Load on Buried Pressure Conduits with Reference to Selection of Asbestos-Cement Pipes

Abstract

The use of asbestos-cement pressure conduits is becoming popular even in developing countries. Asbestos-cement pipe can withstand internal pressure of up to 1.4 MPa and is unaffected by corrosion. Its other virtues are that it is light in weight, could be easily cut and filed, is not easily fractured if properly cradled, and can be joined without the need for expert skill. However, due to faulty design it could be damaged and become out of service within a very short time. This paper is an attempt to bring together the various design parameters used in determining internal and external pressures for proper selection of asbestos-cement pressure pipes using the Marston-Schlick combined loading theory, which lends itself to easy manipulation, compared to the traditional earth-pressure theory of Rankine-Coulomb.