API 570 is not a construction code. It concerns metallic piping that has already been placed in service and the way its subsequent life is managed.
- ✓ Official title: Piping Inspection Code, fifth edition
- ✓ Scope: metallic piping systems already placed in service
- ✓ Includes the associated pressure-relieving devices
- ✓ Activities covered: inspection, rating, repair, alteration
When a process line enters service, the rules by which it was designed and built have fulfilled their main function. From that moment on the question changes: no longer whether the piping was made well, but whether it is still fit to contain what it carries. This is the ground on which API 570 stands, the code published by the American Petroleum Institute and now in its fifth edition.
The full title of the document says it precisely: “Piping Inspection Code: In-service Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration of Piping Systems”. Its declared scope is that the code “covers inspection, rating, repair, and alteration procedures for metallic piping systems and their associated pressure-relieving devices (PRDs) that have been placed in-service”: that is, the inspection, rating, repair and alteration procedures for metallic piping systems and their associated pressure-relieving devices that have been placed in service.
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It is worth dwelling on two limits implicit in that sentence. The first is the material: the code speaks of metallic systems. The second is the condition: “placed in-service”, already in operation. A line not yet started up does not fall within this scope. On this page we do not reproduce the operational requirements of the document: for those the original text in its current edition is authoritative, and it must be obtained and applied by qualified personnel.
What defines the scope of the code
| Element | Indication in the document |
|---|---|
| Title | Piping Inspection Code: In-service Inspection, Rating, Repair, and Alteration of Piping Systems |
| Edition | Fifth edition |
| Body | American Petroleum Institute (API) |
| Scope | Metallic piping systems placed in service |
| Activities covered | Inspection, rating, repair and alteration, including the associated PRDs |
Thickness data in inspection work
Regardless of what the code prescribes in detail, whoever follows a line in service faces a concrete and recurring question: how much material is left at the point being observed, and how it compares with the value measured last time at the same point. It is a question answered by a repeatable measurement and an orderly archive of surveys.
On a pipe this often means working through the coating, on curved surfaces and in awkward positions. The corrosion gauges of the Dakota NDT range therefore have pulse-echo modes reading the metal only (0.63–1219.2 mm), the PECT mode measuring metal and coating under the probe, and echo-echo modes that ignore the paint layer. The built-in data logger keeps the sequence of points for later comparison.
Recommended instruments
| Instrument | Why on piping in service |
|---|---|
| Dakota CMX1-DL | Corrosion gauge with A-Scan and data logger, suited to repeated point-by-point surveys |
| Dakota CMX2-DL | Echo-echo modes to measure while ignoring the coating |
| Dakota CMX10-DL | Top of the series, scanning up to 250 readings per second |
| Dakota MX2-DL | A-Scan and B-Scan to follow the thickness trend along a stretch |
Frequently asked questions
The code declares that it covers inspection, rating, repair and alteration procedures for metallic piping systems and their associated pressure-relieving devices that have been placed in service. Piping not yet started up is therefore excluded.
To the fifth edition of the Piping Inspection Code published by the American Petroleum Institute. Before applying the code always check which edition is the one contractually applicable to your plant.
No. Here you will find only the general framing of the document and its declared scope. The operational requirements are contained in the original text, which must be obtained in its current edition and applied by qualified personnel.
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The information contained on this web page is provided for information purposes only. Although it has been compiled with the utmost care, it does not constitute a contractual offer or a binding commitment to supply. It may contain transcription, translation or typographical errors. For precise and up-to-date information, please contact our company directly.
Some images on this website have been intentionally generated using Artificial Intelligence (AI). This is because, for many applications and projects, it is not possible to disclose photographs of the installation or of the actual system due to confidentiality agreements, confidentiality clauses and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs).