Installation and Use of Spherical Compensators (Seven Points)

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There are many details that need to be paid attention to during the detailed operation of spherical compensators; any negligence can result in immeasurable losses. 1. To prevent leaks, it has been found in the actual operation of spherical compensators that the main point where leaks occur is at the flange where the spherical compensator is connected to the pipeline. Therefore, welding should be used for the connection between the spherical compensator and the pipeline, with flange connections used as little as possible. The spherical compensator should be placed as close as possible to the elbow, thereby increasing the distance between the centers of the spheres as much as possible. 2. Anti-drop frame: The compensation gap for ball patching is large, resulting in high stress on the fixing brackets; therefore, these brackets must be strong and reliable. Pipe slides must be long enough (offsetting in the opposite direction during installation) and must have sufficient clearance to prevent the pipe from operating under excessive moisture conditions. Otherwise, issues such as the detachment of pipe slides at long intervals will arise. 3. Where space permits, to ensure safe operation, it is best to use ball bearings without a cooling positioning device. 4. On the straight pipe sections at both ends of the ball joint, guide supports should be installed at regular intervals. For the movable supports, swivel supports or sliding brackets with PTFE sheets under them should be used to reduce friction in the pipes. 5. When pipes are laid in parallel or with larger pipes surrounding smaller ones, sufficient clearance must be left at the locations where the ball valves are installed, to prevent interference between them and ensure that the ball valves can function properly and freely. 6. When the ball compensator is installed vertically, a spring support must be provided for the first movable bracket adjacent to the ball compensator. 7. When three ball joints are installed for horizontal L-shaped pipelines and laid overhead, channels must be provided under each ball joint to allow the installation of ball joint trolleys, thereby ensuring the free movement of the ball joints. Furthermore, a crossbeam should be installed near the bottom of the pipe elbow to accommodate a long sliding support, ensuring that the pipe slide bracket does not fall off when the pipe undergoes thermal displacement