Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2025-08-08 Origin: Site
In the field of metal materials, "stainless steel pipes" and "stainless steel tubing" are two frequently mentioned terms. They may seem similar, but there are significant differences in terms of definition scope, classification methods, application scenarios, and other aspects. Clarifying the differences between the two is helpful for making accurate choices in procurement, processing, and engineering applications, and avoiding misapplications caused by conceptual confusion.
From the perspective of conceptual scope, stainless steel tubing is a broader collective term, referring generally to all tubular products made of stainless steel, which includes stainless steel pipes and other stainless steel products with a tubular structure. While stainless steel pipes are a specific category within stainless steel tubing, specifically referring to tubular products that meet strict dimensional standards and are mainly used for conveying fluids or transmitting forces. In simple terms, stainless steel pipes are a subset of stainless steel tubing. For example, a φ20mm stainless steel round pipe used for tap water transportation belongs to stainless steel pipes and is also a type of stainless steel tubing; while some non-standard stainless steel tubular fittings (such as special-shaped tubular brackets) belong to stainless steel tubing but are not strictly classified as stainless steel pipes.
By cross-sectional shape: Divided into round pipes, square pipes, rectangular pipes, etc. Among them, round pipes are most widely used in the transportation field due to their low fluid resistance;
By wall thickness: Divided into thin-walled pipes (wall thickness ≤ 3mm) and thick-walled pipes (wall thickness ＞ 3mm), which are suitable for low-pressure and high-pressure scenarios respectively;
By connection method: Divided into welded pipes and seamless pipes. Seamless pipes, due to the absence of weld defects, are more suitable for high-pressure fluid transportation.
Special-shaped tubing: Such as elliptical pipes, plum-blossom pipes, spiral pipes, etc., which are mostly used in decoration, structural support and other scenarios;
Composite tubing: Such as stainless steel lined plastic pipes, stainless steel clad aluminum pipes, etc., which combine the performance advantages of different materials;
Special tubular fittings: Such as tubular joints, tubular flanges, etc., used for connection and transition in pipeline systems.
The production of stainless steel pipes must comply with strict industry standards to ensure their reliability in functions such as fluid transportation and pressure bearing. For example, the national standard GB/T 14976-2012 "Seamless Stainless Steel Pipes for Fluid Transportation" clearly stipulates indicators such as outer diameter tolerance (usually ≤ ±0.3mm), wall thickness deviation (≤ ±10%), and hydrostatic test pressure (≥ 1.5 times the working pressure) for stainless steel pipes, and they must pass quality inspections such as eddy current testing and hydrostatic testing. The production standards for stainless steel tubing are relatively flexible. In addition to including the standards for stainless steel pipes, they also involve production specifications for some non-standard parts. For stainless steel tubing used for decoration or structural purposes, the dimensional tolerance can be appropriately relaxed (such as allowing an outer diameter tolerance of ±1mm), and quality inspection focuses more on appearance (such as surface finish, no obvious deformation) rather than pressure performance.
In municipal engineering, as transportation pipelines for tap water and gas;
In the industrial field, for the transportation of chemical media and steam;
In refrigeration systems, as refrigerant circulation pipelines.
Architectural decoration: Such as railings and handrails made of special-shaped stainless steel tubing, which are both beautiful and corrosion-resistant;
Structural support: Such as square and rectangular stainless steel tubing used in steel structure frames to provide stable mechanical support;
Medical devices: Such as special stainless steel tubular fittings used in surgical instruments, which need to meet hygienic requirements.
The performance requirements of stainless steel pipes focus on mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. For example, stainless steel pipes used for transporting high-pressure steam need to have high yield strength (≥205MPa) and tensile strength (≥520MPa), and at the same time, they must pass the salt spray test (no rust for 48 hours) to verify their corrosion resistance. Decorative stainless steel tubing pays more attention to surface quality, such as mirror polish (Ra≤0.8μm) and color uniformity;
Structural stainless steel tubing emphasizes overall rigidity, such as bending strength and shear strength;
Composite stainless steel tubing needs to meet interface bonding strength to avoid interlayer detachment.
