Piping Systems

Fluid piping system design

To create the right fluid piping system design for your application, there are three questions you should ask yourself: what material is the piping system conveying? How fast is the piping system going to convey this material? And what volume should the piping system be able to handle per unit of time? To answer these questions, the conveyable material, the flow velocity, and the flow rate should be considered.

When conveying material through a fluid piping system, high temperatures could be involved, or corrosive material may pass the piping system. Hence, it's essential to account for the type of material to be conveyed to prevent damage to the piping system.

The flow velocity, the average speed of fluids flowing through a pipe, should also be considered because if a flow velocity is too high, this could cause damage to the piping system. If the flow velocity is too low, flow problems might occur.

The flow rate, the volume of fluids conveyed through a pipe per unit of time, also could bring both flow problems and damage to the fluid piping system when not considered.

An optimal combination of the proper flow velocity and flow rate should be achieved with a piping system designed for a specific material to increase efficiency and reduce the likelihood of damage to the piping system.

Fluid flow in piping systems

Flow is the movement of pressurized fluids between volumes of varying pressures. Pressurized fluid always moves from higher pressure to lower pressure. The fluid is stagnant without a pressure differential, and the system lacks flow. Uncontrolled fluid in motion can physically destroy pumps, piping, valves, meters, and other fluid flow control system components.

Controlling the fluid flow is essential for optimizing and protecting fluid piping systems by using various technologies to control fluids like air and liquid; fluid piping systems and products last longer in demanding environments.

Managing fluid flow in fluid piping systems can be difficult; controlling and managing these systems should consider essential factors such as pressure head, elevation head, velocity head, and reduced system flow rates.

When not accounting for these factors, significant damage can be caused to the fluid piping system, resulting in system failure and downtime.