EFFECT OF DENTS AND GOUGES ON THE INTEGRITY OF PIPELINES

A 1993 hazardous liquid pipeline failure in Reston, Virginia and a 1994 gas pipeline failure in New Jersey are thought to have been caused by prior outside damage occurring several years before the failures. The type of damage visible on the pipes consisted of scrapes or gouges and may have been associated with dents caused by some machinery such as backhoe or bulldozer. This report examines the literature associated with dents and gouges in pipelines and similar shell structures. An analysis of rerounding of the damaged area is also carried out. It is concluded that dents in large pipelines are likely to reround under pressure and are, therefore, fairly innocuous. However, gouges and cracks associated with rerounded dents are not innocuous due to the superimposed residual stress field and should be removed if they are detected.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • See also PB97-201693
• Corporate Authors:

  National Institute of Standards and Technology

  Metallurgy Division
  Gaithersburg, MD  United States  20899
• Authors:
  • Fields, R J
  • Foecke, T J
  • deWitt, R
• Publication Date: 1994-6

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: 40 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Failure; Gouges; Hazardous materials; Pipelines; Residual stress; Shells (Structural forms)
• Subject Areas: Design; Pipelines; Terminals and Facilities;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00763456
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: NISTIR-5479
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: May 21 1999 12:00AM