Pipe Stress Capabilities
Our experienced team of pipe designers and engineers have years of experience with piping system design and pipe stress analysis. We provide full-service pipe design and pipe stress analysis services, from initial concept through final construction.
The design of piping systems is driven by code requirements. The pipe stress analysis engineers at XCEED have experience with these codes, and we understand how and when they need to be applied. Some of the most common codes applicable to pipe design include:
- B31.1: Power Piping
- B31.3: Process Piping
- ASME B&PV Code, Section III
Pipe Stress Analysis
The biggest challenge for pipe designers is the flexibility of piping systems. Changes to routing or support locations that appear to be minor can have a big impact on pipe stress, pipe supports, nozzles, and other equipment. We understand the impact that these minor changes can have, and we can help your team design the piping system to minimize the impact to the rest of the system.
Pipe Support Analysis
Our pipe stress analysis team uses a combination of hand calculations and FEA analysis to evaluate the loads on each pipe support. To reduce cost, we incorporate existing pipe supports to new pipe design. Our team can evaluate the existing pipe supports for new loads, making only minimal changes in the field, resulting in significant cost savings.
Nozzle Structural Analysis
Nozzle loads can sometimes be the limiting factor in pipe stress analysis, depending on the equipment. We incorporate manufacturer limits in pipe design, but we have the capability to go further. Our pipe stress analysis team can also use FEA to evaluate nozzle stresses, and we’ve shown that some systems have enough capacity to withstand loads that significantly exceed design limits. FEA analysis showed that this 300 lb nozzle could withstand over 2,000 psi!
Degraded System Evaluation
Inspections can often uncover degraded portions of piping systems. Often, fixing these issues can only be done during a costly outage. We use pipe stress analysis and FEA to evaluate these issues, and often times, we’re able to reasonable assurance that the system will operate until the next scheduled maintenance window.
Transient Analysis
Transient loads place the greatest demand on piping systems. Non-linear analysis of piping systems is sometimes the only way to justify integrity for faulted loads like earthquakes and fluid transients (e.g. water-hammer). We use the latest Finite Element Analysis (FEA) software to evaluate the extreme loads on pipe systems and their supports. For one plant, our team of engineers evaluated the impact of a wind driven tornado missile on a piping system.
System Optimization for Cost
Using pipe stress analysis, we ensure that your piping system will be built to last. We optimize all of our designs, limiting expensive, maintenance-intensive components like snubbers. Our pipe design team also looks at total cost of ownership. We understand that operators often need to operate the equipment, and we incorporate ease of use in the design to save operators time, and save money.
