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PIPE STRESS ANALYSIS - CONCEPTS

Satyashish Sahu

PIPE STRESS ANALYSIS CONCEPTS

What is piping stress analysis
!

Analytical procedure to evaluate the stress state at various points in a piping system.

Also known as flexibility analysis since it also helps ascertain the required flexibility in the piping system

Helps determine displacements and forces / moments on the hangers, supports, restraints, guides, stops and anchors in the piping system

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PIPE STRESS ANALYSIS CONCEPTS

Contents
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Stress in pipes Stress categories Failure of pipes Thermal behavior of pipes Stress limits Stress in piping components External load categories Piping supports Spring hangers Constant effort hangers Friction Piping codes ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code Linear and non linear supports Effect of supports on stress

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Stress in pipes
Fig-1 Biaxial stress state in a pipe

l = PDO/4t + BM/Z
Where BM = (Mx2+My2)1/2

h = PDO/2t = TM/J Where TM= Mz

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Stress in pipes
Fig-2 Mohrs circle of the biaxial stress state

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Stress in pipes
Stress in pipes
!

Figure-1 shows the stresses in pipes. The various stresses included in stress evaluation are:
Pressure Hoop stress Pressure longitudinal stress Bending & torsional stress due to weight of pipe, contents and insulation Bending & torsional stress due to any point loads, wind loads, earthquake loads, hammer loads Bending & torsional stress due to restriction of thermal expansion

It is always assumed (in fact due care is taken to ensure) that plant piping will consist of at least two perpendicular segments between anchors. The Axial stresses due to thermal effects and also due to any other external loading in such a case will be negligible and are hence neglected in stress calculations. So also is buckling neglected.

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Stress categories
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Classification of stress Primary stress (membrane and bending)

This is the stress due to external loading of the pipe like weight, point load, wind, earthquake If this exceeds the allowable stress it will cause failure of the pipe through continuous yielding

Secondary stress
This stress is not caused by any external loading but by such physical tendencies as thermal expansion This stress is self-limiting in nature. It relieves itself upon yielding. It is due to this fundamental difference in behavior between primary and secondary stress that these two stress categories are treated very differently. These stresses are never added up and have different allowable values

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Stress categories
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Classification of stress Peak stress

Peak stresses are cyclical stresses which cause fatigue failure in pipes

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Failure of pipes
Failure mechanism
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Plastic deformation leading to bursting - This happens whenever the magnitude of the primary membrane stress exceeds the yield strength. Plastic instability or incremental collapse - This occurs when the secondary stress range exceeds twice the yield stress as explained under title stress range. Fatigue - Low cycle fatigue occurs in piping systems due to cyclic loads (like thermal load cycles, vibrations, etc).This occurs when the cumulative usage factor exceeds 1.0. Creep - Creep or elastic instability or elastic follow-up is a time dependent failure phenomenon that occurs in high temperature piping - typically above 750 deg F (400 deg C). Creep failure would eventually occur if the primary stress in the pipe is above the creep strength of the material.

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Thermal behavior of pipes

Thermal shakedown / Stress range
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When a pipe is heated up, stresses are caused if the free thermal movement of the pipe is restricted. Upon reaching the yield point, the pipe starts yielding and the stresses as well as the thermal loads on the restraints get relieved. This is called thermal shakedown. When the pipe is cooled, it comes back to its original position and now the stresses and restraint loads reappear but with opposite signs. The range between the hot stress and the cold stress is called the stress range.

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Thermal behavior of pipes

Fig-3 Stress range
Total stress range ST = Shy + Scy where: Shy = Hot yield strength Scy = cold yield strength If deformation exceeds case-II as in case III, there will be plastic instability in subsequent cycles leading eventually to incremental collapse.

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Stress Limits
FIG-4 Limit stress-combined tension and bending. (ASME, Criteria. )
!

Fig shows two curves - one the limit stress or the failure curve and the other the design limit curve. A conservative design limit of 0.66Sy for primary membrane (tensile) and 1.0Sy for combined bending and membrane stress is used.

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Stress Limits
Stress limits for Time dependent deterioration - Fatigue and Creep
!

Low cycle Fatigue (load cycles lower than 105)

Stress reduction factor f for the allowable stress range for different cumulative cycles are available in the piping codes. Ensuring that the piping is not stressed beyond these levels guarantees that the pipe would not fail in fatigue for the postulated number of operating cycles.

Creep
The allowable stress values for various material listed in the piping codes take into account the creep strength in the high temperature range (above 400 deg C). Limiting the primary stress in the pipe below the allowable stress value as listed in the piping code would ensure that the creep rate is no more than 1% per 100,000 hours.

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Stress Limits
FIG-5 Stress categories and limits of stress intensity
(Source:ASME Section VIII Div-2, Appendix-4)

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Stress Limits
FIG-5 Stress categories and limits of stress intensity (Contd)
(Source:ASME Section VIII Div-2, Appendix-4)

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Stress in piping components

Stress intensification factors - SIF
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Elbows, branch connections and reducers will have a higher level of stress when compared to a straight pipe for the same amount of bending moment.

The factor by which the stress in the pipe component exceeds that of the straight pipe is called SIF (stress intensification factor). SIF of a component depends upon its geometry and is calculated using empirical formulae available in piping codes. For special components like Y-piece where no empirical relations are available, SIF will have to be determined through a analytical procedure like FEM.

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Stress in piping components

Relation between Elbow geometry and SIF
! ! !

Elbow / bend radius - Has inverse relation to SIF Elbow diameter - Has direct relation to SIF Elbow thickness - Has inverse relation to SIF

Relation between Branch geometry and SIF

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Header diameter - Has direct relation to header & branch SIFs Header thickness - Has inverse relation to header & branch SIFs Branch diameter - Has direct relation to branch SIF. Has no bearing on header SIF Branch thickness - Has direct relation to branch SIF. Has no bearing on header SIF

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Stress in piping components

Relation between Branch type and SIF
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The various branch types are listed with their SIF in the increasing order
Integrally reinforced fitting as per MSS SP 97 Reinforced fabricated Tee Unreinforced fabricated Tee

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Increasing SIF

Welding Tee

External load categories

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Types of external loading on pipes Sustained loading

These loads will act on the pipe throughout its operating tenure and include Dead loads like weight of pipe, insulation and inline components Live loads like weight of contents in the pipe

Occasional loading
These loads act on the pipe only for certain duration or during abnormal operating conditions and include wind Dynamic loads like earthquake, hammer, safety valve thrust

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Piping supports
Types of pipe supports
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Rigid support - An inflexible restraint used primarily to carry the sustained pipe loading. They cannot be used where there is upward pipe movement. Rigid hanger Sliding base support Variable effort (spring) support - A flexible spring used to carry the sustained pipe loading while allowing for upward / downward pipe movement. The supporting effort varies as the pipe moves up or down. Constant effort support - Used to carry the sustained pipe loading while allowing for upward / downward pipe movement. The supporting effort remains constant throughout the upward / downward travel of the pipe.

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Piping supports
Types of pipe supports (cont)
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Thermal Restraint - This is usually a rigid element used to alter / control the thermal growth of the piping system so as to bring the terminal point forces / moments and thermal stresses under limit.
Axial restraint : Movement prevented in pipe axial direction Transverse / Lateral restraint : Movement prevented in pipe transverse direction

Guides - Guides are similar to bi-directional restraints but with the primary purpose of guiding the pipe smoothly into the pipe axial or lateral direction.
Transverse / Lateral guide : Pipe movement guided into the transverse direction Axial guide : Pipe movement guided into the pipe axial direction

Anchors - Anchors arrest all the six degrees of freedom of the pipe. Anchors are sometimes inserted to completely separate two connected pipes to enable the analyst to analyse the pipes independently.

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Spring Hangers
Spring Hanger selection procedure For spring hanger selection the following steps are required
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Calculation of weight balance load

The load that would act on the spring hanger if it were completely rigid and the piping system was in static equilibrium under sustained loading condition

Calculation of vertical free thermal movement

The thermal growth of the pipe under the influence of temperature I.e the vertical pipe length x the coeff of thermal expansion

Selection of appropriate spring constant

An appropriate spring constant from a supplier catalogue based upon the weight balance load and vertical thermal movement such that the load variation between the cold and hot positions is within 25%.

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Spring Hangers
Hot setting / Cold setting of springs
There are two ways of setting the springs - Hot setting and Cold setting
!

Hot setting - The spring is set such that it carries the weight balance load in the hot position of the pipe

Cold setting - The spring is set such that it carries the weight balance load in the cold position of the pipe. The behavior of the piping system will vary under hot and cold setting because the spring carries different loads under the two settings. Fig-4 shows how exactly these two types of spring setting affect the load carried by the spring.

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Spring Hangers
Weight balance load

Fig-6 Hot / Cold setting

0%
Spring cage movement

Hot pos of pipe Cold setting Hot setting Cold pos of pipe

100%

Load

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Spring Hangers
Spring hanger terminologies
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Cold load - The load carried by the spring when the pipe is in cold position Hot load - The load carried by the spring when the pipe is in hot position Installation load - The load the spring would carry when the pipe is at its installation position I.e zero vertical displacement. The installation load would be equal to the cold load provided the vertical pipe displacement in the cold condition is zero. But this may not be the case always. The spring is pre-compressed to the installation load, locked and then erected on the pipe.

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Constant effort Hangers

Constant effort hangers
!

When pipe vertical movement is high (above 50 mm), it is usually not possible to select variable effort hangers with load variation within 25%. In such a situation, constant effort hangers are used.

Constant effort hangers as the name suggests apply a constant effort on the pipe throughout the complete range of the pipe vertical movement.

The effect of the constant effort hanger is similar to that of supporting the pipe with a chain-pulley-block system

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Friction
Frictional effects of pipe supports
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Friction at sliding surfaces of supports especially in hot pipes generate significant forces which affect the pipe stresses as well as the loads on anchors and restraints.

It is advisable to avoid sliding supports / restraints in hot critical piping systems - like Main steam, Cold and Hot reheat piping systems - and use instead the angulating types.

If sliding supports / restraints are used for critical applications, then the sliding surfaces should be of rust free materials like stainless steel / teflon and the appropriate friction coefficient must be included in the analysis.

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Piping codes
Importance of piping codes in stress analysis
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Piping codes are industry specific. They outline the stress evaluation criteria and also the design requirements specific to the industry over which they have their jurisdiction. The piping code lies at the heart of any stress analysis. A piping system necessarily has to be qualified as per the stress criteria established in the particular piping code. The stress evaluation criteria - while largely based on the fundamentals discussed earlier - differ from code to code, the different criteria necessitated by the specific operating conditions and requirements of the industry to which the particular code caters to. The difference in the criteria are in some cases also attributed to the historical circumstances / different committees that have established the codes.

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Piping codes
Important ASME piping codes
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Power piping Process piping Pipeline transportation systems for liquid hydrocarbons and other liquids Refrigeration piping and heat transfer components Gas transmission and distribution piping systems Nuclear piping

ASME B 31.1 ASME B 31.3 ASME B 31.4 ASME B 31.5 ASME B 31.8 ASME section III

The ASME B 31.1 power piping code forms the basis for piping design and stress analysis of all piping except Boiler internal piping at ALSTOM.

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ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code

Allowable stress
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The allowable stress for various ASTM piping materials at various temperatures are listed in Appendix-A of the code. The allowable stresses are actually reproduced from the ASME Boiler & pressure vessel code, section II

Basis for allowable stress in ASME section II part D

Min of: R/4, 1.1/4 x Rt, 0.67 E, 0.67 Et, 0.67 Sr, 0.8 Sr min and 1.0 S

R = Specified minimum tensile strength at room temperature. Rt = Specified minimum tensile strength at the temperature. E = Yield point (0.2% proof stress at room temp) Et = Yield point (0.2% proof stress at the temp) Sr = Average stress at the temp to cause rupture at the end of 100,000 hr. Sr min = Minimum stress at the temp to cause rupture at the end of 100,000 hr. S = Average stress at the temp to produce an elongation of 1% (creep) in 100,000 hr.

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ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code

Other important data
!

The thermal expansion data for the various materials are listed in Table B-1 of Appendix-B of the code.

The modulus of elasticity data for the ferrous materials are listed in table C-1 of Appendix-C of the code.

The formulae for the SIF and flexibility factors for various pipe components are listed in Table D-1 of Appendix-D of the code.

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ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code

Comments on allowable stress values of Appendix-A
!

The values listed include weld joint efficiency factors where applicable. Weld joint efficiencies affect only the hoop direction and not the longitudinal pipe direction. Since in stress analysis, we are interested in the longitudinal stresses only, the allowable stress for stress calculation must be obtained by dividing the values from appendix-A by the appropriate weld efficiency factor. The actual stress may exceed the allowable for occasional short periods by the following factors:
15% for events duration < 8 hrs at any one time and 800 hrs/year 20% for events duration < 1 hrs at any one time and 80 hrs/year

The allowables may be exceeded due to external occasional loads or due to pressure-temperature excursions (which would bring down the allowables).

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ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code

Comments on allowable stress values of Appendix-A
!

The allowable stress in shear can be taken as 80% of the allowables listed in appendix-A.

The allowable stress in bearing can be taken as 160% of the allowables listed in appendix-A.

The stress in pipe during hydrotest can be considered as high as 90% of yield stress.

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ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code

Code qualification equations
!

Stress due to sustained loads (Clause 104.8.1 of B31.1)

SL = (PDO/4Tn) + (0.75iMA/Z) < 1.0Sh
Where MA = resultant moment loading on cross section due to all sustained loads

The above relation can be easily derived by considering the stress state of fig-1 and applying the Maximum shear stress theory.
From maximum shear stress theory, failure would occur when the max shear stress is > half of allowable stress in tension. Max shear stress can be calculated from mohr's circle (fig-2) as follows: 2max = 2 x radius of mohr's circle = {(h- l)2 + 42}1/2 = {(PDO /4t + BM/Z) + 4 (TM/J) }
2 2 2 2 1/2 1/2 2 2 2 1/2

= {(PDO /4t) + (M/Z) + 2 . PDO /4t . BM/Z} Where M = (Mx +My +Mz ) = PDO/4t + M/Z ( by substituting BM with M; this makes the calculated max slightly conservative) To avoid failure, PDO/4t + M/Z < Sh Incorporating fitting SIF into the above eqn gives the 31.1 code eqn for sustained stresses PDO/4t + 0.75iMA/Z < Sh

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ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code

Code qualification equations (cont)
!

Stress due to occasional loads (Clause 104.8.2 of B31.1)

(PDO/4Tn) + (0.75iMA/Z) + (0.75iMB/Z) < k.Sh Where MB = resultant moment loading on cross section due to all occasional loads
k = stress exceeding factor (1.15 or 1.20 depending on occasional load duration)

Thermal expansion stress range (Clause 104.8.3 of B31.1)

SE = iMC / Z < SA + f (Sh-SL) Where MC = range of resultant moments on cross section due to thermal expansion
SA = Allowable stress range = f (1.25 Sc + 0.25 Sh) Sc = basic material allowable stress (appendix-A) at cold temperature Sh = basic material allowable stress (appendix-A) at hot temperature f = stress range reduction factor for cyclic loading (= 1 for general power plant applications)

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ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code

Code qualification equations (cont)
!

Understanding allowable stress range

From figure-3, Total stress range ST = Shy + Scy = 1.5 Sh + 1.5 Sc Taking only 83.3% so as to have margin, ST = 1.25 Sh + 1.25 Sc Thus for thermal expansion, the allowable stress range SA = 0.25 Sh + 1.25 Sc (deducting 1.Sh for sustained loading) Incorporating the fatigue factor gives the 31.1 code equation SA = f .(0.25 Sh + 1.25 Sc)

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ASME B 31.1 - Power piping code

Important code considerations
!

Modulus of elasticity - The code stipulates that the stress must be evaluated considering the cold modulus of elasticity. However, forces and moments on anchors and restraints can be evaluated considering the hot modulus.

Corrosion allowance and mill tolerance - The stress analysis including evaluation of restraint loads is to be done on the nominal pipe thickness. Corrosion allowance and mill tolerance are not considered.

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Linear and non linear supports

What are Linear and non linear supports
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Linear Supports
These supports do not change their stiffness over the complete range of pipe displacement in the direction of their application. All bi-directional restraints without gap and friction and spring hangers fall in this category

Non linear supports

These supports change their stiffness when the pipe moves from cold to hot position. All restraints with gap and friction and single directional restraints fall in this category.

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Effect of supports on stress

Pipe supports & stress
!

When a pipe lifts up in hot condition, the change in stress from cold to hot position can be considered as secondary stress only if the displacement is minor.

Cold position

!
Upward pipe movement

In case of significant displacements, the stress assumes both - primary and secondary stress characteristics and hence must be checked against the primary & secondary stress allowables simultaneously.

Hot position

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Effect of supports on stress

Spring hangers & stress
!

Similarly in case of spring hangers, when pipe moves from cold to hot position, the stress level in the pipe changes due to change in the supporting effort of the spring. The change in the stress level has primary characteristics and hence should be limited to 25% to ensure a safe design.

Hot position

Cold position

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