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Unified Approach to Thrust Restraint Design

Article  in  Journal of Transportation Engineering · January 2007

DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)0733-947X(2007)133:1(57)

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 Unified Approach to Thrust Restraint Design
Jey K. Jeyapalan, Ph.D., P.E., M.ASCE1; and Sri K. Rajah, Ph.D., P.E., M.ASCE2

Abstract: The design of thrust blocks for water pipelines and sewer force mains vary from one pipe material or standard to another just
like the design of pipe wall thickness. This creates tremendous confusion among consulting engineers and owners of projects. The
designers and the owners have to look up Design Manual M9 for concrete pipe, Design Manual M11 for welded steel pipe, Design Manual
M41 for ductile iron pipe, Design Manual M23 for PVC pipe, and Design Manual M45 for fiberglass pipe. In many countries, water
pipeline materials are required to meet a common standard, where design equations are kept the same whereas material properties vary
from one pipe material to another. The purpose of this paper is to start from the fundamental principles of fluid mechanics and
geotechnical engineering and build the engineering know-how needed to apply the same design methodology for all pipe materials and
applications. A step-by-step design methodology is presented.
DOI: 10.1061/共ASCE兲0733-947X共2007兲133:1共57兲
CE Database subject headings: Soil-structure interaction; Pipelines; Pipe design; Thrust.

Introduction of earth pressure coefficients. In this paper a unified approach

Due to the layout requirements in both above ground and under-
ground pipelines, unbalanced hydrostatic forces known as thrust
forces are present at the locations where the pipeline changes
either in size or in direction. Examples of such locations include
horizontal and vertical bends, tees, wyes, reducers, offsets, bulk-
heads, pipe bifurcations, and valves. Unless the pipeline is prop-
erly restrained to resist the unbalanced forces, either separation
can occur at the pipeline joints or pipe wall stresses could ap-
proach yield strengths. While providing thrust-resisting supports
in an above ground pipeline can resist thrust forces, resisting
thrust forces in an underground pipeline is usually accomplished
with thrust blocks, restrained joint systems, or a combination of
both.
Although, various pipe design standards in the American
Water Works Association 共1979, 1989, 1996a,b兲 present design
equations for the design of thrust restraint systems utilizing thrust
blocks and restrained joints in underground pipelines, the equa-
tions are often derived with different assumptions and hence are
not the same. Considering the theory behind the thrust block de-
sign is based on simple statics and does not depend on the type of
pipe wall material, the differences in formulations are often con-
fusing and are mostly misunderstood 关for example, see Romer
共1998兲兴. Ironically, the same paper by Romer 共1998兲, in attempt-
ing to point out how to avoid common thrust restraint mistakes,
made even more fundamental errors, e.g., the definition and use
independent of pipe wall material or type of pipeline use is pre-
sented for the design of thrust restraint systems in an underground
pipeline system.
Review of Current Design Methodology
Thrust Block Design
The design of a thrust block can be based on gravity or bearing
depending on the source of the unbalanced forces. Bearing-type
thrust blocks supporting a horizontal bend and a concave verti-
cal bend are shown in Figs. 1共a and b兲, respectively. A gravity-
type thrust block supporting a convex vertical bend is shown in
Fig. 1共c兲. The distinction between the bearing and gravity thrust
blocks is made based primarily on the mechanism with which the
unbalanced forces are resisted. The bearing type thrust blocks are
designed to safely transmit the unbalanced thrust forces to the
undisturbed soil in bearing using some form of earth pressures.
The required bearing area of the thrust block is given by
T
Ab = 共1兲
Sba
where Sba 共=Sb / S f 兲 = design soil bearing strength in the direc-
tion of the unbalanced thrust force 共either kN/ m2 or psi兲;

1
Vice President, Camp Dresser & McKee Inc., 100 Great Meadow
Rd., Suite 104, Wethersfield, CT 06109. E-mail: jeyapalanjk@cdm.com
2
Senior Soil-Structure Interaction Engineer, URS Corporation,
Century Square, 1501 Fourth Ave., Suite 1400, Seattle, WA 98101-1616.
E-mail: sriគrajah@urscorp.com
Note. Discussion open until June 1, 2007. Separate discussions must
be submitted for individual papers. To extend the closing date by one
month, a written request must be filed with the ASCE Managing Editor.
The manuscript for this paper was submitted for review and possible
publication on January 6, 2003; approved on July 27, 2006. This paper is
part of the Journal of Transportation Engineering, Vol. 133, No. 1,
January 1, 2007. ©ASCE, ISSN 0733-947X/2007/1-57–61/$25.00. Fig. 1. Typical thrust block arrangements

JOURNAL OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING © ASCE / JANUARY 2007 / 57

 Fig. 2. Thrust forces in most common thrust restraint situations

Sb = allowable soil bearing strength 共either kN/ m2 or psi兲;
S f = safety factor 共usually taken as 1.5兲; T = unbalanced thrust
force resultant 共either kN or lb兲; and Ab = required bearing area
of the thrust block 共either m2 or in.2兲. A series of different types of
unbalanced force situations and the corresponding unbalanced
force resultants are shown in Fig. 2.
The gravity type thrust blocks are primarily designed to have
sufficient weight to counter the vertical component of the unbal-
anced forces, while not exceeding the allowable design bearing
stresses in the vertical and horizontal directions. The volume of
the thrust block, Vg, is given by
S f Ty
Vg =
␳c
where Ty = vertical component of the unbalanced force resultant
共either kN or lb兲; and ␳c = density of concrete to be used in thrust
block 共either kN/ m2 or lb/ in.2兲.
Restrained Joint System Design
As an alternative to providing thrust restraint mechanism using
thrust blocks, restrained joint systems may be used. In general,
the restrained joint system is a mechanical 共welded or harnessed兲
joint providing longitudinal restraint. The objective of the thrust
restraint design using a restrained joint system is to determine the
length of the pipe that must be restrained on each side of the point
of action of the thrust force.
The primary objective of the restrained joint system design
is to transmit the unbalanced forces to the surrounding soil with-
out overstressing the pipeline wall and without subjecting the
pipeline to joint separations. In order to accomplish the transfer
of the unbalanced forces to the surrounding soil, friction in
AWWA 共1979, 1989, 1996a,b兲 and passive resistance in AWWA
共1996a兲 have been relied upon. A comparison of how the design
of restrained joints is handled in various AWWA design manuals
is summarized in Table 1 along with the proposed Unified
method. The length of the pipe section with restrained joints
on each leg is calculated using the sum of the components of the
unbalanced forces in the direction of the corresponding leg in
some AWWA design manuals 共1979, 1989兲. In some other
AWWA design manuals 共1996a,b兲, the length of the pipe section
共2兲 with restrained joints is determined based on the unbalanced force
resultant to be transmitted to the soil. Although, it was the inten-
tion of the paper by Romer 共1998兲 to use proper restraint to mini-
mize either size or length of the restraint required, the paper fell
short of providing a safe solution in most situations arising in the
field.
For the purpose of this paper, we will evaluate the theory
corresponding to a horizontal bend and base our discussion on
the merits and demerits of those equations. The design equation
for the length of the pipe section with restrained joints from vari-
ous design manuals for a horizontal bend can be summarized as
follows:
S f Tr
L= 共3兲
n共Fs + Rs/2兲
where L = length of the restrained pipe on each side of the bend
共either m or in.兲; Tr = design unbalanced thrust force on one side

Table 1. Design Methods for the Thrust Restraint Joints in AWWA Manuals
Design method M9 M11 M41 M23 M45 Romer Unified
Friction Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Friction mobilized above the pipe Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes
Passive resistance No No Yes Yes No No Yes
Based on transfer of forces in the direction of the pipe legs Yes Yes No No No Yes Yes
Based on transfer of forces in the direction of the unbalanced force resultant No No Yes No Yes No Yes

58 / JOURNAL OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING © ASCE / JANUARY 2007


Fig. 3. Schematic showing pipe-soil interaction forces at a horizontal
bend
of the bend 共either kN or lb兲; n = direction cosine for the angle
between the resultant unbalanced force and the direction in which
the maximum friction is mobilized; Fs = maximum unit frictional
force that could be mobilized in the direction of the unbalanced
thrust force resultant 共either kN or lb兲; and Rs = maximum unit
bearing resistance 共either kN/ m2 or psi兲, as shown in Fig. 3. The
values for the various terms used in Eq. 共3兲 in various design
manuals are summarized in Table 2.
A factor of safety value of 1.5 is recommended in AWWA
Design Manual M41, whereas other design manuals do not rec-
ommend any specific values. However, Design Manual M11
points out that since the passive resistance was not included in the
formula, this will give an additional safety factor. Considering the
uncertainty and variations in the field design parameters, it is
prudent to use a factor of safety in the design of the thrust re-
straint system. As to the design methodology, it is important
to ensure that each leg does resist the unbalanced force compo-
nent along the length of the pipe leg, while satisfying overall
equilibrium of the joint. Therefore, it is important that the length
of the pipe with restrained joints in each leg satisfies the follow-
ing conditions:
1. The resultant of the components of the thrust forces in the
direction of the leg should be safely transferred to the soil
along the pipe-soil interface to avoid joint separations; and
2. The resultant of the unbalanced thrust forces should be safely
transmitted to the soil through friction and bearing.
In evaluating the unit frictional force, the Design Manual M11
does not consider the friction mobilized above the pipe. Other
design manuals, M9, M41, and M45 assume that the friction is
fully mobilized above and below the pipe. Romer 共1988兲 notes
that there is a chance that the soil above the pipe might move with
the pipe and thereby the friction above the pipe may not fully
develop if the cover is shallow. It is important to note that if the
soil cover is shallow, in such a case the value of the earth load
will be small and the error due to the wrong assumption is also, as
a consequence, rather small. However, to be conservative, it is
recommended that the friction above the pipe be neglected for
pipes with shallow cover. Design Manual M41 includes the pipe-
soil adhesion in calculating the frictional resistance, whereas
other design manuals do not consider it. Design Manual M41
considers the passive resistance in calculating the resistance
forces, while other design manuals do not consider this.
The design method proposed by Romer 共1998兲, in general,
provides conservative design for most common situations. How-
ever, for uncommon situations such as bends with an angle
greater than 90°, and Wyes with differing diameters in each leg,
his method may result in unsafe designs. Also, Romer’s 共1998兲
work fails for the special hypothetical case of the straight pipe,
i.e., a bend with a zero bend angle. If applied to such straight pipe
segments, Romer’s proposed design methodology would result in
restrained joints for the entire pipe and this is simply a fundamen-
tal error and would lead a designer to raise serious doubts about
the rest of the guidance by Romer 共1998兲.
Unified Design Philosophy
After careful evaluation of the existing design methodologies in
various AWWA design manuals for the design of thrust restraint
systems, a unified method for the design of thrust restraint system
using joint restraints is proposed herein. Design of a restrained
joint system for a horizontal bend is used to evaluate and present
the proposed design philosophy. The design equations for the
length of the pipe section for a horizontal bend with restrained
joints can be derived from force balance equations. As noted ear-
lier, the AWWA design manuals differ as to how the thrust force is
resisted and the directions in which the resisting forces act. Vari-
ous forces acting on a typical bend in a buried pipeline and the
direction in which those forces act are shown in Fig. 3. Particu-
larly, the frictional forces are mobilized in the opposite direction
of the resultant thrust force, adhesive forces are mobilized in the
longitudinal direction of the pipe over its perimeter, and passive
resistance forces are mobilized in the transverse direction of the

Table 2. Comparison of Design Equations for the Design of Thrust Restraint Joints in Different Design Manuals
Design method M9 M11 M41 M23 M45 Romer
Factor of safety 共S f 兲 1.0 1.0 1.5 1.5 1.0 1.0
Design unbalanced PA共1 − cos共␪兲兲 PA共1 − cos共␪兲兲 2PA Sin共␪ / 2兲 2PAS Sin共␪ / 2兲 PA Sin共␪ / 2兲 PA
force 共Tr兲
Unit frictional 共2We + W p + Ww兲 . ␮ 共We + W p + Ww兲 . ␮ ␲Df cC ␲Df cC 共2We + W p + Ww兲 . ␮ 共We + W p + Ww兲 . ␮
force 共Fs兲 2 2
+ 共2We + W p + Ww兲 . ␮ + 共2We + W p + Ww兲 . ␮
Unit bearing 0 0 K n P pD K n P pD 0 0
resistance 共Rs兲
Kn 1.0 1.0 0.2 to 1.0 0.4 to 1.0 1.0 1.0
Note: We = unit earth load on pipe 共kN/m or lb/ft兲; Wp = unit weight of pipe 共kN/m or lb/ft兲; Wwunit weight of water 共kN/m or lb/ft兲; ␲Df cC / 2 = unit
adhesive resistance between soil and pipe 共kN/m or lb/ft兲; f c = ratio of pipe-soil adhesion to soil cohesion; C = soil cohesion 共kN/ m2 or lb/ ft2兲;
D = diameter of the pipe 共m or ft兲; ␮ = frictional coefficient; Kn = empirical reduction factor for coefficient of passive resistance; P p = design value of passive
soil pressure 共kN/ m2 or lb/ ft2兲; ␪ = bend deflection angle 共deg兲; P = design internal pressure 共kN/ m3 or psi兲; and A = cross-sectional area of the pipe 共m2
or in.2兲.

JOURNAL OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING © ASCE / JANUARY 2007 / 59

pipe. The force balance equation in the direction of the pipe leg is both. Pipeline designers should recognize that the movement in
written as follows: pipe against the soil needed to mobilize fully the benefit of pas-
sive soil resistance is ten times that of the movement needed to
S f 关PA共1 − cos共␪兲兲兴 produce an active soil pressure condition. A conservative ap-
L1 = 共4a兲 proach is to use Rankine’s at-rest earth pressure estimates, assum-
␲Df cC ing that the pipe will not move much into the surrounding soil
␮关2␣We + W p + Ww兴sin共␪/2兲 +
2 during its design life.
and the force balance equation in the direction of the resultant
unbalanced thrust force is written as follows:
Summary

S f
PA sin共␪/2兲
L2 =
␲Df cC 1 and critically examines those equations for consistency and tech-
␮关2␣We + W p + Ww兴 + sin共␪/2兲 + Kn P pD cos共␪/2兲
2 2
共4b兲
where 0.5艋 ␣ 艋 1.0= parameter describing the degree of mobili-
zation of friction above the pipe; ␣ = 0.5 denotes no friction is
mobilized above the pipe and ␣ = 1.0 denotes that friction is
fully mobilized above the pipe. The value of ␮ that defines the
friction coefficient between the outer surface of the pipe and
the surrounding soil has been known to vary in the range of
0.25艋 ␮ 艋 0.40 based on the type of soil, degree of compaction,
moisture content, and the type of coating on the pipe. The remain-
ing notations used in these equations are consistent with the no-
tations defined in Table 2. A factor of safety of 1.5 or higher is
recommended for the design of thrust restraint systems. Care
should be exercised in the selection of soil parameters used in the
design, especially when the designer wants to take advantage of
the adhesive and passive resistances from the soil. The design
length of the pipe with restrained joints on each side of the bend,
L, is given by the higher value obtained from Eqs. 共4a兲 and 共4b兲,
i.e.
L = max兵L1,L2其 共4c兲
The paper provides a summary of thrust restraint design equations
nical adequacy. A unified approach is outlined for thrust restraint
design for a horizontal bend. The proposed design approach for a
thrust restraint system using restrained joints can be summarized
in a series of steps as follows:
1. Conduct geotechnical investigation along the pipeline align-
ment, review bore hole logs, plans, profiles, and establish soil
parameters.
2. For each thrust restraint location based on the soil parameters
from investigation, establish design soil parameters ␮, f c, C,
Kn, and P p.
3. Based on cover, size of pipe, soil conditions, estimate the
value of ␣.
4. Calculate the unit loads from soil, pipe, and fluid.
5. Determine the value of factor of safety.
6. Calculate the value of L1 by writing force balance equations
in the direction of the leg.
7. Repeat Step 6 for each leg, if size of pipe or component of
the force in the direction of the leg is different.
8. Calculate the value of L2 by writing force balance equations
in the direction of the unbalanced thrust force resultant.
9. By comparing results obtained in Steps 6–8, determine the
value of L for each leg.

Determination of Soil Parameters
The soil parameters needed to complete design calculations
should start with soil borings and standard in situ geotechnical
testing followed by laboratory testing. Pipe-soil adhesion resis-
tance estimates would rely on the vast body of published litera-
ture on pile-soil interaction. Engineering properties such as unit
weight, cohesion intercept, friction angle, and friction coefficient
under appropriate loading and drainage conditions would come
from either in situ tests, or laboratory tests, or a combination of
Example
Calculate the minimum pipe length that needs to be restrained for
the following conditions:
PVC pipe; D = 0.2 m 共8 in.兲; D0 = 0.228 m 共9 in.兲; P = 10 bars
共150 psi兲; bend angle, ␪ = 45°; soil cover, Hc = 2.13 m 共7 ft兲;
USCS is GC-SC; unit weight of soil, ␥ = 15.7 kN/ cm2
共100 pcf兲; angle of internal friction, ␾ = 25°; ␮ = 0.3; Fc = 0.2;
C = 10.8 kN/ m2 共225 psf兲; Kn = 0.60; ␣ = 0.75; We = ␥. Hc
Do= 7.66 kN/ m 共525 lb/ ft兲; W p = small; Ww = 0.41 kN/ m
共28 lb/ ft兲; and P p = ␥HcN␾ + CQ = 100⫻ 7 ⫻ tan2共45− ␾ / 2兲
+ 225 tan共45− ␾ / 2兲 = 20.4 kN/ sm 共427 lb/ sf兲

1.5关150 ⫻ 64.33 ⫻ 共1 − 0.707兲兴

L1 = = 8.8 m 共29 ft兲
关0.3共2 ⫻ 0.75 ⫻ 525 + 0 + 28兲sin共22.5兲 + 22 ⫻ 0.75 ⫻ 0.2/225/共7 ⫻ 12 ⫻ 2兲兴

1.5关150 ⫻ 64.33 sin共22.5兲兴

L2 = = 4.9 m 共16 ft兲
关0.3共1.5 ⫻ 525 + 0 + 28兲 + 53 sin共22.5兲 + 0.5 ⫻ 0.6 ⫻ 427 ⫻ 0.75 cos共22.5兲兴

60 / JOURNAL OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING © ASCE / JANUARY 2007

Use 8.8 m 共29 ft兲 for each leg of the pipe to carry the unbalanced
forces from the 45° bend.
Recommendations
The principles of fluid mechanics, statics, and geotechnical engi-
neering should govern the design of thrust blocks and thrust re-
straint systems. The use of equations, which are dependent on the
type of pipe material, should be avoided. The effect on the sur-
rounding soil is not dependent upon whether the pipe is made of
steel, concrete, fiberglass, or ductile iron other than the fact that
soil-pipe interaction principles are always at work in controlling
the design. A unified design methodology to all pipe materials is
given in this paper. This approach will help avoid most common
JOURNAL OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING © ASCE / JANUARY 2007 / 61
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thrust block and thrust restraint mistakes practicing engineers
make in their pipeline projects.
References
American Water Works Association 共AWWA兲. 共1979兲. Manual M9, con-
crete pressure pipe, Denver.
American Water Works Association 共AWWA兲. 共1989兲. Manual M11, steel
pipe—A guide for design and installation, Denver.
American Water Works Association 共AWWA兲. 共1996a兲. Manual M41,
ductile-iron pipe and fittings, Denver.
American Water Works Association 共AWWA兲. 共1996b兲. Manual M45,
fiberglass pipe design, Denver.
Romer, A. E. 共1998兲. “Avoiding common thrust restraint mistakes.”
Proc., ASCE Conf. on Pipelines in the Constructed Environment, J. P.
Castronovo and J. A. Clark, eds., San Diego, 97–102.