Composite-Wall Spiral Steel Pipe for Lower Material Use

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current large-diameter steel pipes require excessive wall thickness to prevent deformation under internal and external pressures, leading to material waste and inefficient production due to the need for straight welding seams, which cause stress concentration and high material costs.

Innovation Solution

A large-diameter spiral welded steel pipe with a composite structure wall is formed by spirally roll-welding a double-layer composite steel belt with staggered steel belt layers and reinforcing ribs, where the ribs are integrally welded and protrude to create welding grooves, allowing for non-coincident welding seams and reduced material consumption.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If the wall thickness of the steel pipe is increased to prevent deformation under self-weight and external pressure, then the resistance to deformation is improved, but the material consumption increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveresistance to deformationVSAvoidmaterial consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSLoss of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The pipe wall is divided into two separate steel belt layers (inner and outer layers) with different thicknesses. The inner layer has smaller thickness and the outer layer has larger thickness, creating a composite structure that optimizes material distribution. This segmentation allows the pipe to achieve required strength while reducing overall material consumption compared to a uniform thick wall design.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different parts of the pipe wall have different thicknesses tailored to their specific functional requirements. The inner layer uses thinner material where sufficient strength is achieved, while the outer layer uses thicker material where structural support is critical. This local quality optimization reduces unnecessary material consumption in regions where full thickness is not required.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Ease of manufacture

If straight butt welding is used to connect single-section steel pipes, then the production process is simplified, but the welding seam strength decreases and material thickness must be increased

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvewelding process simplicityVSAvoidwelding seam strength

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSStrength

Solution Approach 1:

The patent employs spiral welding instead of straight butt welding, creating a curved, continuous welding seam that follows the pipe circumference. This spiral configuration distributes stress more effectively along the weld line, resulting in higher welding seam strength and allowing reduction of the welding seam coefficient from 0.85 to 0.95, thereby reducing required material thickness.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

3Device complexity

If the steel pipe uses a single-layer structure, then the manufacturing process is simpler, but the structural efficiency and material utilization are suboptimal

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemanufacturing process complexityVSAvoidmaterial utilization efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSLoss of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent uses a composite structure consisting of two different steel belt layers with distinct thicknesses. The inner layer and outer layer are welded together to form a composite pipe wall that optimizes material utilization. This composite design improves structural efficiency and reduces overall material consumption compared to a single-layer structure with uniform thickness.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #40Composite materials

4Strength

If vertical reinforcing rings are arranged at the spiral welding seam side, then the structural strength is increased, but the rolling process becomes difficult and material cost increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestructural strengthVSAvoidrolling process difficulty

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent removes the vertical reinforcing rings from the pipe structure entirely. Instead, it relies on the optimized double-layer steel belt configuration and improved spiral welding technique to provide the necessary structural strength. This extraction of unnecessary components simplifies the rolling process and reduces material costs while maintaining adequate structural performance.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS20240183466A1Large-diameter spiral welded steel pipe with composite structure wall and method for manufacturing same

Publication Date: 2024.06.06 NANJING DADE STEEL PIPE CO LTD

AI summary

It discloses a large-diameter spiral welded steel pipe with a composite structure wall, being formed by spirally roll-welding of a double-layer composite steel belt, where the double-layer composite steel belt comprises a first steel belt layer and a second steel belt layer that are disposed in parallel in a staggered manner with equal widths; at least two reinforcing ribs perpendicular to the first steel belt layer and the second steel belt layer are disposed there between and are arranged in a manner of extending together with the steel belt layers; and the reinforcing ribs are disposed on edges respectively between which the first steel belt layer and the second steel belt layer coincide in a vertical direction, and after spirally rolling, adjacent steel belt layers of the steel pipe are connected through staggered edges; and he present invention further discloses a method for manufacturing same.