Pressure vessel fatigue test system

Abstract

A pressure vessel fatigue test system has an adjustable mounting arrangement for a pressure vessel that can have open ends or closed ends, and which is to be subjected to a very high value, short duration pressure pulses, under controlled test conditions, to determine fatigue life of the vessel. In order to provide a pulse of high pressure that smiulates pulse pressures that may be present in the vessel, a cylinder having a bore filled with hydraulic oil is open to the interior of the vessel, and the vessel is also filled with hydraulic oil. A pressure generating piston is slidable in the bore or the cylinder and has a substantial mass that is attached to it. The mass is accelerated rapidly under control of an actuator in response to a control signal. When the piston first moves from a retracted position the oil in the cylinder bore is displaced into a low pressure accumulator. After the piston moves a sufficient distance so that the velocity of the mass has reached a desired level and there is substantial kinetic energy in the system, the plunger seals off a bore and the piston and mass decelerate rapidly and a pulse of pressure is applied to the test vessel across a short span of time.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.