What is the difference between “required”, “nominal” and “analysis” pipe

wall thickness?

When we say “required pipe wall thickness” we refer to the wall thickness needed to
withstand the internal or external pressure of a pipe. This thickness is calculated using the
equations of the applicable code.

By “nominal pipe wall thickness” we mean increasing the required wall thickness to a
value that is commercially available.

Finally, the “analysis pipe wall thickness” is the thickness we use to calculate the
maximum allowable working pressure.

Let’s give an example to illustrate these concepts. Imagine we are designing the pipes of a
refinery. In this case, the applicable code would be ASME B31.3 and the paragraph for
internal pressure would be 304.1.2.

As you can see, the required wall thickness (t) depends on the following variables:
• P: internal design gage pressure.
• D: outside pipe diameter. Normally you know the nominal pipe size (NPS, in inches)
or the nominal diameter (DN, in mm). E.g. an NPS 2” pipe is a DN 50 pipe. You can
check pipe tables to obtain the outside diameter from the NPS or the DN.
• S: Allowable stress of pipe material. This material property depends on the
temperature and can be obtained from Table A-1 or Table A-1M.
• E: quality factor from Table A-1A or Table A-1B.
• W: weld joint strength reduction factor, as per paragraph 302.3.5(e)
• Y: coefficient from Table 304.1.1 for thin pipes (t < D/6). For thick pipes you have
to use a formula shown in the code.

Let’s assume we have the following values for the above parameters:
• Internal design pressure (P): 5.15 MPa
• Outside diameter (D): 114.3 mm (NPS: 4” = DN 100)
• Design temperature: T = 120 ºC
• Allowable stress of pipe material (S): 137.9 MPa (material: A-106-GR.B)
• Quality factor or joint efficiency (E): 1.0
• Weld joint strength reduction factor (W): 1.0
• Coefficient from Table 304.1.1 (Y): 0.4

In this case, the required thickness is t_r = 2.1 mm.

To calculate the nominal wall thickness (t_n), we have to add two quantities to the
required wall thickness:
• Corrosion (c): some fluids, due to their chemical nature, can eat away (corrode)
the inside wall of the pipe. Depending on the fluid and the pipe material, we have
a certain corrosion rate (a fraction of mm per year). If we multiply this rate by the
plant life, we can easily obtain the overall corrosion in mm.
• Tolerance (tol): the sum of the mechanical allowances: thread/groove depth or
machined allowance. Sometimes this is expressed as a percentage of the nominal
wall thickness. A (mill) tolerance value as per ASME A-106-Gr.B is 12.5%. This
percentage is relative to the nominal thickness.

Let’s assume corrosion is 1mm and tolerance is 12.5%.

Then t_n = t + c + tol = 3.55 mm.
The closest (upper) value is schedule 30 (t_n = 4.78 mm).
Therefore, we would order a Sch 30 pipe.

Finally, the analysis wall thickness (t_a) is calculated by taking the corrosion and the
tolerance away from the nominal thickness. Why do we reduce the wall thickness?
Because we want to calculate the maximum allowable working pressure (MAWP) for the
worst conditions: wall thickness fully reduced by corrosion and tolerance.
For the current example, the analysis thickness would be:
t_a = t_n - c - tol = 3.18 mm.
With this analysis thickness we can carry out a backwards calculation of the pressure from
equation in paragraph 304.1.2, which yields a MAWP of 7.85 MPa.

What is the point of the MAWP? By calculating the MAWP, we make sure our design
pressure is below the maximum value. Besides, we can define the “design margin” as the
ratio of the design pressure over the MAWP. In our case, the design margin is 5.15 / 7.85 =
65.6 %. This percentage is telling us how close or far we are from the maximum pressure:
• Above 100% means that the wall thickness is not enough and not acceptable for
the design conditions
• Close to 100% means the pipe is utilized to its maximum
• Far below 100% means that the wall thickness is probably too thick and we might
be spending too much money on the pipe.
In the previous example, the design margin is around 65%. That means we are “using” two
thirds of the pressure the pipe can withstand.

Other considerations have to be taken into account when selecting the pipe schedule. For
example: using a stronger pipe for a small size pipe branch, prevents damaging the pipe
connection by outside forces such as an operator standing on top of the small pipe.

How can you calculate the required, nominal and analysis wall thicknesses? In principle, if
you are patient and are good at reading ASME codes explanations and long tables, you
could do it with a spreadsheet. However, if you want to automate the process and be
error free, we suggest to use some pipe class software, such as PCC (refer: https://red-
bag.com/software). The calculations made by this software are shown below.

Thanks to @Rutger Botermans, @Red-Bag Director, for providing feedback. The images of
the PCC (Pipe Class Component) software are used by courtesy of @Red-Bag.