M 278
Standard Specification for
Class PS 46 Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Pipe
1. SCOPE
1.1 This specification covers the re-
quirements and methods of test for
smooth-wall perforated and unperforated
Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) plastic pipe,
couplings and fittings for use in subsur-
face drainage and surface drainage (cul-
verts) of transportation facilities, where
soil support is given to its flexible walls
in all applications.
1.1.1 Nominal sizes of 102 to 381 mm
(4 to 15 in.) in a stiffness class designated
as PS 46 are included.
1.1.2 Materials, dimensions, flattening,
impact resistance, pipe stiffness, extru-
sion quality, joining systems, perfora-
tions, and form of marking are specified.
1.2 The values stated in SI units are to be
regarded as the standard.
2. REFERENCED DOCUMENTS
2.1 ASTM Standards:
D 618 Conditioning Plastics and
Electrical Insulating Materi-
als for Testing
D 883 Definitions of Terms Relating
to Plastics
D 1598 Time-To-Failure of Plastic
Pipe Under Constant Internal
Pressure
D 1784 Rigid Poly (Vinyl Chloride)
(PVC) Compounds and Chlo-
rinated Poly (Vinyl Chloride)
(CPVC) Compounds
D 2122 Determining Dimensions of
Thermoplastic Pipe and Fit-
tings
D 2152 Degree of Fusion of Extruded
Poly (Vinyl Chloride) (PVC)
by Pipe and Molded Fittings
by Acetone Immersion
D 2321 Recommended Practice for
Underground Installation of
Flexible Thermoplastic Sewer
Pipe
D 2412 Determination of External
Loading Characteristics of
Plastic Pipe by Parallel Plate
Loading
D 2444 Impact Resistance of Ther-
moplastic Pipe and Fittings
by Means of a Tup (Falling
Weight)
SPECIFICATIONS FOR MATERIALS
AASHTO DESIGNATION: M 278-94
D 2564 Solvent Cements for Poly
(Vinyl Chloride) (PVC) Plas-
tic Pipe and Fittings
D 2837 Obtaining Hydrostatic Design
Basis for Thermoplastic Pipe
Materials
D 2855 Recommended Practice for
Making Sol-vent Cemented
Joints with Poly (Vinyl Chlo-
ride) (PVC) Pipe and Fittings
D 3034 Type PSM Poly (Vinyl Chlo-
ride) (PVC) Sewer Pipe and
Fittings
D 3212 Joints for Drain and
Sewer Plastic Pipe Using
Flexible Elastomeric Seals
F 402 Practice for Safe Handling of
Solvent Cements and Primers
Used for Joining Thermoplas-
tic Pipe and Fittings
F 412 Terms Relating to Plastic
Piping Systems
F 477 Specification for Elastomeric
Seals (Gaskets) for Joining
Plastic Pipe
3. NOMENCLATURE
3.1 General—The nomenclature used in
this specification is in accordance with
the definitions given in Definitions
ASTM D 883 and Definitions ASTM F
412, unless otherwise specified. The
abbreviation for polyvinyl chloride is
PVC.
4. MATERIALS
4.1 Basic Materials—Pipe and fittings
shall be made of virgin PVC plastic
having a cell classification of 12454-B as
defined in ASTM D 1784. Compounds
shall be tested in accordance with ASTM
D 1598 and provide a minimum hydro-
static design basis (HDB) of 27.5 MPa
(4000 psi) in water. Minimum HDB shall
be evaluated in accordance with ASTM
D 2837.
4.2 Rework Materials—Rework material
from the manufacturer's own pipe or
fittings production may be used by the
same manufacturer, provided that the
pipe or fabricated fittings produced meet
all the requirements of this specification.
4.3 Solvent Cement—The PVC solvent
cement used in joining the pipe and
fittings for solvent cement joints shall
comply with the requirements of ASTM
D 2564.
4.4 Gaskets—Elastomeric seals (gaskets)
shall comply with the requirements of
ASTM F 477. The lubricant used for
assembly shall have no detrimental effect
on the gasket or on the pipe or fittings.
5. JOINING SYSTEMS
5.1 Gasketed Joints—The joint shall be
designed so that when assembled, the
gasket inside the bell will be compressed
radially on the pipe spigot to form a
watertight seal.
5.1.1 The joint shall be designed to
avoid displacement of the gasket when
installed in accordance with the manufac-
turer's recommendations.
5.1.2 The assembly of joints shall be in
accordance with the pipe manufacturer's
recommendations.
5.2 Solvent Cement Joints-In the solvent
cement joint, the pipe spigot wedges into
the tapered socket and the surfaces fuse
together. The tapered socket may be a
portion of a molded fitting or it may be a
belled end of a pipe section.
5.2.1 The assembly of joints shall be in
accordance with ASTM D 2855 and
taking cognizance of ASTM F 402.
NOTE 2-Difficulty may be encountered in
obtaining watertight joints when solvent
cementing joints in pipe diameters greater than
152 mm (6 in.).
5.3 Unsealed Joints-Perforated pipe may
be connected with stop-type couplings
(as described in ASTM D 3034, Figure 9)
or belled-ends of pipe conforming to
Section 6.2.5 without the use of solvent
cement. If sleeve couplings as described
in Table 4 are used, the coupling shall be
solvent cemented to one length of pipe,
lapping 40 to 50 percent of the coupling
length.
6. REQUIREMENTS
6.1 Workmanship-The pipe and fittings
shall be homogeneous throughout, and
free from visible cracks, flaws, foreign
inclusions or other injurious defects. The
pipe shall be as uniform as commercially
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M 278 SPECIFICATIONS FOR MATERIALS

practical in color, opacity, and other TABLE 1 Pipe Dimensions

physical properties. Nominal Outside Diameter Out-of-Roundness Minimum Wall
Size Average Tolerance Minimum Maximum Thickness
6.2 Pipe Dimensions: Millimeters (mm)
6.2.1 Diameter-The average out-side 100 107.06 ±0.22 105.80 108.34 3.08
diameter of the pipe shall be as specified 150 159.38 ±0.28 158.12 160.66 4.58
in Table 1 when measured in accordance 200 213.36 ±0.30 212.08 214.62 6.10
with ASTM D 2122. 250 266.70 ±0.38 263.66 269.75 7.65
300 317.50 ±0.46 313.87 321.14 9.09
6.2.2 Wall Thickness-The mini-mum 375 388.62 ±0.58 384.16 393.09 11.13
wall thickness shall be as specified in Inches (in.)
Table 1 when measured in accordance 4 4.215 ±0.009 4.165 4.265 0.121
with ASTM D 2122. 6 6.275 ±0.011 6.225 6.325 0.180
8 8.400 ±0.012 8.350 8.450 0.240
6.2.3 Length-Laying length shall be 6
10 10.500 ±0.015 10.380 10.620 0.301
m (20 ft) for diameters up to 203 mm (8 12 12.500 ±0.018 12.357 12.643 0.358
in.), and no less than 3 m (10 ft.) for 15 15.300 ±0.023 15.124 15.476 0.438
larger sizes; or as mutually agreed upon
between purchaser and manufacturer. A
tolerance of 125 mm (± 1 in.) shall be TABLE 2 Pipe Integral Bell Dimensions for Solvent Cement Joints
permitted.
6.2.4 Perforations-Perforations, when
required, shall be circular holes, 4.8 to
9.5 mm (3/16 to 3/8 in.), in diameter, ar-
ranged in rows parallel to the axis of the
pipe. Perforations shall be approximately
76 mm (3 in.) center-to-center, along the
rows. The rows of perforations shall be
arranged in two equal groups placed Nominal Entrance (A) Socket Bottom (B) Min. Bell Depth
symmetrically on either side of a lower Size Diameter Tolerance Diameter Tolerance (C)
Millimeters (mm)
unperforated segment, corresponding to
100 107.57 ±0.22 106.93 ±0.22 44.44
the flowline of the pipe. The spacing of
150 160.15 ±0.28 159.26 ±0.28 76.20
the rows shall be uniform. The distance 200 213.97 ±0.30 213.06 10.30 101.60
between the center lines of rows shall be 250 267.47 ±0.38 286.32 ±0.38 127.00
not less than 25 mm (1 in.). The mini- 300 318.41 ±0.46 317.04 ±0.46 152.40
mum number of longitudinal rows of 375 369.79 ±0.58 388.04 ±0.58 190.50
perforations, the maximum heights of the Inches (in.)
center lines of the upper-most rows 4 4.235 ±0.009 4.210 ±.009 1.750
above the bottom of the inverts and the 6 6.305 ±0.011 6.270 1-.011 3.000
inside chord lengths of the unperforated 8 8.424 ±0.012 8.388 1..012 4.000
10 10.530 ±0.015 10.485 10.015 5.000
segments shall be as specified in Table 6. 12 12.536 10.018 12.482 ±0.018 6.000
6.2.5 Integral Bell Dimensions-The 15 15.346 ±0.023 15.277 10.023 7.500
thickness of the wall shall be considered
satisfactory if the bell was formed from
pipe meeting the requirements of this TABLE 4 Sleeve Coupling Dimensions
specification.
TABLE 3 Impact Strength at 0°C (32°F)
Nominal Size J ft-lb
mm (in.)
100 (4) 88 65
150 (6) 115 85
200 (8) 129 95
250 (10) 129 95
300 (12) 129 95
375 (15) 129 95

6.2.5.1 Elastomeric Joints-Integral bells Length (A) Inside Diameter (B)

for elastomeric seal joint shall meet Nominal Size
Average Tolerance Average Tolerance
dimensions recommended by the manu- Millimeters (mm)
facturer. 100 88.9 + 6.35-0 107.44 ±0.13
6.2.5.2 Solvent Cement Joints-Socket- 150 152.4 + 6.35-0 159.77 ±0.13
200 203.2 + 6.35-0 213.74 10.15
type bell dimensions for solvent cement
250 254.0 + 6.34-0 267.21 ±0.18
joints shall comply with Table 2. 300 304.8 + 6.35-0 318.13 ±0.20
6.3 Fitting Dimensions: 375 381.0 + 6.35-0 389.51 10.23
Inches (in.)
6.3.1 Fitting Wall Thickness-The
4 3.5 + 0.25-0 4.230 ±0.005
minimum wall thickness of sleeve-type 6 6.0 + 0.25-0 6.290 ±0.006
couplings and molded fittings shall be no 8 8.0 + 0.25-0 8.415 ±0.006
less than the respective minimum thick- 10 10.0 + 0.25-0 10.520 ±0.007
nesses listed for the equivalent pipe in 12 12.0 + 0.25-0 12.525 ±0.008
Table 1. The wall thickness of bends 15 15.0 + 0.25-0 15.335 ±0.009
manufactured from pipe (Table 5) shall
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M 278 SPECIFICATIONS FOR MATERIALS

be considered satisfactory, providing the TABLE 5 Laying Lengths of Bends Manufactured From Pipe
bend was formed from pipe meeting the
requirements of this specification. For
reducing fittings or those with smaller
inlets, the minimum wall thickness of
each inlet shall not be less than the mini-
mum wall thickness for that size pipe.
6.3.2 Laying Length-The laying length
of fittings shall meet the requirements of
Tables 4 and 5 of this specification or
Tables 3 to 11 of Specification ASTM D
3034.
6.4 Minimum Pipe Stiffness-The mini-
mum pipe stiffness (PS) values shall be
320 kPa (46 lb/in./in.) when tested in
accordance with Section 8.3. Three
specimens shall be tested; all shall meet Dimensions (Min)
Nominal Size
the requirements. Radius (R) (J) (K) (L)
Millimeters (mm)
6.5 Pipe Flattening-There shall be no
100 406.4, 609.6, or 914.4 44.44 88.90 50.80
evidence of splitting, cracking, or break- 150 609.6 or 914.4 76.20 152.40 88.90
ing when pipe and couplings tested in 200 609.6 or 914.4 101.60 203.20 127.00
accordance with Section 8.4 are exam- Inches (in.)
ined without the use of magnification 4 16, 24, or 36 1.75 3.50 2.00
equipment. 6 24 or 36 3.00 6.00 3.50
8 24 or 36 4.00 8.00 5.00
6.6 Impact Strength-The minimum drop
weight impact strength for pipe and
couplings shall meet the requirements of
Table 3, when tested in accordance with TABLE 6 Rows of Perforations, Height "II" of the Center line of the Uppermost Rows above
Section 8.1. the Invert, and Chord Length "L" of Unperforated Segment
6.7 Joint Tightness Internal Diameter of Pipe Rows of Perfo- H. Max L, Min
mm in. rations mm in. mm in.
6.7.1 Elastomeric Seal (Gasketed) 102 4 2 46 1 13/16 65 2 9/16
Joints—Joints made with pipe and fit- 152 6 4 70 2¾ 98 3 7/8
tings having elastomeric seals shall show 203 8 4 94 3 11/16 130 5 1/8
no sign of leakage when tested in accor- 254 10 4 116 4 9/16 164 6 7/16
dance with ASTM D 3212. All surfaces 305 12 6 140 5½ 195 7 11/16
of the joint upon which the gasket bears 381 15 6 175 6 7/8 244 9 5/8
shall be smooth and free of imperfec-
tions, ridges, fractures, or cracks that
could adversely affect the seal.
6.7.2 Solvent Cement Joints—Joints
made with solvent cement joining shall
show no sign of leakage when tested in
accordance with Section 8.2.
NOTE 3—These requirements are qualifying
requirements for joint design and fabrication,
and are not necessarily indicative of perform-
ance ix field assembly.

6.8 Extrusion Quality—The pipe and

fittings shall not flake or disintegrate
when tested in accordance with ASTM D
2152.

7. CONDITIONING

7.1 Referee Test—When conditioning is

required for tests, the specimens shall be
conditioned in accordance with Proce-
dure A in Specification ASTM D 618 at
21 to 25°C (70 to 77°F) and 50 ± 5 per-
cent relative humidity for not less than 40
hours prior to test. Tests shall be con-
ducted under the same conditions of
temperature and humidity, unless other-
wise specified.

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M 278
7.2 Quality Control—For quality control
tests except impact, specimens shall be
conditioned for a minimum of 3 hours in
air, or 1 hour in liquid at 21 to 25°C (70
to 77°F). They shall be tested at 21 to
25°C (70 to 77°F) without regard to
relative humidity.
7.3 Impact Tests—For the impact test
described in Section 8.1, the specimen
and the surrounding conditioning me-
dium are to be in thermal equilibrium
with one another at a temperature of 0 to
1.6°C (32 to 35°F).
8. TEST METHODS
8.1 Impact Resistance—Five specimens,
each 150 ± 2 mm (6 ± 1/16 in.) long, shall
be tested in accordance with ASTM D
2444, using a 10 kg (20 lb) Tup A, and
the Flat plate (holder B). When testing is
performed at temperatures above 0°C
(32°F) no more than 15 s shall elapse
from the time of removal of the specimen
from the conditioning medium until
completion of that test. Perforated speci-
mens must be positioned with the print
marking, as described in Section 10.
uppermost; other specimens may be
positioned with a random surface upper-
most. All specimens must be located so
that the contact point is centered. All five
specimens shall pass. If one specimen
fails, another five specimens shall be
tested; nine out of ten specimens passing
shall be acceptable.
8.2 Joint Tightness of Solvent Cemented
Joints—A section of unperforated pipe
shall be cemented to a bell or coupling,
using the manufacturer's recommenda-
tions, or, in their absence. the methods
described in ASTM D 2855. Unless
otherwise specified, the assembly shall be
allowed to stand for at least 24 hours. It
SPECIFICATIONS FOR MATERIALS
shall then be subjected to an internal
pressure of 0.17 MPa (25 psi). using
water as the test medium. The pressure
shall be maintained for at least one hour.
Examine the joint for leakage.
8.3 Pipe Stiffness—Determine the pipe
stiffness (PS) at 5 percent deflection of
the initial inside diameter, as described in
ASTM D 2412. Test three specimens
each 150 ± 2 mm (6 ± 1/16 in.) long.
Unperforated pipe samples shall be
placed so that the minimum wall thick-
ness is uppermost (adjacent to the top
bearing plate). Perforated pipe samples
shall be placed with the marking. as
described in Section 10, uppermost.
8.4 Pipe Flattening—Flatten three speci-
mens of pipe each 150 ± 2 mm (6 ± 1/16
in.) long, between parallel plates in a
suitable press until the distance between
the plates is twice the wall thickness plus
5 percent of the nominal diame ter of the
pipe. The rate of loading shall be uniform
and such that the compression is com-
pleted within two to five minutes. Re-
move the load and examine the speci-
mens.
8.5 Dimensions—Measurements shall be
made in accordance with applicable
sections of ASTM D 2122.
9. INSPECTION AND RETEST
9.1 Inspection—The material shall be
inspected as agreed upon by the pur-
chaser and the seller as part of the pur-
chase contract.
9.2 Retest and Rejection—If the material
fails to meet the requirement of Section 6
when tested in accordance with Section
8, the material may be retested to estab-
lish conformity in accordance with
agreement between the purchaser and
seller.
10. MARKING
10.1 All pipe shall be clearly marked
at intervals of no more than 3.0 m (10
ft.), with 9.5 mm (3/8 in.) or larger let-
ters, and fittings shall be clearly marked,
as follows:
10.1.1 Manufacturer's name or trade-
mark,
10.1.2 Nominal size,
10.1.3 The specification designation M
278,
10.1.4 The plant designation code. 10.2
Pipe shall be tagged with the date of
manufacture.
10.3 In addition to the above, all bends
made from the pipe shall be marked to
show the angle and radius of curvature.
10.4 The marking on perforated pipe
shall be 180° from a point equidistant
between the bottom row of holes as
shown in Table 6.
10.5 When exposed, a "home" mark,
located at spigot ends, indicates the
proper position of the bell end, when the
spigot end is fully inserted.
11. QUALITY ASSURANCE
11.1 A manufacturer's certification
that the product was manufactured,
tested, and supplied in accordance with
this specification, together with a report
of the test results, and the date each test
was completed, shall be furnished upon
request. Each certification so furnished
shall be signed by a person authorized by
the manufacturer.
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