Sealing systems for low-cost and corrosion-free pressure housings made of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC)

Abstract

The article is about the development of a sealing system for pressure housings made of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC), which has been developed within the Helmholtz Alliance “ROBEX” (robotic exploration of extreme environments) [1]. Several kinds of sealing systems according to the material properties of concrete have been designed so far and the amount of aluminum or titanium needed has been continuously reduced to minimize the manufacturing costs. Also a new metal-free sealing based on epoxy has been designed. The developed sealing systems made of aluminum, titanium or epoxies have been tested experimentally in pressure tanks in-situ. The sealing systems also have been simulated numerically with ANSYS 16 and the nonlinear material law multiPlas law 14 (Menetrey-Willam) by Dynardo. Advantages and disadvantages of these systems are shown in the paper.