Sloshing in Shallow Cylindrical Tanks

In the present investigations, sloshing vibrational characteristics for ground-supported, flexible, shallow cylindrical tanks are determined by using a more accurate method. For the vibration of container itself Flügge's exact theory is used and the radial dynamic pressure generated by the surface waves is obtained in terms of the liquid velocity potential function φ. The results are obtained for various parameters and are compared with those of reference [1], in which the finite element method was used to model the shell and a boundary solution technique was used for the liquid. The agreement is found to be good. It is concluded that Flügge's exact theory is a versatile tool for such problems. The presence of a top beam modifies sloshing frequencies appreciably and must be used in practice for safety of the tank. Also, the wall flexibility and the liquid-depth variation affects the response considerably and must be considered appropriately in design. © 1995 Academic Press. All rights reserved.