Influence of steps in the manufacture of large-diameter pipe on its final properties

An approach has been developed for simulating multistep plastic deformation—for example, rolling on a thick-sheet mill—by the tension-compression method. By means of the Pocket Jaw module in the Gleeble system, controlled strip rolling and pipe manufacture (including pipe fabrication, expansion, and thermocyclic polymer-coating application) may be reproduced on a single sample. At each moment in simulating rolling or pipe manufacture, the structure and properties of the steel may be investigated, and therefore the contribution of each operation to the pipe’s final properties may be determined. The results show that the straightening temperature of the metal after controlled rolling makes a marked contribution to the final properties of the pipe.