AU698875B2 - Pipeline support improvements - Google Patents

Description

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AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

Name of Applicant: SANTOS LTD SName of inventors: 0 0 RUSSELL JAMES SCHULZ PETER PHILIP ROHRSHEIM *MICHAEL ANDREW SCHUMANN Invention Title: 0 PIPELINE SUPPORT IMPROVEMENTS Details of Associated Provisional Applications: PN3085 dated 22nd May 1995 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: Details of Associated Provisional Applications: including the best method of performing it known to us: RUSL JAE SCUL C 91 i c)-J~C 2 This invention relates to a pipeline support arrangement, a method of supporting a pipeline and a pipe support.

The problem to which this invention is directed relates to difficulties with respect to supporting pipelines in cross country applications.

Various supporting systems are currently used but each currently known system suffers in one way or another from difficulties which have led to the need for a different system.

If a pipe is simply left on the ground without any specific support arrangement, then there is a continuous earth to pipe contact which will usually result in an 1 0 electrolytic based corrosion of the pipe along the contact base.

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If there are support frames located at reasonable distances apart compatible with the span over which the pipe can be supported reasonably, then there is the cost of the frame work itself at each location, the need to protect the material from which the frame work itself is constructed, the necessity for 15 embedding this in the earth or putting in the foundation and then still providing a support face which will at least minimise potential electrolytic based degradation at the interface. Apart from the costs associated with each frame including the installation costs, because such installations are not designed to accommodate any change in position of the pipeline that might be caused by 04*1 20 thermal expansion or contraction, there is a further cost then of insuring that there are appropriate expansion joints or shapes to allow for expansion or Iij* •contraction at intervals along the pipeline.

Conventional practice is to bury coated pipe. Above ground pipelines are normally unprotected against electrolytic corrosion.

After considerable investigation, we have found that there are some advantages to approaching the problem in a somewhat different way and it is accordingly the object of this invention to provide on the one hand a pipe support which can assist in providing those advantages and a pipe support arrangement and a method of supporting a pipeline which also provides these advantages.

i 2 A pipe support arrangement as in the immediately preceding claim further characterised in that the base support has a base which is constituted by a sheet of integrally moulded recycled plastics material with a large lower -1 3 According to one form this invention is directed to a pipe support which is adapted to be attached to the pipe of a pipeline at spaced apart locations along the length of the pipe so that it will move with the pipe so that it will support the pipe thereby in an above the ground position, said pipe support having a base having a lower surface shaped to distribute supporting pressure across a supporting surface.

According to a preferred form of this invention there is further provided a pipe support having a cradle extending above the base and providing a 1 0 corresponding shape for locating a pipe in a supporting position, and means to provide an interlocking support for engaging means to hold the pipe i support to the pipe.

5554 Sb By having a base providing a shape to distribute supporting pressure allows this to be made large enough to induce sliding of the pipe with the pipe support across the earth when the pipe is caused to expand or contract due to o :thermally caused forces.

o :555': Another instance is where the pipe might be caused to contract where the pipe extends over a higher part of the earth so that each pipe support between the further earth location and the higher point w ill be lifted when the 20 temperatures are cool and will be lowered then provide ground support when the temperatures return to modest or increase above modest temperatures.

In preference there is provided that the engaging means include a strap adapted to ;nterlock with the pipe support and otherwise extend around the pipe support so as to hold the pipe suppoft, with respect to the pipe in position.

A further preferred feature is that the pipe support is provided with a cradle shape at the top of the pipe support shaped and of a size so that a selected pipe will nest within this.

T Rq I~a i: 3a One of the supplementary problems with this concept is that if such pipe supports which are now to be held in continuous close contact with the pipe at spaced apart pipe support locations, then the support location is very vulnerable to electrolytic caused corrosion so that if metal is used there firstly needs to be a non metallic separation pad.

There is however the additional problem that wherever the bottom of such,,a ,c 44 t .4 94 9 4 4 46 *4 4 i: i i 'r, o '_i1 ha 4 metal fabricated frame contacts the earth, we have another set of potential corrosion points which are even worse because if there is sliding action, this will have the chance of removing any adhered surface protection.

Initially, this would suggest that the concept is not viable because one would normally not assume that any other material would be appropriate for the application considering the necessity for load bearing strength, the need to be able to withstand substantial temperatures such as may be reached in an open desert situation through extremes of weather, and a material which must be economic to use in the application.

1 0 We have discovered a material which has surprising characteristics which have shown themselves to be suitable for the application.

0 Recycled plastics are made from a variety of plastics materials but in such a mixture such that they are not especially susceptible to melting during even the highest desert temperatures.

1 5 Even however if some softening of the plastic occurs, the cost of recycled ,plastics materials is such that it is economic to provide substantial cross sections and thicknesses of material so that it can become structurally strong simply by providing substantial bulk.

Further, recycled plastics materials are non metallic and therefore do not S. 2 0 suffer from the potential of metallic corrosion problems and finally, because one can have a lot of material at very low cost, it is not difficult therefore to provide a substantial base which can be subjected to all of the movement across the sands or earth of the desert or other grounds and which would not then be expected during the life of the pipeline worn away to any major extent.

0: 25 Further, a pipe support made from recycled plastics can then be secured to the pipe by engaging means such as strapping that is conventional and extremely economic in that it is conventionally of the type used for bulk handling or machinery strapping or parcel strapping etc. Such straps which can be metallic or non metallic are an extremely well developed art as well as 3 0 the availability of automatic machines for pulling together the tapes and holding them for long life and as such this works very well in compatibility with the pipe support in general.

1/4 12 15 4 In preference, there is then provided a pipe support which has a cradle shape at the top so that the pipe will nest within this and using recycled plastics means that there is no necessity in any additional pads either to distribute the load or to separate the material of the pipe support from the pipe itself.

Furthermore however, because the pipe support is now to be attached and moved with the pipe, there is very much less chance of relative movement of the pipe and its support so that there is less chance of damage of the external surface protection of the pipe material.

While in a broader sense, various arrangements of recycled plastics material 1 0 can be used, further development has shown that there is some advantage in specific arrangements and accordingly one further preferred form of this invention can reside in a pipe support arrangement comprising a pipe support including a body comprised of moulded recycled plastics material, each pipe support supporting a part of the pipe at each of spaced apart locations along 1 5 the length of the pipe, each of the pipe supports having a base with a large lowermost planar support surface adapted to allow sliding of the pipe support S" across the ground while supporting the appropriate pipe part, a cradle at a lower end being integral with the base and at an upper end having a cradle shape into which the pipe nests, gussets to each side of the cradle providing 2 0 extended support for the pipe to each side of the cradle, and at least one strap secured to the gussets by passing through a hole and at least one of the gussets, extending around the pipe whereby the pipe support is attached to the pipe and if the pipe is lifted then the pipe support will also be lifted with the pipe.

It is generally understood that the invention applies to pipes which are of large diameter and as a guide to the type of pipe and therefore the general extent of the application, we are indicating that the pipe would normally be of 80 mm diameter or larger.

The advantages have been found especially in relation to pipes within the 3 0 range from 80 mm to 300 mm diameter.

There is advantage in reducing the expected friction between the base of the pipe support and the earth and this is achieved by providing that the base provides a substantially planar surface and it is over a sufficiently large area to m keep the concentration of the pressure to a modest level. A modest level can be considered to be within the range of 15 to 30 kPa and in preference kPa.

Such a bearing stress can be selected appropriately for the surface on which the pipe support is to rest.

In another form the invention can be said to reside in a pipe support arrangement in which there are a plurality of pipe supports supporting a pipe of a cross country pipeline where the pipe is selected to be of a diameter within the range of size DN80 to DN300 and where at least some of the pipe supports support the pipe in a suspended position above the ground from support location to support location and wherein at least one of the pipe supports includes a body comprised of moulded recycled plastics material and having a base which is generally constituted by a sheet of integrally moulded recycled plastics material with a large lower most planar support S 1 5 surface adapted to allow sliding of the pipe support across the ground while supporting the appropriate pipe part and not to exceed bearing stress on the soil on average over the whole of the surface of 30 kPa, a cradle comprised of a e 0 S* Vs a sheet of substantially constant thickness integral remoulded recycled plastics material at a lower end being integral with the base and at an upper 2 0 end having a cradle shape of an open top semi circular concave shape into which the pipe nests, gussets to each side of the cradle providing extended support for the pipe to each side of the cradle, each of the gussets being in the form of a sheet of substantially constant thickness integrally moulded recycled plastics material, and two straps secured to the gussets one to each gusset by passing through a hole in the respected gusset and extending around the pipe where the pipe support is attached to the pipe and such that if the pipe is lifted, then the pipe support will also be lifted with the pipe.

'S t These and other preferred features will be further discerned from the following description and the claims that are attached hereto.

3 0 For a better understanding of this invention it will now be described with respect to a preferred embodiment which shall be described with the assistance of drawings in which: 7 FIG 1 is a perspective view of a pipe support according to the preferred embodiment; FIG 2 is a view of the underneath side of the pipe support as shown in FIG 1; FIG 3 is a plan view of the pipe support as shown in FIG 1; FIG 4 is an end elevation of the pipe support as shown in FIG 1; #t 1 1 19,1 a 191 19 190 191 19* 19r 19." 011 19 19 191 491 19 19 190 19 1991 19 19 91 19 9 1 191191 191919 19 191 191 19 19 19 191 a 1991 1 191 1 19 19 1 19 19 19 19 FIG 5 is a side elevation showing in schematic detail the way in which a pipe line will be supported over undulating ground; FIG 6 illustrates schematically the result when the pipe contracts and 1 0 therefore lifts the pipe support relatively to the ground support; FIG 7 is a side elevation of the pipe support as shown in FIGS 1, 2 and 3 showing an addition however of pipe being supported thereby and straps securing the pipe to the pipe support, FIG 8 is a plan view of a pipe support according to a second 15 embodiment, FIG 9 is a side elevation of the pipe support as shown in FIGS 1, 2 and 3 showing an addition however of the pipe being supported thereby with two separate straps as compared to the single strap shown in FIG 7, and FIG 10 is an end elevation of a pipe support according to a third 20 embodiment.

Now referring to the embodiment and to the drawings in detail, the pipe support 1 includes a base 2, a cradle part 3, and gussets 4 and The gussets 4 and 5 each include an aperture shown in the one case as 6 and the other at 7, the aperture 7 being in the corresponding position as in gusset 5 and passes fully through the gusset 4 as is more specifically shown in FIG 5 where aperture 7 is shown.

j Y P~IL- i i. i II i i: 8 In each case, the parts namely the base 2, the cradle part 3 and the gussets 4 and 5 are in the form that could be described as a sheet which is to say that the sides are more or less planar and parallel one to the other and therefore define a substantially uniform thickness across their length or height as the case might be.

However the pipe support 1 is comprised of plastics materials which are recycled which is to say that they are obtained by mixing a significant variety of possibly different plastics materials with the result that the plastics materials are merged plastics of different colours and types and adhere together as 1 0 smaller parts simply perhaps because of interlocking shapes in one case or by heat joining in others but providing ultimately an article of generally predictable characteristics, having non metallic characteristics which avoids the problem of electrolytic caused corrosion and which is economic to obtain :for manufacturing purposes.

The pipe support as shown is made so that the four elements being the base, cradle part and the two gusset parts are moulded together to be integral. The *°manufacturing process that has been found useful comprises extruding the material.

The thickness is approximately 30 mm at 8 for the base 2 and 9 for the cradle 20 part 3 and 10 for the gussets both 4 and 0* 4 Now referring to the base 2, the bottom of this as specifically shown in FIG 2 is *planar so as to provide the substantially smooth underneath surface so as to allow for reasonable sliding over the surface when the pipeline is subjected to changes in temperatures.

S00 25 Now referring to the cradle part 3, this is joined at the bottom 11 to the base 2 and at an upper end tapers in but has centrally thereof a generally semicircular open shape 12 with the centre of the circle slightly below the uppermost surface so that the uppermost edges of the circular shape come together so that when a pipe 13 of appropriate diameter which is to say substantially the diameter of the shape, is nested therein, the edges of the circular shape will grip above the waist of the pipe and hold this tighter by closing back onto this from a position of being resiliently displaced.

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1, i o o o 00 0 OC 9 00 00 0 *00 S a o*o o 0 oe a 0 0 0 000 0 .o 0 0 00 0 o 0 9 The gusset parts 4 and 5 have an upper edge at 14 and 15 which is aligned 9, as to provide a consistent bearing surface with the approximately semi circular shape 12 and in this way additionally help provide a uniform bearing pressure down on the base 2 and hence on the bottom planar surface of the base.

The pipe support 1 is then furthermore positioned and secured to pipe 13 of the pipeline 16 by "bandit" strap 17 being extended through the apertures 6 and 7 and being aligned at an incline direction to either the vertical or horizontal and the strap which is chosen to be from a vinyl or other non 1 0 metallic material has its ends joined by joining clip 19. Such a joining process is of a type conventionally used for much traditional packing and this application is sirfiiply using proprietarily available strapping techniques.

The first embodiment has its base 2 with edges which along each side are rounded from the bottom surface to assist the base to slide more easily along 15 the ground in any direction.

The second embodiment has a base 20, a cradle part 21 and gussets 22 and 23. The difference with respect to the first embodiment is that the alignment of the cradle part and the gussets which are at a right angular relationship one to the other are also aligned with the rectangular shape of the base so that an 20 outer end of gusset 22 is positioned to be adjacent the middle of edge 24, and in like manner the end of gusset 23 is aligned to be adjacent the edge 25, and the ends of the cradle part are located adjacent the middle of edges 26 and 27. This contrasts with the first embodiment in which the respective ends are aligned to be adjacent the corners of the base 2.

25 Referring now to FIG 9, there is shown an alternate arrangement of "bandit" straps 28 and 30 each of which are joined at their respective ends at 29 in the one case and 31 in the other.

In this case, each strap 29 passes through aperture 6 in the one case and strap 30 passes through aperture 7 in the other. The straps 28 and 30 in each 3 0 case pass fully around the pipe 13 and hold this firmly to the pipe support thereby.

Now referring to the third embodiment, in some cases it has been found that 1- f 0 the pipe support, when being moved sideways and in soft ground or sand, will have a tendency to trip up on the ground.

There has been provided the;refore an additional upturned edge at each side shown in the one case at 32 and in the other at 33.

The thickness of the base 2 is otherwise kept constant and the extent to which the upturn is shaped will of course depend upon each application and the type of soil in which it is used but the illustration indicates that which is appropriate for sand in a dry environment.

What will now be seen is that with a pipe support such as described, this can be appropriately clipped at intervals such as is shown in FIGS 5 and 6 along *the length of the pipe to form a pipeline.

These can be used to support pipes at appropriate spacings for instance 6 to 9 m apart are considered conventional but greater spans can be used if the 0 soil stresses allow this.

1 5 The arrangement described has the advantage that when the pipeline is subjected to changes in temperature, for instance if the pipeline is cooled significantly and contracts, rather than lifting away from any support and therefore having the possibility that when it returns, it will move relatively to the support and therefore be caused to be scratched or perhaps have its position laterally changed so that it will not sit properly in a fixed installation or otherwise, by having the pipe support follow the pipe avoids all of These difficulties.

The recycled material which is conventionally mostly poly-olefines, is conveniently used to create the pipe support as a single piece moulding it is low in cost, it is very easy to install in the way it is described and it has low maintenance in service. When used in our locations, the need for pipe burial, pipeline coating systems and Cathodic protection systems are avoided. This makes for the cheapest possible cross country pipeline installation that is particularly suited to water and oil pipelines in a size typically within the range 3 DN80 to DN300.

i ~Other benefits are that such an arrangement is environmentally friendly, i

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]1 pipeline coating systems are not required in arid or semi arid locations, Cathodic protection systems are no longer required and no concrete or other installation complexities are involved. It is expected that the material can be selected from such cheap and long lasting material that almost negligible maintenance will be required over longer term.

The support system is chosen to provide approximately 150 mm elevation of the bottom of the pipe from the ground which is considered to be ample clearance for the spans defined.

The arrangement as described suited for a conventional pipeline which is 1 0 simply laid in straight lines from point to point but this does not mean that it cannot be used with expansion loops and of course crossing hilly country or °o"a dune country, the pipe spans can develop across undulations.

9 o The method is implicit in the description thus far given but specifically includes to 0the steps of supporting a pipe of a cross country pipeline which comprises o 15 attaching at spaced apart locations along the length of the pipe at each too supporting location, a pipe support which supports the pipe in above the ground location and which is attached to the pipe so that if the pipe moves, the pipe support will eitihier lift with the pipe or slide across the supporting ground.

In the embodiment, the method includes securing a pipe support as described 0 and including a strap connector to hold each pipe support with the pipe.

In its broader concept, the invention can be considered to apply to a number of different modifications many of which have not been specifically mentioned.

Other non metallic materials especially where these can be selected from waste materials could be appropriate and the shape of the pipe support in each case could be appropriate to provide the mechanical support features.

A table of the various characteristics for each of a range of sizes is set out as follows.

IN ft 12

INPUT-DATA

PIPELINE

PIPEDCIAMETER mm 100 150 200 250 300 'NALL THICKNESS mm 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 FLUID DENSITY kg/m3 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 SPECIFIC MASS kg/rn 14.1 30.2 52.4 80.6 114.8 PIPE SPAN m 6 6 6 6 6 Sail Coeficient of Friction ratio 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50

SUPPORT

Material density kg/m3 960 960 960 960 960 Material cost S/kg S1.20 51.20 S1.20 S1.20 S1.20 CALCUL-AT7ONS RPM 100 RPM 150 RPM 200 RPM 250 RPM 300

(DIMENSIONS

1 5 side (D2) mm 200 300 400 500 600 Swidth (D'2.66) mm 267 400 533 667 800 coathickness mm 30 30 30 30 P ~ass kg 1.34 3.46 6.14 9.60 13.82 VG~ height mm 100 100 100 100 100 ~ase mm 267 400 533 667 800 th,:ickness mm 30 30 30 30 kg 0.77 1.15 1.54 1.92 2.30 height mm 100 100 100 100 100 base mm 85 135 185 235 285 thickness mm 30 s0 30 30 .01ilass,2off kg 0.49 0.78 1.07 1.35 1.64 0 ,:"Total Mass Support kg 2.79 5.39 8.75 12-87 17.77 B EARINGS1TRESS *Mass Pipeline per span kg 84.7 181.4 314.4 483.5 688.9 Mass pipline and su;pport kg 87.5 136.8 323.1 496.4 706.7 Cradle Bearing stress Cesfim) kPa 572 815 1,057 1,299 1,541 Soi BearingStress kPa 16.1 15.3 14.9 14.6 14.4

CALCULATIONS

t vkN 858 1,833 3,170 4,870 6,933 Soil Coeficient of Friction ratio 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 Fht kN 429 916 1,585 2,435 3,466 friction angle degrees 63 63 63 63 63 su cort angle degrees 48 41 37 34 32 slider or tripper? slider slider slider slider slider COT E71AT AIL Material cost S/kg 51.20 S1.20 S1.20 S1.20 S1.20 Support cost S3.35 S6.46 S10.49 S15.45 S21.32

Claims (19)

1. A pipe support which is adapted to be attached to the pipe of a pipeline at spaced apart locations along the length of the pipe so that it will move with the pipe so that it will support the pipe thereby in an above the ground position, said pipe support having a base having a lower surface shaped to distribute supporting pressure across a supporting surface.

2. A pipe support as in claim 1 further having a cradle extending above the base and providing a corresponding shape for locating a pipe in a supporting position, and means to provide an interlocking support for engaging means to hold the pipe support to the pipe.

3. A pipe support as in claim 2 further characterised in that the engaging means include a strap adapted to interlock with the pipe support and otherwise extend around the pipe support so as to hold the pipe support with respect to the pipe in position. 1. 5 4. A pipe support as in any one of the preceding claims further characterised in that there is provided a cradle shape at the top of the pipe support shaped and of a size so that a selected pipe will nest within this.

5. A pipe support as in any one of the preceding claims further characterised in that the support is constructed from recycled plastics.

6. A pipe support arrangement including a pipeline having at least two pipe supports as in anyone of preceding claims 1-5 attached to the pipe in spaced apart locations and such that the pipe supports will move with the pipe.

7. A pipe support arrangement including a plurality of pipe supports as in any one of the preceding claims having a body comprised of plastics material, each said pipe support supporting a part of a pipe at each of spaced apart locations along the length of the pipe, each of the pipe supports having a base with a large lowermost planar support surface adapted to allow sliding of the pipe support across the ground while supporting the appropriate pipe 0 part, and further, each pipe support having a cradle having at a lower end an j ii i i: i i; k t- 31 C I:' i 14 end integral with the base and at an upper end having a cradle shape into which the pipe nests.

8. A pipe support arrangement as in the immediately preceding claim further characterised in that there are gussets to each side of the cradle of each said pipe support providing extended support for the pipe to each side of the cradle, in at least one strap secured to the gussets by passing through a hole and at least one of the gussets, and extending around the pipe whereby ensuring the pipe support is attached to the pipe and such that if the pipe is lifted then the pipe support will also be lifted with the pipe.

9. A pipe support arrangement as in any one of preceding claims 6-8 further characterised in that the plastics material is a moulded recycled plastic. A pipe support arrangement as in any preceding claim 6-9 wherein the pipe has a diameter of at least 80 mm.

11. A pipe support arrangement as in any preceding claim 6-10 wherein 1 5 the pipe has a diameter within the range of from 80 mm to 300 mm diameter. 0

12. A pipe support arrangement as in any one of preceding claims 6-11 o:,further characterised in that the base provides a substantially planar surface and has a sufficiently large area to keep the concentration of the bearing .OoO pressure within the range of 15 to 30 kPa.

13. A pipe support arrangement as in any one of preceding claims 6-12 further characterised in that the base provides a substantially planar surface and has a sufficiently large area to keep the concentration of the bearing ~pressure at approximately 20 kPa.

14. A pipe support arrangement in which there are a plurality of pipe supports each as in any one of claims 1 to 6, supporting a pipe of a cross country pipeline where the pipe is selected to be of a diameter within the range of size DN80 to DN300 and where at least some of the pipe supports support the pipe in a suspended position above the ground from support location to support location and wherein at least one of the pipe supports S3 0 includes a body comprised of moulded recycled plastics material Li A pipe support arrangement as in the immediately preceding claim further characterised in that the base support has a base which is constituted by a sheet of integrally moulded recycled plastics material with a large lower most planar support surface adapted to allow sliding of the pipe support across the ground while supporting an appropriate pipe part such that bearing stress on the ground will not exceed on average over the whole of the surface kPa.

16. A pipe support arrangement as in any one of the last two immediately preceding claims further characterised in that the pipe support 1 0 includes a cradle comprised of a sheet of substantially constant thickness integral remoulded recycled plastics material secured at a lower end with the base and at an upper end having a cradle shape of an uppermost open top semi circular concave shape into which the pipe nests, gussets to each side of the cradle providing extended support for the pipe to each side of the cradle, each of the gussets being in the form of a sheet of substantially constant thickness integrally moulded recycled plastics material, and two straps 9 9 secured to the gussets one to secured with respect to each gusset by passing "through a hole in the respecJvNe gusset and extending around the pipe where the pipe support is attached to the pipe and such that if the pipe is lifted, then the pipe support will also be lifted with the pipe. 9 9

17. A method of supporting a pipe line in an above the ground location the method comprising the step of securing at spaced apart locations along the pipeline, pipe supports as characterised in any one of the preceding claims 1 to 6.

18. A pipe support substantially as described in the specification with Ld reference to and as illustrated by Figures 1 through 4 of the accompanying drawings.

19. A pipe support substantially as described in the specification with reference to and as illustrated by Figure 8 of the accompanying drawings.

20. A pipe support arrangement substantially as described in the specification with reference to and as illustrated by Figures 5 through 7 of the accompanying drawings. RA4,, IL 16

21. A pipe support substantially as described in the specification with reference to and as illustrated by Figure 10 of the accompanying drawings.

22. A pipe support when joined to a pipe substantially as described in the specification with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings. Dated this 26th day of August 1998 SANTOS LTD By their Patent Attorneys, COLLISON CO. C I. t C C t* C I cc Cc CC C C CC IC r C ABSTRACT A pipe line support system to support a pipe in an above the ground position where there are a plurality of pipe supports secured to the pipe at spaced apart intervals and secured to the pipe so that they will slide across supporting earth or rise or lower with the pipe if the pipe is caused to shift perhaps due to some thermal expansion and contraction. The invention is also directed to pipe supports made from recycled plastics and being secured to the pipe by straps and having a broad base also made from recycled plastics which is adapted then to contribute a sliding action across the ground. @A a a 04 a S A9.4 os i i tI SCO ,r A A re a a ic c t A f II