flange is an external or internal ridge, or rim (lip), for strength, as the flange of an iron beam such as an I-beam or a T-beam; or for attachment to another object, as the flange on the end of a pipe, steam cylinder, etc.
Common Causes of Flange Damage
Over time and for any number of reasons, damage can occur to flange faces. Each damaged area will tend to create a potential leak path. Some common types of flange surface damage, their characteristics and possible causes are:
• Scratches—This type damage is narrow and elongated with sharp, shallow bottoms. However, depending on the force that created them, they can be deep. Frequently, this type damage is created by a sharp object dragging across the flange face. These objects may include the bristles of a wire brush or a tool, such as a chisel.
• Gouges—These are wide and elongated with blunt, rounded bottoms and are created by a dull object dragging across the flange face. Gouges can be caused by objects—such as a screwdriver, flange jack or chisel.
No matter what causes the damage you must replace it, if can not you should get the flange refacing done.
How to reduce the damage to the flange or repair it
It will greatly improve the efficiency of the operation, effectively guarantee the production safety, and be good for environmental protection to maintain the flange sealing surface regularly. Compared with the traditional pressure plugging solution, facing flange on-site is a fundamental solution. After refacing, the flange sealing surface can achieve high standard sealing effect.
Flange facer can cut various materials such as cast iron, alloy steel, stainless steel, etc. It adopts portable concept and modular design, which allows our flange facer to deal with various construction environments such as tight space, high altitude operations, etc with ease. TOPORTABLE strives to reduce the damage caused by machine breakdowns to the customer.
Please check our flange facers or contact us for more info.
