Michael Werth

Polyamide 11 in Offshore Conditions: Hydrolytical Ageing, Mechanical Behaviour in Flexible Pipes

The polyamide 11 is in use since more than 30 years in offshore applications, in particularly for the manufacturing of the pressure sheath in flexible pipes.© 2007 ASME

Polyamide 11: A High Tenacity Thermoplastic, Its Material Properties and the Influence of Ageing in Offshore Conditions

Polyamide 11 is a key material in the fabrication of offshore flexible pipes. It is mainly used as the flexible pressure layer assuring the impermeability of the fluid and gas carrying flexible pipe. A further important use is as outer sheath material where it protects efficiently the metal strip structure from sea water ingress even in highly dynamic applications. Given these important functions of polyamide 11 the knowledge of its precise material properties is essential for the design and the operating limits of flexible pipes. This paper aims to give a detailed understanding of the scope of the material properties such as fracture toughness, fatigue resistance and the mechanical response function. In a further step the influence of ageing on these properties is outlined with the aid of aged model specimen studies.Copyright