EUROPIPE about X100 Large-Diameter Pipe 

Thanks to the introduction of high-strengths pipes of grade X 100 in the recently published harmonised specifications of pipes API 5L and ISO 3183 the outlook on future use of this pipe grade made significant progress. The application of grade X 100 offers an economical transport of natural gas over long distances and at high operating pressures. In research projects funded by the European Union the capability of X 100 pipes could basically be verified. Further research projects and test runs undertaken by big gas companies in Europe and North-America are to examine the basic conditions for the application of X 100 line pipe. 

The results already available prove that X 100 provides security against long running cracks thanks to composite crack arrestors. During the test phase EUROPIPE supplied the projects with large-diameter pipes of different dimensions and the corresponding composite crack arrestors. These crack arrestors proved repeatedly their function under extreme conditions in full scale burst tests. The basic design of the composite crack arrestors was provided by Salzgitter Mannesmann Forschung whereas Snamprogetti designed the project relevant parameters. The plates for the large-diameter pipes were delivered by Dillinger Hütte and Mannesmannröhren Mülheim.

More information. Dr. Hans-Georg Hillenbrand
hans-georg.hillenbrand@europipe.com 
www.europipe.com