Submersible Pressure Hull Hydrostatic Buckling

Marine Engineering

How It Works

Deep-submergence pressure hulls (submarines and bathyscaphes) are subjected to extreme external hydrostatic pressures (p = ρ·g·h). While compressive hoop stresses remain below material yield limits, structural failure typically occurs through catastrophic elastic or plastic shell buckling. The critical buckling pressure depends strongly on the wall thickness-to-radius ratio (t/R) and the shell material's modulus of elasticity.

Governing Equation
p_cr = (2 · E / √(3 · (1 - ν²))) · (t / R)² , σ_hoop = (p · R) / (2 · t)