Scribd
Upload
6 views1 page

Understanding Pipe Arching Effects

Rigid pipes experience more loading than flexible pipes when buried underground due to differential settlement. Rigid pipes, like reinforced concrete and cast iron, can assume additional load from the surrounding soil and show signs of distress before 2% vertical deflection. Flexible pipes, which are more compressible than the surrounding soil, experience less loading than the central soil prism alone as shearing stresses act to reduce the load.

Uploaded by

hisoyounghi
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
6 views1 page

Understanding Pipe Arching Effects

Rigid pipes experience more loading than flexible pipes when buried underground due to differential settlement. Rigid pipes, like reinforced concrete and cast iron, can assume additional load from the surrounding soil and show signs of distress before 2% vertical deflection. Flexible pipes, which are more compressible than the surrounding soil, experience less loading than the central soil prism alone as shearing stresses act to reduce the load.

Uploaded by

hisoyounghi
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Figure 2-4: Positive arching

Figure 2-5: Negative arching

Rigid pipe
When the side columns of soil or the external prisms are more compressible than the pipe
due to its inherent rigidity, this causes the pipe to assume load generated across the width
of the trench.
The shearing stresses or friction forces that developed due to the
differential settlement of the external prisms and the central
prism are additive to the load of the central prism alone => rigid
pipes.
Rigid pipes show signs of distress before being vertically
deflected 2%.
Rigid pipes include RC cylinder, prestressed concrete cylinder, vitrified clay, polymer
concrete, cast iron, asbestos cement and cast-in-situ pipes
Flexible pipe
If a pipe is more compressible than the external soil columns as a result of its vertial
deflection allowing the central prism to settle more in relation to the external prisms, the
actual load on the pipe is less than the load of the central prism due to the direction in which
the shearing stresses => Flexible pipes

4|Page

You might also like