The Expansion Joints Blog

A custom fabricated 31″ I.D. turbine expansion joint was designed and fabricated to be placed in service for a company in Texas. The expansion joint unit was reverse engineered, from the previous unit, with improvements to the current design. It is fabricated from 321 stainless steel with Inconel 625 bellows. The turbine expansion joint is 36″ long and is designed for 70 PSIG at 450 deg. F and axial travel of 4″. The expansion joint was 100% dye-penetrant examined and hydro-tested prior to being shipped to the customer.

Various sizes of thick wall flanged and flued head expansion joints were custom designed for heat exchangers in California. Two are 30″ in diameter and two are 18″ in diameter. They were designed for 1″ axial extension and 14 psig at 300°F. All four expansion joints were fabricated from ASTM A-516 Gr. 70 carbon steel material. A dye penetrant exam was conducted prior to shipping.

These universal metallic expansion joints were custom designed for an offshore application. They are 42″ diameter, 24″ overall length and designed for 2″ axial movement and 1-1/2″ lateral movement. The expansion joints are fabricated entirely from 316 L stainless steel and designed for 1,000°F and 1 psig. Each unit was 100% dye penetrant examined and soap and air tested prior to shipment.

Reasons to choose a fabric expansion joint:

• Good for high temperature applications
• High movement capabilities
• No size restraints
• Less expensive to design and fabricate
• See more reasons in our catalog

Reasons to choose a metal expansion joint

• Maintenance Free
• Non-Combustible
• Withstand large range of temperatures
• Can be used for high pressure services
• See more reasons in our catalog

14 Single Reinforced Metal Expansion Joints for a Construction Company in Israel

These single reinforced expansion joints with equalizing rings are used in heat exchangers. The bellows are fabricated from ASTM B 443 Inconel 625 LCF. The weld ends and the reinforcing rings/root rings are carbon steel. The expansion joints are 52” and 57” diameter with an overall length of 15 ½” and 16 ½”. They are capable of moving 0.6” in extension at 158 PSIG at 300°F. The expansion joints were fabricated to ASME Section VIII. The bellows and pipe longitudinal weld seams were 100% X-Rayed. In addition, the expansion joints were 100% dye-penetrate examined and hydrotested to 205 PSIG for quality and performance assurance.

U.S. Bellows Responds to Emergency Order for a 48" Dia. Expansion Joint

The 48" dia. Expansion Joint Being Manufactured

U.S. Bellows, Inc., the expansion joint division of Piping Technology & Products, Inc. rushed to an emergency call of an Alaskan petroleum firm. The firm called upon U.S. Bellows’ 24 x 7 Quick-Turn/Emergency service to aid them in the immediate replacement of a defective, 48″ diameter expansion joint when their G417 Pump failed suddenly during the plant startup.

The 48" dia. Expansion Joint Ready for Shipment

The timeline of events demonstrates the quick engineering and manufacturing response from U.S Bellows:

07/21/00 (Friday) 5:30 p.m., U.S. Bellows receives an emergency call.

07/22/00 (Saturday) U.S. Bellows/ PT&P builds the 48″ diameter expansion joint and ships it to location on the same day.

07/23/00 (Sunday) The 48″ diameter expansion joint designed and built by U.S. Bellows/PT&P was installed at customer’s location.

The customer expressed great appreciation for the extraordinary efforts put forth by the individuals at U.S. Bellows. The on-call engineering and manufacturing team demonstrated its ability and commitment to servicing customers on an emergency basis.

The Expansion Joint Installed in the Field

U.S. Bellows is available on a 24 x 7 basis to fulfill any emergency requirements that might arise in the course of plant shut-downs or start-ups. The company has a system of stock bellows which can be used to assemble and ship different types of expansion joints including universal, elbow pressure balanced, and in-line pressure balanced expansion joints. The U.S. Bellows’ “on-call” engineering and manufacturing team is specifically equipped to handle rush and emergency orders. Using unique web and Internet-based technology, the company is able to respond to any emergency requirements within 30 minutes of notification.