International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences

www.ijetmas.com August 2015, Volume 3, Issue 8, ISSN 2349-4476

Design and Analysis of Skid Frame Module for its Strength &
Stiffness
Aditi A. Godse, Prof. M.K.Wasekar
Sinhgad Academy of Engineering,Savitribai Phule University of Pune, India.
AbstractSkid base frame is a structural assembly consisting of beams of various cross sections or channel sections
and dimensions. This frame is to be designed for flow control system which is used to control and regulate the flow,
pressure, and temperature for fluids. These systems mainly include piping, pumps, valv es, and gauges. The flow control
application is mainly required for process industries like sugar plants, cement plants, power plants etc. Many times these
systems are locally operated & hence their elevation should be designed in such a way that it will r educe the hardship of
the operator. This frame is designed with conventional CAD design practices and then analyzed statically with FEA
software. The structural loads considered during analysis phase resemble the actual loading cases. The analysis is then
carried out to determine the induced stresses and the deflections at various locations on proposed frame and further
analytical calculations are done to verify the simulation results.
Keywords Skid frame, CA D model, FEA

I. INTRODUCTION
Skid Frame is a structural assembly consisting of
beams of various cross sections and dimensions.
The sections used may be of equal dimensions and
cross sections, or a combination can be used for
optimum strength and weight. Different types of
sections are used for skid frames [2]. The sections
can be of IS standard dimension or custom made.
The base frame is subjected to gravitational loading
of all the components mounted viz. Compressor,
Air Receiver vessel, flow control system etc.
Depending on the type of loading, the optimum
design is made considering material properties and
type of welding. The Skid frame is required to
support various components that have been
designed by conventional design procedure. The
weights of the components mounted on the frame
are considered as static loads for designing. Some
simplifying assumptions are made at the initial
stages in order to decide the cross sections used for
various beams.
This frame is to be designed for flow control system
which is used to control and regulate the flow,
pressure, and temperature for fluids. These systems
mainly include piping, pumps, valves, and gauges.
The flow control application is mainly required for
process industries like sugar plants, cement plants,
power plants etc. Many times these systems are
locally operated & hence their elevation should be
designed in such a way that it will reduce the
hardship of the operator. This frame is designed
with conventional CAD design practices and then
analyzed statically with FEA software. The
structural loads considered during analysis phase

59

Aditi A. Godse , Prof. M.K.Wasekar

resemble the actual loading cases. The analysis is

then carried out to determine the induced stresses
and the deflections at various
Locations on proposed frame and further analytical
calculations are done to verify the results.

Fig.1 Different type of base frames

International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences

www.ijetmas.com August 2015, Volume 3, Issue 8, ISSN 2349-4476

II. PROCEDURE FOR BASE FRAME DESIGN
A.
SKID DESIGN
TABLE I MATERIAL PROPERTIES USED FOR
SKID DESIGN
No
.
1
2
3
4
5
6

Physical
Properties
Tensile
Stress/Strength
Yield
Stress/Strength
Youngs Modulus
(E)
Shear
Modulus
(G)
Poissons Ratio(v)
Density (p)

Values

SI Units

510

Mpa or N/ mm2

355

Mpa or N/ mm2

205 x 103

Mpa or N/ mm2

80 x 103

Mpa or N/ mm2

0.3
7850

Kg/m3

By observing the material properties for application

of skid frame, structural steel is used. The Chemical
composition of Structural Steel is extremely
important and highly regulated. In the following
table Max % levels of certain regulated elements
present in Structural steel grade S355 is shown.
TABLE II CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF
STRUCTURAL STEEL
Grade C%
Mn% P%
S%
Si%
S55
0.23
1.60
0.05
0.05 0.05
1. Factor of Safety: 1.2 (For Static Load Cases)
2. Allowable Stress: Yield Strength/Factor of
Safety
= 355 / 1.2
= 296 Mpa(For Static Load Cases)
B. SELECTION OF BEAM SECTION
Beams are the most critical members in structure.
Therefore their design should not only be
economical but also safe. It is a difficult task for
designer to select a beam size for a given span and
load that will satisfy all the conditions. A number of
rolled steel structures are used in construction.
However angles and T-sections are inherently weak
in bending while channels can only be used for light
loads. A circular beam would be a waste of
material. When dealing with bending stresses all the
stress is acting on the top and bottom of the beam. If
we take a circular beam max cross sectional area
would be at the center of the beam where no
bending stress occurs. If we take a square beam it
will have more cross sectional area at the top and
bottom. It will also have less material in the center
of the beam where no stress is acting. Hence square
hollow section is most efficient and economical, as

60

Aditi A. Godse , Prof. M.K.Wasekar

it has excellent strength and affordable cost, and is

most commonly used for skid frames.
B.
LOADING INPUTS
TABLE III WEIGHTS OF DIFFERENT
COMPONENTS
Sr
Weight
Part Name
Qty.
No.
in kg
Steam line
1
Gate valve
2
70
2
Bypass valve
1
20
3
Globe valve
5
8
4
Pressure gauge
3
2
5
Thermometer
2
2
6
Globe control Valve
1
30
7
Safety Valve
1
36
Steam piping with
8
flanges for 5 mtr. 1
154
pipe
9
Desuperheater
1
65
10 Condensing Pot
1
70
11 Moisture Separator
1
60
Water line
12 Gate Valve
2
12
13 Bypass Valve
1
14
14 Non return valve
1
12
15 Globe control Valve
1
18
Water piping with
16
1
12
flanges

Fig. 2 Flow Control System

D. LOADING CALCULATIONS
Beam is considered as a continuous beam, Using
moment distribution method reactions are
calculated.

International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences

www.ijetmas.com August 2015, Volume 3, Issue 8, ISSN 2349-4476

Similarly,
BC =0.35
CB =0.3511
CD =0.3319
DC =0.1514
Moments are fixed at the ends to calculate
and
,
=0.31
=0.39
Calculating Reactions at points A, B, C and D
Total weight =154 kg on one side of skid and length
is 5 meter so Udl is taken as,
Udl=

1. For calculating

2. For calculating

, taking moment at point C,

3. For calculating

, taking moment at point C,

4. For calculating

, taking moment at point B,

, taking moment at point B,

III. MODEL GEOMETRY AND TOPOLOGY

Skid frame is modeled in PRO-E 4.0 which is
excellent CAD software, which makes modeling so
easy and user friendly. The model is then
transferred in STEP format and imported into the
HYPERMESH 12.0. The Skid frame is analyzed in
three steps. First is preprocessing which involves
modeling, geometric clean up, meshing and element
property definition. Next step includes solution of

61

Aditi A. Godse , Prof. M.K.Wasekar

International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences

www.ijetmas.com August 2015, Volume 3, Issue 8, ISSN 2349-4476

problem, which involves imposing boundary
conditions on the model and then solution runs.
Next in sequence is post processing, which involves
analyzing the results plotting different parameters
like stress, strain, natural frequency.

V. FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS

The figure shows maximum displacement which is
4.2 mm and maximum stress is 50 Mpa.

Fig.3 Model of skid fame

IV. FINITE ELEMENT MODEL: MESHING &
LOAD CONNECTIONS
Different type of elements used in meshing are
listed below in table.
TABLE IV DIFFERENT ELEMENTS USED
Elements
Type
Number
Mass elements
CONM1
35
Rigid elements
RBE2
29
Bar elements
CBAR
1478
TRIA elements
CTRIA3
64
QUAD elements
CQUAD4 54783
Total Elements: 56389
Any continuous object has infinite degrees of
freedom and its just not possible to solve the
problem in this format. Finite element method
reduces degrees of freedom from infinite to finite
with the help of discretization i.e. meshing. Weld
elements are highlighted in red color, rigid elements
are highlighted in blue color and mass elements are
highlighted in green color as shown in below figure.

Fig.4 Meshed model of skid frame

62

Aditi A. Godse , Prof. M.K.Wasekar

Fig.5 The highlighted part shows maximum

displacement

Fig.6 The highlighted part shows maximum stress

VI.MODAL ANALYSIS
Modal Analysis determines natural frequencies and
mode shapes of a structure. Each natural frequency
sets up specific deformation pattern, i.e. mode
shape. The same phenomenon can occur in a Skid
frame during working condition. To avoid
mechanical damage due to Resonance, the structure
must undergo Modal Analysis. For Modal Analysis,
the model should be kept free from all the loads and
constrains. First six frequencies were supposed to
be zero, as they represent translational and
rotational vibrations about X, Y, Z axes. For given
natural frequency, mode shape defines the way in
which the structure would deform. Mode Shape for

International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences

www.ijetmas.com August 2015, Volume 3, Issue 8, ISSN 2349-4476

first six resonant frequencies is shown as follows-

Fig.7 Mode 1: Natural Frequency: 7.703 Hz

Fig.11 Mode 5: Natural Frequency: 8.65 Hz

Fig.8 Mode 2: Natural Frequency: 13.28 Hz

Fig.12 Mode 6: Natural Frequency: 8.59 Hz

VII. CONCLUSION
TABLE V COMPARISON OF RESULTS
Numerical
Analytical
Reactions
value
value
0.75
0.56

Fig.9 Mode 3: Natural Frequency: 13.19Hz

Fig.10 Mode 4: Natural Frequency: 12.25 Hz

63

Aditi A. Godse , Prof. M.K.Wasekar

1.7

1.8

2.68

2.81

0.4

0.34

The Skid Frame Module including Steel Skid Frame

& other structural members are analyzed for Linear
Static Loads using Finite Element Method
(FEM).The Module is qualified for the given load
values & various load combinations as per
specification. From above results, it is seen that the
analytical values of reactions shows very good
match with the software results and also maximum
stresses, welds in the skid frame members are less
than the corresponding allowable stresses. Hence,
the Module is safe, qualifies and passes as per
specifications for the design, operating conditions.

International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences

www.ijetmas.com August 2015, Volume 3, Issue 8, ISSN 2349-4476

REFERENCES
[1] Chris Harper, Hongfa Wu Optimized Skid
Design for Compressor Packages; Gas
Machinery Conference 2013 October 7 - 10,
2013.
[2] Prof. Pandhare A. P. *, Chaskar S. T., Patil J.
N.,Jagtap A. S., Bangal P. M. Design, Analysis
and Optimization of Skid Base Frame
[3] kishor d. jadhav & maneet.r.dhanvijay, design
and standardization of base frame & antivibration mounts for balanced opposed piston
air compressorInternational Journal of Applied
Research in Mechanical Engineering (IJARME)
ISSN: 2231 5950, Vol-2, Iss-2, 2012
[4] Joshi. A. M. *, Jadhav T. A. Analysis and
Testing of Skid of Frame of Compressor
International Journal of Applied Research and
Studies (iJARS) ISSN: 2278-9480 Volume 2,
Issue9(Sep-2013)

64

Aditi A. Godse , Prof. M.K.Wasekar

Herman Van der Auweraer Structural

Dynamics Modeling using Modal Analysis:
Applications, Trends and Challenges,IEEE
Instrumentation and Measurement Technology
Conference,Budapest, Hungary, May 21-23,
2005
[6] Strength of Materials; M. Ramarutham;
Dhanpat Rai Publications; Edition 12; 2012
[7] W. B. Riley, A. R. George, Design, Analysis
and testing of a Formula SAE Car Chassis,
Motorsport engineering Conference and
Exhibition Indianapolis, Indiana, Dec 2-5, 2002.
[5]