Liner Buckling in Profiled Polyethylene Pipes

Thermoplastic pipes are often manufactured with profiled walls to maximize the flexural stiffness of the pipe for a given amount of polymer. Thin elements in the profile can buckle under the influence of large earth pressures associated with deep burial or other extreme loading conditions. Earth load tests have been conducted on high density polyethylene pipes with a number of different wall profiles. Two high-pressure pipe test cells have been...