Method and apparatus for cooling a pressure vessel

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Use of this invention maintains the shrink rings at substantially uniform size and temperature but does not possess the disadvantages of cooling means similar to the unitary jacket discussed above.
The cooling means of the present invention can be adapted to deliver a greater cooling effect to those shrink rings adjacent hotter areas to promote uniformity in size and temperature of the rings to eliminate nonuniform stress producing bending stresses.
Another advantage of the present invention is that it can conform to the variant diameters of the shrink rings during operation to ensure maximum thermal conductivity.
An additional advantage of the present invention is that it provides a means for cooling the shrink rings that does not cover the entire shrink ring.
The boundaries between abutting shrink rings are exposed and any leakage from the pressure vessel can be detected promptly.
The present invention is a cooled pressure vessel comprising a cylindrical stress liner, a pair of end plates, a plurality of annular shrink rings positioned about the circumference of the stress liner, and a plurality of hollow annular cooling jackets, each extending about and tightly abutting the external circumference of the shrink ring and containing a coolant.
The present invention also includes a method of evenly distributing stresses in a pressure vessel having annular shrink rings and hollow annular cooling jackets about the shrink rings comprising the steps for detecting a shrink ring having stresses higher than a predetermined value and causing coolant to flow through the cooling jacket about the shrink ring and recirculate through a heat exchanger.