Jeremy Blaze
Former Reef Addict
Milestones in PVC Water Pipe History
Technology and performance have made PVC pipe the most popular
choice for water and sewer lines.
1932 "“ First tubes were made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in Germany.
1935 "“ The first PVC pipes were manufactured (Germany).
1936 "“ PVC pipes began to be installed for residential drinking water
distribution and waste pipelines (Germany). Most are still in
service.
1949 "“ Initial use of PVC pipe in North America.
1952 "“ PVC pipe introduced in the U.S.
1955 "“ First PVC water distribution pipes laid in the U.S.
1960 "“ Original publication of ASTM D1785 "“ Standard Specification for PVC
Plastic Pipe, Schedules 40, 80, and 120.
1963 "“ Publication of the first national standard for PVC pipe pressure rated for
water "“ Commercial Standard CS256-63, Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
Plastic Pipe (SDR-PR and Class T), a recorded voluntary standard of the
trade published by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
1964 "“ Initial publication of ASTM D2241 "“ Standard Specification for PVC
Pressure-Rated Pipe (SDR Series).
1966 "“ AWWA appointed a committee to study and report on the adaptability of
plastic pipe for use in the water industry.
1967 "“ AWWA recommends that a task group be appointed to prepare standards
for plastic pipe.
1968 "“ The AWWA Standards Committee on Thermoplastic Pressure Pipe
was established.
1970 "“ The Canadian Standards Association (CSA) publishes the first edition of
CSA B137.3, "œRigid PVC Pipe for Pressure Applications".
1971 "“ First meeting (Oct. in Philadelphia) of the non-profit, Integral Gasketed
Joint Plastic Pipe Association (re-named the Uni-Bell Plastic Pipe
Association in April 1972). Headquarters were located in New York City.
(We have a 7 x 10, B&W photo of the meeting.)
1972 "“ Uni-Bell published first PVC municipal water pipe standard (UNI-B-
2), which was the predecessor to AWWA Standard C900.
1975 "“ AWWA's Board of Directors approved the first edition of AWWA
C900, "œAWWA Standard for Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Pressure Pipe,
4 in. through 12 in., for Water".
1976 "“ Uni-Bell moves to Dallas, Texas and hires full-time Director.
1977 "“ Publication of the first edition of the Uni-Bell Handbook of PVC Pipe
"“ Design and Construction.
1980 "“ AWWA publishes Manual No. 23, "œPVC Pipe - Design and
Installation".
1981 "“ AWWA approves the second edition of AWWA C900.
1985 "“ The 750,000th mile of PVC rural water pipe was installed in the U.S.
1986 "“ Uni-Bell publishes recommended standard for water transmission pipes
(UNI-B-11) up to 36 inches in diameter.
1988 "“ Initial approval and publication of AWWA C905, "œAWWA Standard
for PVC Water Transmission Pipe, Nominal Diameters 14 in.
through 36 in."
1989 "“ AWWA approves third-edition of AWWA C900.
1991 "“ Original publication of AWWA C907, "œAWWA Standard for PVC
Pressure Fittings for Water "“ 4 in. through 8 in."
1994 "“ AWWA approves and publishes C605, "œAWWA Standard for
Underground Installation of PVC Pressure Pipe and Fittings for
Water".
1996 "“ PVC water pipes' (>3 in.) market share exceeds 50%, making PVC
the number one water pipe in the U.S. and Canada.
1997 "“ Fabricated fittings added to AWWA C900 in the approved forth-edition.
1997 "“ Size range increased to 48 inches with publication of the second edition
of AWWA C905, "œAWWA Standard for PVC Pressure Pipe and
Fabricated Fittings, 14 in. through 48 in., for Water Transmission and
Distribution".
1998 "“ Approval and first publication of AWWA C909, "œAWWA Standard for
Molecularly Oriented PVCO Pressure Pipe, 4 in. through 12 in., for
Water Distribution".
2002 "“ Size range increased to 24 inches with publication of the second edition
of AWWA C909, "œAWWA Standard for Molecularly Oriented PVCO
Pressure Pipe, 4 in. through 24 in. for Water Distribution".
2002 "“ AWWA publishes the second edition of Manual No. 23, "œPVC Pipe "“
Design and Installation.
2004 "“ The unequaled performance and cost effectiveness of PVC water
pipes resulted in a 78% share of the water distribution pipe in 2004
(over 71,100 miles), according to a study of the U.S. and Canadian
buried pipe markets for pipe diameters 4-inch and larger.
2005 "“ AWWA publishes second edition of Standard C605, "œUnderground
Installation of PVC Pressure Pipe and Fittings for Water".
2005 "“ AwwaRF publishes the results of extensive multi-year evaluation of
PVC water pipe, which projects that the failure rates for PVC pipes
in service for 110 years will be less than those currently being
experienced with other pipe materials. The AwwaRF publication is
entitled, "œLong-Term Performance Prediction for PVC Pipes".
2005 "“ PVC is the largest volume plastic pipe material in North America with
annual sales in excess of 6.8 billion pounds in 2005.
***
PVC was accidentally discovered at least twice in the 19th century, first in 1835 by Henri Victor Regnault and in 1872 by Eugen Baumann. On both occasions the polymer appeared as a white solid inside flasks of vinyl chloride that had been left exposed to sunlight. In the early 20th century the Russian chemist Ivan Ostromislensky and Fritz Klatte of the German chemical company Griesheim-Elektron both attempted to use PVC (polyvinyl chloride) in commercial products, but difficulties in processing the rigid, sometimes brittle polymer blocked their efforts. Waldo Semon and the B.F. Goodrich Company developed a method in 1926 to plasticize PVC by blending it with various additives. The result was a more flexible and more easily processed material that soon achieved widespread commercial use.
Technology and performance have made PVC pipe the most popular
choice for water and sewer lines.
1932 "“ First tubes were made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in Germany.
1935 "“ The first PVC pipes were manufactured (Germany).
1936 "“ PVC pipes began to be installed for residential drinking water
distribution and waste pipelines (Germany). Most are still in
service.
1949 "“ Initial use of PVC pipe in North America.
1952 "“ PVC pipe introduced in the U.S.
1955 "“ First PVC water distribution pipes laid in the U.S.
1960 "“ Original publication of ASTM D1785 "“ Standard Specification for PVC
Plastic Pipe, Schedules 40, 80, and 120.
1963 "“ Publication of the first national standard for PVC pipe pressure rated for
water "“ Commercial Standard CS256-63, Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
Plastic Pipe (SDR-PR and Class T), a recorded voluntary standard of the
trade published by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
1964 "“ Initial publication of ASTM D2241 "“ Standard Specification for PVC
Pressure-Rated Pipe (SDR Series).
1966 "“ AWWA appointed a committee to study and report on the adaptability of
plastic pipe for use in the water industry.
1967 "“ AWWA recommends that a task group be appointed to prepare standards
for plastic pipe.
1968 "“ The AWWA Standards Committee on Thermoplastic Pressure Pipe
was established.
1970 "“ The Canadian Standards Association (CSA) publishes the first edition of
CSA B137.3, "œRigid PVC Pipe for Pressure Applications".
1971 "“ First meeting (Oct. in Philadelphia) of the non-profit, Integral Gasketed
Joint Plastic Pipe Association (re-named the Uni-Bell Plastic Pipe
Association in April 1972). Headquarters were located in New York City.
(We have a 7 x 10, B&W photo of the meeting.)
1972 "“ Uni-Bell published first PVC municipal water pipe standard (UNI-B-
2), which was the predecessor to AWWA Standard C900.
1975 "“ AWWA's Board of Directors approved the first edition of AWWA
C900, "œAWWA Standard for Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Pressure Pipe,
4 in. through 12 in., for Water".
1976 "“ Uni-Bell moves to Dallas, Texas and hires full-time Director.
1977 "“ Publication of the first edition of the Uni-Bell Handbook of PVC Pipe
"“ Design and Construction.
1980 "“ AWWA publishes Manual No. 23, "œPVC Pipe - Design and
Installation".
1981 "“ AWWA approves the second edition of AWWA C900.
1985 "“ The 750,000th mile of PVC rural water pipe was installed in the U.S.
1986 "“ Uni-Bell publishes recommended standard for water transmission pipes
(UNI-B-11) up to 36 inches in diameter.
1988 "“ Initial approval and publication of AWWA C905, "œAWWA Standard
for PVC Water Transmission Pipe, Nominal Diameters 14 in.
through 36 in."
1989 "“ AWWA approves third-edition of AWWA C900.
1991 "“ Original publication of AWWA C907, "œAWWA Standard for PVC
Pressure Fittings for Water "“ 4 in. through 8 in."
1994 "“ AWWA approves and publishes C605, "œAWWA Standard for
Underground Installation of PVC Pressure Pipe and Fittings for
Water".
1996 "“ PVC water pipes' (>3 in.) market share exceeds 50%, making PVC
the number one water pipe in the U.S. and Canada.
1997 "“ Fabricated fittings added to AWWA C900 in the approved forth-edition.
1997 "“ Size range increased to 48 inches with publication of the second edition
of AWWA C905, "œAWWA Standard for PVC Pressure Pipe and
Fabricated Fittings, 14 in. through 48 in., for Water Transmission and
Distribution".
1998 "“ Approval and first publication of AWWA C909, "œAWWA Standard for
Molecularly Oriented PVCO Pressure Pipe, 4 in. through 12 in., for
Water Distribution".
2002 "“ Size range increased to 24 inches with publication of the second edition
of AWWA C909, "œAWWA Standard for Molecularly Oriented PVCO
Pressure Pipe, 4 in. through 24 in. for Water Distribution".
2002 "“ AWWA publishes the second edition of Manual No. 23, "œPVC Pipe "“
Design and Installation.
2004 "“ The unequaled performance and cost effectiveness of PVC water
pipes resulted in a 78% share of the water distribution pipe in 2004
(over 71,100 miles), according to a study of the U.S. and Canadian
buried pipe markets for pipe diameters 4-inch and larger.
2005 "“ AWWA publishes second edition of Standard C605, "œUnderground
Installation of PVC Pressure Pipe and Fittings for Water".
2005 "“ AwwaRF publishes the results of extensive multi-year evaluation of
PVC water pipe, which projects that the failure rates for PVC pipes
in service for 110 years will be less than those currently being
experienced with other pipe materials. The AwwaRF publication is
entitled, "œLong-Term Performance Prediction for PVC Pipes".
2005 "“ PVC is the largest volume plastic pipe material in North America with
annual sales in excess of 6.8 billion pounds in 2005.
***
PVC was accidentally discovered at least twice in the 19th century, first in 1835 by Henri Victor Regnault and in 1872 by Eugen Baumann. On both occasions the polymer appeared as a white solid inside flasks of vinyl chloride that had been left exposed to sunlight. In the early 20th century the Russian chemist Ivan Ostromislensky and Fritz Klatte of the German chemical company Griesheim-Elektron both attempted to use PVC (polyvinyl chloride) in commercial products, but difficulties in processing the rigid, sometimes brittle polymer blocked their efforts. Waldo Semon and the B.F. Goodrich Company developed a method in 1926 to plasticize PVC by blending it with various additives. The result was a more flexible and more easily processed material that soon achieved widespread commercial use.
