Author(s)

R.C. Batista, M.S. Pfeil & N. Roitman

Abstract

The consolidation of catalytic material inside the suspension tubes of a reformer furnace is usually achieved through vibration procedures that may cause damages to the welded tubular joints. This paper reports on the main results obtained from an interactive numerical-experimental dynamic approach to this vibration problem, which had a twofold purpose: (i) to calibrate a FEM model to perform a fatigue analysis; (ii) to conceive an alternative procedure which precluded the precocious fatigue cracks in the welded joints. 1 Introduction In a hydrogen production plant the consolidation of the catalytic material inside the vertical tubes of a reformer furnace can be done by applying lateral forced vibration through a pneumatic device mounted at the top of each of these suspended tubes, as illustrated in Fig.

Keywords