Acrylic plastic viewports have been used for over 40 yr in pressure vessels for human occupancy without any catastrophic failure resulting in a loss of life. However, there are special applications, such as for example in hyperbaric chambers for medical purposes, where the susceptibility of flexure stressed acrylic plastic to surface crazing and cracking in the presence of common organic solvents contained in antibacterial sprays is a distinct disadvantage. To solve this problem, a search has been initiated for transparent plastics that are not attacked by organic solvents and can be cast economically in thick sections. Allyl diglycol carbonate plastic appears not only to satisfy the foregoing requirement, but also to provide better resistance to abrasion, pitting, and X-ray or gamma irradiation than acrylic plastic. Short-term, long-term, and cyclic pressure testing has been conducted on over one hundred allyl diglycol carbonate plane disk viewports with t/D0 ratio in the 0.06 to 0.4 range and temperature in the 4°C to + 52°C (+40F to 125°F) range. It appears that plane disks cast from allyl diglycol carbonate plastic can perform safely as pressure-resistant viewports in pressure vessels for human occupancy. It is recommended that for such an application their design temperature be limited to under 52°C (125°F), and that their design pressure at 52°C (125°F) design temperature not exceed 4 percent of their (STCP) short-term critical pressure at 24°C (75°F).
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December 1986
Research Papers
Pressure-Resistant Plane Disk Viewports From Allyl Diglycol Carbonate Plastic for Hyperbaric Chambers
J. D. Stachiw,
J. D. Stachiw
Naval Ocean Systems Center, San Diego, Calif. 92152
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M. A. Stachiw
M. A. Stachiw
Naval Ocean Systems Center, San Diego, Calif. 92152
Search for other works by this author on:
J. D. Stachiw
Naval Ocean Systems Center, San Diego, Calif. 92152
M. A. Stachiw
Naval Ocean Systems Center, San Diego, Calif. 92152
J. Energy Resour. Technol. Dec 1986, 108(4): 326-335 (10 pages)
Published Online: December 1, 1986
Article history
Received:
September 1, 1985
Revised:
October 28, 1986
Online:
October 22, 2009
Connected Content
A companion article has been published:
Wear Behavior of Laser Surface-Hardened Gray and Ductile Cast Irons. Part 2—Erosive Wear
Citation
Stachiw, J. D., and Stachiw, M. A. (December 1, 1986). "Pressure-Resistant Plane Disk Viewports From Allyl Diglycol Carbonate Plastic for Hyperbaric Chambers." ASME. J. Energy Resour. Technol. December 1986; 108(4): 326–335. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.3231285
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