The Pipe Metallurgical Company was the first in Russia to ship to the customer an industrial batch of LDPE manufactured using hybrid laser-arc welding (HLD) technology.
Photo: TMK.
The products are intended for the repair of a section of the main gas pipeline.
Pipes with a diameter of 1,420 mm with a wall thickness of 15.7 mm and a K60 steel strength class were delivered to the customer, Gazprom Transgaz Surgut, and manufactured in accordance with Gazprom's technical requirements at the GLDS mill located in the Vysota 239 workshop in Chelyabinsk.
The pipes are coated with an internal smooth-walled and external monolayer polyethylene coating with a distinctive green stripe for the shop "Height 239" marking pipes manufactured using GLDS. The development of this new type of pipe products was carried out within the framework of the Scientific and Technical Cooperation Program between TMK and Gazprom.
TMK, as a company with a strong scientific and technical base, focuses on developing high-tech solutions for the benefit of our customers, said Sergey Chikalov, CEO of TMK.
"In response to the increasing market demands for pipes with enhanced performance, the specialists of the Chelyabinsk sites of the company have developed and mastered a new technology, as well as commissioned a unique mill for the manufacture of pipes using hybrid laser-arc welding."The development of GLDS technology for the longitudinal seam of large-diameter pipes began at the Chelyabinsk Pipe Rolling Plant (ChelPipe) and continued at the TMK Welding Technology Center. The welding mill construction project was implemented by TMK Pipeline Solutions (TMK TR) and ChelPipe. The products have passed certification and a full range of tests, including laboratory mechanical metal tests, field pneumatic and full-scale hydraulic tests.
The technology allows welding pipes made of steel of strength class up to X120. TBD, made in this way, have a number of advantages: high bearing capacity, minimal deviations in geometric parameters, as well as uniform strength and viscoplastic characteristics — the properties of the weld are close to the base metal of the pipe. These characteristics ensure maximum reliability of pipelines in areas with increased seismic activity and in areas of ultra-low temperatures.
