What is a ripple compensator?

The ripple compensator belongs to a kind of compensation element. Using the effective expansion and deformation of the main body of the bellows to absorb pipelines, conduits, containers, etc. by thermal expansion and contraction and other reasons for dimensional changes, or to compensate for pipelines, conduits, containers, etc., axial, lateral and angular displacements. It can also be used for noise reduction and vibration damping. Widely used in modern industry.

The ripple compensator, customarily also called expansion joints, or expansion joints. By constituting the main body of the bellows (an elastic element) and end pipe, bracket, flange, conduit and other accessories. Mainly used in a variety of pipelines, it can compensate for the thermal displacement of the pipeline, mechanical deformation and absorb a variety of mechanical vibration, play a role in reducing pipeline deformation stress and improve the service life of the pipeline. Corrugated compensator connection is divided into flange connection and welding two kinds. Directly buried pipeline compensator generally use welding (except for trench installation).

Working principle:

The ripple compensator is used to use the effective expansion and contraction deformation of the elastic element of the corrugated compensator to absorb the size change of the pipeline, conduit or container by thermal expansion and contraction and other reasons, belonging to a kind of compensating element. It can absorb axial, transverse, and angular displacement.

Material properties:

Non-metallic:

Non-metallic flexible compensator: also known as non-metallic expansion joints, non-metallic fabric compensator, can compensate for axial, lateral, angular, with no thrust, simplify the design of the support, corrosion-resistant, heat-resistant, muffling vibration damping, etc., especially suitable for hot air pipelines and soot pipelines.

Features:

1. Compensation of thermal expansion: it can compensate in multiple directions, which is much better than the metal compensator that can only compensate in a single way.

2. Compensation of installation error: due to the pipeline connection process, the system error is inevitable, the fibre compensator better compensation for the installation error.

3. Muffling and vibration reduction: the fibre fabric and thermal insulation cotton body itself has the function of sound absorption and vibration transmission, which can effectively reduce the noise and vibration of the boiler, fan and other systems.

4. No counter-thrust: As the main material is fibre fabric, there is no power transmission. With fibre compensator can simplify the design, avoid the use of large support, save a lot of material and labour.

5. Good high temperature and corrosion resistance: the selected fluorine plastic and silicone materials have good high temperature and corrosion resistance.

6. Good sealing performance: there is a relatively perfect production and assembly system, fibre compensator can guarantee no leakage.

7. Light weight, simple structure, easy installation and maintenance.

8. The price is lower than metal compensator, the quality is better than imported products.

Stainless steel:

There are four types such as straight, compound, angular and square.

Stainless steel compensator can compensate axial, lateral, angular, with no thrust, simplify the design of the support, corrosion resistance, high temperature resistance, muffling and vibration damping, etc., especially for hot air pipelines and soot pipelines.

Metal:

The reliability of metal ripple compensator is composed of many aspects such as design, manufacture, installation and operation management. Reliability should also be considered from these aspects. Material selection on the selection of bellows used for heating pipe network, in addition to the working medium, working temperature and external environment should be considered, should also consider the possibility of stress corrosion, water treatment agents and pipe cleaners on the material, etc., and on this basis, combined with the welding of bellows material, moulding, and the performance-price ratio of the material, the preferred economic and practical bellows production materials.

In general, the materials selected for bellows should meet the following conditions:

1. High elastic limit, tensile strength and fatigue strength, to ensure that the normal work of the bellows.

2. Good plasticity, easy to form the bellows processing, and through the subsequent treatment process (cold hardening, heat treatment, etc.) to obtain sufficient hardness and strength.

3. Good corrosion resistance, to meet the bellows in different environments.

4. Good welding performance, to meet the requirements of the welding process in the production of bellows.

Installation and use of corrugated compensator:

1. The compensator should be checked before installation for its model, specification and pipeline configuration, which must meet the design requirements.

2. For the compensator with inner sleeve, attention should be paid to the direction of the inner sleeve and the direction of medium flow, hinge compensator hinge rotation plane should be the same as the displacement rotation plane. 

3. The compensator needs to be "cold tightened", the auxiliary components used for pre-deformation should be removed only after the pipeline is installed. 

4. It is forbidden to use the method of deformation of corrugated compensator to adjust the installation of pipeline overrun, so as not to affect the normal function of the compensator, reduce the service life and increase the load of the pipeline system, equipment and supporting components.

5. In the process of installation, weld slag is not allowed to splash on the surface of wave shell, and wave shell is not allowed to suffer other mechanical damage.

6. After the pipe system is installed, the yellow auxiliary positioning components and fasteners on the corrugated compensator used for installation and transport should be removed as soon as possible, and the limiting device should be adjusted to the specified position according to the design requirements, so as to make the pipe system have sufficient compensating ability under the environmental conditions.

7. All movable elements of the compensator shall not be jammed by external components or restrict its movable range, and the normal action of each movable part shall be ensured.

8. During the hydraulic test, the sub-fixed pipe frame at the end of the pipeline with compensator should be reinforced so that the pipeline does not move or rotate. For gas media compensator and its connecting pipeline, pay attention to the need for additional temporary support when filling water. The 96 chlorine ion content of the water cleaning solution for the hydraulic test should not exceed 25PPM.

9. After the hydrostatic test, the water in the wave shell should be drained as soon as possible, and the inner surface of the wave shell should be blown dry quickly.

10. The insulation material in contact with the compensator bellows should be free of chlorine.