Evolution of Pressure Vessels to Meet Present-Day Refining Pressures and Temperatures

In the growth of the oil-refining process to meet the demand for fuels for internal-combustion engines, the pressure vessel has played a foremost part. The paper covers the progress of riveting and welding in perfecting a tight and dependable container. Failures attributed to defective plate and to defective welding led to greater experience and operating knowledge. Recognizing the future tendency to still higher temperatures and pressures, research was devoted to developing a new method of electric welding and the rolling of smooth seamless cylinders of large diameter with which to fabricate vessels of any commercial requirement.