What Is Corrugated Steel Pipes?
Corrugated steel pipes, with their unique corrugated structure, offer enhanced rigidity. This makes them exceptionally capable of deformation when subjected to external loads or internal pressures.
Consequently, they’re widely utilized for the transportation of liquids, gases, and particulates.
Moreover, corrugated steel pipes possess remarkable wear resistance and corrosion resistance. This has led to their extensive application in areas such as bridges, pipelines, underground utility tunnels, and sponge cities.
Various manufacturing methods exist for corrugated steel pipes, including cold bending, spin forming, mechanical expanding, and hydraulic expanding.
Among these, the cold bending process evenly compresses the tube, ensuring moderate thinning.
This method meets the demands for efficiency and precision and has become a pivotal technique for shaping metal corrugated pipes.
Types of Corrugated Steel Pipes
Segmented Corrugated Steel Pipes
Assembled using two or more corrugated panels and fastened together using high-strength bolts, these pipes are characterized by their thin panels and lightweight design.
This makes them easy to transport, store, and provides a straightforward construction process with shorter timelines.
Typically made from Q235B steel, Q345B steel is used for large spans with high fill.
Available in various cross-sectional shapes, like circular, elliptical, and horseshoe, they’re primarily employed in highway culverts, railways, municipal projects, and storage areas.
Current manufacturing processes involve bending individual corrugated panels, processing and fitting bolt holes, and then assembling on-site. However, this method has its drawbacks, including inefficiency, inconsistency, and challenges in assembly.
Whole Corrugated Steel Pipes
Formed by welding a steel plate or strip into a tube shape and then cold bending it into a circular corrugated steel pipe. The ends are welded to flanges, and these are then fastened with high-strength bolts.
Asbestos or rubber gaskets ensure a tight seal between flanges. Recognized for their high strength, thin sections, lightweight nature, and shorter construction time, they typically employ Q235B steel and generally have a circular cross-section.
These pipes are aesthetically pleasing and have the advantage of easy sealing. The corrugations add flexibility to the pipe, allowing it to bend and expand in different directions, adapting to varied installation locations and environments.
However, transporting these whole pipes can be expensive.
Spiral Corrugated Steel Pipes
Invented in the U.S. in 1896, spiral corrugated steel pipes have been in use for over 100 years in developed Western countries.
Typically made using double-sided galvanized steel plates with a coating of 600g/m, these pipes are mechanically corrugated and formed with a rolled edge.
They’re primarily used in underground drainage, urban sewage systems, highway culverts, multipurpose utility tunnels, well pipes, irrigation channels, mine escape routes, and more.
Their strengths include high rigidity, flexibility, lightweight construction, quick installation, longevity, stable environmental performance, and cost-effectiveness, making them a top alternative for drainage pipes.
Unlike traditional whole corrugated steel pipes, the corrugations in spiral ones are helical, enabling them to withstand higher pressures and thermal stresses.
These pipes are known for their unique corrugation shape, which offers excellent flexibility and elasticity, allowing them to bend and stretch in multiple directions.
Furthermore, the smooth inner wall prevents sediment build-up, and the pipe boasts superior corrosion resistance and a long lifespan.
Most spiral corrugated steel pipes are manufactured continuously, offering high production efficiency and catering to large-volume production.
However, this method requires a substantial investment and occupies a significant area.
