Patent ID: 7803241

Claim:
A method of constructing a pressure vessel, comprising the steps of: preparing a soluble mandrel on which a liner shell is to be fabricated, the mandrel having body shaped to pattern an interior of the pressure vessel, and including an end fitting protruding from the tool body at a location of a desired opening in the pressure vessel; laying up plies of composite material over the soluble mandrel in multiple layers that cover the mandrel completely but leave the end fitting protruding through the layers of composite material; curing the liner shell to form a rigid structure in the shape of the vessel; mounting a boss having an aperture therethrough on the outer surface of the shell with the aperture disposed adjacent the desired opening in the pressure vessel; overwrapping the liner shell and mounted boss but not the aperture with wound filaments impregnated with matrix material; and curing the over wrapped liner shell and mounted boss.