The IADC Lexicon is an oil and gas dictionary of upstream-related terms, which, unlike conventional glossaries, are official definitions drawn from legislation, regulation and regulatory guidance, standards (global, national and regional), IADC guidelines, and Well Control Institute. Terms often have multiple definitions from different sources.
This month’s featured term is:
Bellmouth
Like bend stiffeners and bend restrictors, the bellmouth protects the flexible pipe from bending to levels beyond its allowable minimum bend radius (MBR). A bellmouth comprises a hollow tube that flares out into a bell-shaped profile at its end, as shown in Figure 13. The flexible pipe exits the bellmouth from this end, and the bell-shaped profile prevents the flexible pipe bending beyond a certain radius within its angular range.
Source: API RP 17L2, Recommended Practice for Flexible Pipe Ancillary Equipment, First Edition, March 2013. Global Standards
Part of a guide tube, formed in the shape of a bellmouth, and designed to prevent overbending of the flexible pipe.
Source: API SPEC 17J, Specification for Unbonded Flexible Pipe, Third Edition, July 2008. Global Standards
