Study of the Efficiency and Reliability of Pressure Vessel Composite Repair

Abstract

The degradation of equipment used in production platforms operating in a maritime environment occurs, in most cases, by corrosion defects. High to low pressure separators remain operational but suffer from a progressive reduction of wall thickness by external corrosion. Repair techniques for tubes and pressure vessels using laminate composite material are widely known and already defined by technical standards. However, there are doubts regarding the effectiveness of these repairs when performed near openings, nozzles or other stress concentrators. The objective of the present work is to verify the efficiency of the composite repair and the influence of the defect thickness. To meet these objectives, four vessels were tested until burst. The results showed that composite repair was efficient since the burst pressure of the repaired vessel was considerably higher than its limit pressure without repair.