Used in everything from offshore industries to oil and gas transportation, aerospace, automotive and construction, steel tubing is versatile, durable, and designed to withstand pressure and wear and tear. The uses and applications of tubular steel are extensive, and tubulars and hollow sections offer numerous advantages.
Tubular steel is steel that has been shaped into a cylinder or a long, narrow rectangle. Steel pipes, tubes, and hollow sections all fall into this category as they are shaped into tubes and are hollow in the middle.
The way that tubular steel is made depends on the type of tube. Like piping, a tube can be made by welding two halves together to make a whole, or it may be seamless and made from a single block of steel.
If the tube is made from two halves, the two sections are cast separately and welded together. If the tube is seamless, a single block of steel undergoes extrusion, where the billet is heated and forced through a series of dies to create the desired tubed shape with the central well.
Due to its shape, tubular steel has excellent mechanical stability and good impact resistance to vibrations, shock, and pressure. This makes it ideal for offshore, industrial, and other demanding working conditions. There are many good properties of tubular steel, including the fact that it is lightweight, durable, and rust proof, so it doesn’t easily corrode, even when exposed to saltwater. This ensures that it’s not only maintenance free but that it lasts for several years and doesn’t need regular replacing.
Tubular steel is naturally extremely strong, particularly against longitudinal stress. Steel tubing can withstand a huge amount of lengthways compression and will bend and flex before it cracks or breaks. The strength-to-weight ratio of hollow tubing is also far superior to a solid rod due to the tube’s inertia. This greater inertia provides extra resistance and strength against impact, vibration, and weight or pressure.
Tubular steel’s most common application is in the construction industry as it’s used to make scaffolding. However, due to its high durability, it’s also used in the construction of permanent structures such as bridges and railings. Other uses and applications of tubular steel include the transportation of water and gas over long distances and the transportation of oil and gas from gas wells to a refinery or processing plant. The aerospace industry also uses tubular steel as the hollow sections are heat resistant, lightweight, and durable.
Additionally, tubular steel is used in a number of machinery applications, such as tool bodies, machine frames, and engine components. Plus, the automotive industry uses it extensively in the manufacturing of suspension components, roll bars, and, most commonly, exhaust pipes.
As steel is highly tensile and tubular steel is particularly strong by design, it offers many structural advantages. It can withstand high pressure, heat, and exposure to harsh environmental factors such as water and wind. Due to the many structural advantages of tubular steel, it’s used extensively in the oil and gas industries as it's not prone to cracking or breaking and can transport chemicals and volatile liquids safely over long distances.
SPS stocks a range of tubular steel that’s suited for commercial and industrial requirements, including those offshore. Due to the stress that these tubes are often subjected to, it’s essential that you select the right tubing or hollow sections for the job. Contact Steel Plate and Sections and find out how we can help you.