Creating Gasket Seals with Rigid Flanges

The interaction between the compression characteristics of gaskets and the deflections of rigid flanges is discussed as it affects the creation of required sealing stress upon the gasket. A method of applying simple and continuous beam deflection formulae describes a procedure to obtain an economical, sufficiently stiff flange when initially designed. Multiple bolts create continuous beam conditions that are effective in decreasing flange deflections and creating a more uniform gasket pressure. The use of high strength bolts to maximize span length between bolts may not be advisable because longer spans require stiffer, heavier flanges.