Expansion Bellows Leak repair

by Nabeel Ahmed Qureshi 19 May 2012, 19:19

Gents, In our reformer, We have noticed air leakage from the expansion bellow joint (Rubber type) at combustion air tunnel. The leakage seems adjacent to metallic frame fixture of the bellow but still we could not see physically the kind of defect existing( crack, hole etc) because of high temperature and possibility of exposure to hot air (at 350 deg C). The magnitude of leakage seems small as very low pressure draft coming out. I want to ask you to share your experience regarding; 1)- The possibility of lekage aggravation and leading to complete failure of bellow. 2)- Any safeguard we can adopt to avoid complete failure. 3)- Is repair possible for rubber/compsite material bellows ? Any possibility for online repair? The expansion bellow is critical as it may lead to plant shutdown if leakage aggravates.
Nabeel Ahmed Qureshi Core Member Posts: 215 Joined: 04 Apr 2010, 09:38 Area of interest: Mechanical Engineering T o p

Re: Expansion Bellows Leak repair

by 999 19 May 2012, 20:24

Normally, expansion joints take long in failing and even when they fail they wouldn't be making things much complicated. We remember operating one of our incinerator system with failed expansion bellow for almost a year or so. 1. It can only be assessed based upon the actual situation at site considering the design of expansion bellow and intended usage 2. In my humble opinion, nothing much can be done 3. You can put up a bolted clamp over the leaking expansion bellow to avoid heavy leakage, keep plant running and plan shutdown at ease