Principle of operation

Small autoclave with electric heat, used in the manufacture of advanced composit
e parts. This autoclave features a low-cost manual-latch door design. Note the r
emovable works-on-a-trolley back end.
An autoclave applies both heat and pressure to the workload placed inside of it.
Typically, there are two classes of autoclave. Those pressurized with steam pro
cess workloads which can withstand exposure to water, while circulating heated g
as provides greater flexibility and control of the heating atmosphere.
Processing by autoclave is far more costly than oven heating and is therefore ge
nerally used only when isostatic pressure must be applied to a workload of compa
ratively complex shape. For smaller flat parts, heated presses offer much shorte
r cycle times. In other applications, the pressure is not required by the proces
s but is integral with the use of steam, since steam temperature is directly rel
ated to steam pressure. Rubber vulcanizing exemplifies this category of autoclav
ing.
For exceptional requirements, such as the curing of ablative composite rocket en
gine nozzles and missile nosecones, a hydroclave[1][2] can be used, but this ent
ails extremely high equipment costs and elevated risks in operation. The hydrocl
ave is pressurized with water;[3] the pressure keeps the water in liquid phase d
espite the high temperature.
The key component of the industrial autoclave is the fast-opening door; this is
also the critical component in cost of autoclave construction. On one hand, the
operator must be able to open and close the door quickly and easily; on the othe
r, the door must satisfy stringent safety requirements. Such is the quality of a
utoclave door design that the US experiences as few as an estimated five or six
autoclave failures annually.
Autoclave design is driven by various safety standards, foremost among which is
the ASME Pressure Vessel Code. While most nations use the ASME code, some have d
eveloped their own. The CE standard in Europe applies to vessels as well as to e
lectrical controls, and China requires that pressure vessels comply with their d
omestic code.[4] All codes specify conservative requirements intended to maximiz
e safety. Local governments may also impose licensing requirements related to au
toclave operation.
Design and construction
Pressure vessel
Pressure vessel design involves Barlow's formula, used to calculate the required
wall thickness. However, the design of a complex pressure containment system in
volves much more than the application of this formula. For almost all pressure v
essels, the ASME code stipulates the requirements for design and testing. Prior
to delivery, the pressure vessel is hydrostatically tested at 130% of its rated
pressure under the supervision of an ASME code inspector. It is filled with wate
r, and a small pump raises the pressure to the necessary test value, at which it
is held for a specified time (30 minutes according to the ASME code). The inspe
ctor checks for leaks as well as evidence of flaws or inadequacies in the weldin
g.
The design of small autoclaves need not take into consideration the possibility
of drawing a vacuum inside the pressure vessel, but this assumption must not be
made in larger ones. Steam autoclaves, for example, can be exposed to an interna
l vacuum if the steam fully condenses while the vessel remains sealed. Although
external pressure cannot exceed one atmosphere,[5] that can suffice to collapse
the vessel in some cases. Thus, stiffening may be required.
In unusual situations, the autoclave itself might have to be square or rectangul

ar instead of round, or it might be vertical instead of horizontal. If the autoc

lave is unusually large, it may have to be set into an excavation in the floor i
f there is to be floor level loading, as is generally the case.
Materials
The selection of the materials from which the autoclave is fabricated turns enti
rely upon the application. For steam autoclaves, carbon steel is used, but a cor
rosion allowance is added to the calculated thickness. This accommodates the rus
ting that occurs with repeated cycles of exposure to steam, water, and air. Impl
icit in this is the need to monitor the loss of metal and decommission the vesse
l when excessive thickness loss has occurred.
For temperatures of up to 650 F (343 C), no adjustment needs to be made in calcula
ting vessel wall thickness. Above this temperature, the allowable stress is dera
ted. Above 750 F (399 C), high-temperature alloys are used. The rated temperature,
which is stamped on the vessel's data plate, applies to the vessel wall itself,
not to the gas circulating in the autoclave. This is relevant when internal ins
ulation is used to circulate air or gas at a temperature beyond the rating of th
e vessel.
Although the design engineer can use the material of his or her own choice, the
normal selection is SA516 Grade 70 PVQ (Pressure Vessel Quality) carbon steel.[6
] This steel is particularly well suited for use in pressure vessels by virtue o
f having an exceptional spread between its comparatively low yield strength of 3
8 ksi and its tensile strength of 70 to 90 ksi. Elongation in 2-inch-thick (51 m
m) plate is 21%. This means that the metal stretches considerably under over-str
ess before failing. In the event of excessive pressure, parts will deform before
breaking, causing a gradual rather than a catastrophic loss of sealing. This lo
ss of pressure then acts to relieve the critical overload on the pressure vessel
structure. This failure mode presumes the absence of significant cracks in the
over-stressed metal.
Because this grade is used in pressure vessels, it is available in thickness var
iations of a sixteenth of an inch as well as large plate sizes. It is readily we
lded and is fully machinable.
The pressure vessel specification will include both the highest and the lowest t
emperatures to which the vessel shell is exposed. Since steel properties change
as the metal becomes colder, the vessel will be stamped for an MDMT[7] of -20 F u
nless the user requires lower. Customarily, the metal thickness is driven by the
code requirements relating to visual inspection. Thinner metal can be used, pro
viding the welds are radiographed. This saves cost when the metal is not SA516 b
ut stainless steel or a refractory alloy.
Doors
Autoclave used to manufacture F-16 radar transponder antennas. Electric heat, si
mple door, automated control.
Of the entire machine, the costliest (depending on the size of the autoclave) an
d most important single piece of hardware is the fast-opening door. It must be o
f full diameter to allow access to the working space, seal tightly against rated
pressure at the highest shell temperature,[8] operate readily and quickly, and
comply with the same safety code that governs the rest of the pressure vessel. O
f all safety-related concerns, the most critical are those which relate to the d
oor's operation.
There are several types of fast-opening doors commonly used. The simplest and mo
st primitive type of door, a bolted plate or flanged cap on some sort of hinge,
is no longer considered even minimally acceptable for production autoclaves beca
use it is anything but quick in opening and closing. For vessels up to four feet
in diameter and rated at not much over 125 psi, a hinged semi-elliptical door s

ecured by lever-operated cam-locking T-bolts works essentially as quickly and as

easily as the more commonly used rotating locking ring door. This door design u
ses up to a dozen or so latching T-bolts on the door hub (see photos), the stati
onary part fitted to the cylindrical vessel itself, which engage matching lugs w
elded to the door. When the operating levers are rotated over center, the T-bolt
s draw the lugs closer and seal the door by means of an O-ring gasket.
This type is intrinsically safe, since opening the cam-locks under pressure rele
ases the door seal and depressurizes the vessel. In fact, the ASME code does not
require interlocks or mechanical pressure indicating devices on such doors. Eve
n when opened, the cam-lock does not allow the bolt to disengage from the latchi
ng lug if there is any pressure against the door. Since it is mounted at a small
angle to the lug, the bolt cannot be swung outward away from the engaging lug o
n the door if there is any pull on it.
These doors are comparatively simple and economical,[9] well suited for smaller
autoclaves. This design is limited to four foot diameters and about 125 psi beca
use of the limited real estate available on the door for the cam-locks and the d
eflection of the door when the locks are too far apart.
Another limitation is the tendency of such doors to distort if not installed cor
rectly. Although very straightforward in application, if the door assembly is no
t fitted to a correctly made mounting, sealing problems may result. Omitting the
reinforcing stiffener on the vessel just aft of the door hub is a good way to l
earn how true this is. An autoclave with this type of door features heavily rein
forced mountings which keep the door in alignment throughout the machine's servi
ce life. The O-ring gasket can be replaced in less than a minute and is fairly i
nexpensive.
Autoclaves over four feet in diameter or those rated at higher pressures general
ly use the rotating locking ring door, also called a breech lock door. This door
can be designed for any size and pressure. Both the hub and the door itself are
generally non-rotating. The hub is welded to the vessel and the door moves on h
inges that align it with the hub as it closes.
The door has toothed lugs all around its circumference, with the lugs lined up w
ith corresponding openings in the locking ring, which turns on the hub. When clo
sed, the door faces the hub and an O-ring gasket provides the means of sealing a
gainst internal pressure. As the locking ring turns, it cams the lugs of the doo
r forward, pressing the door against the hub. This way, there is no sliding moti
on of the door face across the O-ring gasket. Thus, the gasket can be an inexpen
sive O-ring, replacements for which can be made in the user's own shop using ord
inary O-ring stock, and it lasts a long time. The very few wear parts on the doo
r are replaceable, making the autoclave a long-lived investment.
On doors up to eight or ten feet in diameter, the swing can be manual. It is by
no means uncommon to see eight-foot diameter autoclaves whose doors can be swung
fully open or closed with a single finger.[10] The advantage to manual swing, a
side from lower cost and higher reliability, is that there is far less risk of s
omeone getting his fingers caught in the closing door if he's moving it himself
by hand.
On machines with manually swung doors,[11] one trivial yet important detail is a
door stop to prevent banging when opening. If a large autoclave is installed on
a slightly off level floor, then the door, once opened, swings rapidly to the e
nd of its travel. With no snubber of any sort installed, it will slowly accumula
te damage and wear.
On smaller autoclaves, rotation of the locking ring is sometimes accomplished by
manually operated geared devices. On larger ones, pneumatic or hydraulic cylind

ers are used. Pneumatic cylinders often provide jerky rotation, but they may som
etimes be safer[12] because they generally cannot move the door ring as readily
when there is much pressure against the door.
The rotating locking ring door requires a safety interlock to prevent operation
when there is any pressure in the autoclave. It is good practice to incorporate
the ability to reverse the door locking ring rotation at any time and without de
lay. With some doors, it is possible to swing them shut not quite far enough and
then have the locking ring jam as it tries to close.
It's essential to note that the autoclave is far more dangerous when the pressur
e is low than it is when the pressure is high. This is because the higher pressu
res create frictional forces that tend to make the door ring very hard to move.
In some instances, hydraulic cylinders have buckled rather than turn the ring. A
t lower pressures, the ring can be moved, and there is enough stored energy in t
he vessel to ruin someone's day completely.[13] Properly designed autoclaves inc
orporate several additional interlocks for added assurance. These extra interloc
ks are comparatively inexpensive and should always be designed to be failsafe.
In tests well beyond the design and proof pressures, this door type has
at the slight deflection caused by the over-pressure moves the door and
s far enough apart to cause the O-ring seal to fail, thus releasing the
. The escaping air is diffused past the locking ring, preventing injury
h speed jets of air.

shown th
hub face
pressure
from hig

There are other door types available. These are proprietary designs having speci
al characteristics which suit them to a variety of applications. For example, so
me door designs are simpler than the locking ring type, having no notched cutout
s at all in the locking rings. They are easily operated by hand or power and int
rinsically safe, much like the T-bolt configuration, in that any movement of the
locking mechanism from closed toward open will release pressure well before the
door and hub actually separate.
Other simple door types can be provided for smaller, low-pressure autoclaves, so
metimes at worthwhile savings in cost of acquisition, but not always in cost of
operation.
An often overlooked aspect of autoclave access is the rear end. In many instance
s, the best autoclave is that which has two doors. In the typical industrial aut
oclave, there is mechanical hardware in the rear, including the circulation fan
drive. An autoclave with a rear door will cost more initially. Over its service
life, however, it will cost less to maintain, largely because the easy accessibi
lity of components inside will encourage their more frequent inspection. In any
autoclave, as in any machine, all major and minor components should be accessibl
e for inspection, repair, and replacement. Overlook this, and the owner will eve
ntually regret it.
A full-diameter non-fast-opening rear door costs little, all things considered.
On larger machines, it can be mounted on a hinge, davit, or dolly assembly (see
photo above) that allows it to be swung or moved away from the autoclave once it
s bolted flange mounting has been separated. This provides the best possible acc
ess to the works inside. It also means that critical components are never buried
deep inside the machine where they are hard to get at and thus very likely to b
e ignored until they cause problems. One mid-sized autoclave built for a souther
n aircraft repair shop to be as cheap as humanly possible lacked easy access to
the circulation fan, and, when last observed by one of the manufacturer's servic
e engineers, was making the most alarming dry-bearing noises whenever it ran.
When comparing alternative designs, consider the amount of work that any given m
aintenance task will require, as well as the degree of difficulty and risk of da

mage or worker injury. If, for instance, a sixty-horsepower internally mounted f

an motor has to be man-handled through a small manway or access port, the potent
ial for trouble is unavoidable. On a user-friendly autoclave, the back door is s
wung open and the motor is quickly and easily lifted out with a forklift or simp
le spar hoist.
Interior
The internal layout varies from one autoclave to another. Some have an air duct
at the six-o'clock position which also carries the cart rails, while others have
a wide floor with the mechanical components beneath it. Others have the air duc
t at the top. Typically, autoclaves use an annular air duct running across the f
ull circumference of the interior.
The annular duct is attractive by virtue of creating the smallest intrusion into
the net available working space inside the autoclave. It reduces the diameter o
f the cylindrical volume by only several inches. It also creates the greatest sk
in friction pressure loss. This means that the fan has to be larger for the same
amount of air circulation, and that there is more heating from the motor horsep
ower.
If it is necessary to maintain low temperatures with full circulation, this may
necessitate running the cooling instead of the heating. The vigorous circulation
of air under pressure generates heat by itself, and this can be significant whe
n attempting to operate at unusually low temperatures and high pressures. The in
terior furnishings of the autoclave can be of galvanized, aluminized, or stainle
ss steel. Up to about 400 F (204 C), galvanized is economical and reliable; up to
perhaps 800 F (427 C) to 1,000 F (540 C), aluminized will be needed; above that, one
is in exotic territory.
Another issue is whether or not the interior shell, the walls of the working spa
ce, should be removable. How heavy should this wall be? Representative metal thi
cknesses range from 18 gauge (.0478 inch) up to 1/8 inch (.125 inch). The heavie
r the wall, the more durable and resistant it will be to dents, also, the more e
nergy that it will absorb during heat-up and the more that it will release durin
g cool-down. To take a typical example, consider an autoclave with an 8-foot (2.
4 m) internal diameter and a working length of 40 feet (12 m).[14] If the interi
or wall is made of 11 gauge (.1196 inch) steel, then it will weigh well over fiv
e tons. Heating just the wall itself to an operating temperature of 300 F (149 C)
in one hour will take some 90 kilowatts of power. At typical demand charges, tha
t will cost approximately $2,000 (for the month) in addition to the energy charg
e (for each cycle). Reducing the wall thickness to 18 gauge will drop this expen
se by approximately 60 percent. For a saving of $13,000 a year, the average auto
clave operator can live with a lot of dents.
On some autoclaves, strange noises come from the inside as they heat up and cool
down. These noises are caused by distortions in the metal interior as it expand
s and contracts with the extreme changes in temperature. The interior of the aut
oclave described above will grow nearly an inch in length during the heat-up par
t of its cycle. Provision must be made for adequate relief of these movements or
they will eventually buckle the interior.
If the machine is large, it will require an interior floor adequate to support p
ersonnel walking on it, as well as safety devices to protect personnel inside th
e machine against inadvertent startup.[15]
Heating
Modulating gas burner firing into tubular heat exchanger.
Introducing heat into the working chamber can be done in a variety of ways. For
most autoclaves, and particularly those used to process composite parts or perfo
rm adhesive bonding of metal structures, the easiest and least costly initially

is electric heat. Resistance heaters are compact and reliable and can be placed
conveniently in the circulating air duct. Since the thermal mass of these heater
s is small, control of chamber temperature is precise and additional heaters can
usually be installed at a later date without excessive bother. However, the cos
t of this additional installation may be quite significant in comparison with a
larger autoclave. These heaters are essentially 100% efficient and can be fitted
for any voltage, single or three phase.
Installing more capacity than is required extends the life of the heaters by all
owing them to run at lower surface temperatures and provides greater assurance o
f attaining required heat-up rates. Increasing the heating capacity generally co
sts little in initial price. It is unsafe to automatically assume that every aut
oclave manufacturer uses high quality tubular Incoloy-sheathed rods, individuall
y replaceable and properly supported. In the interest of economy, some expect th
e customer to accept nichrome wires strung on ceramic insulators.
The drawback to electric heat is operating cost. For a small autoclave operated
only periodically, this may not prove to be a major issue. For a mid-size or lar
ger autoclave, the electric bills over the service life of the machine will add
up to quite a few times the entire cost of the autoclave.
For example, in the Rochester, New York, area, where the price of electric energ
y is four times that of natural gas before taking demand charges into considerat
ion, an autoclave six feet in diameter and twenty-four feet long (with a light-g
auge interior wall) would cost about $2,000 a month in demand charges plus an av
erage of $14 an hour in energy when running. The demand charges, incurred as soo
n as the autoclave is turned on, even if for only a moment, would equal the purc
hase price of the autoclave in only a few years. Experience with utility bills s
uggests that this will get worse in future.
The easiest alternative to this is steam heating. This presupposes the presence
of a boiler capable of generating steam at high enough pressures to reach the re
quired temperatures. An existing high pressure steam plant is a fine thing to ha
ve on hand, and facilitates the use of steam coils, which are simple, compact, a
nd easily controlled. The purchase price of steam coil heating is roughly compar
able to that of electric heating, but the operating cost is dramatically lower.
If high pressure steam is not available, consider a small dedicated boiler for t
he autoclave. The cost can be surprisingly low, making this alternative nearly a
s economical as direct gas-firing of an internal heat exchanger. It also enables
you to run your autoclave on natural gas, propane, butane, or fuel oil, sometim
es interchangeably if the boiler is set up for dual-fuel operation. Where gas su
pplies are susceptible to interruption, using a small high-pressure steam boiler
to run the autoclave and ovens can be a life-saver when dual-fuel firing is inc
orporated.
A small vertical boiler requires little floor space. If local laws require the l
icensing of high-pressure boiler operators, this can often be a simple matter of
training existing plant personnel and having them licensed for single-boiler op
eration. Equally economical to operate is an autoclave with a gas-fired heat exc
hanger built into the pressure vessel. Although this presents some design limita
tions, it is simpler than using synthetic heat transfer fluids, and of somewhat
lower cost. The gas burner assembly is fitted to the far end or the side of the
vessel and fires into a heat exchanger inside the air duct. The hot end of the r
eplaceable tube is covered with turbulators for better heat transfer. This recov
ers the greatest part of the energy of the flue gas. It is simple and reliable,
using ordinary natural gas, butane, propane, or other industrial fuel gas.
There are alternative configurations, including a secondary circulating loop whi
ch ducts a portion of the primary air flow through an external pressurized heat
exchanger. This bypass flow can also be utilized for cool-down using an air-over

heat exchanger. While gas firing does not readily lend itself to small machines
, it can be fitted to autoclaves of three to four foot diameter and up. The long
er the machine, the longer the heat exchanger tube and thus the more efficient i
t will be. This heating option is less costly than hot oil and more costly than
electric or steam (assuming an existing boiler) to purchase, but the extra expen
se is paid back very quickly. Over its full service life, the electrically heate
d autoclave will cost enough to have paid for another four or five comparable au
toclaves. For any but the smallest lab machines, gas firing and steam heating ar
e, to put it plainly, the best alternatives to consider.
In some circumstances, when steam is available in the plant, considerable money
may be saved by using live steam injection. In this approach, the entire interio
r of the autoclave is filled with live steam at the appropriate pressure. Common
ly used in the rubber products industries, this can be adapted to use in curing
composites. It requires different vacuum bagging materials but has the advantage
of eliminating heaters, ducts, and the circulation fan. With external insulatio
n, there is more room available for workloads, for a given size of pressure vess
el. Naturally, this approach presupposes the availability of an appropriately ra
ted boiler.
In certain applications, a low-pressure steam autoclave can replace an ordinary
curing oven. The combination of vacuum consolidation, which is equivalent to app
roximately ten to fourteen psi external pressure, and steam at about the same ga
uge pressure, will give better results and faster heat-up than the oven would. T
his approach would be less suitable for materials that have to be brought to cur
ing temperature slowly, since steam transfers its heat fairly quickly compared t
o even a turbulent circulating air flow. Furthermore, since the interior of the
vessel is repeatedly exposed to steam and then air, over and over again, an allo
wance must be made for corrosion of the vessel walls.
In some circumstances, an externally fired heater brings synthetic thermal fluid
to temperatures of 600 F (316 C) to 800 F (427 C), and special pumps circulate it t
hrough heat exchangers inside the autoclave. This has both advantages - gas or o
il can be used as a fuel without much concern for the space occupied inside the
autoclave working volume - and disadvantages - the cost is very high, and it can
be trickier to maintain properly. Additionally, it can serve to heat and cool t
he autoclave by routing the heat transfer fluid through either the heater or the
cooling coil, as required by the process.
Taking all things into account, the most cost-effective heating options, over th
e full service life of the autoclave, will be either a high-pressure steam boile
r or gas-firing using an internal or external heat exchanger.