10/8/21, 9:17 PM Gasket Pressure Guide

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Understanding
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Reliable Seal.
Flat and flexible gaskets, metallic spiral wounds, and ring type joints all require pressure in order
to form a reliable seal. The pressure, or force, a gasket is placed under enables it to flow into any
irregularities on a mating surface to block any leakages and so form a seal.

What factors affect the pressure a gasket is placed under? There are many factors,
including: operating temperature (https://www.ramgaskets.com/help/gasket-gasket-material-
operating-temperature/) and the manufacture of the flanges.
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10/8/21, 9:17 PM Gasket Pressure Guide
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important to know the pressures a gasket will be required to withstand, both from a well-
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connected  Searchand external environments that the gasket
You can search our site usingflange face and
the options the pressure of the internal
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is required to be protecting against.

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Gasket Class
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Or Pressure Rating System
Class Ratings

The most common standard prescribing the geometry of flanges is ASME (previously ANSI). Within

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the ASME pressure rating system there are seven pressure classes:
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150

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300
400
600
900
1500
2500

A Class 300 flange will handle more pressure than a Class 150 flange, simply because it has been
made with more metal and so can withstand more pressure; and so on up through the classes. The
pressure class or rating for flanges is given in lbs. For example: 150lb, 150 lbs, 150#, or class 150 –
are all equivalent.

The flange class or pressure rating system extends to gaskets designed for those flanges. So, for
example, a class 150 gasket is designed to seal under a load of up to 150 lbs of pressure in a class
150 flange.

The overall pressure rating of the gasket ultimately depends on the material used for the gasket
and the operating temperature.

Pressure and Temperature Variations

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10/8/21, 9:17 PM Gasket Pressure Guide
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As pressure
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pressure
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below.
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The selection of suitable gasket
materials must be considered together with the flange design bolting and materials of
construction.
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Pipe and Flange Construction and Gasket Pressure

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Gaskets are typically fixed by bolts under load around the flange face. The gasket either
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encompasses the bolts (called a ‘full faced’ gasket) or sits inside the bolts (known as an IBC or ‘ring
type’ gasket).

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To maintain seal integrity pressure must remain on the gasket surface to prevent leakage. Under
operating conditions this pressure is relieved by internal pressure which acts to separate the
flanges. The gasket itself is also subject to a side loading, where the internal fluid pressure can
cause the gasket to extrude through the flange clearance space. To continue to maintain a seal the
pressure from compression on the gasket must be greater than the internal pressure by some
multiple, depending on the gasket type and level of tightness required.

How Do Gaskets Behave Under Pressure?

Gaskets need to perform in many different conditions, which is why there are a huge number of
gasket materials and configurations to choose from. The main factors that need to be considered
when specifying a gasket are temperature, chemical resistance, and pressure.

Even in the same environment, gaskets can be subject to different operating conditions. Below are
some of the conditions affecting the pressure to which a gasket will be subject; and how the gasket
is likely to act under load.

Stress Relaxation of Gasket Material

The performance of the gasket is directly related to the stress retention of the gasket material. As a
material decays or becomes brittle or soft, the stress relaxation of the material is compromised
and so is its ability to withstand pressure. Generally, rubber based materials have a shelf-life of
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10/8/21, 9:17 PM Gasket Pressure Guide
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seven years. In critical application it is important to ensure that rubber based material is used
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within its shelf  material
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options required we can supply
below. or parts with batch and cure dates, so
that customers can be sure to only install gaskets that will not fail due to perishing material.

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Gasket Material
Gasket Materials Class Ratings
Thickness & Pressure
As a general rule, the thinnest possible gasket material for the application should be chosen. The
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reason for this is that thinner materials present a surface area (the smallest ID, or inner diameter)
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for pressure to act upon, and so are less likely to fail. Having said this, the choice of material
thickness also needs to take into consideration the amount of compression required to take up
any flange

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materials.

Flange Quality & Pressure

The quality of the finish of the metalwork on a flange is critical to the correct sealing of a joint
using a gasket. The surface finish should not be too rough, otherwise a leak-path can form under
the gasket. Standard pipe flanges often have a groove across the sealing face, which the gasket
deforms into under pressure; and this also helps to limit the displacement of the gasket across the
flange face. Any flange damage should be fixed before re-inserting a gasket. The mating flanges
should be made from the same material and machined identically to allow pressure to be evenly
distributed across the bolt and flange surfaces.

Tensile Strength
The strength of gasket material as an isolated piece is not critical to its sealing performance. For
example: graphite is soft, pliable, and cracks and breaks easily. However, when compressed
between flanges it forms an excellent seal that can be subjected to high temperatures and steam
without failing. As with fibre gasket material, the thinner the graphite gasket the better the
resistance to overall pressure.

Load Seal-ability
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10/8/21, 9:17 PM Gasket Pressure Guide
Search Our Site leak to varying degrees (even if the leak is so small that it can only be detected with a
All gaskets
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mass  the
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You can search our site spectrometer).
using the optionsIf all gaskets leak, this raises
below. question: why use gaskets at all? Why not
just machine and weld all surfaces? The answer is that huge lengths of pipework require servicing.
Gaskets perform well at preventing leakages at the joints in lengths of pipework, whilst allowing
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Gasket to be uncoupled;
Materials Class Ratingsand the gaskets replaced as and when required.

If testing of a leakage is required, such as in the manufacture of aeroplane wings, parts are often
General Search pressurised with helium and the leak-rate is tested with a helium detector (mass spectrometer).
Such leaks may be considered undetectable in every-day practical applications – but it is
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important to measure them in critical sealing applications to test the quality of the gaskets and
bolt loading of the joint. We can supply certified samples of gaskets in different materials for
testing.
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Minimum Gasket Pressure, Installation, and ROTT

testing.
A minimum amount of compression is needed to seal a gasket on the flange surfaces. Tightening
the bolts on the flange adds additional compression which blocks any permeability through the
gasket. This permeability varies between different materials, but as a general rule leak rates
decrease as compressive load increases.

The state of the contents of the pipe, such as molecular size (liquid, gas) will affect the stress
needed to create a seal. The stresses required to seal gases are higher than the minimum stresses
necessary for the gasket to conform to the flange surfaces.

Metal Gaskets require a greater stress to compress and seal than flexible gaskets. When using
flexible non-metallic gaskets, the ability of the joint to hold internal pressure depends on friction.
The minimum compressive stress will need to be high enough to maintain the friction needed to
keep the gasket from blowing out from the internal pressure.

The test that determines the constant sealing pressure is the ROTT (Room Temperature Tightness)
test. Increasing temperature creates gasket relaxation, and subsequent relaxation in the bold load
(sometimes bolt-load losses can be as high as 50% of the initial gasket stress). For this reason,
depending on the gasket type, it is advisable to re-torque after the first heat cycle.
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10/8/21, 9:17 PM Gasket Pressure Guide
Search Our Site if a flexible gasket is under too much pressure it will extrude out around the flange, and
Ultimately
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eventually internally
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theright out below.
options of the flange space both and externally. In this situation, if it is
an old gasket, servicing and replacement is sufficient. If this is a continuing problem a more rigid
material that can cope with: greater stress relaxation, more diverse operating temperatures, and
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Gasket Materials Classwhen
Ratingsin contact with chemicals, will need to be used. If you require support
then please contact us for technical advice.
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Low Pressure Gaskets (Vacuum Environment)
Sealing a vacuum presents unique challenges. Generally softer materials are more effective at
sealing
in
Go a vacuum: for instance, consider using natural rubbers and butyls. Polyurethane is

another soft polymer with a great ‘rubbery’ consistency, that deforms and seals effectively when
creating a vacuum. Our technical department can support the correct choice of material for your
particular requirements within a low-pressure environment.

High Pressure Gaskets

Chart showing the Upper Pressure, Common Gasket materials can be expected to perform to:

Gasket Material Maximum Pressure

Rubber, Nitrile, EPDM, 150 psi

BUTYL, Neoprene, Viton and
Silicone.

Non-Asbestos Fibre  750 – 1500 psi (50 – 100

Bar)

Non-Asbestos with SS 2500 psi (172 Bar)

Tanged Insert

Compressed Graphite – +2800 psi (193 Bar)

tanged Stainless Steel
Insertion

Compressed graphite 2100 psi 144 Bar

PTFE 800 psi 55 Bar

Expanded PTFE 3000 psi 206 Bar

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Natural Rubber 100 psi 6.8 Bar

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10/8/21, 9:17 PM Gasket Pressure Guide
Search OurNeoprene
SiteFoam, Nitrile Same as elastomer
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site using the options below.

Mica Hi-Temp (rigid 2030 psi (290 Bar)

material).
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Firefly – Ceramic

 
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The above information shows the upper pressure common gasket materials can be expected to
perform to. Remember to consider the temperature and chemical resistance required when

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determining your choice of material.

Gasket Pressure: Codes and Standards

Classes and standards describes the geometry of the flange. The most common flange standard
used in most countries in oil, gas and mining is ASME B16.5 and B16.34. B16.5 covers pressure-
temperature ratings including materials, dimensions, tolerances, marking and testing, both in
metric and US customary units. B16.34 covers the pressure/temperature ratings.

ASME was previously ANSI, and these can now be considered one and the same. Older flange
specifications may still list ANSI. However, all newly rated flange joints will be ASME (the American
National Standard). In Europe PN rated flanges and BS4504 are also commonly used flange
ratings. PN (Pressure Numbers) is the rating designator followed by a designation number
indicating the approximate pressure rating in bars. PN ratings do not provide a proportional
relationship between different PN numbers, whereas class numbers do. For a dimensions table of
ANSI standard flanges please see here (https://www.ramgaskets.com/wp-
content/uploads/2014/10/BS-EN-12560-1-2001-ANSI-Tables.pdf).

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