ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11.

Designing with Expansion Joints

ASME B31.3 Process Piping

Charles Becht IV, PhD, PE

Don Frikken, PE
Instructors

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Piping Development Process

1. Establish applicable system standard(s)
2. Establish design conditions
3. Make overall piping material decisions
ƒ Pressure Class
ƒ Reliability
ƒ Materials of construction
4. Fine tune piping material decisions
ƒ Materials
ƒ Determine wall thicknesses
ƒ Valves
5. Establish preliminary piping system layout & support
configuration
6. Perform flexibility analysis
7. Finalize layout and bill of materials
8. Fabricate and install
9. Examine and test
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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

11. Designing with Expansion Joints

¾ Types of Expansion Joints
¾ Pressure Thrust
¾ Installation of Expansion Joints
¾ Metal Bellows Expansion Joints

(Hanjo) (General Rubber) (Hyspan)

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The Material in This Section is

Addressed by B31.3 in:
Chapter II - Design
Appendix X - Metallic Bellows Expansion
Joints

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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Types of Expansion Joints

Ball Slip

Rubber Bellows Metal Bellows

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Pressure Thrust

Expansion Joint Manufacturer’s Association (EJMA)

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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Pressure Thrust

(EJMA)

Which types of expansion joints have this problem?

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Pressure Thrust
For a bellows type expansion joint, the pressure
thrust force is the effective thrust area
recommended by the manufacturer times the
pressure. In the absence of this information:

F = P * π * d p2
4
Where
F = pressure thrust force
P = pressure
dp = mean diameter of bellows

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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Pressure Thrust
Net force on nozzle = PAn
Net force on vessel = 0

PAn PAn

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Pressure Thrust
Net force on nozzle = F-PAn
Net force on vessel = F
Net force on anchor = F

PAn dp PAn

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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Pressure Thrust Workshop

What is the Rigid Support
apparent change
in the weight of a
vessel caused
by increasing the
pressure by 100
psi (700 kPa)?

See the
supplement,
page 52.
Weigh Cell (typ)

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Installation of Expansion Joints

Anchors must be designed for full pressure thrust

based on maximum operating pressure.
(EJMA)
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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Bellows Movement

Axial (EJMA) Rotation (EJMA)

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Bellows Movement

Lateral (EJMA)
Inefficient for bellows

Bellows are not intended to Efficient use of bellows for

take torsional displacement.
Lateral movement (EJMA)
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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Universal Expansion Joint

Piping Technology & Products

(PTP)
(PTP)

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Universal Expansion Joint

In-plane application
(EJMA)

3-dimensional application
(EJMA)

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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Hinged Expansion Joint

(EJMA) (Adsco) (Hae Jo Industrial)

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Hinged Expansion Joint

(EJMA)

(EJMA)
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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Gimbal Expansion Joint

(EJMA) (Adsco) (Hae Jo Industrial)

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Gimbal Expansion Joint

(EJMA)
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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Pressure Balanced Expansion Joint

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Pressure Balanced Expansion Joint

(EJMA) (Hae Jo Industrial)

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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Pressure Balanced Expansion Joint

(EJMA)

(EJMA)

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Bellows Expansion Joint Types

Pressure
Type Type Axial Lateral Rotation
Thrust

Single Yes Small Yes Yes

Universal
Yes Yes
(tied)

Hinged Yes

Gimbal Yes
Pressure
Balanced
Yes Small Yes
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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Metal Bellows Expansion Joints

¾ Bellows Shapes
¾ Failure Modes

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Bellows Shapes (EJMA)

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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Bellows Shapes (EJMA)

Unreinforced U
Toroidal

Reinforced U

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Metal Bellows Failure Modes

¾ In-plane squirm
¾ Column squirm In-plane
squirm
¾ Fatigue
(Design Factor = 2.6 on cycles)
¾ Creep-fatigue
¾ Burst, collapse, over Column
stretching squirm
(Design Factor = 3.0 on burst)
¾ Corrosion
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ASME B31.3 Process Piping Course 11. Designing with Expansion Joints

Flixborough Disaster

¾ 1974 cyclohexane vapor cloud

explosion (UK)
¾ Killed 28, injured 89, damaged 1821
homes
¾ Caused by plant personnel’s failure to
recognize expansion joint pressure
thrust problem
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Metal Bellows Fatigue

1000000
EJMA
Unreinforced
Total Stress Range

EJMA
Reinforced
B31.3
100000
Unreinforced
B31.3
Reinforced

10000
100 1000 10000 100000 1000000
Number of Cycles

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