Proceedings of the ASME 2011 Pressure Vessels & Piping Division Conference

PVP2011
July 17-21, 2011, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

PVP2011-57050

A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE OF HDPE PIPING MATERIAL

DEVELOPMENT
William I Adams
WL Plastics Corp
Cedar City, Utah, USA

Over more than a century, polyethylene and polyethylene

piping materials have been discovered, rediscovered,
commercialized and developed. With each new development,
field experience and research helped identify and characterize
polyethylene material performance, in most cases, leading to
improved durability and performance. This paper provides an
overview of polyethylene structure, a historical view of
significant developments and research, and how ongoing
research has provided for continuing development and
improvement of polyethylene piping performance.

Polyethylene was first commercialized in the late 1930s,

roughly 70 years ago. Since that time, the polyethylene family
of materials has developed into two categories that can
generally be described as non-durable and durable. The
predominant use for polyethylene is for non-durable articles
such as packaging, toys, bottles, jugs, containers, and the like.
Non-durable articles are intended for limited service, and are
commonly discarded after use. Non-durable articles can be
recovered from the waste stream and recycled into new nondurable articles.
Durable articles are a much smaller part of the overall
polyethylene industry. These include products such as sheet
liners for waste reservoirs and hazardous waste landfills, and
piping systems. The structure of polyethylene is designed for
durability with emphasis on withstanding long-term applied
stress without failure.
The general structure of solid polyethylene is that of a
semi-crystalline polymer.
Density is directly related to
crystallinity; a more crystalline polyethylene has higher
density. Molecular weight relates to the length of the polymer
chain; that is, a longer polymer chain has higher molecular
weight. Related to molecular weight is molecular weight
distribution, which is the statistical distribution of molecule
length (weight).

A third structural parameter is side chain branching,

which is the lateral attachment (grafting) of short copolymer
molecules along the length of the primary molecular chain.
Homopolymer polyethylene is produced as a single
repeating polymeric unit without copolymer side chain
branching. Copolymer polyethylene that is typically used for
durable articles is a grafted copolymer, which means that a
second, usually shorter polymeric unit is grafted at intervals
onto the side of the main polymer chain.
Polyethylene for non-durable articles has a low cost raw
material structure for high production rates. Generally, these
materials are lower density and lower molecular weight.
Polyethylene for durable products is generally a grafted
copolymer having higher molecular weight and higher density.
Its structure results in higher cost as a raw material, but its
higher crystallinity and structural design for long-term
durability provide mechanical properties that are better suited
for piping and applications that require long-term resistance to
failure from applied stress.

An understanding of the structure of polyethylene provides

an understanding of how it responds to applied stress.
Polyethylene is a thermoplastic polymer; that is, it is composed
of long chain molecules. When heated (melted), the polymer
can be shaped and then cooled to a solid that holds the shape.
Thermoplastics can be reheated and reshaped numerous times.

Polyethylene piping materials are grafted copolymers; that

is, short copolymer molecules are attached to the primary
molecule backbone at intervals along the molecule chain.

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As polyethylene cools from the melt, molecules fold into

ordered crystals and into randomly entangled structure
surrounding the crystals.
Polyethylene piping materials
incorporate a significant fraction of higher molecular weight
(longer) molecules that are generally too long to fold into a
single crystal. When these longer molecules cross from crystal
to crystal, they tie the crystalline structure together, and are
called tie molecules.

(SCG). It is characterized by little or no evidence of ductile

elongation at the failure, and intermittent (stop-start) crack
propagation.
Because pressure piping design loads are well below
creep-level stresses, the resistance of polyethylene piping
materials to SCG is a key determinant of long-term
performance in pressure piping applications. The balance of
this paper is devoted to this phenomenon and developments in
testing, material and processing that improve resistance to
SCG failure.

DF, design factor

ESC, environmental stress-cracking
ESCR, environmental stress-cracking resistance
HDB, hydrostatic design basis
HDPE, high density polyethylene
HDS, hydrostatic design stress
LTHS, long-term hydrostatic strength
SCG, slow crack growth

The semi-crystalline structure of solid polyethylene gives

rise to visco-elastic behavior. When stress (load) is applied to
polyethylene, the response is dependent on the magnitude and
duration of the load. A high magnitude, short duration load
typically elicits a stiff elastomer response. If this load is of
high magnitude, the material will yield, elongate significantly
(sometimes over 700%), and then break in the yielded area.
High magnitude loads below yield elicit a rubber-like response.
A review of Figure 4 helps explain high, short duration
load response. When yielding occurs, the bond strength
between tie molecules and crystals is greater than the intracrystalline shear strength; that is, when the material yields,
crystals shear apart. At loads below yield, crystals remain
intact and inter-crystalline randomly entangled tie molecules
provide resilience, a rubber-like elastic response.
As sustained load is reduced to a level below the elastic
limit, permanent deformation (creep or cold flow) occurs. If a
creep-level load is removed, some deformation will be
recoverable (primary creep) and some unrecoverable
(secondary creep). Creep is not to be confused with the
deformation of a viscous liquid (such as grease) where
deformation is completely unrecoverable. Visco-elastic creep
is non-linear; that is, a sustained creep-level load will produce
deformation however, the rate of deformation decreases over
time and eventually plateaus.
If we reduce load below a creep threshold, creep does not
occur; a different mechanism comes into play.
Under
relatively low sustained loads, the boundary between crystals
and tie molecules becomes vulnerable to stress concentration
(stress intensification) and eventually the material fails as tie
molecules shear at the crystal boundary.
This failure
mechanism is called stress cracking or slow crack growth

Discovery dates vary somewhat depending on the

reference, but the principals are the same. Around 1898-1899,
German chemist Hans von Pechmann accidentally synthesized
a white, waxy polymeric substance that was characterized
around 1900 by his colleagues Eugen Bamberger and
Frederich Tschirner as polymethylene, which is chemically
identical to polyethylene(1)(2).
Polyethylene was accidentally rediscovered in Britain by
Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) chemists Eric Fawcett and
Reginald Gibson around 1933. ICIs chemist Michael Perrin
developed a manufacturing process for polythene in 1935
and further developed the material into a commercially viable
material in 1939. Polyethylene was first used as a wire and
cable insulator for transoceanic telephone cables, and in WWII
by the Allies as a cable insulator for airborne radar(3). Carl
Ship Marvel, an American chemist and consultant for E. I du
Pont de Nemours & Co., also rediscovered polyethylene in
1930, but du Pont did not commercialize the material at that
time.
In 1951, American chemists Robert Banks and John
Hogan of Phillips Petroleum discovered that chromium
trioxide based catalysts promoted polymerization at milder
temperatures and pressures. This was followed in 1953 by
Nobel prize winning chemists Karl Ziegler of Germany and
Giulio Natta of Italy who developed catalyst systems based on
titanium halides and organoaluminum compounds for
polymerization at even milder conditions.
By turn of the decade in 1960, commercially viable
polyethylene materials were available for a wide range of
applications including pipe and tubing. One of the first
tubing applications greatly benefited Phillips Petroleum who

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had experienced some difficulty controlling production from

their new polymerization process. They filled warehouses with
what we now kindly call wide-spec material, but were saved
by Wham-O inventors Richard Knerr and Robert Spud
Merlin who used the material to make the Hula-Hoop(4)(5).

Although the Hula-Hoop is a toy, exceptional chemical

resistance, light weight, flexibility and ease of fabrication
offered bright promise over traditional metal and non-ferrous
piping. Polyethylene materials are easily extruded into tubes
and molded into fittings to produce piping products for serious
applications such as transporting municipal and industrial
fluids including compressed gases, natural gas, oil, raw and
reclaimed water, drinking water, sewage, wastewater, chemical
solutions, slurries, and nuclear reactor cooling water.
Durability is defined largely by the application. At one
end of the applications spectrum, non-durable packaging
materials are typically used once and then discarded, and may
even be compounded with additives to promote degradation in
landfill conditions. In any event, the useful life of non-durable
packaging materials is short, perhaps a few months. Pipe
however, is at the opposite end of the scale. Typical durable
piping systems are significant capital investments that are
expected to maintain strength and containment for a design
service life that may be many decades.
Criteria for durability (resistance to failure) are
determined by the specific application. For example, leakage
from pressure gas distribution piping is not acceptable;
therefore, long-term leak resistance is the critical criteria for
natural gas service. On the other hand, resistance to structural
loads is the predominant criteria for a non-pressure sewer or
culvert pipe; that is, the application can tolerate some
deterioration provided that sufficient structural capacity is
retained.
As with most applications, field experience identifies areas
for improvement and research provides the means for
understanding field experience and developing materials that
provide improved long-term durability in piping applications.
In the 1960s and 1970s, various PE materials were used for
piping applications. It was initially believed that tensile
properties as used for metals were sufficient for design.
Unfortunately, field experience quickly revealed that stress
design based on short-term tensile properties was wholly
inadequate as a predictor of performance under long-term
applied stress. Mechanical responses such as creep were
revealed, and standards such as ASTM D2837 Standard Test
Method for Obtaining Hydrostatic Design Basis for
Thermoplastic Pipe Materials(6) were developed to better
estimate design stress limits for long-term pressure piping
applications. Standards such as ASTM D2837 analyze longterm test data to arrive at acceptable long-term stresses for

thermoplastic
pressure
piping
materials
including
polyethylene.
The ASTM D 2837 method applies a statistical regression
analysis to a hoop-stress/time to failure data set developed by
subjecting pipe specimens to various internal pressure stresses.
ASTM D2837 sets dataset requirements by specifying the
number of failures and failure times ranging from 100 to
10,000 hours. A regression analysis is applied to the data to
project a hoop stress level that would result in failures at
100,000 hours. This stress level is termed the Long-Term
Hydrostatic Strength, or LTHS. The LTHS is then compared
to categorized LTHS value ranges and assigned a Hydrostatic
Design Basis, or HDB. When applied to piping applications,
the HDB is reduced by a design factor (DF) to provide the
hydrostatic design stress (HDS) that is used for pressure
design.
The DF provides for variations in materials,
fabrication, installation, operation, and unknown conditions of
the application. For many thermoplastic polymers, ASTM
D2837 has proved to be an excellent predictive methodology.
However, piping made from early polyethylene polymers
exhibited signs of premature aging even though design stresses
were well within predicted design limits. In particular, some
early gas pipe materials operating at 3 to 1 and higher design
factors prematurely developed leaks at stress-cracks, a most
unacceptable condition for gas pipe (Figure 5). In response,
industry resources were mobilized to develop an understanding
of the stress-cracking phenomenon(7), to develop testing
methods that characterized resistance to stress-cracking, and to
develop more robust, stress-crack resistant materials.

Initially, resistance to stress cracking was evaluated using

conventional environmental stress cracking (ESC) tests such as
ASTM D1693 Standard Test Method for Environmental
Stress-Cracking of Ethylene Plastics(8) where a coupon of
polyethylene material is notched, bent, and immersed in a
chemical stress cracking solution at elevated temperature. Failure

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is determined by observing the test specimens for visible cracks on

the test coupon surface. Figures 6 and 7 illustrate ASTM D1693
test specimen and testing configuration.

A related test, ASTM F1248 Standard Test Method for

Determination of Environmental Stress Crack Resistance
(ESCR) of Polyethylene Pipe(9) was developed to determine
ESC resistance for specimens taken from pipe rather than
specimens prepared from a compression molded resin plaque.
Figures 8, 9 and 10 illustrate the test specimen and testing
configuration.

Although ESC tests such as ASTM D1693 and ASTM

F1248 offer a relative feel for stress cracking resistance of
polyethylene, ESC tests do not produce data that supports

performance predictive methodology and because a chemical

accelerant is used, do not model field cracking such as that
shown in Figure 5 very well. ESC tests provide qualitative
information relative to the development of surface cracks, but
there is no known way to correlate ESC resistance to allowable
field stress as determined by stress-rupture testing and
analysis. In part this is because under high applied stress and
especially at elevated temperature, polyethylene materials will
creep thus reducing the stress level over time. Bent specimen
tests such as those in ASTM D1693 and ASTM F1248 are
susceptible to creep that limits test usefulness to several
hundred hours. Polyethylene materials that are susceptible to
ESC chemical attack in a few hundred hours or less can be
characterized and compared to other polyethylene materials
having comparable ESC resistance.
But polyethylene
materials that resist chemical attack for more than a thousand
hours are very likely to never fail ESC tests; that is, ESC tests
cease to be useful for polyethylene materials that have good
resistance to ESC failure.
Further, the field cracking environment is vastly different
from the chemically accelerated ESC test environment. In
Figure 5, the cracked pipes are not severely deformed, and
installed gas pipes are not immersed in hot stress cracking
solutions. For these reasons, ASTM D1693 is no longer
applicable to polyethylene pressure piping materials, and
ASTM F1248 has been withdrawn by ASTM. It is no longer
an active standard.
Under ASTM D2837 methodology, a viable regression
analysis of stress-rupture test data requires that a consistent
pipe specimen failure mode. For many thermoplastic materials
the failure mode is consistently ductile; that is, elongation
(deformation) of the pipe wall and then failure in the elongated
area. For these materials, there is no indication that the longterm field failure mode will vary from the ASTM D2837 test
failure mode. Accordingly, there is reasonable certainty that
the LTHS and the resulting HDB and HDS predicted by the
regression analysis will be valid for the future time predicted
by the stress-rupture methodology.
When unanticipated field problems such as premature
cracking failures in gas pipe occur, we want to find out why
sooner rather than later. But as we have seen, stress regression
testing takes up to 10,000 hours, about 14 months and it
doesnt necessarily model field conditions. We know that
reactions are accelerated by increasing stress, by increasing
temperature, by varying stress and temperature (fatigue), by
applying an aggressive chemical environment, or by
combinations thereof. So an obvious way to shorten the
overall time for regression analysis is to apply known
acceleration techniques to obtain test data in a shorter time.
When ASTM D2837 sustained pressure testing is
conducted at higher temperatures and relatively low stresses, a
different failure mode in semi-crystalline polyethylene
materials is revealed. The new failure mode is characterized
by no discernable ductile elongation; that is, brittle-like cracks

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and Argonne National Laboratories also under Gas Research

Institute contract.(12)(13). In the CTL test, a pipe ring is razor
notched inside and out across the diameter, split disks are
fitted into the ring ID, and then a tensile load is applied to
separate the split disks (Figure 13). This applies a hoop-like
tensile stress across the notched ligament in the pipe wall.
CTL tests were conducted in ambient and elevated
temperatures, and in various environments such as air, water,
and chemical stress cracking solutions.

The PENT SCG test was developed into an ASTM

standard and published in 1997 as ASTM F1473 Standard Test
Method for Notch Tensile Test to Measure the Resistance to
Slow Crack Growth of Polyethylene Pipes and Resins(15).

Of course, research into the brittle cracking phenomena of

polyethylene pipe was not exclusively a North American effort.
Polyethylene pipe is used worldwide for gas distribution.
Research in Japan yielded a full notch creep test (FNCT)
where a tensile bar is razor notched on four sides and then
subjected to a constant tensile load at elevated temperature(14)
(Figure 14).
An important finding from notched c-ring, CTL and
FNCT research was that scientists were able to correlate brittle
SCG failures produced using these tests to stress rupture
testing and analysis per ASTM D2837 and ISO 9080.
Depending upon the test and the test environment, brittle, SCG
failure results could be accelerated by multiples of up to 100
times.
Around the same time, materials scientists at the
University of Pennsylvania under Gas Research Institute
contract developed another notched bar specimen test for SCG
resistance nicknamed PENT, an acronym for PEnnsylvania
Notch Test(18). The PENT specimen is similar to the Japanese
FNCT specimen except that there is a razor notch on one side,
and coplanar side grooves on two adjacent sides (Figure 15).
The specimen is subjected to a constant tensile load at elevated
temperatures to induce plane strain fracture.

Additional research by the Geosynthetic Research Institute

at Drexel University funded by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency led to the development of a SCG resistance
test for geotextile membranes(16), which are polyethylene sheets
used as pond and landfill liners to contain hazardous waste
and prevent the migration of hazardous effluent into
underground aquifers. Like cracks in some polyethylene gas
pipe, some polyethylene geotextile liners had prematurely
developed brittle cracks and similar to pipe, ESC tests proved
to be inadequate predictors of field performance.
The notched constant tensile load (NCTL) test developed
by the Geosynthetic Research Institute uses a smaller, thinner
specimen compared to FNCT and PENT tests. NCTL uses a
microtensile specimen with a razor notch (Figure 16).

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and Argonne National Laboratories also under Gas Research

Institute contract.(12)(13). In the CTL test, a pipe ring is razor
notched inside and out across the diameter, split disks are
fitted into the ring ID, and then a tensile load is applied to
separate the split disks (Figure 13). This applies a hoop-like
tensile stress across the notched ligament in the pipe wall.
CTL tests were conducted in ambient and elevated
temperatures, and in various environments such as air, water,
and chemical stress cracking solutions.

The PENT SCG test was developed into an ASTM

standard and published in 1997 as ASTM F1473 Standard Test
Method for Notch Tensile Test to Measure the Resistance to
Slow Crack Growth of Polyethylene Pipes and Resins(15).

Of course, research into the brittle cracking phenomena of

polyethylene pipe was not exclusively a North American effort.
Polyethylene pipe is used worldwide for gas distribution.
Research in Japan yielded a full notch creep test (FNCT)
where a tensile bar is razor notched on four sides and then
subjected to a constant tensile load at elevated temperature(14)
(Figure 14).
An important finding from notched c-ring, CTL and
FNCT research was that scientists were able to correlate brittle
SCG failures produced using these tests to stress rupture
testing and analysis per ASTM D2837 and ISO 9080.
Depending upon the test and the test environment, brittle, SCG
failure results could be accelerated by multiples of up to 100
times.
Around the same time, materials scientists at the
University of Pennsylvania under Gas Research Institute
contract developed another notched bar specimen test for SCG
resistance nicknamed PENT, an acronym for PEnnsylvania
Notch Test(18). The PENT specimen is similar to the Japanese
FNCT specimen except that there is a razor notch on one side,
and coplanar side grooves on two adjacent sides (Figure 15).
The specimen is subjected to a constant tensile load at elevated
temperatures to induce plane strain fracture.

Additional research by the Geosynthetic Research Institute

at Drexel University funded by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency led to the development of a SCG resistance
test for geotextile membranes(16), which are polyethylene sheets
used as pond and landfill liners to contain hazardous waste
and prevent the migration of hazardous effluent into
underground aquifers. Like cracks in some polyethylene gas
pipe, some polyethylene geotextile liners had prematurely
developed brittle cracks and similar to pipe, ESC tests proved
to be inadequate predictors of field performance.
The notched constant tensile load (NCTL) test developed
by the Geosynthetic Research Institute uses a smaller, thinner
specimen compared to FNCT and PENT tests. NCTL uses a
microtensile specimen with a razor notch (Figure 16).

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Evaluation of Stress Crack Resistance of Polyolefin

Geomembranes Using Notched Constant Tensile Load Test(17)
in 1993.

A benefit derived from small specimens is that many can

be tested in a small space, and quite a lot of data obtained in a
relatively short period of time. Included in an NCTL study
report(16) is an interesting chart that illustrates the effects of
testing the same material in various media at the same
temperature (Figure 17).
For the Figure 17 data, the same polyethylene material
was tested in a solution of 10% Igepal CO630 and 90% tap
water, 100% tap water, and in air. (Igepal CO630 is a strong
detergent, a chemical that is known to cause stress cracking in
polyethylene.) Of interest is that the slopes of the brittle curves
for the 10% Igepal and water are virtually identical, but the
onset of brittle failure is considerably accelerated in the 10%
Igepal solution. Further, the onset of brittle failure in tap
water and air is about the same, but the slope of the brittle
failure curve in air is remarkably steeper compared to the
brittle failure slopes in water and 10% Igepal solution. It
would appear that the elevated temperature air media has an
additional effect on the brittle failure of PE materials that does
not occur in the other media.

The availability of SCG resistance tests that could rapidly

and accurately evaluate polymer modifications provided tools
for developing polyethylene polymers having improved
resistance to brittle, SCG failure. Two SCG tests in particular
have developed into important tools for developing SCG
resistant polyethylene materials. In North America, PENT
SCG testing is extensively used for pressure piping materials,
and the NCTL test has been further developed for use with
non-pressure corrugated pipe.
SCG research and development with polyethylene
materials has been correlated to stress-rupture testing, thus
establishing a measure for field resistance to brittle SCG field
failure. Data from SCG tests is applied to compare SCG
resistance performance of polyethylene copolymers, to evaluate
the effects of branch density and location in the molecular
structure(18) and to establish physical requirements for SCG
resistance of PE materials(19). More recently, SCG resistance
has led to the development of dual-reactor technology for
producing bi-modal polyethylene materials that show great
promise as the next evolution in high-performance
polyethylene materials(20).
Aside from pressure pipe, the SCG resistance work from
the Geosynthetic Research Institute did not go unnoticed by the
corrugated polyethylene pipe industry. Corrugated pipes
employ a profile wall construction that minimizes material
usage, but provides resistance to deformation from applied
external loads.
The discussion so far has generally focused on the
durability of pressure pipes where resistance to leakage is the
predominant requirement for durability. With non-pressure
pipes, however, the predominant criteria is the ability to resist
structural loads, that is, some deterioration may be tolerated
provided the ability to sustain structural loads such as loads
from soil embedment and live loads from traffic above the pipe
is retained.

The NCTL test was developed into an ASTM standard and

published as ASTM D5397 Standard Test Method for

Of particular interest for corrugated pipes is the ability of

the NCTL test to evaluate thin sections of PE materials for

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SCG resistance. In fact, the NCTL test has been adapted to

evaluate corrugated PE pipe materials as the notched constant
ligament stress (NCLS) test, which was developed into ASTM
F2136 Standard Test Method for Notched, Constant LigamentStress (NCLS) Test to Determine Slow-Crack-Growth
Resistance of HDPE Resins or HDPE Corrugated Pipe(21) and
published in 2001. The NCLS specimen is identical to the
NCTL specimen, but the test parameters are different. The
corrugated PE pipe industry is now developing product
standards that include NCLS requirements for PE materials
used in corrugated pipe manufacture.

Research into polyethylene structure revealed the effects of

comonomers, comonomer placement and molecular weight on
resistance to SCG. Initially, it was revealed that higher order
comonomers improved resistance to SCG (See Figure 2).
Increasing comonomer branch length from ethyl to butyl to
hexyl to octyl improved SCG resistance by orders of
magnitude.
Research also identified that in conventional polyethylene
manufacture, comonomers generally attached themselves to a
lower molecular weight fraction; that is, to shorter molecules.
In Figure 19(20), the bell curve shows molecular weight
distribution, or the statistical distribution of molecule length.
A unimodal distribution is characterized by a bell curve with
a single peak. When comonomer distribution is shown with
the distribution curve, it can be seen that more comonomer
branching occurs with shorter rather than longer molecules.
Shorter, more highly branched molecules interfere with crystal
development because it is more difficult for a branched
molecule to fold tightly to its neighbor. However, reduced
crystallinity provided greater tie molecule density for the same
overall molecular weight distribution thereby improving SCG
resistance.

Reduced density depresses general mechanical properties

most of which are beneficial for piping. If a way could be
found to invert comonomer distribution, improvements in both

mechanical properties and long-term resistance to SCG could

be realized.
Polymer scientists realized that a blend of near
homopolymer polyethylene and very high molecular weight
polyethylene with a high level of copolymerization would do
the trick. This unique bimodal structure is illustrated in
Figure 20(20).

Bimodal structure improves crystallinity and SCG

resistance. A review of Figure 3 shows why this should be so.
The lower molecular weight fraction can fold tightly into
larger crystals to improve general mechanical performance.
The additional higher molecular weight fraction (Figure 20
second peak) increases tie molecule density to better secure the
structure together and improve SCG resistance.
Significant gains in overall fracture toughness across the
entire use range from subfreezing to elevated temperatures
have been realized. Compared previous generation piping
materials, elevated temperature strength is improved. SCG
resistance has been increased by orders of magnitude. Where
PENT SCG resistance has been tens of hours, the new
structure resists SCG failure for thousands of hours. SCG
resistance is so greatly improved that the potential for field
stress cracking is virtually removed from consideration.

Polyethylene has existed for over a century, first as a

laboratory curiosity, and then as a material for commercial
products. Roughly five decades ago, tubular products were
produced from polyethylene creating a new worldwide
polyethylene pipe industry. The need for more durable PE
pipe materials grew from early field experience with brittle
crack field failures in sensitive gas pipe applications. Research
identified and characterized the phenomena as slow crack
growth. SCG evaluation methods were developed, used to
understand SCG resistance in polyethylene materials and to
develop a new polyethylene structure for high performance PE
piping products that virtually eliminates SCG as a long-term
performance concern.

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