Abstract
A multifunctional gasket with compression and rotation control comprises annular sealing element(s) with specific stiffness, geometry, tightness and compressibility properties and uniquely shaped compression element(s) with variable thickness and specific mechanical properties. The gasket is designed to seal under static and dynamic fluid pressure loading for a wide range of sizes and with severe thermal differential temperatures and static and dynamic external loads. This gasket is able to significantly increase the pressure rating for leakage, ability to resist external forces and moments, resistance to thermal differentials and operating reliability of flanges in accordance with published standards, as well as enable the more efficient design of special flanges for demanding operating conditions. The gasket design also allows for easier, faster and more uniform assembly of the joint.
Claims
1. A gasket for joining two conduits by contacting and sealing two opposing flange bodies, with raised face or flat face facings over at least a portion of the flange faces, located at the ends of the conduits to form a sealed and load bearing connection of the two conduits along a common axial centerline by the clamping of flange bodies together about a gasket having an elongate hollow tubular shape with an inner perimeter and an outer perimeter, the gasket comprising: a) an elongate hollow tubular gasket body containing a central opening leading to a central hole, the opening corresponding to the shape of the flange bodies in an assembled condition, and the thickness of at least a portion of the gasket body varies with increasing distance from the centerline; b) at least one compression element extending around the outer perimeter of the gasket body; c) at least one compression zone extending to the outer perimeter of the at least one compression element being in direct contact with adjacent faces of the flange bodies when a connection is assembled, and having a predetermined stiffness, wherein any optional compression zones provided would be radially spaced apart from the at least one compression zone; d) at least one resilient sealing element, either non-integral or integral to the at least one compression element and extending continuously around a perimeter of the gasket body and the at least one sealing element having a stiffness less than 0.67 times the stiffness of the at least one compression zone; and e) at least one pair of sealing surfaces with the at least one sealing element defining at least one sealing surface that extends around at least a portion of the at least one sealing element and at least one pair of sealing surfaces being in radial alignment over a transverse width of the gasket body and wherein the at least one pair of sealing surfaces contacts adjacent faces of the flange bodies when the connection is assembled.
2. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the at least one sealing element provides sealing surfaces at opposite positions along the radial surface area of the sealing element to provide a pair of sealing surfaces located radially between two compression elements and the gasket retains the sealing element.
3. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the gasket where the at least one compression element retains two sealing elements each located at opposite radial positions between two compression zones and each sealing element provides a sealing surface for contact with one of the opposing flange bodies.
4. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the thickness of at least a portion of the gasket body decreases with increasing distance from the centerline.
5. The gasket of claim 4 wherein at least a portion the thickness of the gasket body decreases in stepwise fashion.
6. The gasket of claim 4 wherein at least a portion of the thickness of the gasket body decreases uniformly.
7. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the gasket has a circular, ellipsoidal, ob-round, rectangular or any closed shape in a plan view.
8. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the at least one compression element retains a first pair of sealing elements located at opposite positions along the perimeter of the gasket body and spaced apart from a second pair of sealing elements located at opposite positions along a perimeter of the gasket body that together divide the compression element into three compression zones.
9. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the at least one sealing element is integral with the at least one compression element and defines sealing surfaces located at opposite radial positions along the compression element and the sealing element divides the compression element into two radially separated compression zones.
10. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the at least one sealing element is integral with the at least one compression element and defines sealing surfaces located at opposite radial positions along the compression element and the sealing element is located at the inner diameter and there is only one outer compression zone.
11. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the gasket body has grooves and lands extending around a perimeter thereof which match grooves and lands in a face of the flange bodies between which the gasket body is clamped.
12. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the at least one sealing element is uniform in thickness and least one compression element has a continuous taper in the radial direction to form a frusto-conical shape having an angle between a radial plane of the compression element and a surface of the compression element of less than 10 degrees and preferably an angle of from 0.01 to 3.0 degrees all multiplied by the ratio of 3010.sup.6 psi divided by the modulus of elasticity of the actual flange material in psi units.
13. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the at least one sealing element is tapered in thickness and the at least one compression element has a continuous taper in the radial direction to form a frusto-conical shape having an angle between a radial plane of the compression element and a surface of the compression element of less than 10 degrees and preferably an angle of from 0.01 to 3.0 degrees all multiplied by the ratio of 3010.sup.6 psi divided by the modulus of elasticity of the actual flange material in psi units.
14. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the clamping of the gasket and flange bodies together contains the gasket radially and axially and creates intimate contact between the gasket and the connecting flange bodies providing for more uniform heat transfer between the gasket, flange bodies, bolts and the inner and outer diameters of the gasket and flanges as well as reacting any thermal bolt loads through the outer compression element.
15. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the clamping of the gasket and flange bodies together creates contact between the gasket and the connecting flange bodies providing confinement of the sealing element(s) preventing blowout of the gasket as well as preventing ratcheting and unloading of the sealing element(s) due to displacement and flange rotation.
16. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the clamping of the gasket and flange bodies together creates contact between the gasket and the connecting flange bodies providing bearing surfaces resisting flange rotation due to pressure, mechanical and thermal effects and providing a large load bearing area and effective moment of inertia to resist external mechanical, hydraulic, and thermal static and dynamic loads and moments.
17. The gasket of claim 1 wherein the clamping of the gasket and flange bodies together creates contact between at least a portion of the compression elements and sealing elements of the gasket and the faces of the connecting flange bodies.
18. The gasket of claim 1 where the flange bodies being joined include, but are not limited to, integral weld neck, welding neck, slip-on, socket weld, threaded, lap joint, reverse, clamp type, any type flange designed in accordance with or referenced in ASME BPV Code Section VIII or published standards such as ASME B16.5, ASME B16.47, ASME B16.1, ASME B16.42, MSS Standards, AWWA Standards, among others, where the flange bodies may be circular, elliptical, ob-round, rectangular or any closed shape.
19. The gasket of claim 1 wherein there are no limitations on size, materials of construction, internal or external pressure, temperature, fluid service or service conditions beyond industry standards.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0049] Other features of my invention will become more evident from a consideration of the following brief description of patent drawings:
[0050] FIG. 1 is a depiction of a gasket sealed joint comprised of two flat faced flanges, a gasket 23 with a single annular sealing zone, two annular sealing elements, inner and outer compression zones and clamping of the flanges by bolt fasteners. The two annular sealing elements are located in the single annular sealing zone in two respective annular recesses located on opposing sides of the annular compression element. The annular recesses have a radial width and depth sufficient to contain the annular sealing elements. The first annular sealing element creates a seal with the first body and the second annular sealing element creates a seal with the second body when clamped together. The flanges will be clamped together by bolt fasteners and the bolt holes are illustrated
[0051] FIG. 2 is a depiction of a gasket sealed joint comprised of two raised faced flanges, a gasket 23 with a single annular sealing element and inner and outer compression elements. The flanges are clamped together by bolt fasteners and the bolt holes are illustrated.
[0052] FIG. 3 is a depiction of a gasket 23 comprised of a single compression element with inner and outer annular compression zones and a single integral annular sealing element and zone. The annular sealing element is integral with the compression element.
[0053] FIG. 4 is a depiction of a gasket 23 comprised of a single compression element with inner, intermediate and outer annular compression zones and two (multiple) annular sealing zones each with two sealing elements.
[0054] FIG. 5 shows a gasket 23 comprised of a single compression element with a single outer compression zone with an integral sealing element located at the inner surface of the gasket.
[0055] FIG. 6 is a plan view of a possible irregular gasket 23 shape, this example being an ob-round shape.
[0056] FIG. 7 is a plan view of a typical gasket 23 shape, this example being a circular shape. The figure illustrates the inner 3 and outer 4 diameters, sealing element 1, inner 2 and outer 2 compression elements and bolt holes 22. Section B-B is illustrated by FIG. 8.
[0057] FIG. 8 is a cross sectional view of gasket 23 with a single sealing element 1 of uniform thickness and inner 2 and outer 2 compression elements with a uniform taper. The figure also illustrates the inner 3 and outer 4 diameters and bolt holes 22. This represents section B-B from FIG. 8.
[0058] FIG. 9 is a plan view of a flange joint assembly illustrating the inside diameter and outside diameter of the flange and the bolts 24 and nuts 26. Section A-A is illustrated by FIG. 14.
[0059] FIG. 10 is a cross sectional view of gasket 23 with a single tapered sealing element 1 and inner 2 and outer 2 compression elements with a step-wise taper. The figure also illustrates the inner 3 and outer diameters 4 and bolt holes 22.
[0060] FIG. 11 is a cross sectional of a conventional raised faced flange joint assembly with a conventional gasket (sealing element) 34 in the assembled condition after tightening of the bolts 24 by turning the nuts 26. The figure illustrates the rotation of the flanges 8 and 11 and the bolts 24.
[0061] FIG. 12 is a cross sectional view of a conventional flat faced flange joint assembly with a full face sheet type sealing element (conventional gasket) 34. The figure also illustrates the inner 3 and outer 4 diameters, bolts 24, nuts 26 and bolt holes 22.
[0062] FIG. 13 is a stressstrain loading and unloading curve for a spiral wound conventional gasket (sealing element) illustrating that the loading part of the curve has a lower slope (lower modulus) than the unloading curves. The figure illustrates the cycle of gasket sealing stress resulting from an applied displacement and removing the displacement.
[0063] FIG. 14 is a cross sectional view of a flange joint assembly with gasket 23 at the point in time when the bolts are tightened by turning the nuts enough to initiate compressive contact by flange faces 14 and 15 on the sealing elements 1. This represents section A-A from FIG. 9.
[0064] FIG. 15 is a cross sectional view of the same flange joint assembly with gasket 23 as shown in FIG. 14 at the point in time when the bolts are tightened by turning the nuts enough to compress the sealing elements 1 to the point where flange faces 14 and 15 contact the inner compression zone 2a and the flanges 8 and 11 are rotated from their initial condition.
[0065] FIG. 16 is a cross sectional view of the same flange joint assembly with gasket 23 as shown in FIGS. 14 and 15 at the point in time when the bolts 24 are tightened by turning the nuts 26 enough to completely compress the sealing elements 1 to the point where the mating flanges 8 and 11 rotate and flange faces 14 and 15 contact the inner compression zone 2a and the outer compression zone 2b. This is the final assembled condition and illustrates the final rotation of the flanges 8 and 11 and the bolts 24.
[0066] FIG. 17 is a cross sectional view of the same flange joint assembly with gasket 23 as shown in FIG. 16, fully assembled and after the application of internal pressure 28 and axial pressure thrust force 38. The deformation of the flange neck 32 and the change in contact forces H.sub.I 40, H.sub.G 42 and H.sub.O 44 due to the application of internal pressure are illustrated.
[0067] FIG. 18 is a cross sectional view of a conventional raised face flange joint assembly with conventional gasket, as previously shown fully assembled in FIG. 11, after the application of internal pressure 28 and axial pressure thrust force 38. The deformation of the flange neck 32, flange bodies 8 and 11, and gasket 36 are illustrated along with the change in gasket contact forces HG 42 due to the application of internal pressure. The figure also illustrates the deformation of the bolts 24 due to flange rotation.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0068] Throughout the description of this invention the following terms and associated definitions apply: [0069] annular sealing element: For gaskets with an axisymmetric shape this is an annular shaped element of approximately constant radial width. For gaskets with a non-axisymmetric shape the annular sealing element is a shape with an inner and outer surface that approximately follows the same shape as the inner boundary of the gasket with an approximately constant width as measured normal to the inner surface of the annular sealing element to its outer surface (eg. the radial distance in the case of axisymmetric geometries). In all cases the annular sealing element is comprised of a type of construction and/or material suitable for creating a fluid tight seal, either self sealing or requiring compression and such element(s) may or may not be integral with the compression element. When the sealing element is not integral with a compression element it is comprised of a non-integral sealing element. An example of a non-integral sealing element is spiral windings with filler and a configuration such as shown in FIG. 2. An example of an integral sealing element is a metal zone comprised of concentric serrations with or without a surface coating, such as shown in FIG. 3. The thickness of either may vary in the radial direction or be constant. [0070] annular sealing zone: This is an annular shaped zone of approximately constant radial width and encompassing the annular sealing element(s) within the zone and the full thickness of the gasket. For gaskets with a non-axisymmetric shape the annular sealing zone is a shape as described for the annular sealing element. An annular sealing zone may encompass more than one annular sealing element. The gasket illustrated by FIG. 4 contains two annular sealing zones and four annular sealing elements. [0071] annular compression element: For gaskets with an axisymmetric shape this is an annular shaped zone of approximately constant radial width. For gaskets with a non-axisymmetric shape the annular compression element is a shape with an inner and outer surface that approximately follows the same shape as the inner boundary of the gasket with an approximately constant width as measured normal to the inner surface of the annular compression element to its outer surface (eg. the radial distance in the case of axisymmetric geometries). In all cases an annular compression zone is comprised of a type of construction and/or material that has a compressive stiffness greater than the annular sealing element(s) of the gasket. The thickness may vary in the radial direction or be constant. An annular compression element may also provide sealing capabilities, although that is not its primary function. A gasket is comprised of one or more annular compression elements and one or more annular sealing elements. An annular compression element may contain multiple annular compression zones, each loaded to different stress levels. The gasket of FIG. 1 contains one annular compression element and two annular compression zones, whereas the gasket of FIG. 2 is comprised of two annular compression elements and two annular compression zones. [0072] annular compression zone is a zone of the annular compression element with an inner and outer perimeter that approximately follows the same shape as the inner boundary of the gasket with an approximately constant width as measured normal to the inner surface of the annular compression zone to its outer perimeter (eg. the radial distance in the case of axisymmetric geometries). An annular compression element is comprised of one or more annular compression zones. The gasket illustrated in FIG. 1 is comprised of an inner compression zone, that extends from the inside diameter of the gasket to the inside diameter of the annular sealing zone , and an outer compression zone that extends from the outside diameter of the annular sealing zone to the outside diameter of the gasket. In the case of multiple sealing elements, there will be intermediate annular compression zones between sealing elements, such as in FIG. 4. The surfaces of the compression zones contact the mating flange faces when the joint is assembled. [0073] blowout: This is a term commonly used to describe when the contact forces between the flanges and gasket are reduced and the internal pressure is increased to the level where the gasket is pushed radially outboard until there is loss of pressure containment. [0074] flanges: Flanges are bodies with surfaces for contacting the gasket, of a design that allows the flanges to be clamped together compressing the gasket between the flange faces to create a fluid seal and of a design with appropriate structural strength and rigidity to withstand the clamping forces and all imposed loading. The types of flanges include, but is not limited to, Integral, Loose, and Reverse, as described and shown in ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section VIII, Division 1, Appendix 2 and Clamp Type Connectors, including those as described in Appendix 24. However the design shape may be any shape that can clamp and seal the gasket including non-circular, elliptical and rectangular flanges. The ideal embodiment is a flange design with appropriate geometry and rigidity compatible with the gasket shape as described herein. [0075] flange hub: the portion tapered in thickness between the flange neck and the flange ring. [0076] flange neck: the hollow tubular structure attached to the flange hub, typically by welding. [0077] flange ring: the rectangular portion of the flange and typically the most massive portion of the flange. The flange hub extends from the flange ring to attach to the flange neck. [0078] gasket: This invention describes a gasket that comprises sealing element(s) and compression element(s). When the term gasket is used herein it includes all elements. Conventional terminology uses the term gasket when referring to sealing elements or sealing elements with compression elements. The term conventional gasket refers to these conventional designs. [0079] gasket sealed joint: The term gasket sealed joint relates to all elements of the joint , which includes the gasket and the mating flange bodies for creating a fluid seal between pressure containing components such as illustrated in FIGS. 11, 12, 16, 17, and 18. [0080] inside or outside diameter: The gasket elements typically have an axisymmetric geometry with an inner and outer radius. However, there are cases where the gasket elements are not axisymmetric, such as for elliptically shaped flanges. In those cases when the term inside or outside diameter is used it is referring to the inside or outside perimeter, since it is not a true diameter. [0081] Kammprofile gasket: A gasket comprised of a concentrically serrated solid metal core with a soft, conformable sealing material bonded to each face. [0082] pressure energized sealing element: Sealing elements where the element deforms under internal pressure creating contact stresses between the element and the mating bodies in excess of the internal pressure thereby maintaining a seal. [0083] taper angle: The first body taper angle is defined as the angle between a line drawn in a radial plane in the contacting surface of the first body and a line drawn in a radial plane from a point on the surface of the gasket closest to the first body, at the innermost diameter of the innermost compression element, to a point on the surface of the gasket closest to the first body, at the outermost diameter of the outermost compression element. The second body taper angle is defined as the angle between a line drawn in a radial plane in the contacting surface of the second body and a line drawn in a radial plane from the surface of the gasket closest to the second body, at the inner diameter of the innermost compression element, to a point on the surface of the gasket closest to the second body, at the outer diameter of the outermost compression element. The first and second body taper angles typically range from zero degrees to less than approximately 10 degrees and preferably from 0.01 to 3 degrees, however it is possible to have a negative taper angle if the mating flanges are tapered an excessive amount. These limits are typical for steel flanges, because there is no limitation on materials, these limits may be greater for low modulus materials such as plastics. This can be addressed for materials other than steel by multiplying the above limits by the ratio of 3010.sup.6 psi divided by the modulus of elasticity of the actual flange material in psi units.
[0084] FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of the gasket of this invention in a gasket sealed joint with an axisymmetric geometry comprising upper and lower flanges, 8, and 11 respectively; the gasket 23 comprised of two annular sealing elements 1, an annular compression element 2 with variable thickness, annular compression zones 2a and 2b; means for clamping the joint together consisting of bolt holes 22 and bolt fasteners centered along centerline 7. Although bolts are the fasteners used to clamp the joint together as illustrated herein, other clamping structures may also be employed such as bolted clamp connectors. The compression element is tapered in thickness with upper taper angle 5 and lower taper angle 6 each forming a frustro-conical surface. Flange 8 has inside diameter 9, outside diameter 10 and flange face 14. Flange 11 has inside diameter 12, outside diameter 13 and flange face 15. The typical and preferred embodiment of the gasket for the gasket sealed joint would be comprised of flanges 8 and 11 with approximately the same inside and outside diameters and similar design, however there are no restrictions on flange inside or outside diameters for the application of the gasket of this invention in a gasket sealed joint other than the gasket inside diameter 3 should preferably be greater than or equal to the greater of the flange inside diameters 9 and 12 and the gasket outside diameter 4 should preferably be less than or equal to the smaller of flange outside diameters 10 and 13. The outside diameter 4 of the gasket should preferably extend beyond the bolt circle as defined by the bolt centerline 7. However some benefits of the gasket design are retained if the outside diameter is equal to the inside diameter of the bolt circle.
[0085] FIG. 2 illustrates another variation of a gasket sealed joint comprised of mating flanges 8 and 11 and gasket 23 to be sealed between flange faces 14 and 15. Gasket 23 designed in accordance with this invention is comprised of an annular sealing element 1 and two annular compression elements comprised of inner compression element 2 and outer compression element 2 that define annular compression zone surfaces 2a and 2b respectively. (The same reference numbers designate like elements in the Figures) The gasket 23 varies in thickness from the inside diameter 3 to outside diameter 4. The compression elements 2 and 2 tapered in thickness with upper taper angle 5 and lower taper angle 6 each forming a frustro-conical surface. The annular sealing element is not integral with the compression elements and the outer annular compression element 2 is stepped in geometry by a distance 16 to provide a thinner portion 2' that matches the step distance 17 of flange raised face. The stepped geometry may be applied to any gasket design of this invention with any combination of sealing and compression elements.
[0086] FIG. 3 illustrates another variation of gasket 23 designed in accordance with this invention and comprised of a single annular compression element 2 having inner and outer annular compression zones 2a and 2b respectively, a single annular integral sealing element 1 comprising a surface of formed serrations, integral with the compression element 2. The gasket 23 again varies in thickness from the inside diameter 3 to outside diameter 4. The compression element is tapered in thickness with upper taper angle 5 and lower taper angle 6, such as illustrated in FIG. 1, each forming a frustro-conical surface. The annular sealing element 1 is an integral part of the compression element 2 and may or may not be tapered in thickness. The sealing element could be an independent element (such as shown as in FIGS. 1, 2, 4, 8, and 10) or integral with the compression element (FIGS. 3 and 5). The independent sealing element is item 1 in FIG. 1, item 1 in FIG. 2, items la and lb in FIG. 4, item 1 in FIG. 8, and item 1 in FIG. 10. Integral sealing elements, formed in the body of the compression element, are shown as 1 in FIGS. 3, and 1 in FIG. 5. Certain sealing element types lend themselves to different manufacturing methods. Spiral Wound sealing elements would be independent sealing elements, however a Kammprofile sealing element type could be formed into the compression elements. Note that Spiral Wound gaskets and Kammprofile are two common types of gaskets used in petroleum refineries. Since Gasket 23 includes both sealing elements and compression elements the terminology is different because my sealing elements could be spiral wound or Kammprofile types.
[0087] FIG. 4 illustrates another variation of gasket 23 designed in accordance with this invention having: four annular sealing elements, la and lb, each retained at different radial locations along gasket 23, and located on both of its transverse sides; and a single compression element 2 comprised of inner compression zone 2a, outer compression zone 2b and intermediate compression zone 2c. When in use, one or both sides of the intermediate compressions zone 2c may not have compressive contact with the adjacent flange face. The gasket illustrated in FIG. 4 may find preferred application in the handling hazardous fluids.
[0088] For the application of handling hazardous fluids or for other purposes, a sensing element may in communication with one or both of the compression zones 2c or a fluid volume confined by volume confined between sealing elements lb and la, respectively. The sealing element may monitor relative or absolute pressure in the confined volume as an indication of leakage or for other purposes.
[0089] FIG. 5 shows another variation of gasket 23 having a single unitary compression element 2 containing an integral sealing element 1 located at the inner surface 3 of gasket 23 and outer compression zones 2b. The compression element 2 tapers in thickness with upper taper angle 5 and lower taper angle 6 each forming a frustro-conical surface. Taper angles 5 and 6 may vary from each other as required to accommodate the mating flanges. This is true of all variations of gasket 23 as illustrated in the figures. Taper angles 5 and 6 are shown for the case when an annular sealing element is located at the inner diameter. This gasket design may be necessary when the application requires the seal to be at the innermost diameter of the gasket.
[0090] FIG. 6 shows a plan view of an irregularly shaped gasket 23 having an outer perimeter 4 and an inner perimeter 3. FIG. 6 illustrates one of a wide range of possibilities for the shape of the gasket 23 to which this invention may apply. A gasket of this invention may have irregular convex and concave regions around the course of its inner and outer surfaces; and the shape of inner and outer surfaces of the gasket need not match.
[0091] FIGS. 8 and 10 also illustrate other variations of gasket 23. FIG. 8 shows a single sealing element 1 with inner 2 and outer 2 tapered compression elements with bolt holes through the outer compression element. FIG. 10 has similar elements as FIG. 8 except that it illustrates that the sealing element 1 may be tapered in thickness similar to the compression elements 2 and 2 and the compression elements may be formed with a taper in a step-wise manner vs. a continuous taper as shown in FIG. 8. Although a tapered sealing element may be preferred in theory to achieve uniform sealing stress, it is not a significant issue in practice because of the relatively narrow width of the sealing element. A sealing element with uniform thickness will have a greater sealing stress at the outer diameter that could have some advantage. The sealing element is typically easier to manufacture with uniform thickness and no taper. FIG. 8 illustrates a compression element with a continuous smooth taper in thickness and FIG. 10 illustrates a step-wise taper in thickness. The step-wise taper just allows for less expensive manufacturing processes.
[0092] FIGS. 7 and 9 provide plan views of the gasket 23 and flange joint assembly respectively with section lines. The respective cross section views are shown in FIGS. 8 for gasket 23 and FIG. 14 for the flange joint assembly. These figures are included to provide a clear understanding of the geometry. The remaining figures provide clear comparisons between conventional bolted flange joint assemblies and those with gasket 23 in the assembled and operating conditions.
[0093] FIGS. 11 through 18 will be used to describe the assembly and operation of conventional flanges with conventional gaskets and the assembly and operation of Gasket 23. The figures shown are for typical weld neck flanges and the discussion of the assembly and operation applies to other flange types as well. A weld neck flange is known by those skilled in the art and is comprised of a flange ring 30, the rectangular portion of the flange and typically the most massive portion of the flange; the flange neck 32, the hollow tubular structure attached to the flange hub 31; and the flange hub which is the tapered portion between the neck and the ring. The flange ring 30, the flange hub 31 and the flange neck 32 are identified in FIGS. 17 and 18.
[0094] The assembly procedure and operation for a flat faced flange joint with Gasket 23 is illustrated in FIGS. 14, 15, 16 and 17. The assembly procedure and operation discussion also applies to raised face flanges as well. The Flanges 8 and 11 being assembled are flat faced integral weld neck flanges and Gasket 23 is as described in FIG. 1 as having a single compression element 2, two sealing elements 1 and inner 2a and outer 2b compression zones. [0095] The assembly procedure is as follows: [0096] Step 1 is FIG. 14 before the joint is clamped together, the flange bodies 8 and 11 have contacted the sealing elements 1 and the bolts 24 are straight and not yet tightened. FIG. 14 illustrates two flat face flanges with Gasket 23 in between the two flanges. Note that the flat faces on the two flanges are approximately parallel to one another. [0097] Step 2 is illustrated in FIG. 15 during the process of tightening the bolts bringing the two flange faces together and starting to apply load to the gasket and starting to compress the sealing element. The flanges begin to rotate and the flat faces on the two flanges are no longer parallel to one another. The figure illustrates contact of the flange faces of flanges 8 and 11 with the inner compression zone 2a and the compressed portion of the sealing element 1. The flanges have not yet rotated enough to contact the outer compression zone. Since the flanges are not parallel to one another the bolts will bend slightly to accommodate the rotation. [0098] Step 3 is FIG. 16 after the full bolt load is applied to the flanges. The flanges have rotated to contact the outer compression zone of the gasket. The bolt will bend slightly to accommodate the flange rotation. Note that the bolts can withstand a nominal amount of flange rotation and remain elastic and not damage the threads. If the required rotation is too large, spherical washers may be used to minimize bending stress in the bolts. Bolts also are subjected to rotation in conventional raised face flanges with conventional gaskets. The loads on the inner compression element, the sealing element and the outer compression element are illustrated in FIG. 17 for both the assembly and operating cases.
[0099] FIG. 17 illustrates a flat faced flange joint with the Gasket 23 in the initial assembled state (solid lines) and the operating state (dotted lines) after internal pressure is applied. The internal pressure has a radial pressure thrust component, P 28, and an axial pressure thrust force, H.sub.D 38. The gasket sealing forces, H.sub.G 42, are shown as solid lines for the assembly case and dotted lines for the operating case. This illustrates a very small, insignificant, loss of sealing force on the sealing element when typical pressures are applied. The pressure rotation is resisted by the outer compression element as indicated by an increase in force H.sub.O 44 in the figure. There is also a decrease of the compressive force, H.sub.I 40, on the inner compression element. Note that the forces H.sub.G 42, H.sub.O 44, and H.sub.I 40 are shown as concentrated forces for simplicity and clarity on the figure. These forces are actually distributed forces over their respective contact areas. The importance of the forces being distributed over a larger area is significant when reacting large external loads. The small decrease in sealing force on the sealing element vs. the greater decrease in the compressive force on the inner sealing element is because the stiffness, or modulus, of typical sealing elements is much less than that of the compression elements. The modulus of a spiral wound sealing element may be 1/100 of the modulus of a steel compression element. The 0.67 limit on the ratio of sealing element to compression element stiffness would represent an extreme case where there would still be some advantage of the Gasket 23 however the typical practical case would be as previously illustrated. From a practical standpoint the displacement on the gasket 23 sealing element may be considered as Fixed and essentially no loss of sealing element compressive load occurs in operation. Compare with FIG. 18 for a conventional gasket.
[0100] FIG. 17 may also be used to illustrate a flat faced flange joint with the Gasket 23 in the initial assembled state (solid lines) and the operating state (dotted lines) with operating temperatures applied. Ignore the applied pressure P 28 and force H.sub.D 38 and consider the operating configuration of the flange neck as due to thermal growth. The thermal case considered is when the vessel body and flange neck heats up first and the flange ring remains at a cooler temperature. This is the same case as illustrated in FIGS. 18 for a conventional gasket. The gasket sealing forces are shown as solid lines for the assembly case and dotted lines for the operating case. This illustrates that there is no significant loss of sealing force on the sealing element when a typical differential temperature applied. The intimate contact between the gasket compression elements and the flange bodies also allows for more effective thermal conductivity between the flange bodies, the gasket compression elements and the bolts resulting in more uniform temperatures between the bolts and the flanges than in a conventional flange joint with conventional gasket.
[0101] The assembly procedure and operation for conventional flange joints with conventional gaskets is illustrated in FIGS. 11, 12 and 18. The assembly procedure and operation discussion addresses both raised face flanges and flat face flanges. FIG. 11 is a conventional assembled flange joint, with conventional raised face flanges and a conventional gasket, after the bolts have been tightened. Note that there is no limit on gasket compression or flange rotation. The gasket could be over-compressed and the flange could be over-stressed and deformed if the individual tightening the bolts over-tightens the bolts. The bolts will also bend to conform to the flange rotation. Note that some conventional gaskets are provided with compression stops to prevent over-compressing the gasket; however they do not limit flange rotation and the inside diameter of the gasket may be stressed lower than desired. Since the amount of flange rotation is not controlled, operating pressure or temperature differentials can cause the flanges to rotate more, potentially causing leakage. However in designs with gasket 23 this additional rotation is prevented and gasket compression is maintained. The metal to metal contact between the compression zones and the flanges prevents additional rotation and provides for more uniform temperatures throughout the flange joint.
[0102] FIG. 12 is a conventional assembled flange joint, with conventional flat face flanges and a conventional gasket, after the bolts have been tightened. Note that the bolt force to achieve the same gasket stress in a flat face flange is much greater than in a raised face flange with the same geometry except for facing. This is due to the much greater gasket area in the flat face design than in a raised face design. This is the function of the raised face, to force all of the bolt load into the narrower gasket on the raised face and the flange outer diameters never touch. This is a disadvantage of a conventional flat face flange design however advantages are that the assembly and operating flange stresses are lower in FIG. 12 vs. FIG. 11 because of the higher flange bending moments in FIG. 11. The flat face flange design also provides a limit on flange rotation limiting unloading of the full face gasket 34 due to pressure rotation and thermal rotation.
[0103] FIG. 18 illustrates a conventional raised face flange joint with a conventional gasket in the initial assembled state (solid lines) and the operating state (dotted lines) after internal pressure 28, including the axial pressure thrust H.sub.D 38, is applied. The gasket sealing forces H.sub.G 42 are shown as solid lines for the assembly case and dotted lines for the operating case. This illustrates the loss of gasket sealing force 42 on the gasket when pressure 28 is applied in a conventional raised face flange joint. The loss of gasket stress is due to flange rotation.
[0104] FIG. 18 may also be used to illustrate a conventional flange joint with a conventional gasket in the initial assembled state (solid lines) and the operating state (dotted lines) with operating temperatures applied. Ignore the applied pressure P 28 and force H.sub.D 38 and consider the operating configuration of the flange neck as due to thermal growth. Instead of pressure pushing the flange neck out radially the flange neck 32 is at a higher temperature than the flange ring 30 and moves out radially due to thermal growth. The flange neck 32, the hollow tubular structure attached to the flange hub 31, the tapered portion between the neck and the ring, and the flange ring 30, the rectangular portion of the flange, are identified in FIGS. 17 and 18. There are a wide variety of thermal differential temperatures that may be experienced in a bolted flange joint and one common case is when the vessel body and flange neck heats up first and the flange ring remains at a cooler temperature. The gasket sealing forces are shown as solid lines for the assembly case and dotted lines for the operating case. This illustrates the loss of gasket sealing force on the gasket when a differential temperature is applied.
[0105] The typical gasket 23 designs for flat face flanges would have a single annular sealing element with two compression elements as shown in FIG. 8 or two sealing elements and a singular compression element as shown in FIG. 1. A typical gasket 23 design for raised face flanges is as shown in FIG. 2. However combinations of multiple annular sealing and compression elements are also acceptable, such as described above. The annular sealing elements may be integral with the compression elements of the gasket as shown in FIG. 3 or non-integral elements such as illustrated in FIG. 2. The overall gasket varies in thickness typically being thicker at the inside diameter and thinner at the outside diameter. FIG. 1 illustrates the gasket with a uniform taper from the inside diameter 3 to the outside diameter 4 with a taper defined by taper angles 5 and 6.
[0106] In reference to FIG. 1, the preferred embodiment of the gasket is with a uniform taper and if flanges 8 and 11 are identical, taper angles 5 and 6 will be equal. However, a gasket design with a non-uniform change in thickness from the inside diameter to the outside diameter may also achieve acceptable sealing capability and such designs are discussed further below. Taper angles 5 and 6 depend on the clamping load to fully compress the annular sealing element, all applied loads and the rotational stiffness of flanges 8 and 11 respectively. The preferred embodiment of the gasket sealed joint is as follows: flange faces 14 and 15 will have rotated angles 5 and 6 respectively when the total uniform load provided by the bolt fasteners during assembly of the joint is equal to or greater than the load required to resist the axial pressure thrust and external loads and compress the annular sealing element such that the flange faces 14 and 15 are in contact with the compression elements adjacent to the annular sealing element. It is preferred, but not required, that an annular compression element be inboard of the innermost sealing element to react the pressure thrust load. When flange 8 rotates under bolt load such that face 14 is in contact with the gasket from the inside diameter 3 to the outside diameter 4 the gasket sealed joint has been assembled to the minimum required bolt stress. Additional bolt stress is beneficial in increasing bolt strain to accommodate relaxation of the joint and providing compressive stress to cause frictional resistance to radial movement of the gasket relative to the flange faces for thermal events.
[0107] A gasket with non-uniform taper may embody several different designs. A practical embodiment of the gasket is with annular sealing elements with uniform thickness as in a conventional gasket design and uniformly tapered compression elements. Another embodiment of the gasket with non-uniform taper is with compression elements comprised of segments with uniform thickness, stepped to create a cross section of varying thickness with increasing radial dimension. Any combination of tapered or stepped elements may be used to comprise a gasket with varying thickness. The angles 5 and 6 may be approximated by the angle measured from a line drawn from the surface point at the inside surface 3 and the outside surface 4 with a horizontal line.
[0108] Flange contacting faces 14 and 15 may also be tapered in a frustro-conical shape and the taper angles on the gasket adjusted accordingly and could be as small as zero. The gasket taper angles 5 and 6 are measured relative to the flange contacting faces 14 and 15 respectively. There may or not be a compression element inboard of the annular sealing element, even the preferred embodiment is with a compression element inboard of the annular sealing elements.
[0109] The annular sealing element design preferred embodiment is such that the gasket stress after relaxation in operation is greater than the stress required to maintain a fluid seal with greater than the required tightness. This annular sealing element minimum stress is generally not less than the fluid pressure contained and typically much greater. The required gasket stress levels for specific tightness levels may be estimated by those experienced in the art. The clamping force and flange bodies must be capable of compressing the gasket to the fully compressed thickness. The fully compressed thickness for the annular sealing element is when the flange faces are compressed to contact with the compression elements adjacent to the annular sealing element. The exception is if the gasket is comprised of a single tapered sealing element, in which case the required gasket stress is dependent on the gasket properties and the mechanical and thermal loadings on the joint. The optimum stress on the annular sealing element during assembly of the joint and the minimum required stress on the annular sealing element after the joint has experienced operation conditions for a period of time such that the annular sealing element has fully relaxed, are properties of specific annular sealing elements. The design of annular sealing elements is a specialized art and those experienced in the art can recommend values of annular sealing element stress for assembly, annular sealing element stress-strain properties, short and long time creep and relaxation properties, and leak tightness properties at minimum annular sealing element stress levels.
