Material

This page covers the most commonly used materials of construction for Pipes & Tubes within a process plant.

The two principal international codes used for the design and construction of a process plant are ASME B31.3, Process Piping, and the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Sections.

Generally, only materials recognized by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) can be used as the ‘‘materials of construction’’ for piping systems within process plants, because they meet the requirements set out by a recognized materials testing body, like the American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM).

There are exceptions, however; the client or end user must be satisﬁed that the non-ASTM materials offered are equal or superior to the ASTM material speciﬁed for the project.

The Uniﬁed Numbering System (UNS) for identifying various alloys is also quoted. This is not a speciﬁcation, but in most cases, it can be cross-referenced to a speciﬁc ASTM speciﬁcation.

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ASTM International: American Society for Testing and Materials

This is one of the largest voluntary standards development organizations in the world. ASTM standards define the specific manufacturing process of the material and determine the exact chemical composition of pipe fittings, through percentages of the permitted quantities of carbon, magnesium, nickel, etc., and are indicated by "Grade". This is a reputed scientific and technical organization that develops and publishes voluntary standards on the basis of materials, products, systems and services. This is a trusted name for standards. The standards covered by this organization covers various types of pipes, tubes and fittings, especially made of metal, for high-temperature service, ordinary use and special applications like fire protection. The ASTM standards are published in 16 sections consisting of 67 volumes.

UNS: Unified Numbering System

Alloy numbering systems vary greatly from one alloy group to the next. To avoid confusion, the UNS for metals and alloys was developed.

The UNS number is not a speciﬁcation, because it does not refer to the method of manufacturing in which the material is supplied. The UNS indicates the chemical composition of the material.

An outline of the organization of UNS designations follows:

Some ASTM materials are compatible with speciﬁcations from other countries, such as BS (Britain), AFNOR (France), DIN (Germany), and JIS (Japan). If a speciﬁcation from one of these other countries either meets or is superior to the ASTM speciﬁcation, then it is considered a suitable alternative, if the project certiﬁcations are met.

Material Standard for Pipes and Tubes

A53/A53M. Standard speciﬁcation for pipe—steel, black and hot-dipped, zinc-coated, welded, and seamless.

A106. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless carbon steel pipe for high-temperature service.

A335/A335M. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless ferritic alloy-steel pipe for high-temperature service.

A524-96. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless carbon steel pipe for atmospheric and lower temperatures.

A530/A530M-03. Standard speciﬁcation for general requirements for specialized carbon and alloy steel pipe.

A671-96. Standard speciﬁcation for electric-fusion-welded steel pipe for atmospheric and lower temperatures.

A672-96. Standard speciﬁcation for electric-fusion-welded steel pipe for high-pressure service at moderate temperatures.

A691-98. Standard speciﬁcation for carbon and alloy steel pipe, electric-fusion-welded for high-pressure service at high temperatures.

A179/A179M. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless cold-drawn low-carbon steel heat-exchanger and condenser tubes.

A210/A210M. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless medium-carbon steel boiler and superheater tubes.

A334/A334M. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless and welded carbon and alloy-steel tubes for low-temperature service.

ASTM A519 / A519M: Standard Specification for Seamless Carbon and Alloy Steel Mechanical Tubing

ANSI / API 5L: specifies the manufacture of two product levels (PSL1 and PSL2) of seamless and welded steel pipe for the use of a pipeline in the transportation of petroleum and natural gas

A333/A333M-99. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless and welded steel pipe for low-temperature service.

A312/A312M-03. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless and welded austenitic stainless steel pipes.

A358/A358M-01. Standard speciﬁcation for electric-fusion-welded austenitic chromium-nickel alloy steel pipe for high-temperature service.

A369/A369M-02. Standard speciﬁcation for carbon and Ferritic alloy steel forged and bored pipe for high-temperature service.

A376/A376M-02a. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless austenitic steel pipe for high-temperature central-station service.

A381-96(2001). Standard speciﬁcation for metal-arc-welded steel pipe for use with high-pressure transmission systems.

A409/A409M-01. Standard speciﬁcation for welded large-diameter austenitic steel pipe for corrosive or high-temperature service.

A587-96(2001). Standard speciﬁcation for electric-resistance-welded low-carbon steel pipe for the chemical industry.

A789/A789M-02a. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless and welded Ferritic/ austenitic stainless steel tubing for general service.

A790/A790M-03. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless and welded Ferritic/ austenitic stainless steel pipe.

ASTM A213 / A213M: Standard Specification for Seamless Ferritic and Austenitic Alloy-Steel Boiler, Super-heater, and Heat-Exchanger Tubes

A790 (UNS S31803 / S32205 => Duplex 2205)

A790 (UNS S32550/ S32750/ S32760 => Super Duplex 2507)

B42-02. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless copper pipe, standard sizes.

B466/B466M-98 Standard speciﬁcation for seamless copper-nickel pipe and tube.

B467-88: Standard speciﬁcation for welded copper-nickel pipe.

B68-02. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless copper tube, bright annealed.

B68M-99. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless copper tube, bright annealed (metric).

B75M-99. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless copper tube (metric).

B75-02. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless copper tube.

B88-02. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless copper water tube.

B280-02. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless copper tube for air conditioning and refrigeration ﬁeld service.

ASTM B 861: Standard Specification for Titanium and Titanium Alloy Seamless Pipe

B161-03. Standard speciﬁcation for nickel seamless pipe and tube.

B165-93. Standard speciﬁcation for nickel-copper alloy (UNS N04400) seamless pipe and tube.

B167-01. Standard speciﬁcation for nickel-chromium-iron alloys (UNS N06600, N06601, N06603, N06690, N06693, N06025, and N06045) and nickel-chromium-cobalt-molybdenum alloy (UNS N06617) seamless pipe and tube.

B407-01. Standard speciﬁcation for nickel-iron-chromium alloy seamless pipe and tube.

B444-03. Standard speciﬁcation for nickel-chromium-molybdenum-columbium alloys (UNS N06625) and nickel-chromium-molybdenum-silicon-alloy (UNS N06219) pipe and tube.

B464-99. Standard speciﬁcation for welded UNS N08020, UNS N08024, and UNS N08026 alloy pipe.

B514-95: Standard speciﬁcation for welded nickel-iron-chromium alloy pipe.

B517-03. Standard speciﬁcation for welded nickel-chromium-iron-alloy (UNS N06600, UNS N06603, UNS N06025, and UNS N06045) pipe.

B619-00. Standard speciﬁcation for welded nickel and nickel-cobalt alloy pipe.

B622-00. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless nickel and nickel-cobalt alloy pipe and tube.

B690-02. Standard speciﬁcation for iron-nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloys (UNS N08366 and UNS N08367) seamless pipe and tube.

B705-00. Standard speciﬁcation for nickel-alloy (UNS N06625, UNS N06219 and UNS N08825) welded pipe.

B725-93. Standard speciﬁcation for welded nickel (UNS N02200/UNS N02201) and nickel-copper alloy (UNS N04400) pipe.

B729-00. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless UNS N08020, UNS N08026, and UNS N08024 nickel-alloy pipe and tube.

B338-02. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless and welded titanium and titanium-alloy tubes for condensers and heat exchangers.

Welded Pipes and Tubes:

ANSI / API 5L: specifies the manufacture of two product levels (PSL1 and PSL2) of seamless and welded steel pipe for the use of a pipeline in the transportation of petroleum and natural gas

A53/A53M-02. Standard speciﬁcation for pipe—steel, black and hot-dipped, zinc-coated, welded, and seamless.

A530/A530M-03. Standard speciﬁcation for general requirements for specialized carbon and alloy steel pipe.

A671-96. Standard speciﬁcation for electric-fusion-welded steel pipe for atmospheric and lower temperatures.

A672-96. Standard speciﬁcation for electric-fusion-welded steel pipe for high-pressure service at moderate temperatures.

A691-98. Standard speciﬁcation for carbon and alloy steel pipe, electric-fusion-welded for high-pressure service at high temperatures.

A134-96. Standard speciﬁcation for pipe—steel, electric-fusion (arc)-welded (sizes NPS 16 and over).

A135-01. Standard speciﬁcation for electric-resistance-welded steel pipe.

A139-00. Standard speciﬁcation for electric-fusion (arc)-welded steel pipe (NPS 4 and over).

A312/A312M-03. Standard speciﬁcation for seamless and welded austenitic stainless steel pipes.

ASTM A178/A178M : Standard Specification for Electric-Resistance-Welded Carbon Steel and Carbon-Manganese Steel Boiler and Super-heater Tubes

ASTM A214/A214M: Standard Specification for Electric-Resistance-Welded Carbon Steel Heat-Exchanger and Condenser Tubes

ASTM A226/A226M: Specification for Electric-Resistance-Welded Carbon Steel Boiler Super-heater Tubes for High-Pressure Service

ASTM A423/A423M: Standard Specification for Seamless and Electric-Welded Low-Alloy Steel Tubes