The World'S Largest Diameter Ductile Iron Pipe Goes Into Production And My Country Takes The Lead In Related Manufacturing Technology

Carbon and other elements are added to the formula of ductile iron pipes, making the finished product stronger, tougher, and longer-lasting. It is two to three times longer than traditional steel pipe fittings. The production of this kind of iron pipe becomes more difficult as the diameter of the pipe increases exponentially. The processing and adjustment accuracy of the ductile iron pipe that is put into production today must be controlled within 0.1 mm. my country is the only country that can produce ductile iron pipes with diameters above 2.6 meters. How difficult is it to produce large-diameter ductile iron pipes?

After being cast at a high temperature of more than 1,300°C, the world's largest diameter ductile iron pipe was officially put into production. At this moment, I was more than ten meters away from it, and I could already feel the rolling heat wave coming.

The production line next to it casts an iron pipe with a diameter of 1.4 meters, which weighs only 3.6 tons, while this large iron pipe with a diameter of 3 meters weighs 15 tons, which is equivalent to the weight of 10 family cars.

So how big is a 3-meter pipe? Let's take a closer look. After I came in, I found that it was as high as a floor. Even if I jumped up, I couldn't reach the top. Although its diameter is only 2 meters larger than the 1-meter-diameter pipe commonly used in water conservancy projects today, the entire water delivery volume has increased by more than 20 times. There is no doubt that it will play a greater role in alleviating the uneven distribution of water resources.

In addition, I found that the two ends of this pipe are one large and one small. During the construction process, it adopts this flexible connection method. The small end of another pipe is inserted into the large end of the pipe. This avoids the welding process and improves the construction efficiency. That's an increase of two or three times. In addition, another advantage of this flexible connection is that in some situations where the geology is uneven and prone to settlement, it will also allow the entire pipeline to have a certain degree of curvature to ensure normal water delivery needs.

Ductile iron pipes have high strength, good toughness, corrosion resistance, long life (and other characteristics). Ordinary steel pipes and other pipes generally have a service life of only about 30 years, while ductile iron pipes generally have a service life of 70 to 100 years.

In recent years, with the successful development of a series of products such as super-large ductile iron pipes, my country's ductile pipe fittings manufacturing technology has transformed from catching up to leading.

In 2022, my country's cast pipe production will be 6.56 million tons, and global production will be about 11 million tons. In other words, my country's cast pipe production accounts for nearly 60% of global production. However, in the early 1990s, my country's cast pipe industry had just started, and cast pipes could only rely on imports. More than two decades of continuous innovation have enabled my country's cast pipe technology to transform from following to leading. With the advancement of technology, it also brings broad market prospects and economic benefits.