Piping and Pipeline Engineering

Design, Construction, Maintenance, Integrity, and Repair

George A. Antaki

• Publisher: CRC Press
• Year: 2003
• ISBN:
  9781135532291
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Ciencias biológicas
• Subtopic: Ciencia medioambiental

Offering the fundamental information for successful piping and pipeline engineering, this book pairs real-world practice with the underlying technical principles in materials, design, construction, inspection, testing, and maintenance. It covers codes and standards, design analysis, welding and inspection, corrosion mechanisms, fitness-for-service and failure analysis, and an overview of valve selection and application. This volume features the technical basis of piping and pipeline code design rules for normal operating conditions and occasional loads and addresses the fundamental principles of materials, design, fabrication, testing, and corrosion, as well as their effect on system integrity.

1
Codes, Standards and Practices

1.1 A BRIEF HISTORY OF PIPING TECHNOLOGY

The art of design and construction of piping systems and pipelines dates back to the earliest civilizations. Its progress reflects the steady evolution of cultures around the world: the needs of developing agricultures, the growth of cities, the industrial revolution and the use of steam power, the discovery and use of oil, the improvements in steel making and welding technology, the discovery and use of plastics, the fast growth of the chemical and power industries, and the increasing need for reliable water, oil and gas pipelines.

Mesopotamia

In the valley formed by the Tigris and Euphrates (present day Iraq), between 3000 BC and 2000 BC, rose the first city-states of Ur, Uruk and Babylon. In this land, which the Greeks called Mesopotamia (“between two rivers”), man established irrigated agriculture on a grander scale than ever seen before. Networks of irrigation channels were fed by river water. At the same time, aqueducts carried potable water from springs through miles of desert. To reduce losses by evaporation, the aqueducts were partly covered or run underground. Within cities, water was distributed in cylindrical pipes made of baked clay.

China

At about the same time, and half a world away, the Chinese supplied water to their villages in bamboo pipes and used wooden plug valves to control flow. Bamboo wrapped with wax was also used to carry natural gas, while large water pipe conduits were made of hollow wood logs.

Indus Valley

As early as 2500 BC, the sophistication of indoor plumbing and wastewater drainage was characteristic of the Indus Valley cities (present day Pakistan and north western India). Houses in Harrapa and Mohenjo-Darro made use of short earthenware pipes placed back-to-back to channel water. Interestingly, these short pipes appear to have been produced in standard sizes: approximately 1 ft long and 4” in diameter. Drainage ran in street trenches covered with flat rectangular stone slabs.

Egypt

In ancient Egypt, 3000 BC, canals were used to divert the Nile waters and irrigate fields. Drinking water was obtained directly from wells or by boiling river water. There are few reports of the use of pipes. In one instance, approximately 400 yards of copper pipes were found in the temple of Sahuri, assembled from 16” long sections made by hammering 1/16” thick sheets of copper into cylinders.

Crete

On the island of Crete, between 2000 BC and 1500 BC, the Minoans had installed a clever water supply to the palace of Knossos (famous for the legend of the Minotaur, part man part bull, who haunted its labyrinths). Earthenware pipes carried water from nearby mountains to the palace. The pipes were slightly conical in shape, the narrow end of one pipe section fitting into the large end of the next section.

Greece

The Greeks, 1600 BC to 300 BC, used earthenware, stone, bronze and lead pipes. In many cases one end of the pipe section was tapered, while the opposite end was expanded, the tapered end of one pipe fit into the expanded end of the next section, much like today’s bell and spigot joints.

Greek blacksmiths “welded” pieces of iron by hammering red-hot ends together. There is however no evidence that this type of welding was used to fabricate pipe. Whatever the fabrication technique, the pipe joints must have been reliable since the hydraulic profile of one pipeline implies that static pressure due to differences in elevation must heave reached up to 300 psi at low points.

Rome

The Romans deserve special mention in the field of piping engineering. Some of their achievements in water works remained unmatched until modern times. The Roman imperial period between 400 BC and 150 AD saw the building of over 200 stone aqueducts to carry waters to three separate outlets: public baths, city fountains and a few private homes. The fountains played the role of surge tanks in case of water hammer due to sudden changes in flow. The water supply of Rome itself is reported to have been around 300 gallons per person, a high figure, even by today’s standards.

The control of Rome’s water supply was entrusted to a commissioner, helped by technical consultants and an administrative staff. Countless slaves acted as masons, repairmen, and even quality inspectors. The Romans were proud of their waterworks. The Roman water commissioner Frontinus noted “With such an array of indispensable structures carrying so many waters, compare if you will the idle pyramids or the useless, though famous, works of Greeks”.

A variety of pipe materials were used: lead, wood with iron collars at joints, earthen-wear, bronze, and, in the more prestigious villas, silver. Lead pipes were fabricated by folding flat strips into conduits of circular, oblong or even triangular cross sections. The longitudinal seams were then soldered. The Romans perfected mixtures of cement or mortar to line the inside of pipelines. Another sealing technique consisted in throwing wood ash into the water to clog cracks and stop leaks.

The size of pipes was designated by the width of the initial strip, measured in “fingers”. Pipes and inlet orifices to control flow were carefully inspected… and stamped. Rome’s water regulations were clear: “none but stamped pipes must be set in place”. For example, a section of lead pipe clearly shows the letters “therma triani” stamped...