Piping Engineer Course

Lesson 1 • Core Piping Terminology and Concepts

Defines essential vocabulary: pipe vs. tube, nominal bore, schedule, and pressure class. Accurate terminology is required for all subsequent technical work in this course.

Lesson 2 • Piping Engineering Documentation

Covers the full document set produced by a piping engineer, from P&IDs to isometrics. Understanding document hierarchy prevents errors in design and construction phases.

Lesson 3 • Piping Codes and Standards Framework

Explains the hierarchy of international piping codes, standards, and owner specifications. Students learn to identify which standard governs design, fabrication, and inspection for a given service.

Lesson 1 • Piping Specialties and Inline Items

Addresses strainers, sight glasses, expansion joints, and inline instruments as piping components. These items must be accounted for in stress analysis and layout design.

Lesson 2 • Pipe Fittings and Connections

Covers elbows, tees, reducers, flanges, and threaded connections with their dimensional standards. Proper fitting selection directly affects pressure integrity and layout efficiency.

Lesson 3 • Valve Types and Selection Criteria

Explains gate, globe, ball, butterfly, check, and control valve functions and end connections. Correct valve selection ensures operability, isolation, and flow control in every service.

Lesson 4 • Piping Material Specifications

Teaches how to read and write a piping material class or specification sheet. Material classes standardize component selection across an entire project.

Lesson 1 • Fundamental Fluid Properties and Flow Regimes

Reviews density, viscosity, vapor pressure, and Reynolds number as inputs to piping calculations. Distinguishing laminar from turbulent flow determines which friction correlations apply.

Lesson 2 • Pump and Compressor System Hydraulics

Covers system curves, pump curves, and operating point determination for liquid and gas systems. Engineers use this knowledge to verify equipment selection and detect instability.

Lesson 3 • Transient Flow and Water Hammer

Explains pressure surge generation, wave speed, and mitigation strategies for liquid systems. Unmitigated water hammer causes pipe failures and valve damage.

Lesson 1 • Equipment Nozzle Orientation and Connections

Addresses nozzle orientation for vessels, heat exchangers, pumps, and compressors to optimize pipe routing. Incorrect nozzle orientation forces costly pipe loops and high stress loads.

Lesson 2 • Plot Plan Development Principles

Covers equipment spacing, hazardous area zoning, and prevailing wind orientation for plot plan design. A well-organized plot plan reduces pipe lengths and construction costs.

Lesson 3 • 3D Modeling and Layout Review

Introduces 3D plant design software workflows and clash detection for piping layout verification. Model-based reviews replace costly physical mock-ups and reduce field rework.

Lesson 4 • Pipe Routing Fundamentals

Establishes rules for routing pipes on pipe racks, sleepers, and underground to minimize stress and cost. Routing decisions made early prevent costly rework during detailed design.

Lesson 1 • Internal Pressure Design Calculations

Applies hoop stress equations to calculate minimum required wall thickness for straight pipe. This calculation is the basis for all pipe schedule and material selections.

Lesson 2 • High-Temperature and Creep Considerations

Addresses material strength reduction at elevated temperatures and creep damage accumulation. High-temperature piping requires special material grades and inspection intervals.

Lesson 3 • Branch Connections and Reinforcement

Covers area replacement method and reinforcing pad design for branch connections under pressure. Unreinforced branches are a common source of pressure boundary failures.

Lesson 4 • Low-Temperature and Cryogenic Piping

Explains ductile-to-brittle transition, impact testing requirements, and insulation for cold service. Brittle fracture is the primary failure mode in cryogenic piping.

Lesson 1 • Flexibility and Expansion Loop Design

Teaches how to provide thermal flexibility through loops, offsets, and expansion joints. Adequate flexibility prevents fatigue failure and excessive nozzle loads.

Lesson 2 • Stress Analysis Software Application

Demonstrates building a pipe stress model, applying loads, and interpreting output reports. Software proficiency enables engineers to analyze complex systems efficiently.

Lesson 3 • Sources of Pipe Stress and Loading

Identifies sustained, thermal, occasional, and dynamic loads acting on piping systems. Classifying loads correctly is the first step in any stress analysis workflow.

Lesson 4 • Code Stress Equations and Allowables

Applies code-defined stress equations for sustained, displacement, and occasional load cases. Comparing calculated stresses to allowables determines system acceptability.

Lesson 1 • Corrosion Mechanisms and Monitoring

Identifies internal and external corrosion mechanisms relevant to process piping and their monitoring methods. Early corrosion detection prevents unplanned shutdowns and safety incidents.

Lesson 2 • Fitness-for-Service and Remaining Life

Applies fitness-for-service assessment levels to evaluate corroded or damaged piping for continued operation. This analysis supports run-repair-replace decisions and maintenance planning.

Lesson 3 • Pressure Testing Procedures

Covers hydrostatic, pneumatic, and leak testing procedures including test pressure calculation and safety precautions. Pressure testing is the final verification of pressure boundary integrity.

Lesson 4 • Weld Quality and Acceptance Criteria

Defines weld defect types, code acceptance criteria, and weld procedure qualification requirements. Weld quality directly determines the pressure integrity of the entire piping system.

Lesson 1 • FEED and Detailed Design Workflows

Maps the piping engineering deliverables, review gates, and interdisciplinary interfaces across FEED and detailed design phases. Understanding phase transitions prevents scope gaps and rework.

Lesson 2 • Construction Support and Commissioning

Defines the piping engineer's role during fabrication, erection, pre-commissioning, and startup activities. Active construction support reduces field queries and ensures design intent is achieved.

Lesson 3 • Vibration Analysis and Acoustic Fatigue

Addresses flow-induced vibration, mechanical resonance, and acoustic fatigue in high-velocity gas lines. Vibration failures are a leading cause of small-bore piping leaks in operating plants.

Lesson 4 • Slug Flow and Multiphase Piping Design

Covers slug flow regimes, slug force calculation, and structural response for multiphase pipelines and risers. Slug forces must be included in both stress analysis and support design.