FRP Pipe Failures & Lessons to be learned

Paulin Webinar April 2008

Scope of Webinar

Experience basis for present webinar

Part 1. Failures in GRP Pipe System a survey

Part 2. Measures to avoid failures.

The Role of system design & code compliance if any

Some details of System Design by Analysis

Nomenclature

Abbreviation Description

FRP f Fiber Reinforced Plastic pipe

GRP f Glass Reinforced Plastic pipe

GRE f Glass Reinforced Epoxy pipe

GRV f Glass Reinforced Vinyl Ester pipe

GRP f Glass Reinforced Polyester pipe

f Reinforced Thermosetting Resin Pipe

RTRP
50 Years Fiberglass pipe. A commodity??
Why Glass Reinforced Plastic - revisited

f Corrosion Resistance (low maintenance costs)

f Low weight (easy handling)

f Low friction (low pressure loss)

f Large flexibility (relatively low loads due to expansion)

f Large variety in possible shapes

 EXAMPLE
GRP heat exchanger header box & pass partition
plates in corrosive conditions
Model Implementation
State of the art in Pressure-Diameter domain

Pressure-Diameter domain

100

90

80
.

70 Pipe wallload P*D=2700

Design Pressure [Barg]

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
0 250 500 750 1000 1250 1500 1750 2000 2250 2500 2750 3000 3250 3500 3750 4000
Nominal Diameter [mm]
 EXAMPLE
2 examples of pressure pipes at the large bore side of the spectrum

3500mm cooling water 4000mm cooling water header

Variety of GRP pipes & fittings

f Manufacturing process of pipe and fittings

 Hand Lay-up, contact molded
 Filament wound
 Winding angle
 Centrifugially casted
 With and without filler (sand)

f Resin systems
 Polyester
 Vinyl ester
 Epoxy
 Various curing agents
FRP pipe pressure versus diameter

Pipe type and Usage

80
Oil & Water long
distance
70

60
Design Pressure [Barg]

Epoxy U/G
50

40

Polyester, Vinylester &

Epoxy, U/G & A/G
30

Polyester & Vinylester mostly U/G

20
Fire water

Cooling Water
10

0
0 250 500 750 1000 1250 1500 1750 2000 2250 2500 2750 3000
Nominal Diameter [mm]
Typical for GRP large variety of jointing systems

f Tensile resistant
 Full pressure trust capability
 Cement, lamination, mechanical lock joint, flange
 Application: U/G & A/G and in hybrid systems

f Non-tensile resistant
 No or only limited pressure trust capability
 Double bell couplers, bell and spigot seal joint
 Application: U/G & A/G in long straight pipe lines (with special supporting)
FRP pipe pressure versus diameter

Jointing systems

80

70

60
Design Pressure [Barg]

Cemented &
50 Laminated

40
Cemented, laminated,
RSLJ, flanges, RSJ,
30 double bell couplers

Double bell couplers & laminations

20

10

0
0 250 500 750 1000 1250 1500 1750 2000 2250 2500 2750 3000
Nominal Diameter [mm]
 EXAMPLE
Drawback for still wider applications

Confidence is shattered by failures

Failures are blamed on the material

Metal pipe failures are blamed on (system) design, while
fiberglass failures are blamed on the material
Complicated mechanical properties of GRE/GRP pipe

f Orthotropic material
 Stiffness & strength properties in axial & circumferential direction are different

f Typical stiffness values

 Ec = 20.000 MPa (200.000 MPa for steel)
 Ea = 10.000 MPa
 G = 9.000 MPa

f High thermal expansion coeff.

 20 * 10E-06 mm/mm/deg C (10 for C.S.)

f Typical design strength values

 Scircumferential = 70 MPa
 Saxial = 35 MPa

f Stiffness bends (typical Kgrp = 5 * Ksteel

f SIF’s for fittings are different from metal

Material Properties
Variation for different suppliers (> 20%), Typical designs will be inaccurate

Parameter Supplier 1 Supplier 2 Supplier 3 Supplier 4

Lin. exp f 20 f 18 f 22 f 25 Mm/mm/degC

Ecirc f 20.500 f 25.000 f 17.000 f 20.000 MPa

Eaxial f 11.500 f 11.000 f 8.000 f 11.000 MPa

Vax/circ f 0.65 f 0.56 f 0.69 f 0.35

Vcirc/ax f 0.38 f 0.37 f 0.39 f 0.20

Rho f 1.85 f 1.85 f 1.55 f 1.85 1000 kg/cum

Allowable f 43 f 26 f 34 f 28 MPa
GRP-pipe systems
When, where and why do failures occur

f When
 Small part (<5%) of the failures occurs during installation or operation
 Most of the failures occur during hydro-testing (pressure testing)

f Where
 Joints (89%)
 Fittings (10%), bends, tees, reducers
 Plane pipe (1%)

f Why
 Due to material defects (<2%)
 Defective installation (49%)
 Overloading of material due to shortcomings in design (49%)
 EXAMPLE
Plane pipe failures are rare

Flexible wall makes FRP sensitive to buckling due to vacuum

Some failures occur at fittings
Types of fittings

f Bends
 Molded bends (failures occur next to the bend)
 Mitered bends (failures at the miter joints)

f Tees (failures of the intersection)

 Filament wound tees (typical d/D > 0.4)
 Contact moulded tees (typical d/D < 0.25)

f Reducers
 EXAMPLE
Typical failures adjacent to bend

Delaminated pipe
 EXAMPLE
Tee failure during pressure testing

Pressure thrust (A/G)

Impact into pipe rack

Large elasticity of material

results in large energy release
during failure
 EXAMPLE
Large tee failure during pressure testing
 EXAMPLE
Failure of a contact molded tee during pressure
testing
Most failures occur at joints

f Types of joints
 Cemented joints
 Laminated joints
 Mechanical joints
 Flanged joints
 Lock joints

f Ideally no defective joints

f Reality 0.1% (1 out of 1000) of installed joints show a defect as a result of

manufacturing of the joint at site
 Non destructive test methods are poor
 Defect only appear during hydro-test
 EXAMPLE
Cemented joint failure (defective joint)
 EXAMPLE
Excessive local compressive loads at a joint
Wall compressive crushing
 EXAMPLE
Cemented joint failure
Poor application of cement during installation
 EXAMPLE
Flange failure immediately adjacent to bend
 EXAMPLE
Cemented Joint failure due to surge during testing
 EXAMPLE
Mechanical joint (lock joint) failure
Defective joint
 EXAMPLE
Mechanical joint (lock joint) failure due to overloading
Why do joints fail?

f Only small part of the joint failures are the result of material defect

f Most joints failures are duo to:

 Defective installation (± 50%)
 Excessive loads (± 50%)

f Almost always a result of shortcomings in design

f Critical items in design

 Underestimation of load (proper prediction of loads)
 Overestimate of joint capabilities (e.g. flanged joints)
 Overestimate of system flexibility (prediction of flexibility)
 EXAMPLE
Typical example of failure due to unforeseen
pressure thrust
subsea
 EXAMPLE
Overloaded joint failure
With large consequential damage due to waterhammer
 EXAMPLE
Non tensile lock joint subject to part pressure thrust
Underground excessive lock load
 EXAMPLE
Overloaded flanged joint due to external moments
 EXAMPLE
Overloaded flanged manhole
 EXAMPLE
Overloaded laminated joint

Delaminated joint of
water transportation
system
 EXAMPLE
Failures due to errors in design

Failure due to undersized hold-down support

 EXAMPLE
Header up-heave due to trench inundation
 EXAMPLE
Floating header due to insufficient soil cover
Steps to avoid failures – Subject of part 2 of the webinar

f Identification and assessment of specific critical items in GRP systems

f Implement performance based codes

 Design by analysis
 Proper integration of material properties
 Assessment of joint capabilities

f Installation
 Verification of installation: as built conform design
 Prior to Hydro-test