Past exam of the materials science course of the University of Cambridge / 2018 / Paper 1 / 5 / d / iii

For mild steel, the corresponding bounds areA relatively low yield stress increases the thickness needed to carry pressure, but a favorable toughness-to-yield-strength ratio can give a much larger leak-before-break upper bound. This tradeoff often makes a tough structural steel more attractive than choosing the highest strength alone.

For Arctic service, the ductile-to-brittle transition is crucial. A room-temperature toughness cannot be assumed to persist below the transition, and welding, constraint and loading rate affect the comparison. A suitably qualified low-temperature steel can be practical; the word mild alone does not establish that qualification.

TODO: numerical thickness cannot be completed without the unavailable 2018 NST Data Book values. The temperature and state of the tabulated toughness must also be identified before making a numerical service claim.