Wear rates in PE slurry pipe

Gents + 2

A slurry test rig we put in is being put into semi-permanent service until we have time to install a properly engineered solution. The revenue generation rate is too great to remove from service until then.
A semi coarse metallurgical slurry (P50 about 75 microns, but with a 1% coarse fraction around 4mm is being pumped through a PE pipe. The pipe (160 PN8 PE80 from memory); operating pressure only around 3 bar) lasted 3 weeks before holing at the bends. We are putting about 70% over design velocity which was about 2.7 m/s, so it has done well.
For the semi-permanent solution, I will put in a bigger, thicker wall PE pipe.
Not sure of the effect of superficial velocity on wear rate, but from an energy gradient perspective, would expect a square law; i.e double the velocity will give 4 times the wall thinning rate. In practical terms I would expect a higher exponent.

Any references?

Tootle pip

Steve Received on Fri Mar 18 04:29:00 2005