PIPE THICKNESS CALCULATIONS

Pipe Thickness Calculation for Natural Gas Service

Carbon Steel Pipe:

Pipe Thickness, t = (PD)/(2*S
a
+ P) + C.A.
Where t = thickness in mm
D = outer diameter of pipe in mm
P = design pressure, Kg/cm
2
S
a
= Allowable stress of pipe material at working
temp, in Kg/cm
2
(Refer piping codes B 31.3 / B
31.8)
C.A. = Corrosion Allowance (minimum value as 1.0 mm)
Example
Trunk Pipe line, D = 200 mm
P = 40 Kg/cm
2
S
a
= 1050 kg/cm
2
C.A. = 1.6 mm
Calculate required thickness of pipeline.
t = (40*200)/((2*1050)+40) + 1.6 mm
t = 3.7 + 1.6
t = 5.3
Select the pipe of nearest schedule having higher
thickness than the above value.
ADOPT DN 200 Schedule 40, C.S. Pipe.
Few Field Questions

How long do I have to use the pipe?
What is the residual thickness of pipe?
What is the corrosion rate of pipe material under the
service fluid & environmental exposures?
Has the pipe material deteriorated due to exposure to
service fluid & conditions? What are the mechanical &
metallurgical changes? Can it be quantified?
Was the piping system exposed to cyclic service
loading?
Has the piping material experienced creep
deterioration?
Has the piping material experienced stress corrosion
cracking (SCC)?
How much pressure can this pipe take?
Burst Pressure of Pipe
P
b
= (2 Y/S
u
)*(Y/3)*Log
n
(K
2
)

Where,
P
b
= Bursting pressure, Kg/cm
2
Y = Yield stress of pipe material, in Kg/cm
2
Su = Ultimate tensile stress, in Kg/cm
2
K = (OD/ID) of pipe

Hydro test Pressure
P (test) =
1.5 P (operating) *(Allowable stress room temp. / Allowable
stress operating temp.)
Safe Life of Corroded Pipe:
Safe Life = (t
available
t
safe
) / (Corrosion Rate per year)
Safe Working Pressure for Thick-walled Pipes:
P = (((D
2
d
2
)*S) /(3D
4
+ d
4
)
0.5
)
Where, D = Outer Diameter
d = Inside Diameter
S = Allowable Stress, Kg/cm
2
HDPE Pipe


Pipe Thickness, t = (PD)/(2 S
a
+ P)
Where S
a
= S
y
/1.3
S
y
is the reference stress based on HDPE
creep resistance in certain prefixed service
life (varies from 20 year to 50 years)
Example
Low Pressure P = 2 Kg / cm
2
Distribution D = 200 mm
Branch (Nat. Gas) Life = 50 years (Normal Pipe
Temperature = 25
0
C)
S
y
= 10 N / mm
2
= 100 Kg / cm
2
(For Hostalen GM 5010) T2 (GM 5010)
= 7.3 N / mm
2
= 73 Kg/cm
2

S
a
= (S
y
/1.3) 77 Kg/cm
2
(5010 T2)
= 56 Kg/cm
2
(5010)
Example .
Wall Thickness,
t = (2*200)/(2*77+2) = 2.5 mm
(for Hostalen GM 5010 T2)
t = (2*200)/(2*56+2) = 3.5 mm (GM 5010)
Select pipe to HASTI GAS T2, CLASS..
HDPE THICKNESS, t = (P*D)/ 2*S
allowable
+ P)
Where S
allowable
= S
v
/1.3
S
v
is the reference stress based on HDPE creep
resistance in certain prefixed service life (varies from
20 years to 50 years)
PIPE SIZE CALCULATION
PRESSURE DROP IN GAS PIPELINES
HDPE PIPE: Use Weymouth Equation;
Q = A*(P1
2
P2
2
)
0.5
/(S.L.)
Where A is Weymouth HDPE factor; (as listed below):
O.D. (mm) Class 3 Class 4 Class 5
50 80.5 69.7 53.6
100 640.4 546.8 410.8
160 1674.6 1460.7 1099.0
200 2987.5 2597.3 1967.2
250 5306.0 4622.2 3485.0
Q = Gas flow rate at STP, m
3
/hr
P1 = Upstream pressure, Kg/cm
2
, Abs
P2 = Down-stream pressure, Kg/cm
2
, Abs
S = Specific Gravity of gas with respect to air (0.695) or approx. 0.7
L = Pipe length in Km.
PIPE SIZE CALCULATION ..
GI PIPE / HDPE PIPE:
For low pressure/low flow conditions:
Q = 0.15228 D
2.623
(h/L)0
.541
Where D = Inside Diameter, mm
h = Pressure Drop, mm Wc.
L = length of Pipe, m.
M.S. / C.I. PIPE:
For medium pressure / flow conditions:
Q = 0.0813 d
2.6664
{(P1
2
P2
2
)/(S.L.)}
0.5
Where d = pipe diameter, mm
P
1
, P
2
= pressures, kg/cm
2
, Abs
S = 0.7 for Natural Gas
L = Pipe length, m
HDPE PIPE:
Q = 0.11672 * d
2.664
{(P1
2
-P2
2
)/(S.L.)}
0.544
FOR C.S. PIPE
HANDLING HIGH PRESSURE/HIGH FLOW GAS;
PAN-HANDLE (REVISED) FORMULA:
Q = 737 (T
o
/P
o
)
1.02
* d
2.53
{(P
1
2
-P
2
2
)/G
0.061
T
f
*L*Z}
0.51
*E
Q = K*d
2
.53 {(P
1
2
-P
2
2
)/L}
0.51
* Z-
0.51
Where, K = {737 * T
o

1.02
* P
o
-
1.02
* G
-0.49
* T
f
-0.51
* E}
Where,
Q = Gas Flow Quantity, Cfd
T
o
= Base Temperature, F Abs.
P
o
= Base Pressure, Psia
d = Pipe Inside Diameter, In.
P1 = Initial Pressure, Psia
P2 = Final Pressure, Psia
C = Specific Gravity of Gas (0.7)
T
f
= Flow Temperature of Gas, F Abs
L = Pipeline Length, Miles
Z = Compressibility Factor of Gas
E = Pipeline Efficiency Factor, (assume 0.9)