Fracture Resistance in Line Pipe

Abstract

The program of research on line pipe under the sponsorship of the A.G.A. Pipeline Research Committee is a comprehensive effort to investigate the important properties of pipe used in gas transmission. Several different phases are involved in this project, ranging from fundamental laboratory studies to fracture-behavior experiments on large-diameter pipe. This paper discusses the full-scale experimental parts of the program in which the fracture toughness of line pipe is being studied. Some of the factors that influence full-scale fracture behavior are discussed—material properties, fracture speed, temperature, wall thickness, nominal stress level, and type of backfill. Laboratory fracture tests that are being run and correlated with full-scale behavior are also described.