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What is a stainless steel elbow

2018-10-07

 Industry News
 News

What is a stainless steel elbow?

Stainless steel elbow is one of the most used pipe fittings in pipes. Its proportion is up to
70% and 80% in pipe fittings. It occupies a considerable proportion of all pipe fittings,
which shows that it is important in the pipeline. The main function of the elbow is to
change the direction of the pipe. All pipes are not always possible, so elbow steering is
required.

The most commonly used is stainless steel 90 degree elbow, stainless steel 45 degree
elbow, stainless steel 180 degree elbow, and special angle elbow, or long elbow, big bend,
etc. according to the actual needs of customers. , pressing, forging and casting processes.
Our factory produces elbows commonly used in the push-making process, with many
years of production experience, the quality of the elbow products is good, and the
thickness is even. The conventionally produced elbows have 1D elbows and 1.5D elbows.
The 1D elbows indicate that the radius of curvature is equivalent to the outer diameter of
the pipe. This is the short radius elbow we often call, and the 1.5D is also the most
commonly used elbow on the market. Called the long radius elbow, the radius of curvature
is 1.5 times the outer diameter of the tube.

45 degree stainless steel90 degree stainless steel180 degree stainless steel

elbow elbow elbow
Stainless pipe elbows are curved connecting pieces that join straight lengths of pipe,
commonly at a 90°or 45°angle, allowing obstructions to be avoided in plumbing,
ventilation, welding, and automotive applications.

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We have adopted advanced production equipment to make our short radius elbows(1D
D711.2～D1219.2), which can not only improve product quality, but also save raw
materials.

Thick VS Thin

Elbows Inside welded

Size range:

 Seamless elbow: 1/2″～24″DN15～DN600

 Welding elbow: 6″～72″ DN150～DN1800
 Max wall thickness: 200mm

MATERIAL STAINLESS STEEL GRADES:

Also known as “marine grade” stainless steel due to its increased ability to resist saltwater
corrosion compared to type 304. SS316 is often used for building nuclear reprocessing
plants.

 304/304L Stainless Steel

 316/316L Stainless Steel
 310S Stainless Steel

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 317L Stainless Steel

 321/321H Stainless Steel
 410 Stainless Steel
 Duplex 2205 (UNS S31803)

Stainless steel elbows ASTM A403 304, 316 – chemical composition:

Grade C Mn P S Si Ni Cr Mo

WP 304 0.08 2 0.045 0.03 1 8.0-11.0 18.0-20.0 –

WP 304L 0.035 2 0.045 0.03 1 8.0-13.0 18.0-20.0 –

WP 316 0.08 2 0.045 0.03 1 10.0-14.0 16.0-18.0 2.00-3.00

WP 316L 0.035 2 0.045 0.03 1 10.0-16.0 16.0-18.0 2.00-3.00

DELIVERY REQUIRMENT:

 Marking: Yaang, material grade, standard, specification, heat no.

 Surface Treatment: Bright annealed, polished outside and inside surface.
 Package: knitting strip bundle, wooden box or steel box
 Mill test certificate: according to EN 10204 3.2
 Inspection: Third party inspection, or by clints

Industrial Processes
Bending, squeezing, pressing, forging, machining and more
Industries Served
Our pipe elbows are widely used in many industries, such as power generation, petroleum,
natural gas, chemicals, shipbuilding, heating, papermaking, metallurgy and so on.

Difference Between Short And Long Radius Pipe Elbow

The center to face distance of a long radius pipe elbow (see “B” in the image below) is
always 1.5 times the nominal pipe size, whereas, for a short radius pipe elbow, the center
to face distance (see “A” in the image) is equal to the nominal pipe size.

Example:

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 For a 4 inches long radius (LR) butt weld elbow, the center to face distance is 4 x
25.4 x 1.5 = 152.4 mm;
 For a short radius butt weld elbow, the center to face distance is instead 4 x 25.4 x
1 = 101.6 mm. Short radius pipe elbows are available only for the 90 and
180-degree configuration (and not for the 45 degrees); instead, long radius elbows
are available for all degrees.

Pipe Elbow Dimensions (Long Radius and Short Radius Elbow)

NOMINAL OUTSIDE
CENTER TO END
PIPE SIZE DIAMETER
Inch. OD A B C
1/2 21.3 38 16 –
3/4 26.7 29 11 –
1 33.4 38 22 25
1 1/4 42.2 48 25 32
1 1/2 48.3 57 29 38
2 60.3 76 35 51
2 1/2 73 95 44 64
3 88.9 114 51 76
3 1/2 101.6 133 57 89
4 114.3 152 64 102
5 141.3 190 79 127
6 168.3 229 95 152
8 219.1 305 127 203
10 273.1 381 159 254
12 323.9 457 190 305

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14 355.6 533 222 356

16 406.4 610 254 406
18 457.2 686 286 457
20 508 762 318 508
22 559 838 343 559
24 610 914 381 610
26 660 991 406 660
28 711 1067 438 711
30 762 1143 470 762
32 813 1219 502 813
34 864 1295 533 864
36 914 1372 565 914
38 965 1448 600 965
40 1016 1524 632 1016
42 1067 1600 660 1067
44 1118 1676 695 1118
46 1168 1753 727 1168
48 1219 1829 759 1219
All Dimensions are in mm
Pipe Fittings Dimensions Tolerance as per ASME B16.9

180 DEG180 DEG18

NOMINAL PIPE ALL ALL
ALL FITTINGS ELBOWS AND TEES RETURN RETURN RE
SIZE FITTINGS FITTINGS
BENDS BENDS BE
NPS O.D. at I.D. Wall Thickness Centre-to-End Centre-to-Centre Back-to-Face Alignment of Overall Overall
Bevel at (3) Dimension A,B,C,M O K Ends U Length Length E
(1), (2) End H
(1),
(3),
(4)
½ to 0.06 0.03 Not less than 0.06 0.25 0.25 0.03 0.06 0.12
2½ -0.03 87.5% of

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nominal
thickness
3 to 0.06 0.06 Not less than 0.06 0.25 0.25 0.03 0.06 0.12
3½ 87.5% of
nominal
thickness
4 0.06 0.06 Not less than 0.06 0.25 0.25 0.03 0.06 0.12
87.5% of
nominal
thickness
5 to 0.09 0.06 Not less than 0.06 0.25 0.25 0.03 0.06 0.25
8 -0.06 87.5% of
nominal
thickness
10 to 0.16 0.12 Not less than 0.09 0.38 0.25 0.06 0.09 0.25
18 -0.12 87.5% of
nominal
thickness
20 to 0.25 0.19 Not less than 0.09 0.38 0.25 0.06 0.09 0.25
24 -0.19 87.5% of
nominal
thickness
26 to 0.25 0.19 Not less than 0.12 … … … 0.19 0.38
30 -0.19 87.5% of
nominal
thickness
32 to 0.25 0.19 Not less than 0.19 … … … 0.19 0.38
48 -0.19 87.5% of
nominal
thickness
NOMINAL ALL DIMENSIONS ARE GIVEN IN INCHES.
ANGULARITY ANGULARITY
PIPE SIZE TOLERANCES ARE EQUAL PLUS AND MINUS
TOLERANCES TOLERANCES
NPS EXCEPT AS NOTED.
Off Angle Q Off Plane P (1) Out-of-round is the sum of absolute values of plus
½ to 4 0.03 0.06 and minus tolerance.

5 to 8 0.06 0.12 (2) This tolerance may not apply in localized areas of
formed fittings where increased wall thickness is
10 to 12 0.09 0.19
required to meet design requirements of ASME B16.9.
14 to 16 0.09 0.25
(3) The inside diameter and the nominal wall
18 to 24 0.12 0.38
thicknesses at ends are to be specified by the
26 to 30 0.19 0.38 purchaser.(4) Unless otherwise specified by the
32 to 42 0.19 0.50 purchaser, these tolerances apply to the nominal inside
44 to 48 0.18 0.75 diameter, which equals the difference between the
nominal outside diameter and twice the nominal wall

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thickness.

Stainless Steel Elbow Manufacturing Process

Stainless steel elbow manufacturing process includes a series of steps like Annealing,
Straightening, Pickling & Passivation and Polishing.

These stainless steel elbows are produced using latest technology, ensuring excellent
strength and long service life. The process needs a lesser amount of heat treatments to
ensure better physical properties.

The series of steps involved in the manufacturing process of stainless steel elbows are
given in a detailed view below:

Annealing :
Annealing is also known as heat treatment, which plays an active role in the production. In
this step, the tubes are carried out in fully automated and conveyor to heat them at certain
temperature. Once the tubes get heated, they immediately quench in water.

Straightening :
The tubes are straightened with the help of straightening machine to provide a high
degree of straightness in this step.

Pickling :
The process of Pickling refers to the removal of high temperature scale and adjacent low
chromium layer of metal from the surface of stainless steel.

Passivation :
Passivation is the process of treating the surface of stainless steels in order to eliminate
the contaminants from the metal. The process also helps in promoting the formation of a
continuous passive film on a freshly created surface.

Polishing :
The final step, is named as Polishing that reflects the wonderful quality, high aesthetic &

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hygienic value and high durability of buttweld fittings. Polishing is a essential step to gain
excellent features for meeting the varied demands of clients.

Difference between carbon steel pipe elbows and stainless steel pipe elbows:

Different pipe elbows with different materials, the main difference between carbon steel
pipe elbows and stainless steel pipe elbows is steel materials, the stainless steel belongs
to alloy steel.
Carbon steel and stainless steel because of different ingredients, produced refined
softness difference, while carbon steel are many types. Stainless steel pipe elbows from a
sense that will not rust, carbon steel rust if not on anti-rust oil or painting. Carbon steel
pipe elbows can do the larger size of the finished product.
Stainless steel tube pieces contained in the chemical composition of the surface of the
pipe will remain for a long time will not rust, is not easy to be corroded. Stainless steel pipe
elbows material to keep the tube does not produce the quality problems, and to ensure
that the service life of the pipe elbows, pipe elbows in use can play an important role in
stainless steel of a different type, and contain different ingredients, different types of
stainless steel have properties are also different.

Source: China Stainless Steel Elbow Manufacturer – Yaang pipe fitting Industry Co.,
Limited (www.metallicsteel.com)

(Yaang Pipe Industry is a leading manufacturer and supplier of nickel alloy and stainless
steel products, including Super Duplex Stainless Steel Flanges, Stainless Steel Flanges,
Stainless Steel Pipe Fittings, Stainless Steel Pipe. Yaang products are widely used in
Shipbuilding, Nuclear power, Marine engineering, Petroleum, Chemical, Mining, Sewage
treatment, Natural gas and Pressure vessels and other industries.)

If you want to have more information about the article or you want to share your opinion
with us, contact us at sales@metallicsteel.com

Please notice that you might be interested in the other technical articles we’ve published:

• WHERE TO BUY HIGH QUALITY STEEL PIPES

• WHERE TO BUY HIGH QUALITY FLANGES

• WHERE TO BUY HIGH QUALITY PIPE FITTINGS

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• Difference Between Pipe Elbow And Pipe Bend

• Where to get high quality pipe bend

References:

 https://www.yaang.com/what-are-pipe-elbows.html

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