Applies To
	Product(s):	AutoPIPE
	Version(s):	2004, XM, V8i
	Environment:	N/A
	Area:
	Subarea:
	Original Author:	Bentley Technical Support Group
	Date Logged & Current Version	Mar. 2015 09.06.01.11

Problem:

On a valve dialog screen in AutoPIPE, what is the surface area factor and how is is calculated?

Answer:

The surface area factor is used to calculate the weight of the valve insulation and the buoyant force for a submerged valve. For many standard ratings, this factor is completed automatically. For other standard and non-standard valves, the user must input this value from the valve manufacturer data.

Buoyancy force on the valve is taken into account with the surface area factor of the valve. This factor is multiplied by the buoyant forces of the pipe, so if the factor is 1.5 and the force is 1000 lb, the updated buoyant force will be reported as 1500 lb.

The surface area factor does not appear to affect the hydrodynamic loading. Hydrodynamic forces simply consider the OD of the PIPEID, plus any marine growth input in the wave load dialog.

See Also

Bentley AutoPIPE

External Links

Bentley Technical Support KnowledgeBase

Bentley LEARN Server

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