**3.1 Section "A" optimization results**

As part of the optimization process intended to reduce the overall height and material usage of the pressure vessel's cross section, the press cylinder was removed from the design. A noticeable lack of stress near the yoke plates interface (**Figure 6a**) encouraged the addition of an angled cut (non-horizontal) interfaces between the yoke plates. The advantages of using a non-horizontal yoke plate contact interface are visible in the results for design configurations 2, 8, 9 (**Figure 6b, 9c**, & **9d**, respectively), as the stress near the contact of the yoke plates increases substantially but remains below the material yield point. A decrease in the press cylinder stress was also achieved, so the press cylinder thickness was gradually reduced (**Figur 6c**) until it was completely removed from the assembly. With the press cylinder removed, we concluded that the angled yoke plates' interfaces were not essential, since a simpler horizontal allowed for stress magnitudes within the required limits, as depicted in **Figure 6e** (configuration 13). This resulting cross section design obtained from the optimization process was set as the base for the subsequent optimization procedures, and the finite element model was modified to account for the removal of the press cylinder, as described in 2.3.7 & 2.3.8.
