ASME B31.

8-2014
(Revision of ASME B31.8-2012)

Gas Transmission
and Distribution
Piping Systems

ASME Code for Pressure Piping, B31

A N I N T E R N AT I O N A L P I P I N G CO D E ®

Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 ASME B31.8-2014
(Revision of ASME B31.8-2012)

Gas Transmission
and Distribution
Piping Systems
ASME Code for Pressure Piping, B31

A N I N T E R N AT I O N A L P I P I N G CO D E ®

Two Park Avenue • New York, NY • 10016 USA

Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 Date of Issuance: September 30, 2014

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Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

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 CONTENTS

Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viii
Committee Roster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiv
Summary of Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvi
General Provisions and Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
801 General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
802 Scope and Intent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
803 Piping Systems Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
804 Piping Systems Component Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
805 Design, Fabrication, Operation, and Testing Terms and
Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
806 Quality Assurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
807 Training and Qualification of Personnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Chapter I Materials and Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
810 Materials and Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
811 Qualification of Materials and Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
812 Materials for Use in Low-Temperature Applications . . . . . . 15
813 Marking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
814 Material Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
815 Equipment Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
816 Transportation of Line Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
817 Conditions for the Reuse of Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Table
817.1.3-1 Tensile Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Chapter II Welding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
820 Welding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
821 General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
822 Preparation for Welding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
823 Qualification of Procedures and Welders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
824 Preheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
825 Stress Relieving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
826 Weld Inspection Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
827 Repair or Removal of Defective Welds in Piping Intended
to Operate at Hoop Stress Levels of 20% or More of
the Specified Minimum Yield Strength . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Chapter III Piping System Components and Fabrication Details. . . . . . . . . 23
830 Piping System Components and Fabrication Details . . . . . . 23
831 Piping System Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
832 Expansion and Flexibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
833 Design for Longitudinal Stress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
834 Supports and Anchorage for Exposed Piping . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
835 Anchorage for Buried Piping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Tables
831.4.2-1 Reinforcement of Welded Branch Connections, Special
Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
832.2-1 Thermal Expansion or Contraction of Piping
Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

iii
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
832.5-1 Modulus of Elasticity for Carbon and Low Alloy
Steel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Chapter IV Design, Installation, and Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

840 Design, Installation, and Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
841 Steel Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
842 Other Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
843 Compressor Stations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
844 Pipe-Type and Bottle-Type Holders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
845 Control and Limiting of Gas Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
846 Valves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
847 Vaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
848 Customers’ Meters and Regulators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
849 Gas Service Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Tables
841.1.6-1 Basic Design Factor, F . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
841.1.6-2 Design Factors for Steel Pipe Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
841.1.7-1 Longitudinal Joint Factor, E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
841.1.8-1 Temperature Derating Factor, T, for Steel Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . 41
841.1.11-1 Pipeline Cover Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
841.2.3-1 Pipeline Field Cold Bend Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
841.3.2-1 Test Requirements for Steel Pipelines and Mains to
Operate at Hoop Stresses of 30% or More of the
Specified Minimum Yield Strength of the Pipe . . . . . . . . . 49
841.3.3-1 Maximum Hoop Stress Permissible During an Air or Gas
Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
842.1.1-1 Standard Thickness Selection Table for Ductile
Iron Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
842.2.2-1 Wall Thickness and Standard Dimension Ratio for
Thermoplastic Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
842.2.3-1 Diameter and Wall Thickness for Reinforced
Thermosetting Plastic Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
842.2.9-1 Nominal Values for Coefficients of Thermal Expansion
of Thermoplastic Pipe Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
844.3-1 Design Factors, F . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
844.3-2 Minimum Clearance Between Containers and Fenced
Boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
845.2.2-1 Maximum Allowable Operating Pressure for Steel or
Plastic Pipelines or Mains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
845.2.3-1 Maximum Allowable Operating Pressure for Pipelines
Operating at 100 psig (690 kPa) or More . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
845.2.3-2 Maximum Allowable Operating Pressure for Pipelines
Operating at Less Than 100 psig (690 kPa) . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Chapter V Operating and Maintenance Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

850 Operating and Maintenance Procedures Affecting the
Safety of Gas Transmission and Distribution
Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
851 Pipeline Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
852 Distribution Piping Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
853 Miscellaneous Facilities Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
854 Location Class and Changes in Number of Buildings
Intended for Human Occupancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
855 Pipeline Service Conversions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
856 Odorization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
857 Uprating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

iv
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
Figure
851.4.1-1 Allowable Ripple Heights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Tables
851.4.4-1 Wall Thickness for Unlikely Occurrence of
Burn-Through . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
854.1-1 Location Class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
857.4-1 Wall Thickness Allowance for Uprating a Ductile Iron
High-Pressure Main or System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Chapter VI Corrosion Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
860 Corrosion Control — General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
861 External Corrosion Control for Steel Pipelines . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
862 Cathodic Protection Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
863 Operation and Maintenance of Cathodic Protection
Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
864 Internal Corrosion Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
865 Steel Pipelines in Arctic Environments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
866 Steel Pipelines in High-Temperature Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
867 Stress Corrosion and Other Phenomena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
868 Cast Iron, Wrought Iron, Ductile Iron, and Other Metallic
Pipelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Chapter VII Intentionally Left Blank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Chapter VIII Offshore Gas Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
A800 Offshore Gas Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
A801 General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
A802 Scope and Intent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
A803 Offshore Gas Transmission Terms and Definitions . . . . . . . . 103
A811 Qualification of Materials and Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
A814 Material Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
A817 Conditions for the Reuse and Requalification of Pipe . . . . 105
A820 Welding Offshore Pipelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
A821 General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
A823 Qualification of Procedures and Welders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
A825 Stress Relieving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
A826 Inspection of Welds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
A830 Piping System Components and Fabrication Details . . . . . . 106
A831 Piping System Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
A832 Expansion and Flexibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
A834 Supports and Anchorage for Exposed Piping . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
A835 Anchorage for Buried Piping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
A840 Design, Installation, and Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
A841 Design Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
A842 Strength Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
A843 Compressor Stations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
A844 On-Bottom Stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
A846 Valves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
A847 Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
A850 Operating and Maintenance Procedures Affecting the
Safety of Gas Transmission Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
A851 Pipeline Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
A854 Location Class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
A860 Corrosion Control of Offshore Pipelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
A861 External Corrosion Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
A862 Cathodic Protection Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
A864 Internal Corrosion Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

v
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
Table
A842.2.2-1 Design Factors for Offshore Pipelines, Platform
Piping, and Pipeline Risers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Chapter IX Sour Gas Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
B800 Sour Gas Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
B801 General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
B802 Scope and Intent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
B803 Sour Gas Terms and Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
B813 Marking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
B814 Material Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
B820 Welding Sour Gas Pipelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
B821 General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
B822 Preparation for Welding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
B823 Qualification of Procedures and Welders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
B824 Preheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
B825 Stress Relieving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
B826 Welding and Inspection Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
B830 Piping System Components and Fabrication Details . . . . . . 120
B831 Piping System Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
B840 Design, Installation, and Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
B841 Steel Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
B842 Other Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
B843 Compressor Stations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
B844 Pipe-Type and Bottle-Type Holders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
B850 Additional Operating and Maintenance
Considerations Affecting the Safety of Sour Gas
Pipelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
B851 Pipeline Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
B854 Location Class and Changes in Number of Buildings
Intended for Human Occupancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
B860 Corrosion Control of Sour Gas Pipelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
B861 External Corrosion Control for Steel Pipelines . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
B864 Internal Corrosion Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
B867 Stress Corrosion and Other Phenomena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Tables
B850.1-1 100-ppm ROE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
B850.1-2 500-ppm ROE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
B850.1-3 Metric Example for 100-ppm ROE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
B850.1-4 Metric Example for 500-ppm ROE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Appendices
Mandatory Appendix A References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Mandatory Appendix B Numbers and Subjects of Standards and Specifications
That Appear in Mandatory Appendix A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Nonmandatory Appendix C Publications That Do Not Appear in the Code or
Mandatory Appendix A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Mandatory Appendix D Specified Minimum Yield Strength for Steel Pipe
Commonly Used in Piping Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Mandatory Appendix E Flexibility and Stress Intensification Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Mandatory Appendix F Extruded Headers and Welded Branch Connections . . . . . . 143
Mandatory Appendix G Testing of Welders Limited to Work on Lines Operating
at Hoop Stresses of Less Than 20% of the Specified
Minimum Yield Strength . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Mandatory Appendix H Flattening Test for Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Mandatory Appendix I End Preparations for Buttwelding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Nonmandatory Appendix J Commonly Used Conversion Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

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Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
Mandatory Appendix K Criteria for Cathodic Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Nonmandatory Appendix L Determination of Remaining Strength of Corroded
Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Nonmandatory Appendix M Gas Leakage Control Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Nonmandatory Appendix N Recommended Practice for Hydrostatic Testing of
Pipelines in Place . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Nonmandatory Appendix O Preparation of Technical Inquiries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Nonmandatory Appendix P Nomenclature for Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Mandatory Appendix Q Scope Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Nonmandatory Appendix R Estimating Strain in Dents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

vii
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 FOREWORD

The need for a national code for pressure piping became increasingly evident from 1915 to
1925. To meet this need, the American Engineering Standards Committee (later changed to the
American Standards Association, now the American National Standards Institute) initiated Project
B31 in March 1926 at the request of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and with
that Society as sole sponsor. After several years of work by Sectional Committee B31 and its
subcommittees, a first Edition was published in 1935 as an American Tentative Standard Code
for Pressure Piping.
A revision of the original tentative standard began in 1937. Several more years of effort were
given to securing uniformity among sections, eliminating divergent requirements and discrepan-
cies, keeping the Code abreast of current developments in welding technique, calculating stress
computations, and including reference to new dimensional and material standards. During this
period, a new section on refrigeration piping was prepared in cooperation with the American
Society of Refrigeration Engineers and complemented the American Standard Code for Mechanical
Refrigeration. This work culminated in the 1942 American Standard Code for Pressure Piping.
Supplements 1 and 2 of the 1942 Code, which appeared in 1944 and 1947, respectively, introduced
new dimensional and material standards, a new formula for pipe wall thickness, and more
comprehensive requirements for instrument and control piping. Shortly after the 1942 Code was
issued, procedures were established for handling inquiries requiring explanation or interpretation
of Code requirements and for publishing such inquiries and answers in Mechanical Engineering
for the information of all concerned.
By 1948, continuing increases in the severity of service conditions combined with the develop-
ment of new materials and designs to meet these higher requirements warranted more extensive
changes in the Code than could be provided from supplements alone. The decision was reached
by the American Standards Association and the sponsor to reorganize the sectional committee
and its several subcommittees and to invite the various interested bodies to reaffirm their represen-
tatives or to designate new ones.
Because of the wide field involved, between 30 and 40 different engineering societies, govern-
ment bureaus, trade associations, institutes, and similar organizations had one or more representa-
tives on the sectional committee, plus a few “members at large” to represent general interests.
Code activities were subdivided according to the scope of the several sections. General direction
of Code activities rested with the Standards Committee officers and an executive committee,
membership of which consisted principally of Standards Committee officers and section chairmen.
Following its reorganization in 1948, Standards Committee B31 made an intensive review of
the 1942 Code that resulted in
(a) a general revision and extension of requirements to agree with present-day practice
(b) the revision of references to existing dimensional standards and material specifications and
the addition of references to the new ones
(c) the clarification of ambiguous or conflicting requirements
A revision was presented for letter ballot vote of Standards Committee B31. Following approval
by this body, the project was approved by the sponsor organization and by the American Standards
Association. It was finally designated as an American Standard in February 1951, with the
designation B31.1-1951.
Standards Committee B31 at its annual meeting of November 29, 1951, authorized the separate
publication of a section of the Code for Pressure Piping addressing gas transmission and distribu-
tion piping systems, to be complete with the applicable parts of Section 2, Gas and Air Piping
Systems; Section 6, Fabrication Details; and Section 7, Materials — Their Specifications and
Identification. The purpose was to provide an integrated document for gas transmission and
distribution piping that would not require cross-referencing to other sections of the Code.
The first Edition of this integrated document, known as American Standard Code for Pressure
Piping, Section 8, Gas Transmission and Distribution Piping Systems, was published in 1952 and

viii
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
consisted almost entirely of material taken from Sections 2, 6, and 7 of the 1951 Edition of the
Pressure Piping Code.
A new section committee was organized in 1952 to update Section 8 as necessary to address
modern materials and methods of construction and operation.
After a review by B31 Executive and Standards Committees in 1955, a decision was made to
develop and publish industry sections as separate Code documents of the American Standard
B31 Code for Pressure Piping. The 1955 Edition constituted a general revision of the 1952 Edition
with a considerably expanded scope. Further experience in the application of the Code resulted
in revisions in 1958, 1963, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1975, and 1982.
In December 1978, the American National Standards Committee B31 was reorganized as the
ASME Code for Pressure Piping, B31 Committee. The code designation was also changed to
ANSI/ASME B31.
The 1989 Edition of the Code was a compilation of the 1986 Edition and the subsequent addenda
issued to the 1986 Edition.
The 1992 Edition of the Code was a compilation of the 1989 Edition, the subsequent three
addenda, and the two special Errata issued to the 1989 Edition.
The 1995 Edition of the Code was a compilation of the 1992 Edition and the subsequent three
addenda issued to the 1992 Edition.
The 1999 Edition of the Code was a compilation of the 1995 Edition and the revisions that
occurred following the issuance of the 1995 Edition.
The 2003 Edition of the Code was a compilation of the 1999 Edition and revisions that occurred
following the issuance of the 1999 Edition.
The 2007 Edition of the Code was a compilation of the 2003 Edition and revisions that occurred
following the issuance of the 2003 Edition.
The 2010 Edition of the Code was a compilation of the 2007 Edition and revisions that occurred
folowing the issuance of the 2007 Edition.
The 2012 Edition of the Code was a compilation of the 2010 Edition and revisions that occurred
following the issuance of the 2010 Edition.
The 2014 Edition of the Code is a compilation of the 2012 Edition and revisions that have
occurred since the issuance of the 2012 Edition. This Edition was approved by the American
National Standards Institute on August 15, 2014.

ix
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 ASME B31 COMMITTEE
Code for Pressure Piping
(The following is the roster of the Committee at the time of approval of this Code.)

STANDARDS COMMITTEE OFFICERS

J. E. Meyer, Chair
J. W. Frey, Vice Chair
N. Lobo, Secretary

STANDARDS COMMITTEE PERSONNEL

R. J. Appleby, ExxonMobil Development Co. G. A. Jolly, Flowserve/Gestra USA
C. Becht IV, Becht Engineering Co. N. Lobo, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
A. E. Beyer, Fluor Enterprises, Inc. W. J. Mauro, American Electric Power
K. C. Bodenhamer, Willbros Professional Services, Engineering J. E. Meyer, Louis Perry and Associates, Inc.
R. Bojarczuk, ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Co. T. Monday, Team Industries, Inc.
C. J. Campbell, Air Liquide M. L. Nayyar, NICE
J. S. Chin, TransCanada Pipelines U.S. G. R. Petru, Enterprise Products Co.
D. D. Christian, Victaulic E. H. Rinaca, Dominion Resources, Inc.
R. P. Deubler, Fronek Power Systems, LLC M. J. Rosenfeld, Kiefner/Applus – RTD
C. H. Eskridge, Jr., Jacobs Engineering R. J. Silvia, Process Engineers and Constructors, Inc.
D. J. Fetzner, BP Exploration (Alaska), Inc. W. J. Sperko, Sperko Engineering Services, Inc.
P. D. Flenner, Flenner Engineering Services J. Swezy, Jr., Boiler Code Tech, LLC
J. W. Frey, Stress Engineering Services, Inc. F. W. Tatar, FM Global
D. R. Frikken, Becht Engineering Co. K. A. Vilminot, Black & Veatch
R. A. Grichuk, Fluor Enterprises, Inc. G. Antaki, Ex-Officio Member, Becht Engineering Co.
R. W. Haupt, Pressure Piping Engineering Associates, Inc. L. E. Hayden, Jr., Ex-Officio Member, Consultant
B. P. Holbrook, Babcock Power, Inc. A. J. Livingston, Ex-Officio Member, Kinder Morgan

B31.8 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

A. P. Maslowski, Secretary, The American Society of Mechanical M. J. Rosenfeld, Kiefner/Applus – RTD
Engineers J. Zhou, TransCanada Pipelines Ltd.
D. D. Anderson, Columbia Pipeline Group E. K. Newton, Ex-Officio Member, Southern California Gas Co.
R. J. Appleby, ExxonMobil Development Co. B. J. Powell, Ex-Officio Member, NiSource, Inc.
K. B. Kaplan, KBR W. J. Walsh, Ex-Officio Member, ArcelorMittal Global R&D
K. G. Leewis, Dynamic Risk Assessment Systems, Inc.

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Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 B31.8 GAS TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION PIPING SYSTEMS SECTION COMMITTEE

R. J. Appleby, Chair, ExxonMobil Development Co. R. D. Lewis, Rosen USA

D. D. Anderson, Vice Chair, Columbia Pipeline Group W. J. Manegold, Pacific Gas and Electric Co.
A. P. Maslowski, Secretary, The American Society of Mechanical M. J. Mechlowicz, Southern California Gas Co.
Engineers C. J. Miller, Fluor Enterprises, Inc.
R. C. Becken, Energy Experts International D. K. Moore, TransCanada Pipelines U.S.
C. A. Bullock, Centerpoint Energy E. K. Newton, Southern California Gas Co.
J. S. Chin, TransCanada Pipelines U.S. G. E. Ortega, Conoco Phillips
S. C. Christensen, Consultant B. J. Powell, NiSource, Inc.
A. M. Clarke, Spectra Energy Transmission M. J. Rosenfeld, Kiefner/Applus – RTD
P. M. Dickinson, Resolute Energy Corp. R. A. Schmidt, Canadoil
P. L. Vaughan, ONEOK Partners, LP
J. W. Fee, Consultant
F. R. Volgstadt, Volgstadt and Associates, Inc.
D. J. Fetzner, BP Exploration (Alaska), Inc.
W. J. Walsh, ArcelorMittal Global R&D
M. W. Gragg, ExxonMobil Development Co.
D. H. Whitley, EDG, Inc.
M. E. Hovis, Energy Transfer
D. W. Wright, Wright Tech Services, LLC
M. D. Huston, ONEOK Partners, LP M. R. Zerella, National Grid
M. Israni, U.S. DOT – PHMSA J. Zhou, TransCanada Pipelines Ltd.
D. L. Johnson, Energy Transfer J. S. Zurcher, Process Performance Improvement Consultants
K. B. Kaplan, KBR S. C. Gupta, Delegate, Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd.
R. W. Kivela, Spectra Energy A. Soni, Delegate, Engineers India Ltd.
M. P. Lamontagne, Lamontagne Pipeline Assessment Corp. R. W. Gailing, Contributing Member, Southern California Gas Co.
K. G. Leewis, Dynamic Risk Assessment Systems, Inc. J. K. Wilson, Contributing Member, Williams

B31.8 SUBGROUP ON DESIGN, MATERIALS, AND CONSTRUCTION

M. J. Rosenfeld, Chair, Kiefner/Applus – RTD M. J. Mechlowicz, Southern California Gas Co.

R. J. Appleby, ExxonMobil Development Co. C. J. Miller, Fluor Enterprises, Inc.
R. C. Becken, Energy Experts International E. K. Newton, Southern California Gas Co.
B. W. Bingham, T. D. Williamson, Inc. M. Nguyen, Lockwood International
J. S. Chin, TransCanada Pipelines U.S. G. E. Ortega, Conoco Philips
A. M. Clarke, Spectra Energy Transmission W. L. Raymundo, Pacific Gas and Electric Co.
E. J. Robichaux, Atmos Energy
P. M. Dickinson, Resolute Energy Corp.
R. A. Schmidt, Canadoil
J. W. Fee, Consultant
J. Sieve, U.S. DOT – PHMSA-OPS
D. J. Fetzner, BP Exploration (Alaska), Inc.
H. Tiwari, FMC Technologies, Inc.
S. A. Frehse, Southwest Gas Corp. P. L. Vaughan, ONEOK Partners, LP
R. W. Gailing, Southern California Gas Co. F. R. Volgstadt, Volgstadt and Associates, Inc.
D. Haim, Bechtel Corp. – Oil, Gas and Chemicals W. J. Walsh, ArcelorMittal Global R&D
R. D. Huriaux, Consultant D. H. Whitley, EDG, Inc.
M. D. Huston, ONEOK Partners, LP J. Zhou, TransCanada Pipelines Ltd.
K. B. Kaplan, KBR M. A. Boring, Contributing Member, Kiefner and Associates, Inc.

B31.8 SUBGROUP ON DISTRIBUTION

E. K. Newton, Chair, Southern California Gas Co. M. J. Mechlowicz, Southern California Gas Co.
B. J. Powell, Vice Chair, NiSource, Inc. E. J. Robichaux, Atmos Energy
J. Faruq, American Gas Association V. Romero, Southern California Gas Co.
S. A. Frehse, Southwest Gas Corp. J. Sieve, U.S. DOT – PHMSA-OPS
J. M. Groot, Southern California Gas Co. F. R. Volgstadt, Volgstadt and Associates, Inc.
W. J. Manegold, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. M. R. Zerella, National Grid

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Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 B31.8 SUBGROUP ON EDITORIAL REVIEW
K. G. Leewis, Chair, Dynamic Risk Assessment Systems, Inc. D. Haim, Bechtel Corp. – Oil, Gas and Chemicals
R. C. Becken, Energy Experts International K. B. Kaplan, KBR
J. P. Brandt, BP Exploration (Alaska), Inc. R. D. Lewis, Rosen USA
R. W. Gailing, Southern California Gas Co. D. K. Moore, TransCanada Pipelines U.S.

B31.8 SUBGROUP ON OFFSHORE PIPELINES

K. B. Kaplan, Chair, KBR M. W. Gragg, ExxonMobil Development Co.
R. J. Appleby, ExxonMobil Development Co. J. Sieve, U.S. DOT – PHMSA-OPS
K. K. Emeaba, National Transportation Safety Board H. Tiwari, FMC Technologies, Inc.

B31.8 SUBGROUP ON OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE

D. D. Anderson, Chair, Columbia Pipeline Group M. P. Lamontagne, Lamontagne Pipeline Assessment Corp.
M. E. Hovis, Vice Chair, Energy Transfer K. G. Leewis, Dynamic Risk Assessment Systems, Inc.
R. P. Barry, ENSTAR Natural Gas Co. R. D. Lewis, Rosen USA
A. Bhatia, Alliance Pipeline Ltd. C. A. Mancuso, Jacobs
J. P. Brandt, BP Exploration (Alaska), Inc. W. J. Manegold, Pacific Gas and Electric Co.
C. A. Bullock, Centerpoint Energy D. K. Moore, TransCanada Pipelines U.S.
M. Nguyen, Lockwood International
K. K. Emeaba, National Transportation Safety Board
B. J. Powell, NiSource, Inc.
J. D. Gilliam, U.S. DOT – PHMSA
M. T. Reed, Alliance Pipeline Ltd.
J. M. Groot, Southern California Gas Co. D. R. Thornton, The Equity Engineering Group
J. Hudson, EN Engineering J. K. Wilson, Williams
L. J. Huyse, University of Calgary D. W. Wright, Wright Tech Services, LLC
M. Israni, U.S. DOT – PHMSA M. R. Zerella, National Grid
D. L. Johnson, Energy Transfer J. S. Zurcher, Process Performance Improvement Consultants
R. W. Kivela, Spectra Energy D. E. Adler, Contributing Member, Columbia Pipeline Group

B31.8 GAS TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION PIPING SYSTEMS, INDIA IWG

N. B. Babu, Chair, Gujarat State Petronet Ltd. S. Prakask, ILFS Engineering and Construction Co.
A. Karnatak, Vice Chair, Gail India Ltd. V. T. Randeria, Gujarat Gas Co. Ltd.
P. V. Gopalan, L&T Valdel Engineering Ltd. S. Sahani, TDW India Ltd.
R. D. Goyal, Gail India Ltd. K. K. Saini, Reliance Gas Transportation Infrastructure Ltd.
M. Jain, Gail India Ltd. R. B. Singh, Adani Energy Ltd.
P. Kumar, Gail India Ltd. J. Sivaraman, Reliance Gas Transportation Infrastructure Ltd.
A. Modi, Gail India Ltd. I. Somasundaram, Gail India Ltd.
D. S. Nanaware, Indian Oil Corp. Ltd. A. Soni, Engineers India Ltd.
Y. S. Navathe, Adani Energy Ltd. M. Sharma, Contributing Member, ASME India PVT. Ltd.

B31.8 INTERNATIONAL REVIEW GROUP

R. J. Appleby, Chair, ExxonMobil Development Co. Q. Feng, PetroChina Pipeline Co.
H. M. Al-Muslim, Saudi Aramco W. Feng, PetroChina Pipeline Co.

B31 CONFERENCE GROUP

T. A. Bell, Bonneville Power Administration P. Sher, State of Connecticut
R. A. Coomes, State of Kentucky, Department of Housing/Boiler M. E. Skarda, Arkansas Department of Labor
Section D. A. Starr, Nebraska Department of Labor
D. H. Hanrath, Consultant D. J. Stursma, Iowa Utilities Board
C. J. Harvey, Alabama Public Service Commission R. P. Sullivan, The National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel
D. T. Jagger, Ohio Department of Commerce Inspectors
K. T. Lau, Alberta Boilers Safety Association J. E. Troppman, Division of Labor/State of Colorado Boiler
R. G. Marini, New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission Inspections
I. W. Mault, Manitoba Department of Labour W. A. West, Lighthouse Assistance, Inc.
A. W. Meiring, Fire and Building Safety Division/Indiana T. F. Wickham, Rhode Island Department of Labor
R. F. Mullaney, British Columbia Boiler and Pressure Vessel Safety
Branch

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Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 B31 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
J. E. Meyer, Chair, Louis Perry and Associates, Inc. R. A. Grichuk, Fluor Enterprises, Inc.
N. Lobo, Secretary, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers L. E. Hayden, Jr., Consultant
G. A. Antaki, Becht Engineering Co. G. A. Jolly, Flowserve/Gestra USA
R. J. Appleby, ExxonMobil Development Co. A. J. Livingston, Kinder Morgan
D. D. Christian, Victaulic M. L. Nayyar, NICE
J. W. Frey, Stress Engineering Services, Inc. G. R. Petru, Enterprise Products Co.
D. R. Frikken, Becht Engineering Co. R. A. Appleton, Contributing Member, Refrigeration Systems Co.

B31 FABRICATION AND EXAMINATION COMMITTEE

J. Swezy, Jr., Chair, Boiler Code Tech, LLC J. Hainsworth, Consultant
F. Huang, Secretary, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers A. D. Nalbandian, Thielsch Engineering, Inc.
R. D. Campbell, Bechtel Corp. R. J. Silvia, Process Engineers and Constructors, Inc.
D. Couch, Electric Power Research Institute W. J. Sperko, Sperko Engineering Services, Inc.
R. J. Ferguson, Metallurgist P. L. Vaughan, ONEOK Partners, LP
P. D. Flenner, Flenner Engineering Services K. Wu, Stellar Energy Systems
S. Gingrich, URS Corp.

B31 MATERIALS TECHNICAL COMMITTEE

R. A. Grichuk, Chair, Fluor Enterprises, Inc. M. L. Nayyar, NICE
N. Lobo, Secretary, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers M. B. Pickell, Willbros Engineers, Inc.
W. P. Collins, WPC Solutions, LLC D. W. Rahoi, CCM 2000
R. P. Deubler, Fronek Power Systems, LLC R. A. Schmidt, Canadoil
C. H. Eskridge, Jr., Jacobs Engineering H. R. Simpson, Stantec
G. A. Jolly, Flowserve/Gestra USA J. L. Smith, Jacobs Engineering Group
C. J. Melo, S&B Engineers and Constructors, Ltd. Z. Djilali, Contributing Member, Sonatrach

B31 MECHANICAL DESIGN TECHNICAL COMMITTEE

G. A. Antaki, Chair, Becht Engineering Co. R. W. Haupt, Pressure Piping Engineering Associates, Inc.
J. C. Minichiello, Vice Chair, Bechtel National, Inc. B. P. Holbrook, Babcock Power, Inc.
R. Lucas, Secretary, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers W. J. Koves, Pi Engineering Software, Inc.
D. Arnett, Chevron ETC R. A. Leishear, Savannah River National Laboratory
C. Becht IV, Becht Engineering Co. G. D. Mayers, Alion Science and Technology
R. Bethea, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Newport News J. F. McCabe, General Dynamics Electric Boat
T. Q. McCawley, TQM Engineering PC
Shipbuilding
J. E. Meyer, Louis Perry and Associates, Inc.
J. P. Breen, Becht Engineering Co.
A. Paulin, Paulin Research Group
P. Cakir-Kavcar, Bechtel Corp. – Oil, Gas and Chemicals R. A. Robleto, KBR
N. F. Consumo, Sr., Consultant M. J. Rosenfeld, Kiefner/Applus – RTD
J. P. Ellenberger, Consultant T. Sato, Japan Power Engineering and Inspection Corp.
D. J. Fetzner, BP Exploration (Alaska), Inc. G. Stevick, Berkeley Engineering and Research, Inc.
D. A. Fraser, NASA Ames Research Center H. Kosasayama, Delegate, JGC Corp.
J. A. Graziano, Consultant E. C. Rodabaugh, Honorary Member, Consultant

B31 NATIONAL INTEREST REVIEW GROUP

American Pipe Fitting Association — H. Thielsch Manufacturers Standardization Society of the Valve and Fittings
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Industry — R. A. Schmidt
Engineers — H. R. Kornblum National Association of Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors —
Chemical Manufacturers Association — D. R. Frikken R. E. White
Copper Development Association — A. Cohen National Certified Pipe Welding Bureau — D. Nikpourfard
Ductile Iron Pipe Research Association — T. F. Stroud National Fire Protection Association — T. C. Lemoff
Edison Electric Institute — R. L. Williams National Fluid Power Association — H. G. Anderson
International District Heating Association — G. M. Von Bargen Valve Manufacturers Association — R. A. Handschumacher

xiii
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 INTRODUCTION

The ASME Code for Pressure Piping consists of many Users of this Code are cautioned against making use
individually published sections, each an American of revisions without assurance that they are acceptable
National Standard. Hereafter, in this Introduction and to any authorities of jurisdiction where the piping is to
in the text of this Code Section, B31.8, when the word be installed.
“Code” is used without specific identification, it means The Code is under the direction of
this Code Section. ASME Committee B31, Code for Pressure Piping, which
The Code sets forth engineering requirements deemed is organized and operates under procedures of The
necessary for the safe design and construction of pres- American Society of Mechanical Engineers that have
sure piping. Although safety is the basic consideration, been accredited by the American National Standards
this factor alone will not necessarily govern the final Institute. The Committee is a continuing one and keeps
specifications of any piping system. The designer is cau- all Code Sections current with new developments in
tioned that the Code is not a design handbook; it does materials, construction, and industrial practice.
not eliminate the need for the designer or for competent When no Section of the ASME Code for Pressure
engineering judgment. Piping specifically covers a piping system, the user has
To the greatest possible extent, Code requirements for discretion to select any Section determined to be gener-
design are stated in terms of basic design principles and ally applicable; however, it is cautioned that supplemen-
formulas. These are supplemented as necessary with tary requirements to the Section chosen may be
specific requirements to ensure uniform application of necessary to provide for a safe piping system for the
principles and to guide selection and application of pip- intended application. Technical limitations of the vari-
ing elements. The Code prohibits designs and practices ous Sections, legal requirements, and possible applica-
known to be unsafe and contains warnings where cau- bility of other Codes or Standards are some of the factors
tion, but not prohibition, is warranted. to be considered by the user in determining the applica-
This Code Section includes bility of any Section of this Code.
(a) references to acceptable material specifications
and component standards, including dimensional and
mechanical property requirements Appendices
(b) requirements for designing components and
This Code contains two kinds of appendices: manda-
assemblies
tory and nonmandatory. Mandatory appendices contain
(c) requirements and data for evaluating and limiting
materials the user needs to carry out a requirement or
stresses, reactions, and movements associated with pres-
recommendation in the main text of the Code.
sure, temperature changes, and other forces
Nonmandatory appendices, which are written in man-
(d) guidance and limitations on selecting and
datory language, are offered for application at the user’s
applying materials, components, and joining methods
discretion.
(e) requirements for fabricating, assembling, and
installing piping
(f) requirements for examining, inspecting, and test- Interpretations and Revisions
ing piping
(g) procedures for operation and maintenance that The Committee has established an orderly procedure
are essential to public safety to consider requests for interpretation and revision of
(h) provisions for protecting pipelines from external Code requirements. To receive consideration, inquiries
and internal corrosion must be in writing and must give full particulars. (See
It is intended that this Edition of Code Section B31.8 Nonmandatory Appendix O covering preparation of
not be retroactive. The latest edition issued at least technical inquiries.)
6 months before the original contract date for the first The approved reply to an inquiry will be sent directly
phase of activity covering a piping system or systems to the inquirer. In addition, the question and reply will
shall be the governing document, unless agreement is be published as part of an Interpretation Supplement to
specifically made between contracting parties to use the Code Section, issued with the revisions.
another issue, or unless the regulatory body having juris- Requests for interpretation and suggestions for revi-
diction imposes the use of another issue or different sion should be addressed to the Secretary,
requirements. ASME B31 Committee, The American Society of

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Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
Mechanical Engineers, Two Park Avenue, New York, NY Materials are listed in the Stress Tables only when
10016-5990. sufficient usage in piping within the scope of the Code
has been shown. Materials may be covered by a Case.
Cases Requests for listing shall include evidence of satisfactory
A Case is the prescribed form of reply to an inquiry usage and specific data to permit establishment of allow-
when study indicates that the Code wording needs clari- able stresses or pressure rating, maximum and minimum
fication or when the reply modifies existing require- temperature limits, and other restrictions. Additional
ments of the Code or grants permission to use new criteria can be found in the guidelines for addition of
materials or alternative constructions. The Case will be new materials in the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel
published on the B31.8 Committee Page at Code, Section II. (To develop usage and gain experience,
http://cstools.asme.org/. unlisted materials may be used in accordance with
A Case is normally issued for a limited period, after para. 811.2.2.)
which it may be renewed, incorporated in the Code, or
allowed to expire if there is no indication of further need
for the requirements covered by the Case. The provisions Effective Date
of a Case, however, may be used after its expiration
or withdrawal, provided the Case was effective on the This Edition, when issued, contains new Code provi-
original contract date or was adopted before completion sions. It is a compilation of the 2012 Edition and revisions
of the work, and the contracting parties agree to its use. to the 2012 Edition.

xv
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 ASME B31.8-2014
SUMMARY OF CHANGES

Following approval by the B31 Committee and ASME, and after public review, ASME B31.8-2014
was approved by the American National Standards Institute on August 15, 2014.

ASME B31.8-2014 consists of editorial changes, revisions, and corrections identified by a margin
note, (14), placed next to the affected area.
Page Location Change
1 801.1 First sentence editorially revised
802.1 In subpara. (b)(10), reference to
ASME B31.11 revised to ASME B31.4
14 811.1 Subparagraph (b) editorially revised
811.2.3 Subparagraph (c) editorially revised
15 814.1.1 Note (1) revised
16 815 Fourth sentence editorially revised
816 Second paragraph editorially revised
23, 24 831.1.1 (1) References updated
(2) Subparagraph (b) revised
831.2.1 References updated
28 831.4.2 Subparagraph (g) revised
32 833.4 (1) In subpara. (a)(1), equation revised
(2) Subparagraph (d) revised
33 834.4 Subparagraph (a) revised
36 840.2.2 Subparagraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) revised
37, 38 841.1.2 In subparas. (b) and (c), references to
API 5L updated
39, 42 841.1.9 (1) In subpara. (a), first sentence revised
(2) In subpara. (k), equations revised
40 Table 841.1.6-2 Revised
45, 46 841.2.4 In subpara. (c)(3), second sentence
revised
51 842.1.1 In subpara. (d), second sentence revised
53 842.2.1 In definition for S, spelling of “specified”
corrected
59 843.3.1 Subparagraph (b) revised
64 Table 845.2.2-1 “Pressure for Steel” column revised
66, 67 845.2.7 In subpara. (c)(3), third sentence revised
78 851.4 First paragraph added

xvi
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
Page Location Change
87 853.3.1 In subpara. (b)(2), first sentence
editorially revised
89 854.2 In subpara. (c), last sentence revised
103, 104 A802 Editorially revised
A803 Definition for steel catenary riser (SCR)
added
106 A831.1.1 References updated
111 A843.1.5 Added
113 A847.2 Revised
118 B802.2 Editorially revised
125–129 Mandatory Appendix A Updated
131–133 Nonmandatory Updated
Appendix C
143 F-1 Under definition for ro, subparas. (a) and
(b) revised
149 F-2.2.5M Revised

SPECIAL NOTE:
The interpretations to ASME B31.8 are included in this edition as a separate section for the user’s
convenience.

xvii
Copyright c 2014 by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK

xviii
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No reproduction may be made of this material without written consent of ASME.
 ASME B31.8-2014

GAS TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION PIPING SYSTEMS

General Provisions and Definitions

801 GENERAL vaporized and used as gaseous fuels. All of the require-
ments of NFPA 58 and NFPA 59 and of this Code con-
(14) 801.1 Approved Standards and Specifications cerning design, construction, and operation and
Standards and specifications approved for use under maintenance of piping facilities shall apply to piping
this Code and the names and addresses of the sponsor- systems handling butane, propane, or mixtures of these
ing organizations are shown in Mandatory Appendix A. gases.
It is not considered practicable to refer to a specific (b) This Code does not apply to
edition of each of the standards and specifications in (1) design and manufacture of pressure vessels cov-
the individual Code paragraphs. ered by the BPV Code1
(2) piping with metal temperatures above 450°F
801.2 Use of Standards and Specifications (232°C) or below −20°F (−29°C) (For low-temperature
Incorporated by Reference considerations, see para. 812.)
Some standards and specifications cited in Mandatory (3) piping beyond the outlet of the customer ’s
Appendix A are supplemented by specific requirements meter set assembly (Refer to ANSI Z223.1/NFPA 54.)
elsewhere in this Code. Users of this Code are advised (4) piping in oil refineries or natural gasoline
against attempting direct application of any of these extraction plants, gas treating plant piping other than
standards without carefully observing the Code’s refer- the main gas stream piping in dehydration, and all other
ence to that standard. processing plants installed as part of a gas transmission
system, gas manufacturing plants, industrial plants, or
801.3 Standard Dimensions mines (See other applicable sections of the ASME Code
Adherence to American National Standards Institute for Pressure Piping, B31.)
(ANSI) dimensions is strongly recommended wherever (5) vent piping to operate at substantially atmo-
practicable. Paragraphs or notations specifying these spheric pressures for waste gases of any kind
and other dimensional standards in this Code, however, (6) wellhead assemblies, including control valves,
shall not be mandatory, provided that other designs of flow lines between wellhead and trap or separator, off-
at least equal strength and tightness, capable of with- shore platform production facility piping, or casing and
standing the same test requirements, are substituted. tubing in gas or oil wells (For offshore platform produc-
tion facility piping, see API RP 14E.)
801.4 SI (Metric) Conversion (7) the design and manufacture of proprietary
For factors used in converting U.S. Customary units items of equipment, apparatus, or instruments
to SI units, see Nonmandatory Appendix J. (8) the design and manufacture of heat exchangers
(Refer to appropriate TEMA2 standard.)
(9) liquid petroleum transportation piping systems
802 SCOPE AND INTENT (Refer to ASME B31.4.)
(14) 802.1 Scope (10) liquid slurry transportation piping systems
(Refer to ASME B31.4.)
(a) This Code covers the design, fabrication, installa-
(11) carbon dioxide transportation piping systems
tion, inspection, and testing of pipeline facilities used
for the transportation of gas. This Code also covers safety
aspects of the operation and maintenance of those facili- 1
BPV Code references here and elsewhere in this Code are to
ties. (See Mandatory Appendix Q for scope diagrams.) the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code.
This Code is concerned only with certain safety 2
Tubular Exchanger Manufacturers Association, 25 North
aspects of liquefied petroleum gases when they are Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591.

1
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