Experimental analysis of buried high density polyethylene pipes

The primary goal of this study was to evaluate the deflections and bending moments of buried High density polythylene (HDPE) pipes. The performance of buried HDPE pipes subjected to live loading was studied in soil chambers for three levels of service loading. Strains and diametral changes were measured for 10,000 hours. The discussion of the experimental findings is focused on certain recent concerns, associated with the HDPE piping related to deflection, longitudinal, and transverse stresses and bending moments. A 7.5% vertical change of diameter, which is the failure criterion, was observed at approximately 3,200 hours for the specimens heated at 50°C, and subjected to maximum service loading.