Author: NMetzger

This fiberglass/teflon composite expansion joint belt is on the stack-breach where a long run of duct work connects to the chimney. Even though this power plant is fueled by low-sulfur natural gas (as opposed to coal), there’s still SO2 gas in the stream and when it runs through the long duct the temperature drops below dew-point, causing the SO2 to combine with moisture in the ambient air and create H2SO4 (sulfuric acid). In this case the expansion joint hardware is acting like a heat-sink and increasing this effect. We’ll solve this problem by using Interep CustomFlex Insulation on the outside of the expansion joint to keep temperatures above dew point while still allowing for movement.

Posted by NMetzger on Feb 18, 2019 in Projects | No Comments

Robinson Fans’ Rapid Response Team will come to you, evaluate your system, diagnose issues, and make sure you avoid downtime. It doesn’t matter who made the fan, we’ll service & maintain it for you.

Posted by NMetzger on Feb 12, 2019 in Projects | No Comments

This fan outlet duct has a fabric expansion joint (flex connector) belt attached to angle flanges. Originally designed as a molded-corner “U-Belt” it’s now a flat-belt with 90 degree corners. The aftermarket flanges use 1/4” welded studs which have broken off inside the duct, causing leakage. The backup bars which clamp the belt down are also undersized for this application. We’re going to pull the whole assembly out and replace it with a high-temperature Viton rubber U-Belt expansion joint.

Posted by NMetzger on Feb 11, 2019 in Projects | No Comments

Our externally-pressurized compensating bellows are perfect for steam applications where you need to handle large amounts of axial movement while protecting against lateral columnar instability (squirm). This one features copper pipe with sweat ends.

Posted by NMetzger on Jan 30, 2019 in Projects | No Comments

Whether you’re running a simple-cycle or combined-cycle gas-fired power plant, odds are you have to run CEMS (continuous emissions monitors). Altech Environmental (Envea) can help you look at a new system, service and old system, or build a hybrid of the two.

Posted by NMetzger on Jan 21, 2019 in Projects | No Comments

If you look close you can see that the edge of this heavy-wall expansion joint was cut in order to fit next to the concrete structure. They welded the flow-liner in on both sides afterward to keep it from leaking. This works, but it adds additional stress the the EJ below it, which wasn’t originally planned for.

Posted by NMetzger on Dec 12, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

When in doubt, put the biggest guy on your crew in the hole to drill the bottom side of your expansion joint

Posted by NMetzger on Oct 24, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

This crude oil preheater outlet duct has 5″ of lateral offset (meaning it’s really messed up). Rather than do structural steel work to repair the offset we field-fit an expansion joint solution that would accommodate such extreme offset.

Posted by NMetzger on Oct 24, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

Freshly spliced expansion joint belt on the catcracker outlet to the ESP (electrostatic precipitator).

Posted by NMetzger on Oct 24, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

ErgonArmor TUFCHEM® EPOXY POLYMER CONCRETE being installed in a manhole where corrosion resistance is key.

Posted by NMetzger on Oct 23, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

Doing an install way up high on a preheater tower downcomer at a cement plant. The old expansion joint here failed and we were called in to supervise and verify the install of the replacement that we designed for them.

Posted by NMetzger on Mar 21, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

Doing an install a long ways up on a preheater tower downcomer at a cement plant. The old expansion joint here failed and we were called in to supervise and verify the install of the replacement that we designed for them.

This is an expansion joint that feeds a liquid mixture of ash and silica out of the bottom of a fluidized bed boiler. The ash that comes through this tied-universal bellows is between 1200-1800 degrees F. In order to handle such high temperatures the expansion joint has a refractory-lined pipe that functions as a flow-liner inside of it and is only anchored at one end, so the other can slide freely and compensate for expansion and contraction.

Posted by NMetzger on Mar 21, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

$This is an expansion joint that feeds a liquid mixture of ash and silica out of the bottom of a fluidized bed boiler. The ash that comes through this tied-universal bellows is between 1200-1800 degrees F. In order to handle such high temperatures the expansion joint has a refractory-lined pipe that functions as a flow-liner inside of it and is only anchored at one end, so the other can slide freely and compensate for expansion and contraction.$

If you beat on your metal bellows Expansion Joints with a sledge hammer in order to try and knock the material inside loose, the metal bellows become ineffective and may as well not be there. Also, this particular metal bellows has a flow-liner (or shield) inside, so the person who hit it probably didn’t even unplug the pipe like they’d hoped to.

Posted by NMetzger on Mar 20, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

Cement plants are full of fans and expansion joints that see a lot of abrasive particulate. We can help you design your fans and expansion joints to last longer by using the right abrasion-resistant materials for the job.

Posted by NMetzger on Mar 20, 2018 in Projects | No Comments

A couple of our flanged-and-flued heavy wall metal expansion joints sitting in the lay down yard waiting to be installed in the acid plant.

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 13, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

A couple of our replacement flanged-and-flued metal expansion joints sitting in the lay down yard waiting to be installed in the acid plant.

This Zero Liquid Discharge fan was running at 7200RPM with chlorides in the gas stream and had a catastrophic failure. It threw a chuck of the fan wheel straight through the steel housing and out the wall of the building it was inside of. You might think stainless steel can handle anything, but it sure doesn’t like chloride stress corrosion cracking.

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 13, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

Flanged-and-flued expansion joints in an acid plant. If done right these expansion joints have a very long lifetime, they’ll last for decades. That’s why you want to do your pressure thrust, anchor strength, and movement calculations properly.

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 13, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

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8 foot diameter heavy wall flanged and flued double expansion joint for sulfuric acid plant service

Posted by NMetzger on Apr 7, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

9.5 foot diameter Heavy wall flanged and flued expansion joints for acid plant service.

Posted by NMetzger on Apr 7, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

106″ diameter butterfly damper for copper smelter converter aisle hood fume control

Posted by NMetzger on Mar 15, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

90″ sulfuric acid plant converter butterfly damper for copper smelter

Posted by NMetzger on Mar 15, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

These condenser outlet expansion joints are seeing too much lateral movement. You can tell by the fact that the tie rods (restraining rods) are starting to bend. When using spherical arched rubber expansion joints like these you’ve got to make sure you use the proper rubber durometer and system restraints.

Posted by NMetzger on Mar 2, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

Interep CustomFlex Dynamic Insulation on a hot metal bellows. Your average metal bellows on an Alstom HRSG sheds around 5500BTUs of heat per hour (in a hot climate!) that number is probably closer to 7500 in the winter. That equates to about $1-2 of lost heat per hour, on just a single expansion joint.

Posted by NMetzger on Mar 1, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

This is what the inside of a GE/Alstom HRSG looks like. The Chrome Moly pipe in this photo holds water & steam on the inside and sees temperatures up to 1200F on the outside. The pipes here grow up to 9″ in length from cold to hot. When they’re hot they protrude further out the bottom of the HRSG. Every pipe penetration has an expansion joint on it to account for this growth and movement.

Posted by NMetzger on Feb 14, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

Insulated penetration seals on the bottom of a GE/Alstom HSRG (Heat Recovery Steam Generator). We designed these custom insulation boots to cover the original metal bellows (800-1000 degrees F) which were exposed to ambient air. This will increase system efficiency and profit margin on the plant.

Posted by NMetzger on Feb 14, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

Braided hoses (sometimes called flex hose) are really just thin-walled metal bellows with a woven mesh over them. The inner bellows often get dented or damaged while the braided mesh hides the damage. This creates stress points that cause failures.

Posted by NMetzger on Jan 12, 2017 in Projects | No Comments

Flanged & Flued heavy wall expansion joints for acid gas service. These have a high corrosion allowance and are repairable.

Posted by NMetzger on Dec 27, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

Absorber Recycle Pump concentric reducer expansion joints with internal tie rods

Posted by NMetzger on Dec 14, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

This is a failed test-splice on a PTFE (Teflon) single-ply expansion joint belt. If you use a heat-seal iron like the one in this photo you might want to replace it with a smaller, hotter iron. A 120V extension cord can only provide so much current, so concentrate it in one spot instead of spreading it out!

Posted by NMetzger on Oct 12, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

The ball joints at concentrating solar plants (solar trough system) are at risk of leaking HTF (dowtherm), causing unmonitored emissions. You can replace leaky, high-maintenance ball joints with specially designed expansion joints. In this instance we can replace 3 ball joints with just 1 expansion joint.

Posted by NMetzger on Oct 7, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

The ball joints at this concentrating solar plant (solar trough system) are leaking HTF (dowtherm), causing unmonitored emissions. You can replace leaky, high-maintenance ball joints with flexible braided-metal hoses. In this instance we're replacing 3 ball joints with just 1 hose. The hoses also include a fail-safe so if they rupture they won't leak.

SCR Guillotine Damper being installed

Posted by NMetzger on Aug 26, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

Quicklime (calcium oxide) silo with an old expansion joint that’s been patched with silicone and Teflon. It’s time for this one to be replaced to keep quicklime from plugging up behind the expansion joint and leaking or failing entirely.

Posted by NMetzger on Aug 26, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

This is a copper smelter converter aisle. The casting and anode furnaces have expansion joints which connect the air intake while still allowing the furnace to move and rotate.

Posted by NMetzger on Aug 7, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

A Proco rubber expansion joint on a #powerbuoy generator by Ocean Power Technologies

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 19, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

Internal EJ Replacement

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 11, 2016 in Projects | No Comments

Guillotine #damper on the way to a job site.

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Case Studies, Projects | No Comments

Anode Casting at a #coppersmelter #moltenmetal

#powerplant #coal #steam #newmexico #chimney

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

Guillotine #damper on the way to a job site.

#chimney #coal #powerplant

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

#chimney #coal #powerplant

#catcracker in #wyoming

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

#catcracker in #wyoming #refining #petroleum

#penetrationseals on the bottom of a #hrsg. #combinedcycle #gas #powerplant

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

#penetrationseals on the bottom of a #hrsg. #combinedcycle #gas #powerplant

You can avoid #sulfur condensation inside your expansion joints with proper insulation. Too much or too little, and they’ll look like this, eating up backup bars and structural steel. #expansionjoint #powerplant #coal #shutdown

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

You can avoid #sulfur condensation inside your expansion joints with proper insulation. Too much or too little, and they'll look like this, eating up backup bars and structural steel. #expansionjoint #powerplant #coal #shutdown

#shutdown at #coalfired #powerplant. #expansionjoint #coal

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

#shutdown at #coalfired #powerplant. #expansionjoint #coal

Let us do your #expansionjoints correctly (left) so you don’t have to try and hold them together (right). #powerplant #expansionjoint #coal

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

Let us do your #expansionjoints correctly (left) so you don't have to try and hold them together (right). #powerplant #expansionjoint #coal

Being in the middle of nowhere ain’t so bad! #powerplant #coal

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

Being in the middle of nowhere ain't so bad! #powerplant #coal

Doing an improvised field splice on a failed #expansionjoint that had to be replaced while the unit was running at half load #powerplant

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

Doing an improvised field splice on a failed #expansionjoint that had to be replaced while the unit was running at half

In the field for emergency repairs on these expansion joints. This is before we removed the joint on the left which was held together by a ratchet strap. #expansionjoint

Posted by NMetzger on Jul 5, 2016 in Projects, Uncategorized | No Comments

In the field for emergency repairs on these joints. This is before we removed the joint on the left which is was together by a ratchet strap. #expansionjoint