Elastic analysis of thick-walled pressurized spherical vessels coated with functionally graded materials

In recent years, functionally graded material (FGM) has been widely explored in coating technology amongst both academic and industry communities. FGM coatings are suitable substitutes for many typical conventional coatings which are susceptible to cracking, debonding and eventual functional failure due to the mismatch of material properties at the coating/substrate interface. In this study, a thick spherical pressure vessel with an inner FGM coating subjected to internal and external hydrostatic pressure is analyzed within the context of three-dimensional elasticity theory. Young’s modulus of the coating is assumed to vary linearly or exponentially through the thickness, while Poisson’s ratio is considered as constant. A comparative numerical study of FGM versus homogeneous coating is conducted for the case of vessel under internal pressure, and the dependence of stress and displacement fields on the type of coating is examined and discussed.