Sealing of pressure vessel nozzles
Thread Content
There is a tower, which is a type of pressure vessel with a design pressure of 0.15 Mpa and an operating temperature of 300°C. It is necessary to seal the existing unnecessary process connections and manholes. Should these be sealed by directly welding steel plates, or should flange plugs or pipe caps be used? Thank you all
Flange ends are sealed with flange covers (also known as flange blind plates); threaded connections use thread plugs, while manholes are covered with manhole covers.
Use flanged blind plates or pipe caps, manhole covers. It’s best not to weld it in place directly.
Using blind flanges for sealing is simple, convenient, safe, and reliable. If welding steel plates or pipe caps is used, it falls under the category of repair or major repair of pressure vessels, requiring re-inspection.
The opinions from the fourth floor are more practical: pressure vessel inspections are not sensitive to multiple ports, but they are sensitive to rewelding; these ports can be referred to as spare ports
Pressure vessels cannot be modified casually; calculations are required, and re-inspection is necessary, so it is more reasonable to install blind plates instead