anaxpress:
Sorry I can't comment directly on the section you are having trouble with, but MANY other sections of the "Pressure Vessel Design Manual" (both editions) are FULL of errors and ambiguity. If you are not very experienced in this area I would suggest contacting someone who is or at the least, looking for another pressure vessel handbook for your design. I haven't used all of them, but here are some others you might check into:
Pressure Vessel Design Handbook by Henry H. Bednar
Pressure Vessel Handbook 12th ed by Eugene F. Megyesy
Roark's Formulas for Stress and Strain by Warren C. Young, Raymond J. Roark
Pressure Vessels: The ASME Code Simplified by Robert Chuse, Bryce E. Carson
Guidebook for the Design of ASME Section VIII, Pressure Vessels by James R. Farr, Maan H. Jawad
I would look at the Bednar book first... I'm pretty sure it has some design stuff for vessels on rings.
Good luck!
jproj