Insulation – What Is Piping

Thermal Insulation is very important for saving energy costs and maintaining the process fluid temperature at the required level. In case, thermal Insulation is appropriately chosen and used so that it is Non-complaining, Maintenance-free and Patient workhouse, It looks after the economy with tremendous savings in energy costs, the safety of personnel and smoother process control. On the other hand, insufficient or poor insulation or deterioration of existing thermal insulation can be a cause of huge energy loss. So most of the time, thermal Insulation is defined as, “A major tool in improving energy availability”. The thermal insulation material is also important to achieve low thermal conductivity and low thermal inertia. The basic objective of thermal insulation is to retard the flow of heat: From a hot surface to a cold environment orFrom a warm environment to a cold surface Insulated Pipes Energy Loss from Hot Surface Without Thermal Insulation Fig. 1A and Fig. 1B below shows a typical example of heat losses from piping surface if the pipe is not insulated. Fig. 1A: Example showing Heat Loss from Hot Surfaces Fig. 1B: Energy loss from pipe without thermal insulation The heat loss values are normally corrected by the correction factor for certain applications. Economic Reasons for Thermal Insulation: Piping thermal insulation Reduces fuel consumption, and hence overall operational cost so day to day economic benefits.Reduces capacity requirements for heating/cooling systems (boiler, refrigeration unit, etc)Savings in Capital costs Even though the basic requirement for providing thermal insulation is Economic, still it is not the sole criterion. The process requirement controls the usage of thermal insulation. Process Reasons for using thermal Insulation: Reduces temperature a drop of fluid in a heated systemReduces temperature gain of fluid in the refrigerated system.Reduces boil-off rate in a volatile liquid storage systemAssist in maintaining thermal balance in the reaction systemIn the heated system, it lowers temp. of exposed surfaces-protects workmen from burn hazardProvides fire protection for plant, equipment & pipingReduces capacity requirements for heating/cooling systems (boiler, refrigeration unit, etc) Economic Thickness for Thermal Insulation The thermal insulation thickness for which the total cost (insulation material cost + energy cost) is minimum is termed as economic thickness. Refer to Fig. 2 below which shows the total cost for a typical plant. Similar curves are plotted to find out economic thermal insulation thickness. Fig. 2: Determination of Economic Thickness By virtue, Insulation shall resist heat transfer by: RadiationConvectionConduction Types of Thermal Insulation Mass type insulation: Based on interposing a mass of material with a built-in capacity to retard heat flowReflective Insulation: Based on providing a series of the reflective surface with the intervening space s evacuatedMicroporous Insulation: Based on a combination of Mass & Reflective technologies. Physical Properties of Thermal Insulation Materials Significant physical parameters of thermal insulating materials can be divided into: Thermal PropertiesChemical PropertiesCommercial Factors Thermal Properties: Basic thermal parameters that thermal insulation materials should possess are: Temperature resistanceThermal conductivityThermal diffusivity, andThermal shock resistance Chemical Properties of Insulating Material: Major Chemical properties of insulating materials are: Compatibility with the metal surfaceCompatibility with environmental mediaDeterioration arising out of the chemical actionLife of insulation material Points to remember while selecting thermal insulating materials: Alkalinity (pH) or acidityChemical Reactivity / passivityCoefficient of Expansion / ContractionCompressive Strength & Breaking LoadAbrasion ResistanceCombustibilityMost importantly, THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY Thermal Conductivity Vs Density: The thermal conductivity of a material provides the heat loss per unit area per unit insulation thickness per unit temperature difference. The unit of measurement is W-m2/m°C or W-m/°C. With an increase in temperature, the thermal conductivity of materials increases. That is why the thermal conductivity for thermal insulation materials are always specified at the mean temperature (mean of hot and cold face temperatures). Fig. 3A provides a curve showing the relation between thermal conductivity and density of the thermal insulation material. Fig. 3A: A curve showing the relation between Thermal Conductivity and Density Refer to the Fig. 3B below which provides some typical thermal conductivity values for hot and cold insulation materials. Fig. 3B: Thermal conductivity of hot and cold thermal insulation materials Widely used Hot Insulating Material: Mineral WoolCeramic FibreCalcium Silicate Widely used Cold Insulating Materials: Expanded Polystyrene Foam (EPS)Extruded Polystyrene Foam (XPS)Polyurethane Foam (PUF)Poly-isocyanurate Foam (PIR)Foam glassPhenolic FoamThermocol Among the above-listed materials, Polyurethane and Polyisocyanurate have assumed the highest importance because these possess many superiorities as compared to others. Both of these materials can be used as Preformed shapes or installed in-situ-by Pouring or by spray. Insulation Finishes: The outer part of insulation is normally provided with: Weather barriers-claddingsWeather and Vapor retarder, Indoor coverings, and finishes All of these have only one basic function that is to protect the insulation material from the severe external exposure media. Thermal Insulating System Design Insulation system should perform to the expected level, undiminished over its life. This needs full data on material behavior under all conditions of exposure.In particular, we need to know what would make a material lose its properties. Thermal calculations need a representative value of Thermal Conductivity for design Standard materials like Rockwool and Calcium Silicate have well-established Design ‘k’ values.Limiting Service Temperature of useIn pipe applications, weight becomes critical. Abrasion is also a major problem with some materials. Calculation of Thermal Insulation Thickness The most basic piping model with thermal insulation is shown in Fig. 4. where r1 denotes pipe outside radius and r2 shows the radius of the Pipe including insulation. Fig. 4: Typical Pipe Cross Section with Insulation In calculation of thermal insulation first step is to calculate the heat loss from pipe. Heat loss from a surface is expressed as H = h X A x (Th-Ta) Where h = Heat transfer coefficient, W/m2-KH = Heat loss, WattsTa = Average ambient temperature, KTs = Desired/actual insulation surface temperature, ºCTh = Hot surface temperature (for hot fluid piping), ºC & Cold surface temperature for cold fluids piping) For horizontal pipes, heat transfer coefficient can be calculated by: h = (A + 0.005 (Th – Ta)) x 10 W/m2-K For vertical pipes, h = (B + 0.009 ( Th – Ta)) x 10 W/m2-K Here A, B are coefficients that can be obtained from the table in Fig. 5 Tm = ( Th + Ts)/2 k = Thermal conductivity of insulation at mean temperature of Tm, W/m-oCtk = Thickness of insulation, mmr1 = Actual outer radius of pipe, mmr2 = (r1 + tk)Rs = Surface thermal resistance =1/h oC-m2/WRl = Thermal resistance of insulation =tk/k ºC-m2/W The heat flow from the pipe surface and the ambient can be expressed as follows H = Heat flow, Watts= (Th-Ta)/(Rl+Ra)=(Ts-Ta)/Rs From the above equation, and for a desired Ts, Rl can be calculated. From Rl and known value of thermal conductivity k, thickness of insulation can be calculated. Equivalent thickness of insulation for pipe, Etk = (r1+tk) X ln{(r1+tk)/r1} Some more resources for you:Piping insulation: Important Considerations for Piping EngineerCorrosion under insulation: A Presentation References: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0950061819332180https://www.thermaxxjackets.com/difference-between-hot-and-cold-insulation-materials/