Pressure Drop in Steam Pipes

Steam pipes and pressure drop diagrams - imperial and metric units

Pressure drop in steam pipes can be estimated with the diagrams below.

Imperial Units

steam pipe pressure drop diagram

The diagram is made for steam with pressure 100 psi. For other pressures use correction factors:

Pressure (psi) 0 5 10 30 60 90 100 110 150 200 250 300
Factor 6.9 5.2 4.3 2.4 1.5 1.1 1.0 0.92 0.70 0.55 0.45 0.38
  • 1 lbs/hr = 1.26x10-4 kg/s
  • 1 psi (lb/in2) = 6,894.8 Pa (N/m2) = 6.895x10-3 N/mm2 = 6.895x10-2 bar = 27.71 in H2O at 62oF (16.7oC) = 703.1 mm H2O at 62oF (16.7oC) = 2.0416 in mercury at 62oF (16.7oC) = 51.8 mm mercury at 62oF (16.7oC) = 703.6 kg/m2 = 0.06895 atm = 2.307 Ft. H2O

Metric Units

steam pipe pressure drop diagram metric units

The diagram is made for steam with pressure 7 bar. For other pressures use correction factors:

Pressure (bar) 0 1 2 4 5 6 7 8.5 10 12 14 20
Factor 6.9 3.67 2.51 1.55 1.31 1.13 1.0 0.85 0.74 0.63 0.55 0.39
  • 1 kg/h = 2.778x10-4 kg/s = 3.67x10-2 lb/min
  • 1 bar = 105 Pa (N/m2) = 0.1 N/mm2 = 10,197 kp/m2 = 10.20 m H2O = 0.9869 atm = 14.50 psi (lbf/in2) = 106 dyn/cm2 = 750 mmHg

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