Design of Floating Type Bolted Flange Connections With GRP Flanges

Essential results of a research project “design of floating type bolted flange connections with glass-fibre reinforced plastic flanges for the chemical industry” are summarized in the following: • Various gaskets on the basis of rubber (EPDM) and PTFE were investigated in view of the boundary conditions in bolted flange connections with glass-fibre reinforced plastic (specified in the following as GRP) flanges in compliance with DIN EN 13555. The rubber gasket, the rubber-steel gasket with PTFE envelope and the PTFE based gasket with diffusion barrier meet the leakage rate criterion of TA Luft under the conditions of bolted flange connections with GRP flanges. • The mechanical behaviour of bolted flange connections diameter 50, DN50, with GRP flanges was investigated and is taken under consideration in a new calculation procedure. This draft procedure in the context with experimental pre-tests (already demanded in DIN 16966) is now available to design bolted flange connections with GRP flanges. Thus, the high materials reduction factors defined in AD-Merkblatt N1 can be ignored.