Reinforced Thermoplastic Pipes RTP Pipe

Reinforced Thermoplastic Pipes RTP Pipe

Flexible reinforced thermoplastic composite pipe (Reinforced Thermoplastic Pipes, abbreviated as RTP pipe) is a type of high-pressure plastic composite pipeline. It possesses excellent flexibility, corrosion resistance, high pressure resistance, impact resistance, wear resistance, light weight, easy connection, rollability, long-distance seamless rapid laying features. It can effectively overcome the corrosion problem of steel pipes and the pressure resistance issue of plastic pipelines. It can be applied in the fields of oil and gas extraction, high-pressure long-distance gas transmission, and various pipelines requiring high-pressure medium transportation.

 I. Structure and Materials of RTP Tube
The RTP product is usually composed of three layers. The inner and outer layers are made of PE80 or higher grade materials, and the outer layer can be selected as white (for surface laying to prevent ultraviolet radiation) or black (for underground laying). The middle layer is an enhanced band composed of reinforced materials, and the reinforcing materials can be high-strength fibers such as aramid fibers, polyester fibers, or glass fibers.
Flexible reinforced thermoplastic composite pipes are usually made from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) with a grade of 80 or above, high-strength fibers or steel wire ropes as the main raw materials. Through processes such as extrusion, molding, winding, coating, and winding-up, they are produced into high-pressure flexible pipe materials with lengths reaching thousands of meters. By using different reinforcing layer materials and coating materials, various RTP pipe materials with different pressure ratings and different performance can be obtained.
Compared with the RTP tubes that directly use glass fiber or aramid fiber yarns or fiber bundles for winding, where there is no complete wetting between the fibers and the resin, resulting in insufficient full utilization of the overall structural strength and pressure resistance strength, using continuous fiber-reinforced prepreg tapes for winding, the tape itself has high tensile strength and more stable and uniform performance, which can enable the inner and outer walls and the core reinforcement layer to be completely integrated. Its various performance is even more excellent.
The continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic resin composite monoway prepreg strips used in the RTP tubes are currently mainly composed of aramid fibers and glass fibers. Other fibers such as basalt fibers, quartz fibers, and carbon fibers can also be used, and the design should be comprehensively considered based on the application field.
II. Advantages of RTP Pipes
1. Corrosion-resistant. The inner and outer pipe walls of the RTP pipe have excellent anti-corrosion properties, making it suitable for various corrosive media and various corrosive environments.
2. Resistant to high pressure, the RTP tube has a high pressure-bearing capacity. By selecting different reinforcing materials, the maximum pressure can reach up to 32 MPa, and the burst pressure can even exceed 100 MPa.
3. Temperature resistance and insulation: The operating temperature range of the RTP tube is -42℃ to 102℃, which can meet the temperature requirements for most applications; under a temperature difference of 30℃, the temperature drop per 100 meters is less than 1℃.
4. Strong conveying capacity. The inner wall of the RTP pipe is extremely smooth, free from scaling or wax deposition, with low flow resistance, excellent wear resistance, and a consistently stable conveying capacity over time. This reduces the maintenance costs of the conveying pipeline.
5. Excellent flexibility. The RTP pipe has extremely high toughness and excellent impact resistance. It has strong resistance to soil settlement, earthquakes, etc. At the same time, due to its good flexibility, during installation, it can achieve natural compensation through a serpentine layout, eliminating the need for thermal compensation devices, thereby saving installation costs.
6. Construction is convenient. The RTP pipe can be rolled and laid out like a cable for construction. It has high tensile strength. During the laying process of the pipeline, the maximum tensile force can reach 5 tons for a long time, and the maximum tensile force can reach 10 tons in an instant.
7. Fewer joints. The single length of RTP pipe can reach 150 - 400 meters. Therefore, there are very few joints, which leads to higher reliability and cost savings.
8. High cost-effectiveness. According to the data from WACKER GmbH of Germany, compared with carbon steel pipelines, RTP pipes can save investment by more than 25%.
9. Long service life: The conventional design service life of the RTP pipe is 20 years, and it can reach up to 50 years.
III. Application of RTP Pipes
Since it was first put into use in the UK in June 1995, the RTP pipe has been widely used in oil and gas fields as an oil and gas gathering pipeline. It has also been rapidly promoted in other fields due to its corrosion resistance and high-pressure tolerance, such as urban pipelines, natural gas transportation, and chemical industries.
Oil and gas extraction from land and shallow seas (oil gathering pipes, water injection pipes), as well as high-pressure gas transmission (diameter ranging from 50mm to 400mm, with the maximum pressure reaching 25MPa).
2. Offshore oil and gas extraction (cross接管, circulation pipe and riser pipe
3. Underwater water pipeline;
4. Hydraulic transmission system pipelines in mines and industries;
5. Urban and rural water supply pipelines;
6. Pipeline Repair Project
7. Fire protection pipes.