design

THRUST SUPPORT

Table 3.14 Pressure Thrust at Fittings in kN for each 10 metres Head of Water

An imbalanced thrust is developed

by a pipeline at:
Direction changes (> 10),
e.g. tees and bends.
Changes in pipeline size at
reducers.
Pipeline terminations, e.g. at blank
ends and valves.

Series 1 pipe

Size
DN

Area
(mm2)

BENDS
111/4

221/2

45

90

TEES
ENDS

15

363

0.01

0.01

0.03

0.05

0.04

20

568

0.01

0.02

0.04

0.08

0.06

25

892

0.02

0.03

0.07

0.12

0.09

32

1410

0.03

0.05

0.11

0.20

0.14

40

1840

0.04

0.07

0.14

0.26

0.18

The support system or soil must be

capable of sustaining such thrusts.

50

2870

0.06

0.11

0.22

0.40

0.28

65

4480

0.09

0.17

0.34

0.62

0.44

Pressure thrust results from internal

pressure in the line acting on fittings.
Velocity thrust results from inertial
forces developed by a change in
direction of flow. The latter is
usually insignificant compared to the
former.

80

6240

0.12

0.24

0.47

0.87

0.61

100

10300

0.20

0.39

0.77

1.43

1.01

125

15500

0.30

0.59

1.16

2.15

1.52

150

20200

0.39

0.77

1.52

2.80

1.98

200

40000

0.77

1.53

3.00

5.55

3.92

225

49400

0.95

1.89

3.71

6.85

4.84

250

61900

1.19

2.37

4.65

8.58

6.07

PRESSURE THRUST

300

78400

1.51

3.00

5.88

10.87

7.69

375

126000

2.42

4.82

9.46

17.47

12.36

The pressure thrust developed for

various types of fittings can be
calculated as follows:
Blank ends, tees, valves
F = AP 10-3

Series 2 pipe

Size
DN

Reducers and tapers

F = (A1 -A2)P10-3
Bends
F = 2 A P sin(/2)10-3
where:
F

= resultant thrust force

(kN)

= area of pipe taken at the OD

(mm2)

= design internal pressure

(MPa)

= included angle of bend

Area
(mm2)

BENDS
111/4

221/2

45

90

TEES
ENDS

100

11700

0.23

0.46

0.89

1.65

1.17

150

24800

0.48

0.96

1.89

3.50

2.47

200

42500

0.83

1.65

3.24

5.99

4.24

250

52900

1.04

2.06

4.04

7.47

5.28

300

93700

1.84

3.66

7.17

13.25

9.37

375

142700

2.80

5.57

10.92

20.18

14.27

(degrees)

The design pressure used should be

the maximum pressure, including
water hammer, to be applied to the
line. This will usually be the field
test pressure.

design.44

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design

VELOCITY THRUST
Applies only at changes in direction of flow:
F = WAV2 2 sin(/2) 10-9

(kN)

where:
(mm2)

A = cross sectional area of pipe taken at the inside diameter

W = density of fluid (water = 1,000)

(kg/m3)

V = velocity of flow

(m/s)

THRUST BLOCKS
Concrete thrust blocks are usually required to transfer unbalanced forces in
buried pipelines to the surrounding soil. See Installation Guidelines for
construction of thrust blocks.
To determine the bearing area of the thrust block required, divide the
resultant thrust by the bearing capacity of the soil.
The bearing capacity of the soil is dependent on the mode of failure. For
deep situations, compressive characteristics will govern and a guide to the
appropriate design bearing loads is given in Table 3.15.
For shallow cover, shearing slip failure can occur and bearing loads are very
much reduced. For cover less than 600mm, or less than three pipe
diameters, or if the ground is potentially unstable, e.g. embankment
conditions, a complete soil analysis should be carried out.
Slip failure may be avoided by extending the thrust block downwards with
reinforcement against bending loads.

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design.45

design

Table 3.15 Safe Compressive Bearing Load

USBR Soil
Classification
see ASTM D2478

Soil description

Soil Bearing Strength (kN/m2)

for cover height *h
0.75m

1.0m

1.25m

1.5m

Well graded gravel-sand mixtures, well graded

sands, little or no fines

GW,SW

57

76

95

114

Poorly graded gravels and gravel-sand mixtures,

Poorly graded sands, little or no fines

GP,SP

48

64

80

97

Silty gravels, gravel-sand-silt mixtures, silty

sands, sand-silt mixtures

GM,SM

48

64

80

96

Clayey gravels, gravel-sand-clay mixtures,

Clayey sands, sand-clay mixtures

GC,SC

79

92

105

119

Inorganic clays of low to med plasticity, gravelly clays, sandy

clays, silty clays, lean clays

CL

74

85

95

106

Inorganic silts, very fine sands, rock flour, silty or clayey fine
sands

ML

69

81

93

106

OH

240

240

240

240

Organic clays of medium to high plasticity

Rock

*h=height of soil cover measured from centreline

Example:

VERTICAL THRUSTS

Thrust block design for a DN100 Tee

operating at 120m head in clayey
sand soil, *h=1.0m.

For resultant upward forces, the

mass of the thrust block plus any
soil directly above the pipe can be
taken as the counterbalancing force,
provided the overburden can
reasonably be expected to remain
there for the life time of the pipeline.
It is often better to bury the pipe
deeper than to add more concrete to
counterbalance an upward thrust.

Resultant force = 1.01 x 12 = 12.1kN

(Table 3.14)
Bearing Area = 12.1 / 92 = 0.13m2
(Table 3.15)
That is, a bearing area 0.25m high
and 0.55mm wide would be suitable.

design.46

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