Customer Problem

The customer contacted Flexilatina because they had several burnt fabric gaskets in the hot air line, which were leaking. They needed a diagnosis and wanted a solution to replace the installed gaskets with a flexible that was more resistant to the operating conditions they were dealing with. The first gaskets installed had not been manufactured by Flexilatina, the customer contacted us because of our experience in manufacturing flexible solutions for the industry.

Diagnosis

The fabric expansion joints had no insulation to protect the fabric from temperature spikes generated by failures of the installed dampers. On occasions when they shut down the boiler, the air was blown back with traces of hot sand and came in direct contact with the fabric, generating cracks and leaks to the outside of the flexible element.

Solution

Design with thermal insulation

Flexilatina de Colombia changed the design of the installed joints for a design that had thermal insulation and protected the fabric of the expansion joint; in this way the passage of the hot sand towards the fabric was restricted, avoiding premature damages in the fabric and guaranteeing a correct useful life of the fabric expansion joint, under the operative conditions mentioned by the client. Flexilatina of Colombia accompanied the installation and start-up of the hot air line, guaranteeing a correct performance of the flexible solution.

Resistant materials for hot air ducts

These fabric expansion joints operate with hot air and trace amounts of sand at pressures below 5 psi and temperatures that can reach 350°C. Therefore, materials resistant to these conditions had to be used for this design. The most important thing for this type of joints is to design a chamber with thermal insulation high enough for the fabric to work in temperatures below 40°C, thus ensuring a longer service life. The fabric used was Korema 4202 and the entire metallic structure was made in ASTM A 516 GR70.

Flexilatina: Experience in fabric expansion joints

Since 1987, Flexilatina has been supplying expansion joints for Colombia. These years of experience allow us to design and manufacture excellent value for money flexible fabric solutions for chemical, petrochemical, cement, mining, etc. industries.

Design features

Design parameters of fabric expansion joints for a chemical industry company in Colombia.

  • Metal structure in ASTM A516 GR 70.
  • Korema Fabric Ref. 4202.

From the inside out:

  • 1 TSC® mineral fiber cloth with s / s reinforcement.
  • 1 mineral fiber cloth C600
  • 1 PTFE sheet
  • 1 TSC® mineral fiber cloth with reinforcement s/s
  • 50 mm reinforced edge
  • Glass fiber HT3101
  • Admissible movements: Axial: +/-50 mm. Lateral: +/-20 mm. Angular: +/-2°.

Customer Benefits

  • Complete documentation of the expansion joint design.
  • High-quality consumables used in the manufacture of expansion joints.
  • Fabric expansion joint with Flexilatina’s identification plate for traceability, which facilitates the replacement of the part over the years.
  • Technical and engineering assistance.
  • Guarantee of an expansion joint with a long service life.
  • Periodic training to customers on the products designed by the company.