"TTT veer vm wee eEEReead Axial Limit Fig. 2.1—~Typical pup piping manos * Spring supports are often needed near a pump toreduce the dead weight load while permitting free vertical pipe thermal growth without exert- ing thermal loads on the pump. * When spring supports are used in a piping system, the variation of spring force with deflec. tion must be considered in the design calcula tions. 2.5 Supports, Guides and Restraints There are a wide variety of pipe supports, guides and restraints, which may be used, in a piping system. The following paragraphs discuss the use of these items. Figures 2.2 and 2.3 provide examples of typical pipe supports, guides and restraints 2.5.1 Pipe Supports Supports are provided to carry the weight of the Pipe along with its associated insulation, process fluid, fittings, valves, ete. They should not interfere with the intended thermal expansion of the piping. Resting type supports are common for horizontal runs. These provide a vertical reaction force while allowing the pipe to slide laterally. Excessive friction can cause resting supports to restrain thermal expan- sion. Therefore, any adverse friction effects must be considered in a pump piping system evaluation, ‘To minimize friction effects at resting supports, PTFE or other low friction type bearing plates may be used. This approach may be especially appropri- ate for larger diameter piping or at supports carrying 16 WRC Bulletin 449ooveenesad movement a ad rd edd ed edd do OOOO WY Fig. 22—Typical Pipe Supports and Hangers , heavy loads such as at valves or long vertical runs. Low friction bearing plates are not necessary where analysis shows acceptable friction forces. Lifting of the pipe from the support under operat- ing conditions can occur if the upward force due to thermal expansion exceeds the downward weight force. For example, consider a hot tower with a cooler Tine running from grade to a nozzle near its top. The growth of the tower will lift the pipe from its support ut Typical Counterweight Systems at grade. An analysis of this line should account for the possibility of lifting at the grade support. Hanger type solid and spring supports also can be used to eliminate friction effects and sticking be- ‘bveen pipe and support. When designing this type of arrangement, the rod length should be at least 10 times the anticipated lateral pipe movement to avoid imposing additional loads on the pipe as a result of free movement being restrained by the hanger rod, Installation of Pump Piping Systems awPe Poe eT OH TTC SOOOTOO TOTO SCC OS HST OCS COECEDEEEDEELEY joint Stet Fi. 2.3-~Typical Pipe Guides and Restraints ‘These support types require higher support struc- tures and more plant space than resting type sup- ports. However, where the plant arrangement per- mits their use, they should be considered, particularly in high temperature or other critical services where unpredictable restraints can cause difficulties. Spring supports, either the pedestal or hanger types, (See Figure 2.4) are used where there is substantial vertical thermal movement of the pipe and support is required. Spring supports should be avoided if possible where flow pulsations are antici pated (e.g. reciprocating pump systems). However when they must be used in such a system, additional pipe restraints and guides may be required to avoid excessive pipe vibration. Acconstant effort type spring support (See Figure 2.5), as the name implies, exerts the same force, on the pipe through the entire movement range of the spring. As a rule, their use should be considered when pipe thermal movement would result in more than a 15% variation in the force applied by a standard, variable force spring. Constant effort springs may be beneficial at smaller load variations in systems that are troublesome with regard to meeting allowable nozzle load limits. Frictional effects at pedestal type spring supports cannot always be ignored even though the pedestal normally follows lateral pipe movement with little smeveest range resistance. There is typically some clearance be- ‘tween the spring support pedestal and the sides of its canister, on the order of “’-14". Ifthe pipe movement at such a spring is less than the clearance in the spring support, then friction at that support can be ignored. This is because the pipe movement will cause the pedestal to float on the spring and friction between the support pedestal and the pipe will not exert load on the pipe. However, if the thermal movement is greater than the canister clearance, then friction must be considered at the spring sup- port (and the support must be secure against the friction force) 2.5.2 Guides and Restraints Piping restraints are devices, which prevent, re- sist, or limit the free thermal movement of the piping system. They do not resist pipe rotation or bending moment. In a pump piping system restraints are installed to control the direction of thermal expan- sion in the system, thus avoiding excessive loads on pump nozzles. Generally, restraints direct pipe ther- mal movement away from the pump and into other portions of the piping system that have enough flexibility to absorb the movement without becoming overstressed or overloading other connections. A restraint called a guide permits only pipe axial 18 WRC Bulletin 449wr7TveesvevVTVVVEN SUSCSCTTTOVGOTSOFSVSOSSSOSTSSSLSEDOYEEE |—— 3 Fig.24—Typical Hanger and Pedestal Type Varlable Spring Supports Vertical Stop ----- | (remove) Pedestal Type i Horizontal Arrangement Arrangement Trapeze Arrangement Fig,2.5-—Typleal Constant Effort Spring Supports(7. SS ae eG a 4 ss 9. 26—Typial Pipe support coniguraton for pumps supported below the nozzle centeine level support should be limited to a low value (say 2000 psi) in order to minimize and control deflections. If Practical, a detailed displacement analysis of the ‘support would reveal whether or not a particular the Support structure needs further stiffening. 2.55 True Moment Restraints Most modern piping flexibility analysis programs permit the modeling of restraints which will limit Pipe rotations and thus bending moments at an attachment point. However from a practical view. Point, it is extremely difficult to design a restraint structure that will completely eliminate rotations Therefore generally speaking, the use of moment type restraints should be avoided whenever possible, If restraints are required to limit the imposed bending moment at a pump nozzle, the firet ap- Proach should be to try locating an axial type restraint at a point in the system which will effec. tively reduce the moment acting at the pump nozzle. ‘This can be done by locating the restraint in an offset leg in the piping system such that the force acting on it will result in a compensating moment as it acts through the offset leg acting as a “lever arm,” If this approach is not suitable, a rotational type restraint, of a design similar to that shown in Figure 2.3 can be considered. 2.5.6 Friction Effects It is recommended that the effects of friction at Pipe supports, guides and restraints be at least considered in the flexibility analysis of pump piping systems. The level of this consideration, and whether oF not friction reactions are actually included by the analyst, will vary based on particular system design details, but friction should snot be ignored. For ex- ample, a small diameter system with low weight loads, or ane which is supported to a large extent by hanger type supports, will have small friction loads and detailed analytical consideration of their effect is not necessary. However a large diameter system with heavy valves located near the pump nozzle, or one having restraints or supports with large imposed thermal loads, can have significant friction loads acting on it. If the friction loads are large enough, they can alter the thermal expansion behavior of the Piping system, and cause significantly higher loads to act on the pump nozzles, When it is apparent that frictional effects will significantly impact pump nozzle loadings, the flex- ibility analyses should be made both with and with- out friction. The system stress and nozzle load evaluations should then consider the worst case of these two calculations. This approach is recom- mended since friction is an extremely unreliable form of restraint. In some cases, calculations may show that friction could help the stress or load situation, but there is no way to guarantee that it will behave in a predictable and consistent manner, A common way to reduce frictional effects at pipe Supports or guides is to use low friction type slides, Installation of Pump Piping Systems a12) Alternate Preferred e d Ns >< >< ss nee Bottom of this support must have the same ele- vation as the pump sup- port. 0. 2.7—Typical Pipe support configuration for pumps supported above the nozzle centerine level pie GR) ie] £ [ | |" NOTE: Include base support with pump base to avoid settlement problem. UNIX Fi. 2.8-—Typical Pipe support coniguration fr pumps supported atthe nozzle centertine level 22 WRC Bulletin 449» ° ra ° ° o o o o e e e e e e e ® e s e ® e . ® ® ® . s ® 8 ® s s 8 wvvevves0000080 es E-* ALTERNATI _ PREFERRED ALTERNATE (check nozzle loads) HS Fig, 29—-Pipe support configurations for pumps supported below top loaded nozzles Installation of Pump Piping Systems 28C PREFERRED fA ALTERNATE ss ss ss o ALTERNATE ‘check top nozzle load’ FIVIIVIISHSSSSSSSHSSHSHHVVVWVVeG Fig, 2.10—Typical support configuration for end-suction pumps supported below the suction nozzle contrine 24 WRC Bulletin 249Bs ALTERNATE ‘check top nozzle load’ ss Fi 2.11—Typleal Pipe support configuration for end.suetion pumps supported at the suction nozzle centerine| ‘Two of the more common designs utilized are rollers and low friction bearing plates (See Figure 2.12). The use of such devices are ‘necessary when the frictional loads at support points, guides or restraints must be Teduced to keep reaction loads on pump nozzles within acceptable limits. While the specific friction ‘tors to be used for design purposes depend on the ‘design details employed, at least a 75% reduction from the typical friction factor for steel-on-steel (0.4-0.5) can reasonably be expected, Generally speaking for pump piping systems, use of rollers is not the preferred method for friction reduction, While such a system can function ad- equately, it generally requires more maintenance (e.g. periodic lubrication) than the low friction bear- ing plate type designs. Since maintaining low fric- Installation of Pump Piping Systems 25eee Fig. 2.12—Typical Roler Type Pipe Supports tion loads is much more critical in a pump piping system, it is preferable to rely on a more mainte~ nance free design to avoid dependence on lubrication on a routine basis by plant over-burdened plant maintenance personnel. Some roller-types have expe- rienced only a 2-3 yr life span, Among the more typical low friction bearing plate designs, PTFE-on-PTFE, or polished stainless steel- on-PTFE pads are widely used. Among the factors to consider when designing such a system are the following: © Use a design friction factor considerably higher than the 0.01-0.02 values typically quoted by manufacturers. Design friction factors should bein the order of 0.08-0.10 to account for factors such as inadequate installation, debris becom- ing lodged between the low friction pads, ete. The design should ensure that the pad sliding surfaces are not exposed to the elements. This ig to ensure that dirt and debris does not become lodged and cause their surfaces to be damaged during operation, Should this occur, friction factors would increase. Typically for a pipe support installation, there should be at least a 1" overlap of the upper over the lower pad, plus an amount equal to the expected thermal expan- sion. Additionally, external covers may also be necessary to provide adequate shielding. This latter approach may also be necessary for pipe guides and restraints. ‘© The surface area of low friction bearing plates typically must be designed such that the bear- ing stress on the surface is within a specified range. This is necessary in order to achieve the minimum friction coefficient for the particular design employed. Thus the design loads for such, supports or restraints must be supplied to the bearing plate manufacturer in order for him to supply the proper design. © PIFE material is typically used in low friction bearing plate designs. For higher temperatures applications (greater than about 450F), care ‘must be taken to ensure thatthe detailed design used does not result in the PTFE overheating and flowing, This would increase the friction coefficient and thus the loads on the system. ‘Therefore, the detailed support design for such, high temperature aplications should provide for adequate free air circulation, the pipe insula- tion should not cover the bearing pad area, and the support temperature in the area of the PTFE pad should be below about 450 F. Use support attachments that are exposed and long ‘enough to cool the pad through heat loss. * Care should be taken to inspect sliding supports as part of a regular preventative maintenance routine. Dirt accumulation and wear over time may cause a reduction of siding capability. © See Figure 2.13 for typical sliding support de- tails. 26 WRC Bulletin 449