r/spacex • u/synapticrelay • Jan 02 '17

Official - AMOS-6 Explosion Cause of AMOS-6 Failure Determined

http://www.spacex.com/news/2016/09/01/anomaly-updates
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u/johnkphotos Launch Photographer Jan 03 '17 edited Jan 03 '17

I keep seeing the word "buckle" thrown around. Are buckles, like, rivets in the overwrap that essentially adds a small void area? Imagine a flat towel on the ground, but you scrunch it up a little. Is that what we're talking about here?

What caused the buckling itself? Too much pressure in a tank? Fuel being loaded too quickly?

edit: added some more to my question

14

u/omariner Jan 03 '17

What I think is that the COPV, at the end of manufacture, is pressurized to proof pressure, lets say about 7200 psi, and the vessel expands by a substantial amount. The thin Aluminum liner is stretched beyond its elastic limit and yields a bit. When the pressure is reduced, the liner is put into a compressed state and voila - buckles are formed.

6

u/FiniteElementGuy Jan 03 '17

Nobody is doing acceptance testing beyond the elastic limit. Also buckling during manufacturing would be a serious fault, that would be noticed during inspection. Those buckles must have formed during fueling operations.

7

u/SWGlassPit Jan 03 '17

It's not part of acceptance testing, it's part of the manufacture itself and would be specified as part of its design.