KNOWLEDGE CAPSULE

Flange Leakage - Will It Ever Go Away?

Following are the primary potential causes of flange leakage:

Uneven bolt stress

Poor flange alignment

Off-center gasket installation

Dirty or damaged flange faces

Excessive bending moments imposed by the connected piping

Thermal shock during system operation

Incorrect gasket size or material

Incorrect flange facing

High vibration levels

Flange Bolt Tightening Methods

The following table summarizes the most commonly used techniques.

Method Pros Cons

Wide variation in stud pre-stress
Manual Wrench Readily available, easy
Limited to relatively small Dia.
to use
studs
May overstress small studs
Impact Wrench Fast easy to use
Final Torque level not adjustable
and may vary
Pre-stress depends on
Hammer Wrench Can tighten larger
accessibility of studs and
studs than manual
experience of mechanic
wrenches
Readily available
Higher initial purchase cost than
Hydraulic Torque Cost effective
conventional wrenches
Wrench Uniform preload
achievable
Different set of tensioner heads
Hydraulic Bolt Most accurate and
are required for each stud size.
Tensioners achieves uniform
Sometimes not enough
preload
clearance around nuts to install
Eliminates galling
tensioner heads.
problems
Must remember to order longer
studs to permit attachment of
tensioner heads.
Not useful for hot bolting since
hydraulic seals can rapidly
overheat.
KNOWLEDGE CAPSULE
The selection of the proper bolt tightening technique requires experience and good
engineering judgment. The successful application of any technique also requires
qualification of both the tools that will be used and the crew who will do the work.

 In concept, a hydraulic torque wrench is simply a conventional wrench which

has been modified such that a hydraulic cylinder pushes on the end of the
wrench handle.
 Hydraulic bolt tensioners employ a high-pressure hydraulic cylinder that
attaches to the stud that is to be tensioned and then stretches the stud
directly. The nut is then tightened by hand using a short bar or bevel gear
arrangement. When the hydraulic pressure is released, the load is then
transferred to the nut, which then maintains load on the stud and
compression of the gasket.
 When a torque wrench is used for flange boltup, it is necessary to have an
approximate torque value that must be applied to achieve the required
preload stress for standard size bolts. The only reliable way to determine bolt
stress is to measure bolt elongation during procedure qualification, and then
to adjust the torque values as necessary to achieve the desired bolt preload
stress.
 The majority of flange joints in process plants are assembled based on
achieving average preload stress using ASTM A193/A193M Grade B7 or B16
bolts. Lower bolt stresses are appropriate for some combinations of flange
type, rating, and bolting material. This is necessary to avoid damage to the
flange, gaskets, or bolts (e.g., ring joint flanges, flange rating Classes 900
and higher, austenitic stainless steel bolts, etc.).
 Selecting the appropriate boltup method and having trained crews using
documented boltup procedures will help achieve leak-free flanged joints.