Butt Weld Fittings

A butt weld fitting is a weldable pipe fitting that allows for change of direction of fl ow, to branch off , reduce pipe size or attach auxiliary equipment. Forged Steel butt weld fittings are manufactured in accordance with ANSI / ASME B16.9. Butt weld fittings are available as elbows, tees, caps, reduces and out lets (olets). These fittings are the most common type of welded pipe fitting and are specified by nominal pipe size and pipe schedule. Butt weld fittings use seamless or welded pipe as the starting material and are formed (through multiple processes) to get the shape of elbows, tees and reducers etc. Just as the pipe is sold from Schedule 10 to Schedule 160, butt weld pipe fittings are sold the same way. Welded butt weld fittings are more common in stainless steel due to cost advantage. Sch 10 fittings are also more common in stainless steel butt weld fitting. Common material for butt weld fittings are A234 WPB (A & C also available), High Yield Carbon Steel, Stainless Steel 304 and 316 and Nickel Alloys.

Butt weld pipe fittings comprise of long radius elbow, concentric reducer, eccentric reducers and Tees.They are an important part of industrial piping systems to change direction, branch off  or to mechanically join equipment to the system. Butt weld fittings are sold in nominal pipe sizes with specified pipe schedule. BW fitting’s dimensions and tolerances are defined as per ASME standard B16.9.

Butt Weld fittings are also called Welded Pipe fittings. These welded fittings in carbon steel and stainless steel off er many advantages compared to threaded and socket weld fittings. The later are only available up to 4-inch nominal size whereas butt weld fittings are available in sizes from ½” to 72”. Some of the benefits of Butt weld fittings are;