Flexible Connections

FLEXIBLE
CONNECTIONS
1
Course Over View
 Basic Flexible Joint Elements
 Generic Flexible Connections
 Bellow Elements
 Using Catalog Data
 Applications of Bellow Expansion Joints
 Application of Axial Deformation
2
Course Over View
 Lateral Movement and Angular Rotation
 Hinges and Gimbals
 Slip Joints
 Flexible Hoses
 Examples of improper installation of
expansion joints
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EXPECTATIONS
4
Ground Rules
 Interactive Session
 Keep your phone Silent.
 One Question at a Time.
 Training Etiquettes
 Have Fun
5
FLEXIBLE CONNECTIONS
A piping system has to be flexible

enough to absorb the thermal expansion
displacement, without creating
unacceptable stresses in the pipe or
excessive reaction loads in the
connecting equipment.
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 The piping may have enough flexibility
just from the turns and offsets created
by the natural layout.
 Additional loops and offsets can be
provided if the flexibility from the
natural layout is not enough.
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 There are circumstances, however,
when flexible connections are needed
for economic or practical reasons.
 Flexible joint is an easy solution to the
piping flexibility problem. This can be
demonstrated by the simple system
shown
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 The system, with its natural layout,
generates an anchor force of 1135 lb,
an anchor moment of 13,381 lb-ft, and
an elbow stress of 14,300 psi. The
stress is well within the code allowable
range, but the anchor loading,
specially the moment, is too high for
most connecting equipment
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 A complex loop with cleverly placed
restraints would be required to reduce
the anchor load to an acceptable level.
The problem, on the other hand, can
be easily solved with flexible joints.
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 Theoretically, if the joints were
frictionless, then there would be no
force, moment, and stress in a three-
joint system. The small forces,
moments, and stresses are all due to
the sliding friction of the ball joints.
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Disadvantages
 Problems with flexible joints.
 Flexible joints appear to be efficient,
simple, and clean devices for reducing
pipe stress and equipment load due to
thermal expansion, yet they are used
very sparingly in actual constructions.
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Disadvantages
 In fact, many design specifications
stipulate that an expansion or flexible
joint should not be used unless
approved beforehand by the owner of
the plant or its representatives
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Disadvantages
 Flexible joints are specialty items
requiring special engineering. Special
installation procedures are also
needed.
16
Disadvantages
 Flexible joints are specialty items
requiring special engineering. Special
installation procedures are also
needed.
17
Disadvantages
 An extra item besides the piping proper
means extra cost, although this may not be
true after taking into account the extra cost
of the expansion loop system that would
have been required otherwise. An accurate
cost comparison is difficult to come by
without detailed analysis, which in itself can
be costly.
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Disadvantages
 Most of the flexible joints need
periodic inspection and maintenance.
Because the joints are not running,
they do not generate noise, vibration,
and other vital signals. Due to this
quietness, the required periodic
maintenance activities are easily
forgotten by the plant personnel..
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Disadvantages
 It requires expertise in engineering to
accurately estimate the effect. It also
requires ingenuity in managing the
pressure thrust force for some types of
joints.
 It is difficult to provide insulation
covering to accommodate the flexing
requirement.
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Disadvantages
 A horizontal joint tends to trap liquid and
sediment creating a very corrosive
environment.
 The joints, especially the bellow type, are
normally stressed beyond the yield point to
provide the flexing capability. The thin
highly stressed parts are susceptible to
corrosion damage and stress corrosion
cracking.
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Disadvantages
 Potential sticking or packing degradation in
slip type joints may lead to loss of flexing
capability or leakage.
 Special supports, guides, and anchors are
normally needed.
 The fact that the flexible joint poses a
weaker link in the system is enough to
discourage most decision makers.
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Advantages
Situations that favor flexible joint.

As much as we dislike the problems associated with
a flexible joint, there are occasions when the flexible
joint is not only cost-effective but also a necessity. In
large diameter high-temperature piping, for instance,
a workable layout is very expensive and difficult to
come by without using some expansion joints
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Advantages
 Available space is not enough to provide a
conventional expansion loop. The connection
between two pieces of nearby equipment is one
example of this situation.
 Equipment allowable load is so low that it is
impossible to meet no matter how large and
extensive is the expansion loop that is provided.
Most of the exhaust piping of a steam turbine drive
belongs to this category.
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Advantages
 Large high-temperature, low-pressure piping would
have required a huge expansion loop that simply
would have been too expensive and occupy too
much space to install. The flue gas line from a
heater or from a cat-cracking unit of an oil refinery
is an example of this case.
 A vacuum line that cannot tolerate the pressure
drop from the loop. The condensate line from the
power plant steam condenser is a typical example.
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Advantages
 The process requires smooth straight flow, such as
the catalytic cracking riser in an oil refinery.
 To isolate vibration from a process machine to the
piping and vice versa.
 For the fit-up of a large-diameter piping to a
machinery. This is for construction and
maintenance use. It does not serve as an
expansion stress reduction device.
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Basic Flexible Joint
 The stress concerns of the flexible joints proper are
handled mainly by the manufacturers.
 The standard generally used is the Standards of
the Expansion Joint Manufacturers Association
commonly referred to as the EJMA standard.
 The duty of piping engineers is to ensure that the
joint is fit for the application, and the interface of the
piping satisfies the manufacturer’s allowable load
and deformation requirements.
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Basic Flexible Joint
 The interface between piping and the flexible joint
is somewhat more complicated than the interface
between piping and other components.
 Because the characteristics of the flexible joint
dictate the piping load and stress, they have to be
included in the stress analysis of the piping system.
However, when handled properly, the flexible joint
seldom poses any allowable load difficulty to the
piping.
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Generic Flexible Connections
 A general or generic flexible connection represents
any concentrated additional flexibility that exists at
a certain point of the piping system.
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 The internal x force equals the differential x
displacements between NA and NB, multiplied by
the x direction spring rate KX. That is, Fx = (DxB -
DxA)KX, and so forth.
 The internal twisting torsional moment equals the
differential rotation of the two end points multiplied
by x-rotational spring rate. That is, MX = (RxB –
RxA)KRX.
KX, KY, and KZ are the corresponding spring rates (typically in lb/in. or
N/mm) and KRX, KRY, and KRZ are the corresponding spring rates
( typically in lb-in/rad or N-mm/rad)
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 The flexible joint spring should not be confused with
the support spring, which generates an external
support force due to pipe movement relative to the
support structure.
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Bellow Elements
 Most flexible joints are constructed with bellows
serving as pressure containing flexible elements.
Bellow elements are generally constructed either
with metal or with synthetic rubber.
 Deformation of individual convolution.
 The most fundamental characteristics of the bellow
element are the force-deformation relationships of
the individual convolution
 The design of the bellow issimilar to the design of
the piping system
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Bellow Elements
 In piping, the pipe has to be thick enough and stiff
enough to resist the pressure and occasional load,
but also has to be flexible enough to absorb the
thermal expansion.
 Similarly, the bellow also has to be thick enough to
resist the internal pressure, yet thin enough to
absorb the deformation without generating
excessive forces and stresses.
 The fatigue of the bellow depends on the
deformation of the convolution.
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Bellow Elements
 A bellow is generally an assembly of multiple
convolutions. The deformation at each convolution
in a bellow is different. The fatigue life of the bellow
is determined by the most severely deformed
individual convolution.
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Bellow Elements
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Bellow Elements
 The deformation of the individual bellow can be
classified into two categories. One is from the axial
force and the other from the bending moment.
 The deformation is expressed as
ex = qa - q (Negative is compression)
This axial deformation per convolution is the most

fundamental characteristic quantity of the bellow.
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Bellow Elements
 A bellow is designed based on a certain uniform
axial deformation per convolution. Once the bellow
is so designed, no deformation at any point along
the entire circumference of any convolution of the
bellow can exceed this design axial deformation per
convolution. In other words, if the allowable
deformation per convolution is set as ex,allow, then
no deformation, uniform or
otherwise, at any point on any convolution should
exceed this limit.
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Bellow Elements
 The deformation due to bending follows the same
rule as the flexural strain on a beam cross-section
due to a bending moment.
 Bellow convolution is viewed as a flexible cylinder
with a diameter the same as the pitch diameter of
the bellow. The deformation is measured at this
pitch diameter.
 the convolution deformation due to rotation as
eφ = qe - q = q - qc
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Bellow Elements
 The flexible joint spring should not be confused with
the support spring, which generates an external
support force due to pipe movement relative to the
support structure.
 The per-convolution deformation due to the
combined axial force and moment is
 The basis for evaluating the combined force and

moment effect on a bellow. ecom at any convolution
of the bellow should not exceed the allowable axial
deformation per convolution, ex,allow.
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Bellow Elements
 Deformation of bellow element.
AXIAL DEFORMATION
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Bellow Elements
AXIAL DEFORMATION
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Bellow Elements
Lateral Displacement
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Using Catalog Data
 Each manufacturer adopts its own unique bellow
shape, material, fabrication method, testing scope,
and qualification procedure to produce a safe
bellow for applications within their published
limitations. What the piping engineer has to do is to
ensure that the characteristics such as spring rate,
pressure thrust force, and so forth are included in
the piping analysis, and the resulting bellow
deformations from relative piping movements are
within the manufacturer’s limitations.
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Using Catalog Data
 From the catalog, a preliminary selection should be made
based on pressure rating and the expected movements.
 The designer shall then incorporate the pressure thrust
force and spring rates, either from the catalog or from the
manufacturer, into the mathematical model of the piping
system for analysis. If the equipment reaction, pipe
stress, or the movement exceeds the allowable value, a
longer bellow or other arrangement should be tried. The
process repeats until all reaction forces, pipe stresses,
and bellow movements are within the allowable range
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Applications of Bellow Joint
 The applications can be classified based on the
direction of the main movement as applied on the
bellows. The most direct applications use the axial
deformation of the bellow to absorb pipe expansion
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Axial Deformation
 The most basic characteristic of the bellow is its
axial flexibility. Comparatively, a very small force is
needed to deform the bellow axially a significant
amount than that is needed to squeeze the same
amount of deformation in the piping system.
Therefore, a bellow is especially suited for
absorbing the expansion of a long straight line.
Because a bellow is not capable of transmitting the
longitudinal pressure stress, it results in a large
pressure thrust force acting toward the piping at
both ends of the bellow.
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Axial Deformation
 Taking care of these pressure thrust forces is the
main concern of bellow expansion joint
applications.
 Extensive anchors and guides placed at strategic
locations are always required
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Axial Deformation
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Axial Deformation
 Figure shows the typical anchor and guide
requirements at a bellow expansion joint. To start
with, two anchors located at each side of the bellow
are needed to stop the pressure thrust force from
pushing the piping system and its connecting
equipments. The pressure thrust force is calculated
by multiplying the maximum operating pressure
with the effective bellow area given by the
manufacturer
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Axial Deformation
 To reduce the number of guides required, the bellow
is generally located close to one of the anchors as
shown. The other anchor is located on the other end
of the straight section whose expansion is being
absorbed. The anchors facing the full pressure thrust
force are called the main anchors. In addition to the
pressure thrust force, pa, the main anchor also faces
the friction loads from supports and guides,Ff, fluid
flow momentum force, Fρ, and bellow resistance,
Kxx. That is,
FA = pa + Ff + Fr + Kx x
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Axial Deformation
 The pressure thrust forces are isolated to within the
anchors, but still work on the piping located within. In
an internal pressure environment, the pressure thrust
force acts as a compressing load on the piping
located within the main anchors. This can create
column-buckling problems for the piping as well as
for the bellow. Lateral guides located at strategic
locations are needed to ensure the stability of the
system. Because the stability of both the bellow and
pipe column is very sensitive to end rotation, a pair of
coupling guides very close to the bellow are required.
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Axial Deformation
 EJMA recommends that the first guide should be
located at a distance of 4 pipe diameters away from
the edge of the bellow, and a second guide placed at
14- pipe diameters away from the first guide as shown
in Fig. These two guides, called G1 and G2,
respectively, are mainly for the protection of the bellow
and to limit the end rotation of the piping. Besides G1
and G2, general guide or guides, G, are required to
protect the main piping from buckling. The maximum
distance between general guides is given by EJMA as
Lmax=0.131x(EI/pa+Kxx)1/2
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Axial Deformation
 Figure (a) shows a single bellow to absorb the
expansion of a relatively short straight piping run.
Two anchors at the ends are needed to resist the
pressure thrust force. The bellow is placed near
one of the anchors to save the amount of guides
required. A set of G1 and G2 is placed near the
other end of the bellow
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Axial Deformation
 Figure(b) represents the typical arrangement of a long
straight run. Due to limitations of the bellow capacity and
of the support shoe movement, the piping is divided into
multiple sections.
 The length of the section is determined by the allowable
bellow axial movement and allowable pipe travel on
supports.
 Depending on the designer’s preference, the bellow may
be placed either at the end or at the middle of the section.
Generally, it is considered more economical to place the
bellow at the end of the section as shown in the figure
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Axial Deformation
 In this case, the bellows of two adjacent sections are
generally grouped together to reduce the number of
guides required. However, this end bellow arrangement
produces larger support shoe movements, which may be
critical for some cases. For a long piping run, many pairs
of bellows may be required.
 The anchor placed in between the bellows of two adjacent
sections is called the intermediate anchor (IA). The load of
the intermediate anchor comes from the differential
pressure thrust force of the two adjacent bellows and from
the support friction and bellow deformation forces of the
two connected pipe sections.
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Axial Deformation
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Axial Deformation
 Figure(c) shows a branch connection with the
bellow placed at the branch line, as well as at each
of the through runs. The anchor is a main anchor
due to the unbalanced pressure thrust force applied
at the branch line
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Axial Deformation
 Alignment guides. The guides required in expansion
joint installations have to be effective in both up-and-
down and horizontal lateral directions. It is popular to
use catalog items, termed as alignment guides as
shown in Fig., for this purpose.
 However, it should be noted that the alignment guide
as offered by the manufacturer’s catalog is not
capable of taking the weight load. Therefore, the
alignment guides are installed in addition to the
normal weight supports.
 The guides do not replace the weight supports.
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Axial Deformation
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Axial Deformation
 Some designers use a special support detail that
combines the weight support with the guide function.
In this case, the guide function should include both
vertical and horizontal directions.
 For some liquid lines, the weight hold-down effect is
enough to act as a guide in the vertical direction, thus
only the horizontal direction guide needs to be added.
 This can be done by placing guide lugs against both
sides of the sole plate of the support shoe, provided
the support shoe is strong enough.
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Axial Deformation
 In-line pressure balanced expansion joint.
 It is clear that an extensive anchor and guide system is
required when using an expansion joint to accommodate axial
movement.
 This can be very expensive or difficult to install in some
cases. For instance, to provide a main anchor at piping
located several stories high in the air would require beefing up
of the entire structure from the ground level and up.
 Because the problem stems mainly from the pressure thrust
force acting at the bellow, an expansion joint without this
pressure thrust force will make the application much simpler.
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Axial Deformation
 A joint without this pressure thrust force effect is
called a pressure balanced joint. The one that
works on axial deformation is called an in-line
pressure balanced expansion joint.
 As shown in Fig, the in-line pressure balanced joint
uses an ingenious bellow and linkage arrangement,
so the pressure thrust force at one bellow is
canceled by that of another bellow. Figure(a) shows
the basic arrangement.
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Axial Deformation
 In addition to the two basic bellows corresponding to the
size of the pipe, a bigger bellow is placed in between
these two. The larger bellow has twice the effective
pressure thrust area of the basic bellow.
 The larger bellow is also called the balancing bellow. By
interconnecting these bellows with linkages as shown in
Fig.(b), the pipe at each end of the joint receives zero
pressure thrust force.
 Each pipe end is subjected to two smaller pressure thrust
forces (from the two basic bellows) that is balanced by
one big pressure thrust force from the balancing bellow.
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Axial Deformation
 Corner pressure balanced expansion joint.
 To absorb axial movement, a pressure-balanced joint can
be easily installed at the corner of a change of direction.
Instead of using a large balancing bellow as in the in-line
joint, the corner type uses double bellows as shown in Fig.
 The pressure thrust force from one bellow is balanced by
that of the other bellow of the same size, transmitted
through tie-rods.
 For a unit axial movement from the main pipe, one bellow
faces one unit of extension, whereas the other bellow
experiences the same amount of compression.
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Axial Deformation
 The overall axial spring rate is the sum of the spring
rates of the two bellows. The corner pressure
balanced joint also absorbs some lateral and
rotational movements, thus broadening its
applicability.
 It is often used at connections to rotating equipment
such as steam turbines and pumps
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Lateral Movement and
Angular Rotation
 In accommodating lateral and rotational
movements, the bellows are generally restrained
with tierods. This eliminates the requirement for
main anchors because the pressure thrust forces
are resisted and isolated by the rods
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Angular Rotation
 Single tied expansion joint.
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Angular Rotation
 An expansion joint is often assembled with tie-rods
to prevent the pressure thrust force from pushing
the piping system.
 However, once the joint is tied, it loses its ability to
flex axially, except to absorb the expansion of the
pipe located between the tie-rod lugs.
 Therefore, only lateral and rotational flexing
capabilities are available with tied expansion joints.
Fig shows a typical case of using the lateral flexing
of a tied joint to absorb the pipe expansion.
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Angular Rotation
 Although the movement is in the axial direction of the
main piping run, the joint is placed in the
perpendicular direction of the run. Because the
lateral deformation of the bellow generates a
rotational bending moment as well as a lateral force,
the end of the joint is expected to rotate somewhat.
 This calls for a guide that allows some vertical piping
movement. This type of guide for keeping the system
from moving out of plane is called a planar guide
(PG). No main anchor is needed in these types of
applications
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Angular Rotation
 Universal expansion joint.
 The allowable lateral movement of the bellow is
roughly proportional to the square of the bellow length.
A slight increase in bellow length can substantially
increase the allowable movement.
 However, due to stability concerns, bellow length can
only be increased by a certain amount. Therefore, a
single bellow joint can accommodate a relatively small
amount of lateral movement.
 For large movements, a double bellow arrangement is
generally used.
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Angular Rotation
 Figure shows an arrangement wherein two small bellows
are connected with a spool pipe in between. The stability
of the bellow is determined by the total length of the two
bellows and is fairly unaffected by the length of the spool
pipe. By lengthening the spool pipe, this arrangement can
take a very large lateral movement.
 However, it should be noted that a long spool piece itself
might have a column-buckling problem that needs to be
checked. Because this type of joint can also sustain a fair
amount of rotation and absorb the axial expansion in
between the tie-rod connections, it is generally referred to
as a universal expansion joint.
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Angular Rotation
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Angular Rotation
 Pressure balanced universal expansion joint.
 Axially, the universal expansion joint can absorb axial
deformation only from the expansion of the pipe
assembly located inside the tie-rod boundary. It is unable
to absorb the axial movement from the expansion of the
piping outside the expansion joint assembly.
 When the system has both large lateral as well as axial
movements, a pressure balanced universal joint can be
used. Fig shows a typical arrangement.
 The pressure-balanced universal joint is a combination of
the pressure-balanced joint and the universal joint.
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Slide 77 of 46
Hinges and Gimbals
 To eliminate the bellow pressure thrust force, a
bellow expansion joint is often tied with tie-rods.
 However, the tied expansion joint does not work
very well for absorbing rotational movement.
 The effectiveness of tied expansion joints is also
questionable for shorter joints due to the hindering
mobility of short rods. Hinge and gimbal bellow
joints, as shown in, work more smoothly and
effectively in absorbing rotational movements
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Hinges and Gimbals
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Hinges and Gimbals
 Hinged joint
 A hinged joint allows the pipe ends at the joint to rotate
in a plane. Due to its planar motion, it is mainly used to
absorb the expansion of piping lying essentially in a
plane.
 Hinge joints are generally installed in pairs or in
triplets.
 Two hinges are used to absorb the expansion in the x
direction. To ensure smooth movement of the hinges,
the orientations of the hinges have to be installed
precisely.
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Hinges and Gimbals
 Because of the rotation and the expansion of the y leg,
some y movements are expected in the piping. Planar
guides (PGs) are needed to maintain the piping in the
plane and to protect the hinge plates from warping.
 PGs also allow the pipe to move in the y direction.
 The distance between the hinges determines the
allowable movement. The longer the distance, the
larger the movement allowed.
 When the y expansion is significant, it may require the
use of three hinges
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Hinges and Gimbals
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Hinges and Gimbals
 A bad layout of a three-hinge system is occasionally observed
in the field. For a three-hinge system, the second hinge
should be located as far as possible away from the line
connecting the first and the third hinges. This facilitates a
smooth movement of all joints. Occasionally, a less-
experienced designer would line up all three hinges, locating
the second hinge on the line connecting first and third hinges
as shown in Fig. (c). In this case, the movement of the second
hinge is not well defined because it can move to either side of
the connecting line. Therefore, the movement is very difficult
to initiate in this case. Once it does start moving, it can exhibit
a jerking action with large sudden movements.
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Hinges and Gimbals
 Gimbal joints
 They can rotate around two axes perpendicular to the
joint axis. They are used in situations when there are
two principal movements not lying in the same plane as
shown in Fig.
 Because hinges, as well as gimbals, do not have the
capacity to absorb axial movement, some vertical
flexibility of the piping is required.
 When the piping does not have enough flexibility to
absorb vertical expansion,a third flexible joint is needed.
This third joint often uses a hinge instead of a gimbal
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Hinges and Gimbals
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SLIP JOINTS
 Slip joints allow the contact surfaces of the pipes joined
together to slip away from each other.
 Depending on the modes of the sliding motion, slip joints
are divided into two main types: axial slip joint and
rotational slip joint.
 The slip joint has a rugged construction that makes it
suitable for hostile environments, such as inside a ditch,
underwater, or underground. However, as the sliding
surfaces are not perfect seals, seepage may develop along
the surface.
 This leakage concern has prevented this type of joint from
being used in hazardous materials.
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SLIP JOINTS
 To ensure the tightness of the joint, considerable
force has to be constantly maintained on the gasket
or packing.
 This results in a fairly large internal friction force
resisting the slipping movement. In some cases,
this internal friction force is so huge that the joint
simply losses its flexing capability.
87
SLIP JOINTS
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SLIP JOINTS
 An axial slip joint allows the pipe to slide into it axially and
at the same time allows the pipe to also rotate axially.
 For low temperature and low-pressure lines, the
compression sleeve as shown in Fig.(b) and other clamp-
on couplings are commonly used for accommodating
some moderate amount of expected pipe thermal
expansion.
 The compression sleeve, often referred to as Dresser
Coupling, is very popular in water distribution systems
where temperature change is mainly attributed to climate
change.
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SLIP JOINTS
 For large movements at higher temperatures and
pressures, an internally guided construction with a
secure packing gland as shown in Fig.(c) is used.
 Similar to bellow joints, all axial slip joints need
main anchors to resist the pressure thrust force.
 Properly located guides are also needed to ensure
column stability.
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SLIP JOINTS
 A rotational slip joint is generally referred to as a ball joint.
It is also occasionally called a ball-and socket joint. As
shown in Fig.(a), the common type of ball joint is
constructed with three main pieces.
 It has an inner ball shaped adapter enclosed by a two-
piece, dome-shaped housing. The gasket is placed at the
junction of the two housing pieces. The joint is capable of
rocking at the specific range permitted by the opening of
the outer housing.
 It is also capable of rotating 360 deg. axially. In the
practical sense, it is considered capable of rotating in any
direction.
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SLIP JOINTS
 The ball joint is a very rugged component that is suitable to
hostile environments, such as offshore and loading dock
applications. It can sustain considerable abuse by piping
and equipment operators.
 Again, to maintain the tightness of the joint, sufficient force
has to be applied and maintained at the gasket or packing.
This results in a considerable friction force creating a fairly
large resisting moment against the rotation of the joint.
 The moment required to rotate the joint is called the break-
off moment, whose magnitude is available from the
manufacturer of the joint.

92
SLIP JOINTS
 This break-off moment can have a very significant
effect on the flexibility of the piping and has to be
taken into consideration in the design and analysis
of the piping system.
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FLEXIBLE HOSES
 Hoses are used to connect two distant points with
considerable relative movements.
 They are often used to transfer fluid or fluidized material from
the storage area to a car, truck, or boat, and vice versa.
 At a gas station, we often use a hose to fill the gasoline into
the car. Most loading and unloading hoses are made of
plastic or synthetic rubber. However, the hoses used to
accommodate piping movements are generally made of
metal.
 Although the principle of application is the same for both
metallic and non-metallic hoses, this section discusses only
the metallic hoses.
94
FLEXIBLE HOSES
 Corrugated hose.
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FLEXIBLE HOSES
 Corrugated hose is constructed with a bellow of very long
length.
 Its behavior is fundamentally the same as the bellow
expansion joint. The hose will resist the hoop pressure
stress, but cannot sustain the longitudinal pressure stress.
 As discussed previously, the long bellow also has a
tendency to squirm under internal pressure. To resist the
longitudinal pressure stress and prevent squirm, corrugated
hoses are often constructed with braids wrapping around
the outside surface as shown in Fig.
 The braid cover also protects the corrugation from scratch
and wear
96
FLEXIBLE HOSES
97
FLEXIBLE HOSES
 Corrugated hose has a continuous metal wall thus making it
pressure-tight. It is suitable for handling any type of gas and
liquid as long as it is compatible with the hose material.
 Interlocked hose is constructed with links that are kept
tight with packing material. There are clearances provided
between the links that afford the capability of
accommodating some axial movement.
 As the hose is being bent, the clearances gradually close.
At a certain point when the clearances are
 completely closed, the hose becomes stiff and cannot bend
any further.
98
FLEXIBLE HOSES
 This sudden stiffening effect serves as a warning to the
handler, preventing the interlocked hose from being over
bent. This automatic warning feature makes the
interlocked hose especially suitable for manual handling.
 The packing mechanism at the interlocked links does
not offer a perfect seal. Therefore, the interlocked hose
is satisfactory for carrying low-pressure air, steam, and
water, but is generally not suitable for conveying gases
and “searching” liquids such as kerosene and alcohol.
The outside of the interlocked hose is relatively smooth,
making it easy to handle without any covering.
99
FLEXIBLE HOSES
 Hoses are used to connect two distant points with
considerable relative movements.
 They are often used to transfer fluid or fluidized material from
the storage area to a car, truck, or boat, and vice versa.
 At a gas station, we often use a hose to fill the gasoline into
the car. Most loading and unloading hoses are made of
plastic or synthetic rubber. However, the hoses used to
accommodate piping movements are generally made of
metal.
 Although the principle of application is the same for both
metallic and non-metallic hoses, this section discusses only
the metallic hoses.
100
Application and Analysis of
Flexible Hoses
 Hoses can be used to accommodate a wide range of piping
and equipment movements.
 As the hoses are extremely flexible, their installations
generally involve very little effort. The force required is just a
little more than what is required to carry the weight of the
hose.
 However, there are a few general precautions that need to
be exercised.
 First, the hose should not be subjected to twisting; second,
the length of the hose should be sufficient to accommodate
the offset and movement; and third the installation space
should be adequate to accommodate the length.
101
Flexible Hoses
102
Flexible Hoses
103
Flexible Hoses
104
EXAMPLES OF IMPROPER
INSTALLATION OF
EXPANSION JOINTS
 One of the reasons that many operating companies and
engineering companies shun an expansion joint is due
to its unpredictability. Very often the joint is just not
functioning as intended. Very frustratingly, nobody
seems to know the real reason for some of these
problems. We have seen some seemingly very well
designed installations that simply refuse to work. In the
following, a few case histories are listed to demonstrate
that many of the failures are actually attributable to a
lack of common sense. Unfortunately, this lack of
common sense can ultimately shut down a whole plant.
105
INSTALLATION OF
EXPANSION JOINTS
106
INSTALLATION OF
EXPANSION JOINTS
107
INSTALLATION OF
EXPANSION JOINTS
 One of the reasons that many operating companies
and engineering companies shun an expansion joint is
due to its unpredictability. Very often the joint is just not
functioning as intended.
108
Direction of Anchor Force
 The direction of the anchor force is an important factor
in the design of the main pressure thrust anchor.
 To achieve the safest and most economical design, the
strongest orientation of the anchor is always aligned
with the direction of the anchor force.
109
110
Tie-Rods and Limit Rods
 Expansion joints are often installed with tie-rods and
limit rods. Tie-rods are used to resist the longitudinal
pressure thrust force, thereby preventing the bellow
from being overstretched by pressure during normal
operation.
 Limit rods, on the other hand, are used to protect the
bellow from being overstretched during the events of
anchor failure or pipe buckling.
 A misjudgment of the purpose of tie-rods can lead to
piping failure or equipment operational difficulty.
111
112
Tie-Rods and Limit Rods
 In many cases, the nuts are not checked to the
specified tightness after the installation.
 When a structure operates with loose nuts, the bellow
thrust force is not balanced. The unbalanced pressure
thrust force can push the equipment out of alignment,
causing vibration, overheating, and other problems on
the equipment.
 The bolts should be tight, but not overly tight as to pull
the equipment out of alignment.
113
Improperly Installed
Anchors
 Piping loads are generally very critical to rotating
equipment. A steam turbine drive, for instance, can
only sustain a very small piping load such that a
practical piping layout without using a flexible joint can
hardly meet the load limitation.
 An expansion joint is often needed to solve the
equipment load problem. The layout shown could have
accomplished this task, except that the installation of
the anchor completely spoils the attempt.
114
115
Anchors
 With the anchor installed, the pipe will not move at the
anchor point. Because the anchor point does not move,
the pipe located between the anchor and the turbine
expands into the joint. This leaves the nuts loose with
gaps.
 When tie-rods become loose, they no longer resist the
pressure thrust force. The thrust force is thereby
absorbed by the anchor and by the equipment. Although
the anchor might have been designed to handle the
force, the equipment is generally not able to resist this
type of force without creating shaft misalignment.
116
Anchors
 This misalignment results in the vibration of the
machinery and overheating of the bearings and seals
 The correct installation is to allow the support point to
slide as shown. The movement of the elbow ensures
the tightness of the tie-rods, because the pressure
keeps pushing the elbow until the rods are tight. The
tightened tie-rods can then absorb the bellow pressure
thrust force, leaving no unbalanced pressure thrust
force on the machine
117
Summary
 Flexible Joint
 Application & Types
 Mistakes
118

Flexible Connections

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FLEXIBLE

A piping system has to be flexible

Situations that favor flexible joint.

This axial deformation per convolution is the most

 The basis for evaluating the combined force and

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