Behavior and Design of Buried Very Flexible Plastic Pipes

Abstract

Spangler's equation and Watkins' formula, when used in the current form for very flexible pipes, give poor results. Modifications are necessary to extend their use to very flexible plastic pipes. Simple modifications, based on results from soil‐pipe interaction finite element analyses of very flexible pipes are used to predict the vertical deflection and pipe wall strain. The finite element results are also compared with field data. The effects of deflection factor, deformation factor, pipe dimensions, backfill height, and soil type on the performance of buried very flexible pipes are given. The new design equations would be of great benefit to praticing pipe design engineers.