niaoue yp Balding esentias fora beter tomorrow J JANUARY 2008 TECHNICAL BULLETIN DEPTH OF BURIAL FOR PVC PIPE FLEXIBLE PIPE THEORY PVC pipes are classified as flexible pipes, They flex without breaking when loaded externally from soil weight and vehicular traffic. Rigid pipes, such as those made of conerete ar clay, do not perceptibly flex when loaded and experience wall crushing when their load limit is reached. This mode of failure for rigid pipes has given tise to the terms “crush strength” and “D-Load’, but these terms do not apply to PVC pipes. When a PVC pipe encounters external loading, its diameter will begin to deflect, meaning its sides will move outward and slightly downward, If the pipe is bur- ied in supportive soil, the stiffness of the soil will resist the deflection (see Figute 1). This action and reaction is the key to how a PVC pipe carries external loads. Figure 4 FLEXIBLE PIPE DEFLECTION UNDEFLECTED DEFLECTED FLEXIBLE PIPE FLEXIBLE PIPE TOTAL Load: SOIL + LIVE B a UWE Oo.ax. The combination of the embedment soil stiffness and the pipe stiffness form a system that acts to support extemal loads. By itself, the pipe may not support much weight, but the soil/pipe system can have tre mendous load capacity. ‘A PVC pipe’s resistance to deflection in an unburied state is measured by its "pipe stiffness’. Pipe stiffness is usually less significant than soil stiffness in PVC pipe installations, but in general, a higher pips stiffness results in a higher load capacity. Soil stiffness is most affected by the level of compac- tion achieved, and to a lesser extent by the soil type. Soil stiffness values for various conditions and soll types have been derived through extensive testing, CALCULATING ALLOWABLE BURIAL DEPTH Because a PVC pipe flexes rather than breaks when loaded, the failure criterion is not fracture strength, Instead, a limit is placed on pipe diametric deflection, This limit is expressed in terms of percentage reduction in diameter due to external loading. Industry recommen- dations for maximum deflection are shown in Table 1 Table 1 MAXIMUM RECOMMENDED DIAMETRIC DEFLECTION PVC Pressure Pipes 5% PVC Sewer/Drain Pipes 7%% PVC Electrical Conduits 5% A “failure” of a flexible pipe system from external load- ing is defined by the point at which the top of the pipe bagins to experience inverse curvature, Research has shown this point occurs at a minimum of 80% deflec- tion; recommendations for maximum deflection there- fore incorporate safety factors of 4:1 or 6:1In order to determine the suitabilty of a particular burial depth, a system designer estimates the pipe deflection through the use of an empirical equation callad the *“Modi- fied lowa Equation’. A simplified, conservative version of the equation is presented below: MODIFIED IOWA EQUATION Peed 0.1.0 +P) 100 —> ve DerLection - 01s Pi 100 0749 PS) 0.081 Where % DEFLECTION ~ predicted percentage of ciametio ofletion W' = Live Load (lbs/in?): pressure transmitted to the pipe from traffic on the ground surface, Live Load values are found in Table 2. P = Prism Load (lbs/in?): pressure acting on the pipe trom the weight of the soil column above the pipe (also called “Dead Load’), Prism Load values are found in Table 3. PS = Pipe Stiffness (Ibs/in?): a flexible pipe'’s resistance to deflection in an unburied stale, Pipe Stiffness values for JM Eagle products are found in Table 4. E’ = Modulus of Soil Reaction (Ibs/in2): stifiness of the ‘embedment soil, Values for Modulus of Soil Reaction are found in Table 5. Table 2 PSEC HEIGHT OF [_LIVE \ DAD TRANSFERRED TO PIPE, (LBS/IN?) SE Sad Tae eo 1 12.80 2 5.56 28.39 1314 —>: 2361 1228 4 278 18.40 5 174 1687 6 139 1563 7 122 1215 8 068 m1 %0 : 764 2 : 556 4 : a7 16 z 347 18 : 278 20 : 208 22 : 191 24 5 174 28 5 139 28 : 1104 : 20 : ose : 35 = e 5 40 s a z Ey 2 2 28 a Ey 2 30 31 2 33 a 35 6 37 ey 39 40 a a a 4 45 46 47 48 4 Pela a) oar 993, 1069 1148 1222 1290 1378 1451 1528 1608 1681 1757 1833 19.10 19.86 2069 2139 22.18 2292 23.68 28d 2521 2597 2674 2750 2826 2903 2979 30.56 3132 32.08 22.85 3361 34.38 35.4 350 3687 3743 38.18 10.00 10.88 1167 1260 1333 1437 15.00 15.83 1867 1750 1858 19.17 20.00 2088 2167 2250 23.39 2aar 25,00 25.83 2887 2750 asa zaar 30.00 167 3250 33.33 3417 35.00 35.83 3667 37.50 38.33 3017 40.00 467 4259 43.40 Seer 10.42 1128 12.15 13.02 1389 1476 1563 16.49 1736 1828 19.10 1997 7088 2170 2287 244 2431 25.7 26,04 2691 2778 2865 2051 2038 31.28 3212 32.99 33.85 3472 35.59 36.48 3733 a8 39.08 9993 4080 a67 4259 43.40 10.88 n74 1264 1384 1444 15.35 16.25 17.18 18.06 1896 19.86 2078 2187 2287 247 24.98 25.28 26.18 27.08 271.98 28.89 2370 2060 31460 3250 3340 3431 35.21 3611 37.01 37.92 2882 3972 4068 4189 4243 4333 4424 45.14 Page 2 of 4‘SOIL TYPE class (vated tssieaton Sister? Fe gine Sols L259 Sats wen mean ehh psy Fre grined Sols < Sasa win meu 0 no psy LiL wth es than 25% coare-graned pares cunsv Fre gine Sols < Sosa win meu ono psy CL MLMLCL, ‘clase mt win more nan 25% course-ranea parte 1004000072 000 Cows. (gained Sols win Fes GM GC, SM SOG contain more than 12% oes sana) 0288-7on80 Sol i Litho” None GY, GP, SH, SPC lana etana ee tan 12 Ses Class cranes Rock ecuracy Terms of Perentage Deecton {Dray Sete at bain wth oe trae smth 9, 0-0, 26-84 Ate: Ves soa ne tn STi dost hee ay A pipe system designer uses this equation to predict PVC pipe deflection given type of PVC pipe, burial depth, soil density, type of traffic, type of embedments il, and compaction density of embedment soil. The designer then compares the predicted deflection to there commended maximum defection in Table 1 to check if the burial depth is appropriate. Example 1: Shallow Burial Apipe system designer is interested in using ASTM D3024 SDR 35 PVC sewer pipe in a shallow-bural installation with the following characteristics: -1 foot burial depth: = 120 pounds per cubic foot soll density = H20 highway traffic - sand embedment material - 90% Proctor density embedment soil compaction 0.4 (PAW) 100, % DEFLECTION - —O1 PHN) 100 (0.149 (PS) = 0.0616" 0.1 (0.83 + 12.5) 100 % DEFLECTION = CLOSE + 128) 100 10.149 (46) + 0.081(2,000) % DEFLECTION = 1.021% ‘The maximum predicted deflection is 2.0%, well below the maximum recommended for PVC sewer pipe in Table 1 of 74%, Minimum Burial Depth: The minimum recommend- ed burial depth for PVC pipes beneath a highway is rang about 12850 Tia fame nh BST 8 eo8, RAST ton USAR Denon Et ta = aie son. ‘Sight < 85% Pct, Moderate 35% 95% Procter Hgh > 98% Pecos, Laove 40% relative density 40% ~ 70% relative density > 70% relive density ‘engneer, Otiernise use E = 0 “= = ae Tee T= ct this oan nacre nani incon a eral nn a are rb one foot, This recommendation assumes proper specifi- cation of embedment materials and compaction, and proper installation. Example 2: Deep Burial A pipe system designer is interested in using ASTM 18024 SDR 25 PVC sewer pipe in a deep-burialinstal- lation with the following characteristics: = 45 foot burial depth = 120 pounds per cubic foot soil density ~ H20 highway traffic (Note: Live loads are negligible for deep burials) - sand embedment material = 90% Proctor density embedment soil compaction 0.1 (PAW) 100 9% DEFLECTION = 0.149 (PS) + 0.081" 0.1 (27.8 + 0) 100 % DEFLECTION = —S:1E/S +0) 100 _ 0.149 (46) + 0.081(2,000) 9% DEFLECTION = 1,011% ‘The maximum predicted defection is 2.9%, well below the maximum recommended for PVC sewer pipe in Table 1 of 77%. For more information, see the following JM Eagle Technical Bulletins: = PVC Pipe Trench Construction - Deflection Testing of PVC Sewer Pipe - PVC Sewer and Drain Pige Burial Depth Charts - PVC Water Pipe Burial Depth Charts Page 3 of 4Table 4 Guana) ou) OD WU ea tala PVC ELECTRICAL UTILITY DUCTS ea uy Say ai Dray (esi) cy cay | 64 8-20 20 51 14 FB.35 35 100 a 28 DB-60 60. 125 328 87 DB-100 100 160 26 115: B-120 120 200 a1 224 Pe ae uc 315 13.5 216 Ercan cae Branca eae Soe Soy et) 5,928 3,136 2,847 Erol ay beast (ceo) Allhave a minimum pipe sttiness of 46 psi.SDR 26 has a minimum pipe stitinass of 115 psi. See nears 4 (Pst) 1% 4,008, 8 aed 2 596 4 ah) 2M 784 Bina 3 4 oe ancy a Pega) 6 154 i) i) 8 108 10 2 100 25 129 150 18 364 i) cy 17,088 16s 25 ore 235 18 364 6.998 Be oc as 1% 20) 1% 2911 ora EAE - mae " = z os * : 6 sor — > + ; a 6 120 10 2356 2 20