Piping Stress Engineer

 

Piping stress engineer is an engineering professional who analyzes piping systems and associated equipment to determine the stresses that develop in them due to various types of loads. Pipe stress engineers use mathematical and computational techniques to calculate pipe stress.

They also work with a variety of software tools to conduct analysis and design calculations. They are responsible for ensuring that the designs they prepare adhere to applicable standards and codes.

This position requires an individual to have a broad knowledge of industry/regulatory codes and standards and design criteria pertinent to the discipline, as well as experience in the field. It is also important to be familiar with a range of methods, equipment, plant layout, materials and computers that are used for the preparation of analyses and development of project deliverables within this discipline.

The responsibilities of this job include conducting pipe stress engineering of piping systems as per ASME, ANSI B31.3 code needs using Caesar II software program. This position requires a degree in Engineering with at least 2-10 years of pipe system design experience.

It is important for the stress engineer to have a Piping stress engineer broad knowledge of the different types of pipe material including their typical stress-strain behavior under tensile, compression and shear loads. Understanding the stress-strain curve helps the engineer to make logical pipe stress decisions that will reduce overall piping costs.

During the design stage, it is essential for the Stress Engineer to understand the process and equipment processes that are involved in the project in order to give proper consideration to the effect of piping connected to them on the process. This includes pumps, compressors, exchangers, filters and any other special equipment that is to be used in the piping system.

All piping systems are subject to thermal, mechanical and weight forces that can result in stress problems. These forces are imposed on the equipment, equipment nozzles and structures that support the piping systems. It is the responsibility of the stress engineer to ensure that these forces are kept within allowable limits in the applicable piping codes or standards.

A pipe is usually subjected to bending, circular, and longitudinal stresses. These stress ranges are determined by the piping material, design and construction.

The bending stress is the most critical stress that a piping system can be subjected to and is often one of the first things to go wrong. It can cause the piping to deform, leak, break or even collapse. It can also be caused by a wide variety of other external factors such as temperature, weight of the pipe and contents, snow and ice, wind, earthquakes, etc.

It is also important for the stress engineer to understand how to increase flexibility of a piping system by implementing different sizing, schedules and materials. Increasing the wall thickness of the piping can be a very effective way to decrease the stress levels in the system.

The Stress Engineer must be able to provide recommendations for the installation of Expansion Joints and Variable and Constant Spring Hangers to meet the design requirements. The selection and installation of these products is one of the most important functions of this career.