Product Overview

ASME SA179 / ASTM A179 killed carbon steel seamless tube is a low-carbon steel heat exchanger and condenser tube manufactured for applications requiring seamless construction, controlled chemical composition, and specified mechanical and dimensional properties.

SA179/A179 covers seamless cold-drawn low-carbon steel tubes for tubular heat exchangers, condensers, and similar heat-transfer equipment. The specification is intended for heat-transfer service rather than general structural piping.

The killed steel designation indicates that the steel is deoxidized during steelmaking, typically using silicon and/or aluminum. For this reason, “killed” should be treated as a material/steelmaking condition rather than a separate ASTM grade.

The tubes can be supplied in customized outside diameters, wall thicknesses and lengths according to the applicable specification and purchase order.

Product Specifications

ASTM A179 specifies seamless cold-drawn low-carbon steel tubes and includes requirements for chemical analysis, hardness, flattening, flaring, flange testing and hydrostatic or nondestructive electric testing.

Chemical Composition

ASTM A179 / ASME SA179 Chemical Composition

The exact chemical requirements should always be checked against the ASTM A179/ASME SA179 edition specified in the purchase order.

Mechanical Properties

ASTM A179 Mechanical Requirements

The mechanical properties are specified for the finished tube and should be verified through the applicable inspection and material certification documents.

Manufacturing Process

SA179 Seamless Tube Manufacturing

Steelmaking → Billet Preparation → Heating → Piercing → Hot Rolling → Cold Drawing → Heat Treatment → Straightening → Cutting → Surface Inspection → Dimensional Inspection → Testing → Final Inspection → Packing

Cold drawing is an important part of the SA179 product definition. It allows the finished tube to achieve controlled outside diameter, wall thickness and surface condition.

For heat exchanger and condenser applications, dimensional control is particularly important because the tubes are installed into tube sheets or tube bundles.

Tube Dimensions

SA179 tubes can be supplied in different outside diameters and wall thicknesses according to ASTM A179 requirements and project specifications.

Typical customization includes:

• Outside Diameter
• Wall Thickness
• Tube Length
• Straightness
• End Finish
• Surface Condition
• Tube Bundle Requirements
• Special Dimensional Tolerances

For customized orders, the final dimensions should be confirmed according to the customer's tube sheet design, heat exchanger drawing or purchase specification.

Applications

Heat Exchangers

ASME SA179 tubes are commonly used as heat-transfer tubes in:

• Shell-and-tube heat exchangers
• Industrial heat exchangers
• Process heat exchangers
• Heat recovery equipment
• Tubular heat-transfer equipment

Condensers

Typical condenser applications include:

• Industrial condensers
• Steam condenser systems
• Cooling equipment
• Condenser tube bundles

Process Equipment

The tubes can also be used in equipment requiring seamless low-carbon steel heat-transfer tubing, subject to the applicable service conditions and project specifications.

Inspection & Testing

Each SA179 tube can be inspected according to ASTM A179/ASME SA179 and the purchase order requirements.

Chemical Inspection

• Heat Chemistry Analysis
• Product Analysis, when required
• PMI, when specified

Mechanical Testing

• Tensile Test
• Yield Strength Verification
• Elongation
• Hardness Test

Tube Testing

• Flattening Test
• Flaring Test
• Hydrostatic Test
• Nondestructive Electric Test

Dimensional Inspection

• Outside Diameter
• Wall Thickness
• Length
• Straightness
• Surface Condition

Documentation

• Material Test Certificate
• Heat Number Traceability
• EN 10204 3.1 Certificate
• Inspection Report
• Dimensional Report
• NDT Report, when required

Surface and End Finish

Surface

Depending on the manufacturing and customer requirements, SA179 tubes can be supplied with:

• Cold Drawn Surface
• Bright Surface
• Cleaned Surface
• Pickled Surface, when specified

End Finish

• Plain Ends
• Cut Ends
• Capped Ends
• Customized End Preparation

End condition can be specified according to heat exchanger or condenser fabrication requirements.

Quality Control

Quality control for SA179 tubes focuses on material identification, dimensional accuracy, mechanical properties and tube integrity.

The production and inspection process can include:

Raw Material Inspection → Heat Number Verification → Chemical Analysis → Cold Drawing → Heat Treatment → Dimensional Inspection → Mechanical Testing → Flattening/Flaring Test → Hydrostatic or ET Testing → Visual Inspection → Final Documentation