Difference between airtightness test and leakage test
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Hello everyone, I’m facing a problem: the medium in the tube side of a fixed-tube-sheet heat exchanger is highly hazardous. Should I conduct a leak test or a tightness test? What is the difference between the two?
Because the medium is highly dangerous, it is best to conduct both tests.
The leakage testing includes a airtightness test, where air is used along with soap bubbles to check for leaks. There are also various other types of leakage tests such as those using helium or ammonia; it’s hard to determine when which test should be used:$
Thank you, moderator. Your reply was clear and straightforward. We encountered a device handling highly hazardous media yesterday, where the pressure in the tube side was higher than that in the shell side. The designers designed it with an airtight structure (design pressure of 0.05 MPa); I think an ammonia leak test should be conducted, but the reviewers believed that an airtight check would be sufficient. Moreover, I’ve not been very clear about these two concepts, so I’m here to ask for some guidance. Thank you for your help.
For generally highly hazardous media, if they have strong permeability, an ammonia leak test is sufficient.
:hug: I’ve learned it, thanks for the guidance from above. This made me realize a problem: in the past, the drawings did not specify what kind of leak test was required, and the process was often carried out based on experience to ensure airtightness; from now on, it is necessary to specify this clearly. :lol
The scenario for the ammonia leak detection test is \"in-service\" testing
Which standard specifies the testing method to be used? Since these ammonia leak detection methods are much more sensitive than ordinary airtightness tests, if the design specifications require it, it means that the container has very strict requirements regarding its airtightness, and ordinary airtightness tests are not sufficient to meet those requirements.
The leakage test is too general; it should specify which type of test is to be conducted.