The Many Challenges of Today's Steel Pipe and Tubing Supplier

Pipe manufacturers face big challenges in developing and processing materials used in line pipe, drill pipe, and API tubing. The steeltubing supplier has to be prepared with large-diameter, longitudinally welded line pipe for oil and gas transport, and other products that accommodate high operating pressures and severe environmental conditions. Steel must possess high strength, good weldability, and optimized geometry. Does your steel tubing supplier deliver all this? At Corpac Steel Products, we have the technical and logistics expertise to meet demand impeccably.

High Strength Steels: A Brief Overview

High strength steels for use in API tubing, line pipe, and drill pipe benefited from thermomechanical rolling that replaced some hot rolling and normalizing in the 1970s. Alloying steels with niobium and vanadium has reduced carbon content in some steel pipes. Thermomechanical rolling was supplemented with accelerated cooling in the 1980s, making even higher strength materials possible while retaining excellent weldability.

Development and Production of High Strength Steels

The use of molybdenum, nickel, and copper now allow even higher strength steels when the steel is processed into plate form by thermomechanical rolling and accelerated cooling. In general, longitudinally welded line pipe of large diameter is used for petroleum transport because it offers improved safety and better cost effectiveness while permitting high operating pressures for pipeline.

Microstructure in Line Pipe Steel

Conventionally rolled and normalized steels show coarse ferrite grain size with banded ferrite and pearlite. Higher grade rolled steels show more uniform microstructure along with finer ferrite grains. When thermomechanical rolling is followed by accelerated cooling, the result is an even more uniform and very fine microstructure, giving the steel and the pipe and tubing it is made into improved properties including superior strength and safety.

Growth in Global Energy Consumption Necessitates Expert Pipe Logistics

The steel tubing supplier today must keep pipe prices down while providing the highest quality for natural gas and oil transport. Predicted growth in worldwide energy consumption will necessitate steel tubing and line pipe that works in severe environmental conditions, transporting oil and gas to end users. At Corpac Steel Products, we are at the forefront of technology and logistics and ready to meet worldwide challenges today.