Papers
Plastic Pipes Conference Association # 2010 Vancouver
Derek Muckle
Polyethylene pipes are widely used across the utilities sector for the safe, reliable, transportation of gas or water under pressure. The success of the material in being adopted is partly due to the ability to treat it as an engineering polymer whose properties and failure modes are well understood, predictable, and in the case of failure designed out of field installations. In the recent past, a new failure mode has been observed on field installations made in the United Kingdom, manifesting itself during the application of the squeeze off flow-stopping technique. Type testing of materials and their suitability for use with the squeeze-off technique concentrates on the performance of the seal made (measurement of let-by rates), and on the effect on long term failure modes – ductile strength and also the onset of stress crack related failures in particular. This additional mode is evident during the initial application of the squeeze tool and manifests itself as a ductile tear, either partial or full through the pipe wall adjacent the squeeze point. This has been investigated and probable root causes established, together with preventative measures that can be taken to avoid in-service failures – key to maintaining an enviable track record of predictable performance.
Related papers
Author(s) : Derek Muckle
A technical program has been undertaken to provide evidence on the suitability of polyethylene pipe and fitting systems for the distribution of hydrogen fuel gas. The underlying principle has been to evaluate material in the form of a pipe and to consider the performance of the pipe and of the welded jointing systems...
Author(s) : Derek Muckle
It has long been the case that plastic pipes have been subject of folding operations in a factory and then supplied to site for use in pipeline renovation applications. The same cannot be said for pipes subject to diameter reduction as they have, as a principle, relied on being diameter reduced at site in a forming...
Author(s) : Derek Muckle
Polyethylene pipe is being routinely used for the close fit lining of large diameter water trunk mains, with the twin objectives of improving water quality and reducing losses due to leakage. Trunk mains serve large urban areas and by definition are large diameter pipes; examples of real lining schemes in the past 12...
Author(s) : Wood, Richards, Street, Muckle, Bowman
For the movement of fuel gas and water, plastics pipes are dominant in many markets, and this success has been based on single material solid wall pipes. There are now an expanding number of multi-layered plastics pipes, and described here for the first time is the performance of the second-generation of skinned pipe...
Author(s) : Muckle
In 1999 the Health & Safety Executive agreed to the introduction of a new risk based methodology to be used for prioritising iron mains replacement. The introduction of this methodology combined with the results of major incident investigations has led the Health & Safety Executive to conclude that the potential risk...
Author(s) : Morgan, Muckle, Scott
A three way partnership has resulted in the development of a new solution to the refurbishment of old iron and steel gas service pipes. The solution which has been developed allows a flexible polyethylene replacement pipe to be inserted into the old pipe system. This avoids the need for the costly excavations or...
Author(s) : Muckle, Wood, Reed
Developed to address the practical problems experienced on site with the preparation of the surface of polyethylene (PE) pipes for electrofusion jointing, skinned PE pipe also offers the secondary benefit of general pipe protection against gouging and other forms of abrasion damage. This paper discilsses the concept...
Members of the Association
