ADVANCED THERMAL SYSTEMS, INC.

ACCOMMODATING
THERMAL EXPANSION
IN PIPING SYSTEMS

MECHANICAL EXPANSION DEVICES

When pipe changes temperature

there is always a change in the pipe
length that must be accommodated.
Either by:

The inherent flexibility of the piping arrangement

Engineered pipe expansion loops
Mechanical devices

Types of Mechanical
Devices
Axial Type:
Used in straight runs of pipe that have no offsets or
bends.
Usually in tunnels, trenches, direct buried or at grade
level.
Types:
Packed Slip Type Expansion Joints
Bellows Type Expansion Joints

ATS TP2 Single Slip Expansion Joint

Typical Externally Pressurized

Bellows Expansion Joint

Types of Mechanical
Devices
Nonlinear Type:
Require a change in direction; i.e. an offset or a change
in elevation.
Ideal for use in overhead pipe racks.
Types:
Flexible Ball Joints
Hinge, Gimbal or Tied Bellows Joints

Typical Ball Joint Linkage:

Design of Pipe Runs With

Axial Expansion Devices.
Only axial movement can be accommodated.
Pipe guides, anchors and expansion joints
must be arranged such that only axial
movement occurs.
Other types of movement (lateral and/or
angular) may cause binding of the slip or
excess strain in a bellows.

Packed Slip Type

Expansion Joints
Advantages
Fabricated from materials similar to the pipe line.
Rugged construction.
No catastrophic failure mode.
Allows for safe packing injection under full line
pressure.
In the event that a leak occurs there is no need to shut
the system down for repairs.

Packed Slip Type

Expansion Joints
Disadvantages
Must be located to allow access.
May require occasional addition of injectable
packing.

Typical Expansion Joint Installation:

Expansion Joints
installed in a long
straight pipe run

Bellows Type
Expansion Joints
Advantages
Do not require access; i.e. can be direct buried,
however a telltale device is recommended.
No maintenance is required.

Bellows Type
Expansion Joints
Disadvantages
No in place maintenance or repair can be performed.
It must be replaced if damaged.
When failure occurs the system must be shut down.
Chance of personal and/or property damage when
failure occurs.
Installer can easily misuse joints when correcting for
pipe misalignment.

Pipe Anchors
Types of Pipe Anchors
Main Anchors
Intermediate Anchors

Pipe Anchors
Anchors Loads
Main Anchors
Pressure Thrust
Packing Friction Force or Spring Rate Loads
Pipe Support/Guide Friction Loads
Intermediate Anchors
Packing Friction Force or Spring Rate Loads
Pipe Support/Guide Friction Loads

Placement of Anchors
Anchor placement is different when using
mechanical devices, than when relying on natural
flexibility
Mechanical Devices - Axial Movement:
Anchors should be placed at changes in pipe direction.
Natural Flexibility:
Anchors are not normally placed at 90 offsets, and
must be strategically located.

Location of Anchors in Pipe Runs

with Axial Expansion Joints
Pipe lines should be divided into segments,
separated by anchors.
All end points must be anchored.
All changes in direction must be anchored.
Intermediate anchors should be used in long runs to
separate expansion joints. Only one slip joint should
be located between two anchor points.

Anchors Loads
Pressure Thrust Loads:
Pressure Thrust loads are the result of the system
pressure acting on the effective cross sectional area of the
expansion joint.

Fp = P x A
Note: The thrust areas for Packed Expansion Joints is
different than that of Bellows Joints

Anchors Loads
Friction Force or Spring Rate Loads:

Packed Expansion Joints:

1,000 lbs./inch of Nominal Pipe Diameter.
Bellows Joints:
Listed Spring Rate x Calculated Compression

Anchors Loads
Support/Guide Friction Loads:

Support/Guide Friction Loads are published per 100 ft.

of pipe for various sizes. These loads are based on
industry standard support spacing.
Note: If low friction supports & guides are used the
friction loads can be reduced by as much as 50%.

Typical Anchors Loads

Pipe
Size

Packed Expansion Joint

Bellows Expansion Joint

150 lb.

300 lb.

150 lb.

300 lb.

6"

11,175

16,350

9,430

16,970

12"

31,155

50,310

28,320

53,004

ATS Pre-Engineered Pipe Anchors:

6" Fig. 702-STD-B-1

16" Fig. 701-SPC-B-2

w/6" Branch Connection

Anchor installed adjacent to an

Expansion Joint

Improper Anchor
Arrangements
Expansion Joint w/Anchor Base

Installation with offset

Anchor

Improper Anchor
Arrangements
Expansion Joint w/Anchor Base

Expansion Joint Installed with Misalignment

Improper Anchor
Arrangements

Anchored Expansion Joints

Pipe Anchors
Improper anchoring can result in over stressed
conditions and excessively high anchor loads.

10 ft. of 10" pipe installed at 70 F in a straight run

between two anchors will at 400 F:
8Try to expand approximately 1/4" in
length.
10 ft.

8Result in anchor loads in excess of

790,000 lbs.

Pipe Guides
The location of both Primary and
Secondary Guides is dependent on the
type of expansion joint that is being
used.

Pipe Guides
For Packed Slip Type Expansion Joints
with Anchor Bases:
9The Primary Guide should be located within a distance of 1 foot
for each inch of nominal pipe diameter.
9The first two Intermediate Guides should be located in
accordance with industry standards.
9Beyond the first two Intermediate Guides the spacing can be
increased to 3 times the standard; and this should continue up to
a point equal to 75% of the pipe run length.
9A minimum of two (2) guides should be used on each slip end.

Pipe Guides
For Packed Single Slip Expansion Joints
w/o Anchor Bases where the Slip Joint is Located
more than two (2) Support Points Away from an
Anchor:
9For sizes 1" to 4" inclusive; the Primary Guide should be
located no more than six (6) pipe diameters from each end of
the slip joint.
9For sizes 5" to 24" inclusive; the Primary Guide should be
located no more than three (3) pipe diameters from each end of
the slip joint.
9Beyond the Primary Guides; the guide lines for expansion joints
with anchor bases should be followed.

Pipe Guides
The guiding requirements for bellows joints are
more stringent than for packed expansion joints.
For bellows expansion joints:
9The primary guide should be located within a distance of four (4)
pipe diameters from the end of the bellows.
9The second guide should be located approximately 14 pipe
diameters from the primary guide.
9Beyond the first two guides, the spacing should follow industry
recommended standards.

Pipe Guides
ATS Fig. 101-W
Low Friction Pipe Guide

ATS Model GA
Radial Pipe Guide

Design of Pipe Runs With

Nonlinear Expansion Devices.
In many cases piping systems include
offsets or changes in direction. In the event
that these offsets are too small to be
effective in reducing system stresses;
Nonlinear expansion devices can be used.
Nonlinear expansion devices such as ball
joints can accommodate movements in
multiple directions.

Ball Joints:
Ball joints are available in sizes ranging
from 3/4" through 30" NPS
Ball joint flex angles range from 15 degrees for standard
designs to as high as 30 degrees for Hi-Flex designs.
Available end connections:
Butt Weld
Socket Weld
Threaded
Flanged
Victaulic

ATS Series P2 & S2 Ball Joints:

ADVANCED THERMAL SYSTEMS, INC.

The Condensed History of

Ball Joints
19?? to Present

ATS Series "S" - 1st Generation Ball Joints

Soft
Seals
Bolted Retainer
Flange
Over tightening the
retainer flange
bolts resulted in
increased torque
and in some cases
the ball locking up
during service.

Early style ball joints were designed using soft seals and a bolted retainer
flange. Leakage was contained by tightening the retainer flange bolts to
compress the seals against the spherical ball.

ATS Series "S" - 1st Generation Ball Joints

Soft seated ball joints are still available; but are only recommended for low
pressure/temperature applications or services which require a high degree
of cleanliness.
Typical applications include:

9Potable water.

9Jet fuel transport systems, after the filters.

9Clean

steam systems such as those used in hospitals or some

manufacturing processes.

9Gas systems (oxygen, nitrogen, etc.)

ADVANCED THERMAL SYSTEMS, INC.

ATS Series P1/S1 - 2nd Generation Ball Joints:
In 1979 ATS introduced the first packed ball joints designed for packing
injection under full line pressure. The original design of the packed ball joint
was developed using many of the same parts as were used for the soft
seated design, including the bolted retainer flange. The injectable packing
used, was the same packing that ATS had been using for years with our
Thermal Pak TP2 Slip Type Expansion Joints.
With this design; ductile iron rings replaced the soft seats and served to
center the ball within the body of the joints; and injectable packing was used
to provide the required sealing.
The development of the packed ball joint significantly extended the pressure
temperature capabilities of the joints in addition to providing more
dependable leak free performance.

ATS Series P1/S1 - 2nd Generation Ball Joints:

Ductile iron seal

rings
Graphite
impregnated
containment seals

Packing cylinder and

plunger
Bolted retainer
flange

"HPI" flake
graphite
injectable packing

ATS Series P1 Ball Joint

ADVANCED THERMAL SYSTEMS, INC.

ATS Series P2/S2 - 3rd Generation Ball Joints:
Realizing that the need to adjust the retainer flange to
ensure proper sealing was no longer necessary; in
1985 ATS developed the Series P2/S2 design which
included an integral socket retainer flange. With this
design the bulky, bolted retainer flanges or retainer
caps were eliminated in favor of a more compact
welded design.

"The latest in Ball Joint Technology"

Integral welded
socket and retainer
Rugged 2"
diameter packing
cylinders

ATS Series P2 Ball Joint

Ductile iron seal

rings
Hard chrome
plated spherical
ball

"HPI" Flake
graphite injectable
packing
Graphite
impregnated
containment seals

ATS Series P2 Ball Joint

ADVANCED THERMAL SYSTEMS, INC.

ATS Series P2/S2 - 3rd Generation Ball Joints:
ATS Series P2/S2 Thermal Pak Ball Joints offer the following advantages
over the older bolted retainer flange design:
1Eliminates the in service field error of over tightening the retainer flange
bolting which greatly increases the flex torque and may cause "freezing" of
the ball within the socket.
2To contain leakage, it is best to inject packing vs. the tightening of retainer
flange bolting, since packing injection can be controlled to minimize the flex
torque values and produce a more positive containment method.
3Eliminates the need for stainless steel bolting when the ball joint is installed
in a corrosive environment and/or must handle a corrosive fluid.
4The integral retainer flange design results in a more compact, lighter ball
joint that is easier to install and insulate.

"The latest in Ball Joint Technology"

8 Solid reasons why ATS Ball Joints offer major advantages

over other methods for handling pipe movement:

)Ball joint systems offer cost saving advantages by reducing the quantity
and size of anchors and guides required in the piping system.
)Ball joint systems permit pipe movement in two or more planes
simultaneously.
)Ball joints provide more movement in less space, taking full advantage of
available space.
)ATS ball joints are designed to withstand high shock and vibration loads.
)Ball joints are designed to allow pivotal movement in addition to the ability
to flex angularity and are ideal for accommodating twisting movements and
torsional loads.
)ATS ball joints are designed for low maintenance service in a wide range of
operating conditions.
)The ball joint system reduces end thrust after the initial force required to
flex the ball joints is exerted.
)ATS Series P2 ball joints are designed for packing injection under full
line pressure; thus assuring maximum reliability for uninterrupted
service.

Packing Plunger

In the event that a leak occurs,

simply remove one of the packing
plungers, drop in a packing plug
and then reinstall the packing
plunger.

Injectable Packing Plug

ATS Series P2 Ball Joint

Where to use Ball Joint Linkages:

9Any place where expansion stresses are too high

& a natural offset exists (L-Bend or Z-Bend).

9Any systems where the anchor loads must be

minimized.

9Systems subject to large displacements; such as

seismic applications and well heads.

Advantages of using Ball Joint

Linkages to accommodate
expansion in Piping Systems:
9Lower anchor loads than those associated with
either bellows or slip type expansion joints.

9Guiding requirements are far less stringent.

9They accommodate multi-plane as well as pivotal
and twisting pipe movements.

9Due to their construction; the internal pressure

tends to aid in sealing and they are therefore less
likely to develop leaks in service.

Typical Ball Joint Linkage

Arrangements:
Linear Pipe Expansion
or Contraction

Pipe Alignment
(Tank Settling)

More Ball Joint Linkage

Arrangements:
Angular Flexing

Pivotal Motion

More Ball Joint Linkage

Arrangements:

3 Ball Joint Linkage

Knee Linkage

2 Ball Joints Linkages:

Ball joint linkages can
accommodate movement
in multiple directions.

3 Ball Joint Linkage

ADVANCED THERMAL SYSTEMS, INC.

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