A fitting for coupling to a pipe includes a sleeve for receiving the pipe and a sealing member to provide a seal between the sleeve and the pipe. A pressure ring acts on a pressure member through adjoining slanting contacting surfaces of the pressure ring and pressure member, respectively. The sealing member is configured to be displaced from the slanting contact surfaces to preserve the life of the seal.

A fitting for coupling to a pipe includes a sleeve for receiving the pipe and a sealing member to provide a seal between the sleeve and the pipe. A pressure ring acts on a pressure member through adjoining slanting contacting surfaces of the pressure ring and pressure member, respectively. The sealing member is configured to be displaced from the slanting contact surfaces to preserve the life of the seal.

A high capacity universal connector for use in connecting tubular members and a method for sealing the tubular members is provided. First and second tubular members are provided which each have ends that are brought into face-to-face engagement by a connector. A metal sealing element seals against conical surfaces at the ends of the first and second tubular members and enables the entire surface of the end of one tubular member to be bought into engagement with the surface of the end of the other tubular member so as to improve the bending and compression capacity of the assembly comprising the tubular members and the metal sealing element. A metal sealing ring for use in this assembly is also provided, along with a gasket retention assembly.

The method of providing a connector suited for quickly connecting and testing joints of pipe for a subsea pipeline and similar applications by concurrently locking, preloading, sealing and testing of the connection to eliminate the usual sequential time requirements for each of these operations. Additionally, time for coating and X-Ray inspection of the welded connection in critical path time are eliminated as the welding and coating operations are able to be done on shore in non-critical path time.

The method of providing a connector suited for quickly connecting and testing joints of pipe for a subsea pipeline and similar applications by concurrently locking, preloading, sealing and testing of the connection to eliminate the usual sequential time requirements for each of these operations. Additionally, time for coating and X-Ray inspection of the welded connection in critical path time are eliminated as the welding and coating operations are able to be done on shore in non-critical path time.

Embodiments described herein relate to rotary unions for use in wafer cleaning processes. The rotary union includes a process media and a supporting media that interact in a gap between a nozzle and rotary element. By regulating the supporting media pressure, a non-contact seal is created within the gap. The non-contact seal prevents or controls process media leakage in a rotary union while enabling delivery of the process media through a platen directly underneath of a wafer without the risk of additional contamination of the process media, reducing the defect to the wafer. Additionally, the non-contact seal precludes particle generation due to seal wear, caused for example in face seals, and does not leech out any additional foreign elements.

Embodiments described herein relate to rotary unions for use in wafer cleaning processes. The rotary union includes a process media and a supporting media that interact in a gap between a nozzle and rotary element. By regulating the supporting media pressure, a non-contact seal is created within the gap. The non-contact seal prevents or controls process media leakage in a rotary union while enabling delivery of the process media through a platen directly underneath of a wafer without the risk of additional contamination of the process media, reducing the defect to the wafer. Additionally, the non-contact seal precludes particle generation due to seal wear, caused for example in face seals, and does not leech out any additional foreign elements.

A high capacity universal connector for use in connecting tubular members and a method for sealing the tubular members is provided. First and second tubular members are provided which each have ends that are brought into face-to-face engagement by a connector. A metal sealing element seals against conical surfaces at the ends of the first and second tubular members and enables the entire surface of the end of one tubular member to be bought into engagement with the surface of the end of the other tubular member so as to improve the bending and compression capacity of the assembly comprising the tubular members and the metal sealing element. A metal sealing ring for use in this assembly is also provided, along with a gasket retention assembly.

A pipe fitting comprising three annular coaxial sections including a grip section, middle section, and a seal section, the grip section and seal section being separately fixed to the middle section, an annular array of grips in the grip section, an annular semi-rigid seal in the seal section, a hydraulic grip actuator in the housing for radially constricting the grips into gripping engagement with an exterior of a pipe extending into the housing, and a hydraulic seal actuator hydraulically and mechanically independent of the grip actuator, for forcing the seal radially into engagement with an exterior of the pipe, a first mechanical lock for maintaining the grips in contact with the pipe and a second mechanical lock maintaining the seal in contact with the pipe.

A pipe fitting comprising three annular coaxial sections including a grip section, middle section, and a seal section, the grip section and seal section being separately fixed to the middle section, an annular array of grips in the grip section, an annular semi-rigid seal in the seal section, a hydraulic grip actuator in the housing for radially constricting the grips into gripping engagement with an exterior of a pipe extending into the housing, and a hydraulic seal actuator hydraulically and mechanically independent of the grip actuator, for forcing the seal radially into engagement with an exterior of the pipe, a first mechanical lock for maintaining the grips in contact with the pipe and a second mechanical lock maintaining the seal in contact with the pipe.