FRP composite pipe has several advantages over polypropylene pipe including constant inside diameters regardless of pressure rating, lighter weight for easier installation, proven longevity of over 60 years of service, ability to resist attacks from rodents and microbes, and versatility for a wide range of chemical environments. Polypropylene pipe has smaller inside diameters for the same size, requires specialized expensive equipment for installation, and has limited experience for long-term performance.
FRP composite pipe has several advantages over polypropylene pipe including constant inside diameters regardless of pressure rating, lighter weight for easier installation, proven longevity of over 60 years of service, ability to resist attacks from rodents and microbes, and versatility for a wide range of chemical environments. Polypropylene pipe has smaller inside diameters for the same size, requires specialized expensive equipment for installation, and has limited experience for long-term performance.
FRP composite pipe has several advantages over polypropylene pipe including constant inside diameters regardless of pressure rating, lighter weight for easier installation, proven longevity of over 60 years of service, ability to resist attacks from rodents and microbes, and versatility for a wide range of chemical environments. Polypropylene pipe has smaller inside diameters for the same size, requires specialized expensive equipment for installation, and has limited experience for long-term performance.
FRP composite pipe has several advantages over polypropylene pipe including constant inside diameters regardless of pressure rating, lighter weight for easier installation, proven longevity of over 60 years of service, ability to resist attacks from rodents and microbes, and versatility for a wide range of chemical environments. Polypropylene pipe has smaller inside diameters for the same size, requires specialized expensive equipment for installation, and has limited experience for long-term performance.
D-2996 Table 4, has constant and full normal inside diameters - regardless of the pressure rating.
The inside diameters of polypropylene, depend upon the pressure rating.
Flow Capabilities
The flow capabilities of FRP composite pipe can be calculated using
the full nominal pipe diameter. Often, for equal flow capacity, FRP pipe can be one or two diameters smaller than polypropylene pipe.
For polypropylene pipe the engineer
needs to use a larger nominal pipe size because of the significantly reduced i.d. - and thus lower flow capabilities. At least one full size larger polypropylene pipe is required to provide the full flow capacity.
Installation Equipment
FRP composite pipe can be installed
with minimal field equipment and tools. Pipe shavers for field bell and spigot adhesive welds. Hand grinders, rollers, and brushes for field butt overlay welds.
Polypropylene pipe requires special
costly, complex, difficult to adjust and calibrate equipment for making field fusion welds. In addition a separate fusion plate is required for each diameter.
Field Skills Required to Install Pipe
FRP composite pipe can be field installed and joined with skilled piping journeyman, who have received the appropriate classroom and job site training - including making qualifying joints. It is not unusual, or costly, to have multiple journeyman and crews qualified for large FRP composite pipe projects, so many joints can be worked on at one time
Polypropylene pipe requires pipe
joiners with special factory training and skills in operating adjusting and calibrating complex equipment. Because of limitations of the cost of equipment and trained installation personnel, often only one joint can be made at a time.
Job Site Handling
FRP composite pipe, is much lighter
weight, and often can be handled in the field with just one or two men. When longer lengths require lifting capability - much lighter lifting equipment, such as a back hoe, can be used.
Because of the heavier walls, and
coiling of the smaller diameters, polypropylene pipe requires specialized handling equipment, and including cranes. In large diameter and single lengths a spreader bar with multiple lift points is typically required.
proven to be not at all attractive to and attacked by rodents. FRP composite pipe is also specified as the material of choice when microbial induced corrosion (MIC) can occur.
There have been many documented
instances where polypropylene pipe is a favorite food of rodents, and mammals. Being a thermoplastic material it can even be attacked by microbial organisms.
Thermal and Pressure Expansion
The engineering and cost of supports
for thermoset FRP composite pipe is well established with programs like Algor and Caesar available to provide easy engineering of the types, location, and number of supports; all at a much lower cost than for thermoplastic pipe.
Polypropylene pipe, because of its
very high thermal coefficient and pressure expansion requires special design, and engineering support considerations. The costs for polypropylene pipe supports and expansion joints can be as much as 65% greater than those required for alternate materials.
Pumping Consideration
FRP composite pipe is the ideal material selection at pumps - being
available also in an abrasion resistant version, where an abrasion slurry is being handled or cavitation might occur.
When used as a pressure pipe
polypropylene pipe requires special design consideration, including often larger sizes, to prevent starving of pumps, with subsequent pump failure. Costly replacements have been required, especially in the power industry, where polypropylene pipe was originally installed on both the intake and output sides of pumps.
Service Life
FRP composite pipe has been in successful use for 60+ years (well over half a century). Many of those early installations, when inspected still look almost new.
Polypropylene pipe is a relatively
new development and technology. Case history and experiences for specific service environments are relatively limited; and service life is difficult to predict.
by the proper selection of resins, reinforcements and manufacturing technologies; to handle the widest range of chemical service and pressure applications. Well over 82 different Series or types of FRP composite pipe and duct are readily available.
Polypropylene pipe is typically made
from only a single or very limited ranges of polyethylene resins. Only the wall thickness is varied to handle the different pressure ratings and/or external loads. Polypropylene pipe lacks the ability to be optimized for severe and unusual chemical service environments.
Fire Retardancy
FRP composite pipe is available in
fire retardant versions that can be certified to ASTM 84 flame spread rating of under 25. Other versions of FRP composite pipe are available for low smoke and low smoke toxicity.
Polypropylene pipe is highly flammable with very high smoke contributions and smoke toxicity.
Stiffness Factor
FRP composite pipe is installed as a
flexible pipe (per the ring compression theory). But, yet it still has hoop and axial stiffness to allow easy field handling, installation, and when buried, backfilling.
Polypropylene pipe is also flexible.
But, requires careful installation, handling, and backfilling to maintain roundness and axial straightness during installation.
Field Modifications and Repair
The technology and materials for
making field modifications and repairs in FRP composite pipe are well established. The techniques for field modifications and repairs are easily learned and accomplished in a minimal amount of time.
Making changes in polypropylene
piping systems in the field, requires. specialized equipment and welding techniques. Field repairs are especially difficult to accomplish. Often the modifications, especially for T branches and saddles have to be encased with FRP composites to provide the necessary strength.
Lower Pumping Cost
Because of the larger diameter , over
the life of the pipe, FRP composite pipe will have much lower energy pumping costs.
Because of the significantly smaller
inside diameters for the same size pipe, polypropylene pipe will have much higher annual energy costs.
