Contact person
Jan Henrik Sällström
Forskare
Contact Jan Henrik
Failure investigations of pipes
Take advantage of experience of failures in your pipe system. Gain knowledge so that you do not repeat old mistakes and use bad design solutions. In addition, you need to know the status of your pipe system, so you can assess when different parts need to be replaced.
Purpose
Gain knowledge about the causes of failures in your pipe system. The knowledge is useful to improve the pipe system, find out the status of your pipe system or determine which party caused the failure. A failure investigation is about finding out if the cause is due to poor design solutions, defective components, installation errors, external damage, or age. Failures in pipe systems are often related to joints between pipes and pipe parts but can also be due to that the pipes are worn out. Cast iron pipes are exposed to corrosion and after many years of operation, the material thickness can become very thin locally. Polymers in plastic pipes also age and can degrade after long-term usage.
Knowledge gives you the opportunity to improve your pipe system, by being able to make better choices when parts are to be replaced or the system is to be expanded. By gaining knowledge about the status of the pipe system, you can better plan your maintenance and replace components in time. Often the purpose of a failure investigation can be to clarify the issue of liability. RISE performs independent failure investigations of pipes and fittings made of plastics and metal.
Method
Initially, we compile the information about the failure that the customer has. This concerns how the component had been installed in the pipe system, position of leakage, make, operating conditions, age and any protocols kept during installation. After that an ocular inspection follows and possibly a pressure test if we need to determine the position of the leakage.
Then a specific investigation is initiated related to the type of component and failure. Is there a standard that the component should have met upon delivery? We assess whether the component met current requirements and specifications upon delivery. This often means that we measure the component geometrically and take out test specimens to do destructive testing. When welded joints are investigated, it is often also a question of destructive testing, but analysis of fracture surfaces with a microscope can also be considered.
Deliveries
Conditions and conclusions of our investigation are compiled in a written report.
