What is an expansion joint?
Release time:
2022-01-17
Expansion joints are flexible compensating components that offer advantages such as operational reliability, superior performance, and compact structural design. They are widely used in fundamental engineering fields including chemical industry, construction, water supply, drainage, petroleum, light industry, refrigeration, sanitation, water temperature control, fire protection, and power generation, playing an important role in people's daily lives.
What is an expansion joint?
Expansion joints, also commonly referred to as compensators, are flexible structures installed on vessel shells or pipelines to compensate for additional stresses caused by temperature differences and mechanical vibrations. Expansion joints are categorized into two types: metallic and non-metallic.
Expansion joints used on vessels come in various forms. In terms of corrugation shape, U-shaped expansion joints are widely used, followed by S-shaped and C-shaped ones. Regarding structural compensation, expansion joints used in piping systems are categorized into universal-type, pressure-balanced type, hinge-type, and universal joint-type.
Next, let’s join me in comparing the performance differences between metal and non-metal expansion joints, so that we can gain a deeper understanding of the key points related to them.
1. Compensation Function: Under the same external dimensions, non-metallic components exhibit a significantly greater compensation capability than metallic ones. In particular, when it comes to compensating for lateral displacement, the compensation capacity of non-metallic components is nearly one order of magnitude greater than that of metallic expansion joints.
2. Compensating Resistance: After an expansion joint—acting like an elastomer—contracts or stretches, it generates resistance. Metals exhibit greater resistance than non-metals. This excessive resistance is detrimental to the system and can damage nearby equipment.
3. High-Temperature and Corrosion Resistance: The materials used in non-metallic expansion joints not only exhibit high-temperature resistance but also possess acid- and alkali-resistant properties. Ordinary carbon structural steel has a yield strength of zero at 600°C, and its strength further decreases with higher temperatures due to oxidation. Carbon steel expansion joints tend to crack easily during operation, while stainless steel expansion joints are prone to low-leakage-point corrosion in low-temperature environments; moreover, their price is quite substantial.
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A specialized enterprise dedicated to the design and manufacture of desulfurization damper doors, non-metallic expansion joints, bellows, expansion compensators, stainless steel flexible metal hoses, dust collectors, conveyors, compensators, silencers, dampers, and stainless steel flexible metal hoses, as well as metallic and non-metallic corrugated expansion joints (expansion compensators).
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