What is pipe？
Pipe is a hollow section with round cross section for the conveyance of products, including fluids, gas, pellets and powders, etc.
The most important dimension for a pipe is the outer diameter (OD) together with the wall thickness (WT). OD minus 2 times WT (schedule) determine the inside diameter (ID) of a pipe, which determines the capacity of the pipe.
What is Tube？
The name tube refers to round, square, rectangular and oval hollow sections that are used for pressure equipment, for mechanical applications, and for instrumentation systems.Tubes are indicated with outer diameter and wall thickness, in inches or in millimeters.
Pipes are only provided with an inside (nominal) diameter and a “schedule” (which means wall thickness). Since pipe is used to transfer fluids or gas, the size of the opening through which the fluids or gas can pass is probably more important than the outer dimensions of the pipe.Tube measurements, on the other hand, are provided as an outside diameter and set ranges of wall thickness.
Tube is available in hot rolled steel and cold rolled steel. Pipe is typically black steel (hot rolled). Both items can be galvanized. A wide range of materials is available for making pipes. Tubing is available in carbon steel, low alloy, stainless steel, and nickel-alloys; steel tubes for mechanical applications are mostly of carbon steel.
Size
Pipe is typically available in larger sizes than tube. For pipe, the NPS does not match the true diameter, it is a rough indication. For tube, dimensions are expressed in inches or millimeters and express the true dimensional value of the hollow section. Pipe is usually manufactured to one of several industrial standards, both international or national, providing global consistency, which makes the use of fittings such as elbows, tees, and couplings more practical. Tube is more commonly manufactured to custom configurations and sizes using a wider range of diameters and tolerances and is different worldwide.
Post time: Sep-03-2025
