Pipe Stress Analysis

Pipe stress analysis is at the core of what we do here at our Singapore offices in BroadTech Engineering.
Unlike a solid bean structure, which is predominantly designed for strong support, a pipe structure, which is tubular and hollow in nature is designed primarily for the purpose of transmitting fluid materials.
Because a Pipe structure by its very nature is not built for strength, it is important for a professional pipe stress analysis to be conducted to ensure the structural integrity of the piping system as a whole.

Identifying the Top Performing Design Using Pipe Stress Analysis

To Comprehend how the most successful FEM Modeling companies approach FEA Stress Analysis, BroadTech Engineering identified Top Performing Marine Structure Consultancy companies Survey respondents were asked to rank their performance in relation to their competitors on four key design metrics. Respondents used a scale of one to five, with five being extremely effective. The top 20% were defined as the Top Performers. Below Illustrates, the Indicative metrics Utilized to define Performance success and each group’s respective Operational performance.

Pipes are used extensively in industrial plants, such as Chemical processing refineries and Power generation facilities.
In terms of applications in Industrial processes, pipe plays a central role in

Facilitating engineering processing
Transmission of gas and liquid in Gas transmission piping system and Liquid distribution pipe systems

Our Pipe Analysis Services & Capabilities

At BroadTech Engineering, our team of highly trained piping design engineers and pipe stress analysis consultants (IL: pipe stress analysis consultants) harnesses the power of world-class computer-aided FEA simulation (IL: FEA simulation) analysis software tools to streamline the piping system design process.
Using the highly advanced finite element simulation FEA software (IL: FEA software) program analysis tools, ANSYS Mechanical, our team of piping system design engineers have the capabilities to efficiently carry out the pipe analysis task, such as

1. Optimization of Strength to Wall thickness Ratio

Our structural engineering consultants (IL: structural engineering consultants) are able to provide the necessary structural engineering services (IL: structural engineering services), such as Optimization of Geometry and wall thickness of piping element structures for maximum structural strength while using the minimal material cost used.

2. Stress Analysis

We provide stress engineering services (IL: stress engineering services) through the Engineering Simulation and Identification of the stress distribution at various Pipe segments and Elbow elements in both thin-walled and thick-walled Piping systems.

3. Pipe Failure Analysis

Stress-analysis to simulate the deformation of pipe cross-section geometry along with specific pipe segments when subjected to various force loading conditions.
Our pipe stress analysis consultants are able to accurately simulate complex deflection behavior conditions, such as Pipe Bending, Collapsing, Ovalization, Warping, Non-uniform Radial expansion.

4. Simulation of Piping interactions with External Forces

Base on the implementation location of the piping system, our comprehensive pipe stress analysis capabilities can also allow you to accurately account for the following external force condition for a more accurate analysis

Hydrodynamic added mass (from external fluid)
added mass (due to internal fluid mass)
Wave loading effect
Buoyant effects.
Pipe to surface contact conditions (like pipe-lay on the seabed)
Pipe-to-pipe contact conditions (like PIP) can also be.
Curved Pipes
Various types of physics Loading forces, such as Axial force, Bending moment, Shear force, or Hoop stress.
Internal and External pressure conditions

Overview

1. FEA Consulting

2. CFD Consulting

3. LS-DYNA Consulting

About Us

BroadTech Engineering is a Leading Engineering Simulation and Numerical Modelling Consultancy in Singapore.
We Help Our Clients Gain Valuable Insights to Optimize and Improve Product Performance, Reliability, and Efficiency.

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Why Choose Us

1. Experienced Piping Design Expertise

Our piping engineering design team have extensive industrial experience in providing pipe design services from construction support to the most intricate 3-D designs.
Working with our highly experienced and skilled structural engineers, we take every possible care to ensure that all piping system structure design that requires pipe stress analysis are carefully evaluated and securely supported.

2. Cost Effective Computer-Aided Engineering Design Capabilities

We have the tools needed to execute detailed designs in the most cost-effective approach possible for piping system layouts and isometrics, equipment arrangements and stack-ups.
3D CAD modeling forms the basic foundation of our piping design process. All our piping system design projects begin with 3-D models.
It is from this master 3D CAD model that the project deliverables are extracted. This includes

Pipe arrangement drawings
Engineering Bill of materials (BOM)
Pipe isometric drawings
Pipe Plans & Elevations drawings

3. Integrated Piping System Design WorkFlow

Our integrated piping system design workflow allows us the capability to conveniently export piping stress analysis files that can then be imported into our pipe-stress analysis software.
This streamlined 3D CAD modeling process enhances the value for our clients and allows for the most economical delivery of our project deliverables (such as design documentation and CAD specification drawings.

Our company has a comprehensive library of piping and insulation specifications, which allows us to support the provision of specific technical details to eliminate additional redundant designs and cut down on precious project man-hours required.

Why is Pipe Stress Analysis Necessary?

Pipe stress analysis necessary for the implementation of any piping system. Through Pipe Stress Analysis we are able to help you address the following piping engineering challenges, such as

1. Ensure Structural Integrity of Pipe Structure

Ensuring structural integrity and safety of the piping structure when subjected to various external temperature conditions via ensuring that the pipe system structure is thoroughly supported throughout.
*This helps to prevent any unsightly sagging or physical deflection due to loading forces arising due to its own weight.

2. To Account for Thermal Expansion

– To ensure physical deflections are well controlled within designed specification when subjected to external thermal and Force loadings

– To evaluate and check to ensure that the force loadings and Moments exerted on the connected processing equipment or tank vessel due to thermal expansion does not exceed beyond the acceptable safety limits.

– to check and ensure that the net stress values in the pipework system in both the extreme cold and hot conditions are within the allowable safety limits.

– This helps to ensure compliance with regulatory and legislative safety policies and design guidelines

3. Ensure Proper Transmission fluids

Ensuring the proper functioning of the piping system when used for transmission fluids of various conditions, such as

– Fluids which are in Liquids or Gaseous state

– Fluids of varying viscosity, from thin liquids to highly viscous liquids

– Fluid of various thermal temperature, from cold to hot to super-heated

– Fluid that is transmitted under various pressure conditions/values from low pressure to highly compressive conditions

4. Design Optimization to Minimize Cost

Minimize the material cost of implementing the Pipe system, by optimizing the piping system to use the minimum pipe wall thickness, while at the same time ensuring that its performance meets the fluid Temperature and Pressure requirements.

Call Us for a Free Consultation

Learn more what Pipe stress analysis can do for your company today by calling us at +6581822236 for a no obligation discussion of your needs.
If you have any questions or queries, our knowledgeable and friendly consultants will be happy to assist and understand more about your needs and requirements.
Alternatively, for quote request, simply email us your detailed technical specifications & requirements to info@broadtechengineering.com

BroadTech Engineering has extensive industry experience with CAESAR II and in industrial factory piping design.
Contact us for a quote today!

1. Powerful ANSYS FEA Simulation Software Tools

2. FEA Consultants with Extensive Research & Professional Experience

3. FEA projects Completed in a Timely and Cost-effective Manner

4. Proven Track Record

5. Affordable

6. Full Knowledge Transfer

Key Components that make up a Piping Systems

1. Restraints

Piping restraints are devices which resist, prevents, or limits the free movement of the pipe thermal expansion or contraction.
The type of pipe restraints can be either Directional, Rotational or a Combination of both.

2. Anchors

Pipe anchors are rigid restraint which is able to offer substantially full fixed, (ie. Encastre or built-in).
It is designed to ideally prevent lateral pipe movements or pipe bending moments from passing through them.
In practice, True anchoring effects are usually difficult to achieve.
A seemingly solid gusseted bracket welded to a housing column does not qualify as an anchor if the column does not have the strength to resist the force loading applied on it.

3. Expansion Loops

Pipe Expansion loops are built-for-purpose engineered devices which are able to absorb thermal expansion in the pipes.
In practice the thermal expansion loops device is often used in combination with restraints and cold pulls.

4. Neutral Planes of Movement

Neutral Planes of Movement refers to the reference planes on the 3 axes of a turbomachinery or pump device from which thermal expansion of the machine begins (eg. the Secured end of a turbine casing).
Usually, this information is provided by the equipment manufacturer’s official specification.
If the information is not available from this source, the fixed points of the machine can be determined by inspection and a calculation of the estimated turbine thermal expansion.
A pipe restraint, when placed in alignment with a neutral reference plane, can help to effectively suppress differential expansion loading forces between the pipe and the machine.

5. Spring Hangers

Spring Hangers are used to provide providing structural support to Piping system that is subjected to Vertical thermal movements.
Standard available single coil spring units are suitable for most implementation.
According to Hooke’s law, the spring’s structural supporting capability will vary in direct proportion to the degree of displacement the spring undergoes due to thermal expansion movement of the pipe.
This thermal variation between cold and hot condition should be within 25 and 50% of the hot loaded condition.

6. Solid Vertical Support

In regions where vertical thermal movement does not result in undesirable effects, or where vertical movement is intentionally prevented or directed, solid supports in the form of rollers, rods or slippers are recommended.
It is important that free horizontal movement of the pipe is not hindered unless horizontal restraint is desired.
Note that it is important for the Slippers and rollers to be well designed and lubricated.

How is the Pipe Stress Analysis Carried Out?

The piping system design is the first 3D modeled using computer-aided simulation analysis software tools.
The 3 dimensional CAD model is constructed base on input information from general piping arrangement drawings, piping isometric CAD drawings, and piping and valve technical specifications.

Once the piping system is accurately modeled into the engineering simulation software system, taking care to set the boundary conditions, comprehensive stress analysis calculations are done.
Base on the feedback from the simulation analysis results, precise design modifications can be made to the 3D CAD model to enhance its structural integrity and ensure compliance with the specific regulatory safety requirements.

Featured Success Pipe Stress Analysis Case Studies

LPG STORAGE TANK PIPING

1. SIMULATION OBJECTIVE

– LPG STORAGE TANK PIPING STRESS ANALYSIS CONSIDERING DIFFERENTIAL SETTLEMENT ON A MAT-FOUNDATION

– To prevent a dangerous situation in which LPG storage tanks explode, 8 LPG storage tanks had to be buried in a mat foundation. As a result, while the long-term settlement at the center of gravity of LPG storage tanks was expected to be 200 millimeters, the settlement of other support foundations on the mat-foundation was expected to become smaller as they became more distant from the tanks, which meant that each support structure on the mat-foundation would not be able to support LPG-storage-tank-pipelines properly due to the differential settlement.

2. METHODOLOGY & APPROACH

– As a piping stress engineer, I received information about the settlement of each and every support foundation on the mat-foundation, from civil engineers. And then, I inputted each displacement, caused by differential settlement, to each equivalent location in the CAESAR modeling.

3. OUTCOME & CONCLUSION

– As expected, most support structures were not able to support the pipelines according to the simulation. As well as that, LPG storage tanks flanges failed to meet the requirement of PEQ(Pressure Equivalent Method), which means flange leakage could occur(The PEQ ratio was higher than 600%), and the result of hot-sustained(Lift-Off) stress check for the pipelines was not satisfactory. To resolve these problems, spring supports were installed at a few locations of the support structures after discussion with the client.

XYLENE PUMP-COLUMN PIPING

1. SIMULATION OBJECTIVE

– OPTIMIZATION OF XYLENE PUMP-COLUMN PIPING BY REDUCING THE NUMBER OF 64-INCH ELBOWS AND THE LENGTH OF 64-INCH PIPES, FOR A MORE COST-EFFECTIVE DESIGN.

2. METHODOLOGY & APPROACH

– Reducing the number of elbows and the length of pipes meant that the imposed loads on the steel structure would increase as the piping system became more rigid and that civil engineers should apply bigger and stronger beams to design it. In collaboration with civil engineers, we compared the overall cost of the modified design to that of the FEED design.

3. OUTCOME & CONCLUSION

– Even though a few special supports were added and most beam sizes were increased, the total cost of the modified design was 30% cheaper than that of the FEED design. We applied the modified one to the xylene-pump-column piping after the client’s approval.

COMPRESSOR PIPING ALIGNMENT CHECK

1. SIMULATION OBJECTIVE

– PRECISE ALIGNMENT CHECK FOR COMPRESSOR PIPING

– When a compressor piping was installed and the gasket between the compressor nozzle flange and the connected piping flange was removed for an alignment check, it was noticed that the compressor nozzle flange fully contacted the connected piping flange, which meant that it violated the requirement for alignment based on API 686. (* The requirement: within 1.5 millimeters in three translational directions and within 0.0579 degrees in three rotational directions.) The misalignment between the two flanges meant that it would cause another misalignment of shafts, and could damage couplings that connect two shafts, by gradually moving the compressor case in the course of time. Therefore, we had to find the reason why the misalignment of the two flanges occurred.

2. METHODOLOGY & APPROACH

– Upon arriving at the site to check for the real situation, I noticed that a steel structure that supported the pipe support closest to the compressor nozzle looked to week. Generally, piping stress engineers consider every pipe support as a fully rigid body when simulating with Caesar II software, while civil engineers mostly allow beam deflection, up to 1/300 ~ 1/100 of beam length. After seeing the structure, I asked the civil engineers in charge about the stiffness and maximum allowable deflection of the beam, and when I applied the stiffness to the equivalent location in the Caesar modeling, I found that the deflection at the support location was larger than 10 millimeters. To resolve this problem, I asked the civil engineers to inform me of all deflections related to the compressor piping, and then applied them to the simulation. As a result, it proved that the steel structures were too weak to support compressor piping properly.

3. OUTCOME & CONCLUSION

– After discussion with the civil engineers, the steel structures were reinforced to meet the requirement for alignment. After that, a new work procedure was established to consider the stiffness of steel structures for compressor piping between civil engineers and piping stress engineers.

Pipe Stress Analysis of Large Diameter Pan Island Pipelines in Jurong Island:

Pipe Stress Analysis of Pipelines using CAESAR II was conducted during Basic Design Stage to determine the feasibility of the proposed route along roads in Jurong Island with overcrossing and under crossings using overhead bridges and underground tunnels.
The analysis is based on the assumption that all pipeline supports are with piled foundations to avoid the possibility of the pipelines being left without support considering that the pipeline span is set at 12m apart for economic reasons. CAESAR II software model was then created using ASME B31.4 code for liquid transportation pipelines as the fluid is crude oil. The worst-case liquid density was then considered together with the worst-case pipeline scenario (pressure and temperature) that could be foreseen during the Basic Design stage as there no available data from the source and delivery ends.
During the Detailed Design stage, all the assumptions made during the Basic Design stage were proven correct hence the pipe span, pipe schedules, and pipe routes were not changed. The pipelines were constructed and commissioned. The pipelines are currently in operation.

Topsides and vertical pipelines:

Pipe stress analysis of pipelines using CAESAR II was conducted during the detailed design stage to determine if the pipelines can withstand surge pressure from the topside manifold through the 100m vertical pipeline towards the underground caverns beneath Banyan Basin.
The analysis is based on the assumption that there would be sudden valve closure triggered by the ESD system during emergencies at the delivery side and sudden pump shutdown at the supply side. A meticulous surge analysis model was then conducted to determine the worst-case scenario if there would a sudden valve closure and pump shutdown. Due to excessive pressures developed determined by the surge analysis, an additional pressure regulating valve was added at the foot of the vertical pipe to automatically regulate the pressures without changing the pipe schedule.
The resulting worst-case pressure was then encoded in CAESAR II software to determine additional supports to avoid excessive pipe displacements during the worst-case scenario that could lead to pipe failure. The pipelines were constructed and commissioned. The pipelines are currently in operation.

Pipe Stress Analysis for Singapore Butyl Adhesive Project(SBA) – ExxonMobil (Owner)

Objective:
To design pipe routing for critical lines at Design-Conditions as per ExxonMobil General Practice.
Approach:
ExxonMobil’s main factor for design is SAFETY. Piping systems are designed to ensure flexibility to avoid overstress due to extreme temperature and pressure effects(Design-Conditions), prevent flange-leakage, prevent overloading at equipment nozzles, prevent overloading at piping supports and structures, and minimize lateral and axial movements to avoid Clash within piping systems and other disciplines. Systems are analyzed thoroughly to overcome these effects. Every critical design is discussed with the client(ExxonMobil) and vendors(mostly Equipment Manufacturer) to assure it is within their considerations and limits.
Conclusion:
Due to extreme effects at Design-Conditions, Piping systems are designed conservatively wherein the considerations for economy and beauty is in less priority, but with the consideration for safety at the highest priority, it is ensured that the plant will operate sustainably, longevity, and the most important to avoid casualty.

Pipe integration work in LNG Plant in SLNG.

Piping connected directly to vertical reboiler and column using Caesar II Program. During the early stage of the project, supporting the vertical reboiler is very critical in this case study because if the reboiler should be supported independently (supported from the ground), spring supports should be installed underneath the reboiler but if the reboiler should be attached directly from the column, normal or rigid support is applicable. If the reboiler is supported by a rigid support, the nozzle loads on the column and reboiler are extremely high, therefore nozzle loads should be sent to the vendor for further evaluation and approval.
– To Analysed the pipe stress due to surge force of emergency shutdown valves. The scenario was new integrate piping that ties into existing LNG pipe

– Methodology was dynamic analysis performed by “water hammer” and “time history”

– Result of the analysis show acceptable and the result was used for all cryogenic pipe support design.

Pipe stress analysis for gas conditioning and distribution station ( Mandai OTS, Woodlands East OTS, Banyan OTS, Tuas & Tembusu Metering Station)

Stress calculation of Piping connected to Centrifugal Compressors using Caesar II Program. There are other things to be checked besides the compressor nozzle loads like the installation of adjustable supports for the compressor nozzle alignment checking, piping straight run requirement, and provision of the removable spool (break flanges) required during the maintenance period.
– Main purpose of the analysis is to analyze the piping & pipeline design is within the code allowable stress

– Basically, this is a normal static analysis. All the results of individual support will be required for pipe support civil foundation design.

Pipeline analysis for various project

Stress Calculation of Piping connected to Centrifugal Pumps using Caesar II Program. Other things to be checked for piping connected to pumps a. Operating mode of the pump (example; Pump A and B are operating then Pump C is stand by), b. Nozzle Alignment Checking, c. Straight run requirement. d. Provision of removable spool/break flange for maintenance purposes.
– To analyze the pipeline stresses as per code allowable stress. it is a static analysis which to analyze the pipeline under the tunnel. Settlement of the tunnel is required to consider in the analysis.