The Pipe Support Blog

New Patent for a High Temperature Support for Insulated Pipes
PT&P has developed a high capacity support for insulated pipes which does not rely on the insulation to carry any of the load. The design has several advantages over previous designs:

Since the insulation does not carry any mechanical load, it can be chosen solely on the basis of its thermal properties. In particular, cyclic loading, which has caused insulation failure, is not a problem.

• The support provides effective restraint for all six possible components of loads, X, Y, Z-Rotational and Translational. In particular, axial and torsional loads are readily accommodated. These represent difficulties for supports which rely on the insulation.

• It is easily installed in the field. It is attached to the pipe with a standard bolted pipe clamp. Thus there is no field welding.

The support consists of a shoe, similar to the PT&P Fig. 4500 Insulated Shoe Support for Hot Pipe (Hot Shoe) and two clamps, similar to the PT&P Fig. 50 Light Two Bolt Pipe Clamp. Each clamp is attached to the shoe by a steel plate which is designed to carry the design load, and is shape optimized to minimize heat flow from the pipe.

Cold Shoes with a Load Capacity of 75,000 lbs

PT&P recently designed and manufactured over 1,000 Coldshoes for an LNG Plant in Egypt.  These shoes are designed to support loads up to 75,000 lbs. at an operating temperature of -350°F. They are customized to fit pipe sizes of 20”, 24”, 30”, and 36”. All Coldshoes are composed of stainless steel with a Micarta® insulator.  Micarta® is a woven glass fabric laminated with epoxy resin. It is extremely high in mechanical strength, has low moisture absorption and dissipative factors, and has superior electrical characteristics which are exhibited over a wide range of temperatures and humidities.

Do you see a need for cold shoes in your piping system? Get pricing today!