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Tightness in gasketed
flanged unions
PART II: New Standards for Calculation and Testing.
The early attempts in the USA and Germany
By Francisco J. Montero, ESA member The higher the Tp value, the higher the Gs, is a theoretical point, representing
tightness of the connection. the intercept of the set of possible
6.- New pressure equipment The ROTT test is a combined compression, unloading lines with the Tp=1
calculation standards and new relaxation and helium leakage test at line. It represents the gasket
gasket testing methods room temperature using 4 NB flanges. potential to maintain tightness after
To summarize Part I, new materials and It consists of two parts. The first refers pressurization and during operation.
environmental concerns brought forward to the assembly conditions. Growing
stresses are applied on the gasket and The PVRC drafted a new version of the
the need to introduce new variables in
leakage measurements are taken with calculation method, (Non-mandatory
the design, calculation, operation and
different inner helium pressure levels. The Appendix BFJ), incorporating the following
maintenance of industrial pressure systems.
second part represents the changes on aspects:
The first attempts were made in the USA
and Germany. Additionally, as we shall gasket stresses in service (unloading from
see in Part III, Europe must harmonize hydraulic fluid pressure, external loads, Introduction of the Tightness Class
the applicable legislation and standards etc.) by applying successive loading and concept as a design criterion defining
to ensure single market conditions as unloading cycles and measuring the changes higher or lower tightness levels
required by the Treaty of Rome. in leak rates at a constant inner pressure. Introduction of the tightness-linked
Representing, in ordinates, the logarithm gasket parameters
6.1.- USA of the loading and unloading gasket stress Introduction of a flange rigidity index
The search for better m and y factors and in abscissae, the logarithm of Tp, a Consideration of forces and moments
started in 1974 at the Pressure Vessel graph (Fig.1) is obtained with three new external to the connection
Research Council (PVRC) on the initiative gasket factors, Gb, a, Gs. Consideration of the loads on the
of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel gaskets bars at heat exchangers
Code and ASTM committees. This goal Gb, is the loading stress corresponding divisions.
was found too simplistic. Research was to Tp=1, (log Tp=0).
needed on gasket properties behind a, is the slope of the gasket loading The PVRC presented the new calculation
quantitative leak levels. In 1984, the PVRC line. Combined values of Gb and a method, with these new factors, as an
widened its remit to include concerns describe the seating characteristic of alternative method to the traditional and
about high temperature reliability of the a gasket and its capacity to develop still valid ASME Code, Section VIII, Div 2,
new asbestos-free materials coming to tightness upon initial sealing. Appendix 2. The ROTT test itself gives
the market. A new testing programme interesting gasket data. The tests will be
was launched at the cole Politechnique used later as the basis of the new DIN and
de Montral under the auspices of PVRC EN standards, very similar to the ROTT
and the Material Testing Institute for test, but not to the subsequent PVRC
the Chemical Process Industries (MTI). graphic elaboration of the data. This graphic
The main new test procedure was stage of the procedure is contradictory to
ROTT (Room Temperature Operational results obtained in practice. The unproven
Tightness Test), designed to obtain hypothesis of a common intersection point
the gasket parameters needed for the with the Tp=1 axis for all the possible
flanged connection calculation. A new unloading lines has been proven wrong
dimensionless number, Tp (Tightness by experimental data. Generation of the
parameter), was introduced to link the three gasket factors, Gb, a, Gs, is thus not
tightness level of a connection with the reliable and Non-mandatory Appendix
internal pressure. On a given connection, Fig.1 Log-Log gasket stress versus tightness BFJ remains only an alternative to the
for each gasket stress there is a Tp value. parameter. traditional calculation.