Unrestricted.2016-11-142011-02-182016-11-141997-12http://hdl.handle.net/2346/17425Cargo tank vehicles are responsible for the delivery of 79% of the hazardous materials transported by highway in the United States. The majority of these tanks have non-circular cross section (elliptical, oval). There are currently no analytical methods available to determine the stresses in the shells and heads of non-circular cross-section tanks. Basic methods must be developed to determine the distribution of stresses in such structures. A more accurate determination of thickness will impact safety, environmental and economic issues. In this dissertation, the explicit governing equations of linear elasticity for shells of elliptical cross section are obtained by defining the principal radii of curvatures in terms of local coordinates. Also, from those general equations, the system of equations for cylindrical shells of elliptical cross-section under intemal pressure is obtained. These equations are then solved for normal force, shear force, and bending moment. The solutions are compared with existing theoretical and FEA results, and the comparison shows good agreement. Additionally, the system of equations for cylindrical shells of elliptical cross-section under both body force and intemal pressure is obtained from those general equations. The expressions for normal force, shear force and bending moment are developed analytically and evaluated numerically. A comparison of these results with those for the case that considers only intemal pressure shows that in a range ofthe ratio of body force to intemal pressure, the maximum normal force and bending moment are reduced.application/pdfengStrains and stresses -- Mathematical modelsStructural analysis (Engineering)Structural designEllipsoid -- Mathematical modelsDissertation