TRAINING MANUAL PIPING

PLASTIC PIPING SYSTEM

Uhde India Limited

DOC No. : 29040-PI-UFR-0032

Rev.

: R0

Page

: 1

CONTENTS

Page
0.0

Cover Sheet

1.0

Introduction

2.0

Plastic Materials

23

3.0

Typical Mechanical Properties of Thermosetting Plastic

4.0

Plastic Piping System

46

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TRAINING MANUAL PIPING

PLASTIC PIPING SYSTEM
Uhde India Limited

1.0

DOC No. : 29040-PI-UFR-0032

Rev.

: R0

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: 2

INTRODUCTION:

Corrosion is a menace in operating and maintaining a Chemical Process Plant. Hence given a
choice one would be tempted to dispense away with Steel all together as a material of
construction for piping used in a Chemical Plant. Unfortunately it is not practical to undermine
the usefulness of Steel in sustaining the Pressure and Temperature conditions normally
foreseen in any Process Plant. That brings the concept of composite piping constructed from
the highly Chemical Resistant Polymer Compounds as base material, reinforced with suitable
fibrous materials such as Glass which provides it the requisite strength.

2.0

PLASTIC MATERIALS:

Basically 3 type of Synthetic Polymer Components have found acceptance in industrial use.

Thermoplasts
Thermosets
Composite Plastics

2.1 Thermoplasts:
The Thermoplastics are Polymer Compounds, which are normally available in crystal form.
On application of heat and pressure these crystals attain the requisite level of flowability to be
able to attain the desired shape by molding process. On re-heating the plastic material can
once again undergo the transformation from solid to a flowable state which allows their
reprocessing into the desired shape.
Some of the commonly used Thermoplasts are as follows
Polyethylene
Polypropylene
Polystyrene
Polyvinyl Chloride
Fluor-Plastics
By and large the thermoplastics are structurally weak materials and have limited temperature
endurance.
2.2 Thermosets:
The Thermosetting Plastics are Polymer Compound (resins), which are normally available in
liquid form at ambient temperature. On addition of Catalyst and Accelerator these Resins
undergo a chemical transformation into a rigid product that sets into the required shape by
curing process.
Some of the commonly used Thermosetting Plastics are as follows.
Epoxies
Furans
Phenolics
Polyesters Bisphenol, Isophthalic, Halogenated
Polyurethane
Vinyl esters

TRAINING MANUAL PIPING

PLASTIC PIPING SYSTEM
Uhde India Limited

DOC No. : 29040-PI-UFR-0032

Rev.

: R0

Page

: 3

Even though the Thermosetting Plastics are relatively superior to Thermoplastics in terms of
structural strength and temperature endurance, still in its virgin form they find limited use in
Industrial applications.

2.3 Composite Plastics:

As it is evident from the foregoing discussion that both Thermoplastics and Thermosetting
Plastics in their virgin form lack ability to sustain the level of mechanical loading normally
encountered in the Industrial applications. An attempt to strike an appropriate balance
between the two desired properties of the material (i.e. Mechanical Strength and Corrosion
Resistance) therefore has always remained a desirable objective. This brought forward the
concept of Composite Plastics where in a reasonable degree of mechanical strength is
imparted to the base Polymer which in itself is adequately resistant to the Chemical Corrosion,
by way of reinforcing it with a suitable reinforcing material.
Most of the commercially available composite materials in the Reinforced Plastic category use
a combination of Thermosetting Plastic Resins (e.g. Polyester, Epoxy, Vinyl Ester etc.) and
Fiberglass or Synthetic Fibers as reinforcing material. In order to provide an ultra superior
chemical resistance, it is also possible to manufacture a composite material using
Thermoplastic Material (e.g. PVC, PVDF, PP etc) as a base liner over which the layers of
Thermosetting Resins and Fiberglass are applied to attain the required mechanical strength.

Manufacturing Process:
The composite plastics pipes are commonly produced by 1 of the following methods

Custom Contact Molding

It is a manual/ semi automated process in which the composite sections are manufactured by
application of various layers of resin and Glass Fibers (in various forms such as surface mat,
roving mat, chop-strand mat etc.) either by Hand Lay-up or by Spray Lay-up method.

Filament Winding:

It is a fully automatic process in which an automatic control over winding angle ( 0 to 90

degree) and winding pressure can be exercised to obtain the varying degree of Hoop Axial
ratio and Glass Resin percentage composition. Normally a winding angle of 54 3/ 4
Degree provides a 2:1 Hoop Axial ratio which is condition of optimum internal pressure
requirement. By increasing the winding pressure the Glass - Resin proportion could be varied
from 80 % - 20 % to 60% - 40 %. A composite section of high Glass content will result into
high strength and low chemical resistance and visa versa.

Pultrusion:

As the name implies this is a sort of extursion process by pulling the filaments through a resin
bath tub and subsequently passing it through an extruding die and then through a an
atmosphere of controlled elevated temperature. The above process is commonly used for
manufacturing rolled sections such as Angles, Channels, I Beams etc.

Resin Transfer Molding:

The above process is used for specialized applications for manufacture of sandwich
structures with certain core material.

TRAINING MANUAL PIPING

PLASTIC PIPING SYSTEM
Uhde India Limited

3.0

DOC No. : 29040-PI-UFR-0032

Rev.

: R0

Page

: 4

TYPICAL MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF THERMOSETTING PLASTIC:

The Reinforced Thermosetting Plastic Material typically represent a mechanically weak
structure with high coefficient of thermal expansion, low thermal conductivity and high
strength weight ratio. The approximate values of various mechanical properties of the
Reinforced Plastic are in the following range.
Density
Coefficient of
Thermal Expansion
Modulus of Elasticity
Ultimate Tensile Strength
Yield Strength
Thermal Conductivity

4.0

0.055 - 0.065
9 13

Lbs./ inch
O
-6
in/ in F x 10

1.0 3.0
12 100
12 100
1.5 2

PSI * 10
3
PSI * 10
3
PSI * 10
O
BTU/ Hr. Ft F

PLASTIC PIPING SYSTEM:

The Plastic Piping System consists of Piping Profile fabricated from plain end pipe, plain and
flanged end Fittings (i.e. Elbows and Reducers) and stub-in branch connections. The Flanged
Joints are Stub Ends with loose Backing Flanges. In case of Flanged Tapping Long Stub
Flanges are recommended to be used in place of pipe stub-in and Short Stub Flanges.
The pipe to pipe and pipe to fittings joints are laminated joints. Accessories to Piping System
include Soft Rubber/ CAF Gaskets and Full Threaded Fasteners with Washers.

4.1 Design Considerations:

Owing to weak mechanical properties a minimum of NS 2 line size is recommended for

Plastic Piping. However tapping of small size (i.e. smaller than NS 2) are permitted for
drain/ vent etc. provided the branch connection is adequately supported.

Since the piping joints employed as per Uhde Standard are laminated joints (Refer DIN
16966 Part 8 for details) requiring a large overlap length, care shall be taken to ensure
adequate spacing between the joints to avoid the overlapping of the laminate structure.

Owing to its large Co-efficient of Thermal Expansion the Plastic Pipelines exhibit a high
tendency to grow under moderate temperatures. This may result into sizable deflection of
the branches and the corners of the Piping Profile. It shall therefore be ensured that the
branch connections are not over stressed, either by providing adequate flexibility on the
branch piping or by fixing the branch points by external means to disallow its deflection.
If free movement of the corners of the piping profile can be allowed (i.e. e.g. not being
hindered by any other external item) then it is preferable to leave the profile to grow freely.
However if the growth of the profile has any adverse effect on the system stability (i.e.e.g.
supports falling off from the external structure) it may be appropriate to restrict the growth
of the sides of the profile by providing fixed supports at various locations as per Plastic
Piping Support recommendations.

Unlike Steel, bellows are not used on Plastic Piping. The thermal stress behavior is
addressed either by providing in-built flexibility in the system or by arresting the axial
growth of the pipe runs within the pipe length itself. In case the later method is employed,
the pipe may have to be guided at close intervals to avoid failure due to buckling.

Owing to its weak nature, the plastic piping shall not be supported by a line contact
between the pipe surface and the external structure taking the load. Hence as a general
rule Clamp and Shoe type supports shall be employed on Plastic Piping System

TRAINING MANUAL PIPING

PLASTIC PIPING SYSTEM
Uhde India Limited

DOC No. : 29040-PI-UFR-0032

Rev.

: R0

Page

: 5

All concentrated loads (e.g. On-line Valves, Instruments etc) shall be directly supported to
ensure that the load is transferred to the grade/ external structure without stressing the
piping.

All the valves employed on Plastic Piping shall be provided a Fixed Type Support to
ensure that the Piping is not over stressed in case of jamming of the Valve hand wheel
while operating.

Due to excess thickness of Plastic Pipe (as compared to Steel) it is likely to obstruct the
opening of the flap of Sandwich type Butterfly/ Wafer Check Valve into the pipe. In order
to address the above issue the Spacer Rings (made of same or equivalent material as
pipe) will be employed across the valve. The above Spacer Ring is procured as a Special
Part.

4.2 Bill of Material Considerations

The Bill of Material for Plastic Piping is worked out similar to the steel piping with the following
exceptions.

Since Uhde Standard requires the Flanged (one end or both end flanged) Fittings i.e.
Elbows and Reducers to be shop fabricated it requires a careful consideration to assess
the precise requirement of the Flanged Fitting of each type and differentiate the same
from the plain end fittings.

Since all Branch connections are stub-in type the material required for fabricating branch
connections shall be accounted for, while computing the pipe quantities.

In case of Flanged Tapping the branch connection is made by employing Long Stubs
Flange instead of pipe stub-in with a Short Stub Flange. Care shall therefore be exercised
to differentiate the above Flanges Tapping from the rest of branches to be able to
estimate the requirement of Long and Short Stub Flanges accurately.

Spacers shall be accounted for (as Special Parts) across all Sandwich Type Butterfly
Valves and Wafer Check Valves.

4.3 Technical Specification Considerations:

The Vendors scope includes supply, fabrication, erection, supporting and testing of Plastic
Piping as per the Enquiry Document.

Items such as Gaskets, Fasteners, On-line Valves, Instruments, Special Parts are
excluded from the Vendors scope.

All Piping items in Vendors scope shall be fabricated by Hand Lay-up method to ensure
superior Chemical Resistance properties.

The whole Laminate Structure shall be UV absorbent.

The Piping items shall be fabricated and supplied as per the UN 3030 16 (Part-1) and all
other relevant DIN Standards referenced there in.

The Stub Ends for Flanges shall be fabricated as monolithic structure

The Flanged Elbows shall be in accordance with DIN 16966 Part-2 without the straight
portion.

TRAINING MANUAL PIPING

PLASTIC PIPING SYSTEM
Uhde India Limited

DOC No. : 29040-PI-UFR-0032

Rev.

: R0

Page

: 6

The Piping Material shall comply with the General Quality and Testing Requirements as
per DIN 16966 Part 1

The Inspection and Testing Shall include, but not limited to, the following test
Short Term Hydro test
Laminate Structure and Glass Content
Adhesive Shear Strength
Hardness Test (Styrene Content)
Surface Finish and Dimensional Check

FRP Piping with Thermoplastic (e.g. PVC, PP etc) liner shall be subject to additional leak
test using air at 0.5 Bar-g (max) prior to lamination of liner weld seams.

It is recommended to follow the Laminate Structure of the FRP Piping as per Uhde
Technical Specification. The Vendor shall confirm the same for the specified wall
thickness indicated in the Enquiry Document. Alternatively the Vendor can propose its
own Laminate Structure for Uhdes review and approval.

4.4 Installation Consideration:

The Plastic Piping System shall be installed with permanent supports in place. Erection of
Plastic Piping with temporary supports is not acceptable.

The pipes shall not be stretched in order to match the terminal ends

The Flange Joints shall be tightened to the specified Torque Value only by employing
Torque Wrench.

As far as possible the Piping profile shall be prefabricated in the Vendors shop at site,
leaving only a few field joints for final fit-up.

In case of FRP Piping with Thermoplastic Liner, the Field Weld will always be located at
the convenient height/ location to allow down hand welding/ jointing.