Specification for Polyethylene Line Pipe (PE)

Standard Specification for Polyethylene Plastics Pipe and Fittings Materials

Scope

Purpose

The purpose of polyethylene pipe specification is to provide standards for polyethylene (PE) line pipe suitable for use in conveying oil, gas and non-potable water in underground, above ground and reliner applications for the oil and gas producing industries.

The standard does not propose to address all of the safety concerns associated with the design, installation or use of products suggested herein. It is the responsibility of the user of the standard to utilize appropriate health and safety considerations.

All pipe produced under this standard must utilize pressure rated materials, but may be used in pressurized, nonpressure and negative pressure applications.

The technical content of this document provides requirements and guidelines for performance, design, materials inspection, dimensions and tolerances, marking, handling, storing and shipping.

Applications

Equipment

This specification covers polyethylene line pipe utilized for the production and transportation of oil, gas and nonpotable water. The piping is intended for use in new construction, insertion renewal, line extension and repair, of both above ground and buried pipe applications. Specific equipment covered by this specification is listed as follows:

1. polyethylene line pipe;
2. polyethylene fittings.

Service Conditions

The standard service conditions for the API Spec15LE Standard Pressure Rating are as follows:

1. HDB is established to 50 years;
2. service temperature is between –30 °F and 140 °F;
3. the fluid environment is oil, gas and non-potable water;
4. axial loads shall include end loads due to pressure only.

Service conditions other than the standard API Spec 15LE conditions are discussed in Section 5—Design.

Unit Conversion

A decimal/inch system is the standard for the dimensions shown in this specification. Nominal sizes will continue to be shown as fractions. For the purposes of this specification, the fractions and their decimal equivalents are equal and interchangeable. For SI metric unit equivalents in millimeters (mm), multiply by 25.4 and round to 1 decimal place.
Basic metric conversions are described in Annex A.

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• API SPECIFICATION 15LE
• FOURTH EDITION, JANUARY 2008
• EFFECTIVE DATE: JULY 2008