What is a seamless pipe?
Seamless pipe (SMLS) is a long strip of steel with a hollow section and no seams around it. The main feature is seamless welding. It is made by hot rolling, cold rolling or cold drawing, and has very high reliability and durability. Its advantages are high temperature resistance, good toughness, long pipe and few interfaces, and it is generally used as a fluid pipeline for special environments such as high pressure resistance and high temperature resistance. The disadvantages are high price, easy corrosion and short service life.
What is a welded pipe?
Welded pipe refers to a steel pipe with seams on the surface that is welded after bending and deforming a steel strip or steel plate into a circle, square, etc. The main feature is that there are seams. The blank used is steel plate or strip steel. It has strong corrosion resistance, high temperature resistance, long service life and low cost, and is usually used as a low-pressure fluid delivery pipeline. The disadvantage is that thicker iron plates cannot be welded and continuous welding is not possible, and the welding strength is low. It is difficult to weld workpieces with sealing and pressure requirements.
Because of its thin material and simple production process, its price is relatively low, and it is suitable for some occasions that do not require so much material. Welded pipes can be divided into straight seam (LSAW/ERW Welded Pipe) welded pipes and spiral welded pipes (SSAW) according to the shape of the weld seam.
Seamless Pipe vs Welded Pipe Price
Generally speaking, the price of seamless steel pipes is higher than that of welded pipes. This is because the production process requirements for manufacturing seamless steel pipes are relatively high and there are many processes, which leads to an increase in process costs. At the same time, the material of the seamless steel pipe is more uniform and compact, and its compressive and tensile strength indicators are higher than those of the welded pipe, so its service life is longer and more stable.
Although the price of welded pipe is relatively lower, due to the existence of its weld seam, cracks and brittle cracks are prone to appear at its interface, which affects its service life and safety.
Market demand and application scenarios of seamless pipes and welded pipes:
Finally, the market demand for seamless steel pipes is relatively small, and they are mainly used in fields that require high material quality, such as aviation and chemical industry. The market demand for welded pipes is large, and they are mainly used in construction, energy, transportation and other related fields. Therefore, for general occasions, the price of welded pipes is more affordable, while for some special fields, seamless steel pipes have become an indispensable and important material.
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