter(Sacramento,Calif.).
Theserealitiesprompted3M(St.Paul,Minn.)toannouncerecentlythatitwilllauncha
completeportfolioofnewTypeIVCNGtanksthatare10to20percentlighterwith10
to20percentgreaterstoragecapacityatthesamefootprint,andwithalowercostthan
thestandardcompositestoragevessels(TypeIIthroughIV)currentlyonthemarket.3Mis
collaboratingwithChesapeakeEnergyCorp.(OklahomaCity,Okla.),whichpledgedan
initialinvestmentof$10millionfortheprojectandcommittedtousingthenewtanksforits
corporatefleetconversiontoCNG.HypercompEngineeringInc.(BrighamCity,Utah)is
supplyingdesignandcertificationservices.
RickMaveus,globalbusinessmanager,3MAdvancedComposites,saystheportfolioof
tankswillprovide3Mwithabout90percentcoverage,oftheCNGtankmarketfor
transportation.Thefirsttank,withdimensionsof21.5inchesby60inches(54.6cmby
152.4cm),willbeintroducedinthefourthquarterof2012.Maveussays3Mwill
subsequentlylaunchoneortwonewtankgeometrieseverymonth.
Thetankswillbemanufacturedprimarilyfromcarbonfiber,aswellasacombinationof
proprietarylinermaterials,barrierfilmsandcoatings,damageresistancefilmsandthe
keyinnovationandenablerinthetanktechnology3Msnanoparticleenhancedresin
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Nextgenerationpressurevessels:CompositesWorld

technology,3MMatrixResinforPressureVessels.
Tanksinthefirstphaseofthelaunchwillbemanufacturedbywetfilamentwinding.Fibers
willbewetoutwiththe3Mresinviaresinbath.Theresincomprisesamorphousand
sphericalnanosilicaparticles,approximately100nmindiameter,dispersedinanepoxy
resin.Whatisproprietaryaboutournanosilicaenhancedresinisthatweareableto
controlthesurfacepropertiesoftheparticlessothattheydisperseuniformlyintheresin,
Maveussays.
Uniformdispersion,alongwithsmallnominaldiameters,enablestheparticlestoflow
evenlybetweenthefibersofthecompositeandachievehigherloadings,which,inturn,
stiffenstheresinandimpartsimprovedmechanicalpropertiestothecomposite.The
nanoparticlesareloadedintothecompositematrixatlevelsof40to50percent,compared
toloadingsof1to2percenttypicallyachievedwithacarbonnanotubeinfusedlaminating
resinsystem.Theaspectratiosurfacetovolumeofcarbonnanotubes
fundamentallylimitsloading,Maveusnotes.3Mreportsthatvesselsmadewiththesilica
nanoparticleenhancedresinshowa6to8percentimprovementinburstpressure,a30
percentimprovementinburstpressureafterimpactanda55percentincreaseinfatigue
life,comparedtovesselsmadewithconventionalepoxyresins.
Thehighermodulusandfracturetoughnessaffordedbythesilicafilledepoxy/carbonfiber
compositeenablesatankdesignthatweighslessbuthasgreatercapacityinthesame
footprint.IntheU.S.,servicepressureforaCNGtankis3,600psi.TomHannum,
businessdevelopmentmanageratHypercompEngineering,saysthefirmwasableto
arriveataproprietarydesignforthetankthatachievesthesameservicepressurewith
lessmaterial.Hannumsaysthedesignstrategytargetsthemostpopularandwidelyused
tankgeometriesonthemarket.ThefirsttankwillbecertifiedtotheAmericanNational
StandardsInstitutesrevisedcompressednaturalgasvehiclefuelcontainercertification
standard(NGV2,2007)shortlybeforeitsreleasetothemarket.
Maveusnotesthatbarrier,linerandfilmtechnologieswillbecomeincreasinglyimportant
whenlookingatotheropportunities.Thiswillbeespeciallytrueforthosewhodevelop
pressurevesseltechnologiesformoreexoticfuels,suchashydrogen,wheretheriskof
permeationisnosmallmatter.NoTypeIVtankhasbeenabletosufficientlyaddressthe
permeationproblemwithhydrogen,hepointsout,notingthat3MAdvancedComposites
intendstoapplyitstanktechnologytothisapplication,downtheroad.
OfferingitsfirsttankintheTypeIVcategory,GASTANKSwedenAB,anewsubsidiaryof
HFCSwedenAB(Norrfjrden,Sweden),hasopenedforbusinesswithafocuson
designingandmanufacturingtanksandsystemsforCNGandcompressedbiogasfor
cars.Itsfirsttankforcommercialuseisthe32LcapacityGastank,withalinermadeof
AkulonFuelLock,apolyamide6,6thermoplasticresinsystemsuppliedbyDSM
EngineeringPlastics(Sittard,TheNetherlands).DSMreportsthattestsofatankmolded
fromAkulonwithanominal2mm/0.079inchwallthicknessexhibitedanevaporative
emissionrate20percentlessthantheU.S.EnvironmentalProtectionAgencyslimitfor
CNGtanks.Thelinerisoverwound(viafilamentwinding)withtrademarkedHiPertex
highperformanceglassfiber,suppliedby3Bthefiberglassco.(Battice,Belgium).
GASTANKSwedenisbillingtheproductasazeropermeationcylinder,basedongas
permeationtestsconductedbyPowertechLabsInc.(Surrey,BritishColumbia,Canada).
TimVorage,applicationdevelopmentmanageratDSM,contendsthatAkulonFuelLock
notonlydemonstratesintestsapermeationfactoratleast150timeslowerthanhigh
densitypolyethylene(HDPE),italsosignificantlylimitscreepunderextremetemperatures
atthecylindersneck,thankstoa50ChighertemperatureresistancethanHDPE.
AnothernewentryintheTypeIVsegment,theGENIE,wasintroducedinMarchbyLinde
Gases,adivisionofLindeGroup(Munich,Germany).Thesteellinedtanksare
strengthenedwithfilamentwoundSIGRAFILC50T024EPY,a24Kcarbonfibersupplied
bySGLGroupTheCarbonCo.(Wiesbaden,Germany).Theselectedfibergradehas
enhancedstrengthandstiffnessandwasdevelopedspecificallyforhighperformance
applications,suchaspressurevesselwinding.Additionally,thetankexteriorisencasedin
anHDPEjacket.ThecompanyreportsthattheGENIEissignificantlylighterthanitssteel
counterpartsandunlikemosttanks,whicharemanufacturedinastandardcylindrical
shapewithroundedendsisergonomicallydesignedforstablestacking(seephoto,).
GENIEgaspressurevesselscurrentlycomeinarangeofpressures,includinga300
bar/4,350psiversionthathas30percentmorecapacitythanitsstandard200bar/2,900
psiallsteelcounterparts.GENIEtankscomeinthreesizessuitablefordifferentgases
andmixtures,includingargon,shieldinggases,nitrogen,helium,carbondioxide(CO2),
refrigerantsandliquidpetroleumgas(LPG).
Youmightalsolike:

CFKValleyStade

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