Industry News

Home - News - Industry News - Centrifugally Cast Iron Pipe: Properties, Production & Applications

Centrifugally Cast Iron Pipe: Properties, Production & Applications

July 10, 2025

Share:

Centrifugally cast iron pipe is a type of cast iron pipe produced through centrifugal casting technology. It is widely used in water supply, drainage, industrial transportation, and other fields due to its excellent performance. The following is a detailed introduction from aspects such as the production process, performance characteristics, classification, application scenarios, and advantages:


Principle of Production Process


Centrifugal casting involves pouring molten iron into a high-speed rotating mold, usually with a rotational speed of several hundred to several thousand revolutions per minute. When centrifugal force is applied, the molten iron clings to the inner wall of the mold, where it then solidifies and cools. This process results in a denser metal structure for the cast iron pipe and leads to a more uniform distribution of the grain. As a result, the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of the pipe are significantly enhanced.


Performance Characteristics


· High Strength and Toughness: During centrifugal casting, the molten iron fully fills the mold under centrifugal force, reducing defects such as pores and sand holes. This gives the pipe high tensile strength and impact toughness, enabling it to withstand large internal and external pressures as well as external loads.


· Excellent Corrosion Resistance: Cast iron has inherent corrosion resistance. This resistance can be significantly improved through surface treatments, especially in complex environments like acidic, basic, and humid conditions, thereby extending its service life.


· Smooth Inner Wall: The centrifugal casting process ensures that the inner wall of the pipe is flat and smooth, reducing resistance during fluid transportation, lowering energy consumption, minimizing impurity deposition, and facilitating pipe maintenance.


· High-Dimensional Accuracy: The mold's high-speed rotation and standardized production processes create minimal dimensional variations in pipe diameter and wall thickness, simplifying on-site installation and docking.


Summary of Advantages


· Long Service Life: Under normal usage conditions, ductile centrifugally cast iron pipes can have a service life of more than 50 years, which is much longer than that of ordinary steel pipes or concrete pipes, reducing the cost of later replacement.


· Convenient Installation: The two ends of the pipe usually adopt socket-type joints, which are sealed with rubber gaskets. No welding is required during installation, resulting in high construction efficiency, reliable sealing, and effective prevention of leakage.


· Low Maintenance Cost: Centrifugally cast iron pipes are recognized for their strong corrosion and wear resistance, which significantly decreases the likelihood of pipe blockages and damage. This helps minimize the daily maintenance workload.


Main Classifications


According to differences in material and performance, centrifugally cast iron pipes can be divided into:


· Gray Centrifugally Cast Iron Pipe: A common early type with low cost but high brittleness and weak impact resistance.


· Ductile Centrifugally Cast Iron Pipe: By adding spheroidizing agents to the molten iron, the graphite in the cast iron is distributed in a spherical shape, which greatly improves the toughness and strength of the cast iron. Its comprehensive performance is close to that of steel, making it the most widely used type of centrifugally cast iron pipe at present.


Application Fields


· Urban Water Supply and Drainage Systems: It is one of the preferred materials for urban main water supply pipes, secondary main pipes, and drainage pipes. It can transport media such as tap water, rainwater, and sewage, and adapt to complex underground environments.


· Industrial Piping Systems: Used to transport industrial cooling water, mildly corrosive media, etc. It is widely used in auxiliary piping systems in industries such as steel, metallurgy, and chemical engineering.


· Agricultural Irrigation Projects: Suitable for main agricultural irrigation pipes, it can withstand complex soil conditions and water flow impacts in fields, ensuring the stable transportation of irrigation water.


· Municipal Engineering: In urban road reconstruction and old pipe network upgrading projects, it is often used to replace traditional concrete pipes or ordinary steel pipes, improving the reliability and durability of the pipe network.


Thanks to the excellent performance achieved through centrifugal casting technology, centrifugally cast iron pipes have become a vital choice in modern pipeline engineering. They offer a reliable and economical solution, particularly in situations that demand high standards for pipe strength, corrosion resistance, and longevity.

 

Centrifugally Cast Iron Pipe: Properties, Production