Design for Leakage in Flange Joints
and by using the moment correction factor approach to correct the
Under External Loads
William J. Koves
UOP LLC,
Des Plaines, IL 60016
e-mail: bill.koves@uop.com
This paper uses an analytical model based on the Pressure Vessel
Research Council (PVRC) ROTT test gasket constants to compute
leakage in gasketed flange joints subjected to internal pressure
and external bending moments. The model results are compared to
test data, and design recommendations are made, consistent with
the ASME/PVRC tightness-based methodology.
DOI: 10.1115/1.2716700
Keywords: flange, joints, leakage, external moments, external
loads
Introduction
Flanged joints are essential components in nearly all pressur-
ized systems; however, they are also one of the most complex. A
large number of factors enter into the determination of the suc-
cessful design and operation of a flange joint in service. The
bolted flange joint involves the interaction between the bolting,
flange, and gasket, considering important nonlinear variables,
such as friction and gasket properties. The pressure vessel and
piping codes were developed for safety, and the rules developed
for bolted flange joints were developed in the same spirit. The
ASME Code design rules 1 provide a method for sizing the
flange and bolts to be structurally adequate for the specified pres-
sure design conditions; however, the current design rules do not
address external loads nor do they guarantee a leak-tight joint for
all transient operating conditions.
The new ASME flange joint rules, proposed as Appendix BFJ,
are based on the gasket model developed under the Pressure Ves-
sel Research Council PVRC and described in Ref. 2 and Chap.
9 of Ref. 3. The new rules address leakage, however the ap-
proach for leakage under external bending is conservative unless
more rigorous methods are applied. The proposed BFJ rules ad-
dress both the structural capacity of the flange due to external
moments and the effect on leakage. The following proposes a
design methodology for external loads, consistent with the App.
BFJ approach.
Analytical Model
The analytical model for the prediction of leakage from flange
joints subjected to pressure and external loads is based on the
Pressure Vessel Research Council PVRC gasket model as de-
scribed in Refs. 2,3 and illustrated in Fig. 1. The log gasket
stress versus log tightness relationship during loading is deter-
mined by gasket constant Gb and slope a. The relationship during
unloading is determined by gasket constant Gs and slope k. Given
a gasket loading and unloading history, leakage can be predicted
by the PVRC model. The flange model is based on an elastic
interaction analysis of the flange-gasket-bolt assembly using the
computer software K-FLANGE 4. Flange rotation, bolt and gasket
stiffness are included in the model, based on the analytical solu-
tion by Waters et al. 5. External moments are addressed in the
Contributed by the Pressure Vessel and Piping Division of ASME for publication
in the JOURNAL OF PRESSURE VESSEL TECHNOLOGY. Manuscript received December 14,
2005; final manuscript received May 1, 2006. Review conducted by Rudolph J.
Scavuzzo. Paper presented at the 2005 ASME Pressure Vessels and Piping Confer-
ence PVP2005, Denver, CO, July 1721, 2005.
334 / Vol. 129, MAY 2007 Copyright 2007 by ASME
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computer model as a harmonically varying distributed axial force
flange rotation around the perimeter, as described in Ref. 6. The
leakage prediction is based on determining the gasket stress at all
points on the circumference and numerically integrating the leak-
age for the full 360 deg.
Experimental Data
Over the years there have been a number of experimental pro-
grams investigating the effect of external bending moments on
bolted flange joints. Those significant studies and general conclu-
sions are summarized below.
One of the earlier significant studies was done by Rodabaugh
7. This study included the application of external bending mo-
ments to B16.5 flanges. Internally pressurized 12 in. class 150 and
3 in. class 150 flanges were subjected to external moments until
leakage developed. The flanges used compressed asbestos gaskets,
which were the common gasket at the time, and were assembled
to a typical bolt stress of 40,000 psi 276 MPa. This was one of
the first-published works to illustrate the conservatism of the
equivalent pressure method of establishing external moment
loading limits for flange design. The experimental results are com-
pared to the limits given by the B16.5 equivalent pressure results.
More recently, the Pressure Vessel Research Council has spon-
sored several projects on the effect of external moments on the
leakage of bolted flange joints. These results have been published
in several WRC Bulletins 8,9. Research at the University of
North Dakota by Bibel et al. 8 was based on a 16 in. Class 300
raised face weld neck RFWN flange. Several gasket types were
studied; spiral-wound stainless steel flexible graphite filled with
and without inner ring, BSSC flexible graphite sheet gasket with
foil core, and Compressed Elastomer NBR reinforced with
Aramid/Glass fibers. The moments applied were 60,000 ft lbs,
89,500 ft lbs, and 114,000 ft lbs, resulting in nominal axial pres-
sure plus moment stresses in the XS pipe of up to 20,500 psi.
These stresses are relatively high piping stresses, considering that
typically there will be elbows or branch connections with higher
stress intensification factors in the system that would limit the
piping stresses. Even at these high moment loadings, there were
only small changes in the total leak rate and the conclusion was,
a very small leak before application of an external bending
moment remained a very small leak after application of the mo-
ment. In some cases, the leakage actually was less with the ap-
plied moment. The greatest increase in leakage was with a lightly
loaded spiral-wound gasket.
A separate project performed by researchers at CETIM, Nantes
France, and Ecole Polytechnique TTRL, Montreal, Canada, was
published in 9. This bulletin consists of two parts. The Part 1
study included two flange types, an NPS 1.5 in. class 300 and an
NPS 8 in. class 300 flange. The four gasket types studied included
nonasbestos fiber sheet, graphite sheet, expanded PTFE sheet, and
spiral-wound graphite filled. The general conclusion from 9 was:
Overall the leakage rate of the tests performed in the weld neck
flanges indicate that bending moment effect on the joint tightness
is relatively small.
Part 2 of 9 contains test data for leakage testing of a NPS 4 in.
Class 150 flange joint subjected to external bending moments,
with four gasket types. The gaskets tested included expanded
PTFE sheet 1 / 16 in. thick, skived cut virgin PTFE sheet 1 / 8 in.
thick, graphite-coated corrugated metal, and spiral-wound graph-
ite filled. The assembly bolt stress was 25,000 psi 172 MPa with
two tests at 50,000 psi 345 MPa initial bolt stress. The bending
moments ranged from 4900 N M to 9000 N M.
Comparison of Theory to Test
Reference 6 previously showed a comparison of the K-FLANGE
model with the onset of the pressure required to develop visible
leakage of pressurized 12 in. class 150 and 3 in. class 150 B16.5
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 1 PVRC gasket constants
flanges subjected to external moments from Ref. 8. The analyti-
cal model agrees reasonably well with the test data and is conser-
vative. The equivalent pressure method was shown to be very
conservative in that study.
Figure 2 compares leakage as a function of bending moment for
a 16 in. class 300 flange with a spiral-wound graphite-filled gas-
ket. The gasket constants were as reported in 8 and the gasket
unloading modulus based on the data presented in 9. Three
methods of addressing the external moments are plotted along
with the test data. The equivalent pressure method, the equivalent
axial force method, and the analytical model using the K-FLANGE
software are plotted along with the test data. The effective gasket
width was determined by matching the leak rates with zero mo-
ment applied and considering flange rotation. The PVRC tests
were based on flat platens, and a commercial flange will have
some flange rotation. Note that with a hard gasket, and with the
same effective gasket width, the leak rates are significantly greater
for the same external moment.
Figure 2 illustrates that the leakage curve is relatively flat and
insensitive to the applied moment until the point of flange sepa-
ration is approached where significant leakage occurs. These plots
indicate that using the PVRC gasket constants and integrating the
leakage analytically gives reasonable agreement with actual mea-
sured leakage from actual flange joints.
Fig. 2 Leakage versus moment for NPS 16 class 300 flange
with SW gasket
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Fig. 3 Leakage versus external moments, NPS 4 class 150
with SW graphite fill gasket
The equivalent pressure B16.5 method is based on converting
the moment into an equivalent pressure and subtracting that pres-
sure from the maximum pressure rating in the B61.5 tables to get
a maximum allowable internal pressure for a given bending mo-
ment. Figure 2 illustrates the conservatism of that approach.
Figure 3 illustrates the variation of leak rate with bending mo-
ment for an NPS 4 CL 150 flange with a spiral-wound graphite-
filled gasket from 9. The test data are compared to the analytical
model; however, to get agreement, an effective gasket width and
an effective gasket modulus must be determined. Similar to the
NPS 16 CL 300 flange, the effective gasket width was determined
by matching the leak rates with zero applied moment. The curve is
sensitive to the effective modulus and a value of 200,000 psi
1380 Mpa was selected. A higher modulus would result in a
more conservative prediction and a lower modulus, a less conser-
vative prediction. The gasket data presented indicate a higher un-
loading modulus than the one used; however the nonlinear behav-
ior causes a redistribution of gasket stress and is not linear, as
assumed by the analytical model. This nonlinear gasket effect is
also discussed in Ref. 11. Note that the data from the 1.5 in. and
8 in. class 300 flanges were similar in that there was a relatively
small amount of increased leakage due to the applied external
moment, as shown in Table 1.
The conclusion from these comparisons is that the analytical
model shows the same trend as the test data. The increase in
leakage with applied external moment is relatively insensitive un-
til the onset of joint separation. The usefulness of the conclusion
is that the analytical model can be used to make other compari-
sons, not included in the tests.
ASME has been working on developing a new Appendix BFJ
that incorporates the PVRC gasket model 2 and gasket constants
in design. The equations in Appendix BFJ are based on an axi-
symmetric analysis of a flange. The distributed force on a gasket
due to external moments is treated as an equivalent axisymmetric
force, giving the same distributed load as the maximum for a
moment. The equivalent force is multiplied by a factor Q that
addresses the three-dimensional nature of an applied moment and
recognizes that the distributed load due to a moment varies from a
maximum tension to compression, where it is actually reducing
the leak rate. Q is defined as the ratio of the applied axial force
that will give the same flange total leak rate as the actual applied
moment divided by the equivalent axial force computed for the
applied moment for which the leak rate was determined. Q must
MAY 2007, Vol. 129 / 335
 Table 1 Moment limits FT-LB

1.5 in. CL 300 3 in. CL 150 4 in. CL 150 8 in. CL 300 12 in. CL 150 16 in. CL 300a

Specified pressure 580 400 450 588 400 720

B16.5 equiv. P 35 Negative Negative 2,636 Negative 1,788
App. 2 equiv. P 204 175 1,140 6180 4,706 13,860
App. 2 equiv. F 453 445 2,245 9250 7400 18,850
B31 M L 3,374 1,543 4,400 19937 19,484 129,450
Sect. III M III 1,780 1,263 3,160 17022 22,259 108,900
M Data 2,215 3,416 6,270 23,630 58,333 114,000
Leak increase ratio 1.54 NA 1.82 1.45 NA 1.21
M based on Q 747c Noteb 2886 11100 Noteb 65,639

Note:
a
MAWP for App. 2 is 586 psi, less than applied pressure. Cold boltup governs and was ignored for theses calculations. App. BFJ flange is not adequate for bolt area; bolt area
reduced to comput tightness.
b
Bolting is not adequate for App. BFJ at applied pressure.
c
App. BFJ flange is not adequate for bolt area; bolt area reduced to comput tightness.

be either developed by more rigorous analysis, accounting for
distributed leakage on the gasket, or set equal to the conservative
value of 1.0. The following analysis develops a simplified equa-
tion for Q using the analytical model in the K-FLANGE software to
integrate leakage around the perimeter of the gasket.
Figure 4 is a plot of the Q factor versus external moment for the
same NPS 4 CL 150 flange with spiral wound gasket. Figure 5 is
a plot of the Q factor versus external moment for both a soft
spiral-wound and hard soft iron gasket. This illustrates that a
hard gasket is a very conservative assumption. Note that these
curves are developed from trial-and-error calculations to deter-
mine the axial force that gives the same total leak rate as the
applied moment. The theoretical calculations indicate that Q may
vary from zero at a low applied moment to 1 when it reaches the
point when the gasket begins to unload completely at the point of
maximum tension. Observing the shape of the curves in Figs. 4
and 5, the data indicate that Q may be conservatively represented
by a straight line from 0 to 1 as the moment goes from 0 to the
point of separation.
If an equation can be developed that represents Q, then the
affect of moment loading on leakage can be quantified for appli-
cation in the Appendix BFJ rules. If we assume a linear relation-
ship from zero moment up to the point of separation, a conserva-
tive linear rigid gasket model, and a minimum assembly bolt
stress of 1.5 times the allowable, the following relationship can be
derived:
ME
Q= 1
M E*
where M E = external applied bending moment

M E* =
G
4
1.5AbSb PAi + FA 2

The result of applying Eqs. 1 and 2 to the Appendix BFJ

rules are summarized in Table 1.
The shape of the leakage curves in Figs. 2 and 3, suggests that
there may be a moment that a flange joint can withstand without
excessive leakage. The allowable moment derived from the Q
factor approach provides a tightness basis, however some other
Fig. 4 Q versus external moment for NPS 4 class 150 flange
with SW graphite fill gasket
simple methods in use are compared, for the data sources dis-
cussed earlier, in Table 1. The B31 M L equation originated from a
report by Rodabaugh 10 developed for pipelines with standard
flanges and is currently in ASME B31.8. It is simply bolt force
minus pressure thrust without any consideration of a gasket force
to maintain tightness. The ASME Section III equation is limited to
standard B16.5 flanges with an allowable bolt stress greater than
20 ksi 138 MPa.

ML = C
4
SbAb PA P 3

M III = 3125SY /36000CAb 4

The comparisons in Table 1 indicate that the B16.5 equivalent
pressure method is very conservative and because the test pres-
sures were greater than the rated pressure, gave negative allow-
able moments. The equivalent pressure method applied to ASME
Sec. VIII Div. 1 1 Appendix 2 is better, but still very conserva-
tive. The allowable moment correlations M L and M III are in rea-
sonable agreement with the data; however, these are room-
Fig. 5 Q factor temperature tests in a laboratory. A joint in the field at elevated

336 / Vol. 129, MAY 2007 Transactions of the ASME

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 temperature and steam or hydrocarbon in the unit may not have
the same margin on leak tightness. M L does not have provision for
residual tightness under a bending moment and does exceed the
test moments in two of the cases. The problem is accounting for
actual assembly stress and joint relaxation as well as handling
hard and aged gaskets. The Code approaches are conservative for
leakage because a rigid gasket is assumed.
If we assume that a flange joint is designed to ASME rules,
including flange rigidity limits, that the bolting selected is not
excessive for the flange, that the flange joint is assembled to
greater than 1.5 times the allowable bolt stress to account for
relaxation by acceptable practices, such as ASME PCC-1, then a
similar, but more general equation can be derived units are
pounds per inch
MM =
Sa
8
FY CAb 5
where FY is a reduction factor 1.0 to account for the reduction
in strength of the bolts and flange at temperature
Sb SY
FY = lesser of or 6 3 Bickford, J., 1998, Gaskets and Gasketed Joints, Marcel Dekker, New York.
Sa 36,000
Equation 5 agrees with the ASME Section III 12 equation at
room temperature for a carbon steel flange with B7 bolts. The use
of Eq. 5 should also be restricted to ferritic steels and nominal
temperatures below the creep range until additional testing is
available.
Conclusions
Equation 1 was developed for use in Appendix BFJ tightness
based criteria for external moments. A simple expression, Eq. 5,
is also suggested for limiting external moments without additional
analysis. This would be applicable in both Appendix BFJ and the
current ASME Section VIII Division 1 1 Appendix 2. The
ASME rigid-gasket approach is conservative for both pressure and
external moment loading.
Nomenclature
Ab total bolting area, in.2 mm2
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Ai effective pressure thrust area, in.2 mm2
A p pressure thrust area to gasket o.d., in.2
mm2
C bolt circle diameter, in. mm
FY temperature strength factor
FA axial load, lbs N
G gasket diameter, in. mm
Gs, Gb, a, k PVRC Gasket parameters
M M , M E, M *E,
M III, M L bending moments, in. lbs N mm
P internal pressure, psi MPa
Q factor for leakage with bending moment
Sa, Sb allowable bolt stress, ambient, operating,
psi MPa
References
SY flange yield strength, psi MPa
1 ASME, 2001, ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section VIII, Div. 1,
ASME, New York.
2 Payne, J. R., Bazergui, A., and Leon, G. F., 1985, New Gasket FactorsA
Proposed Procedure, ASME/PVP PVP Vol. 98.2.
4 K-Flange Software, Pi Engineering Software Inc., www.piengineeringsoft-
ware.com
5 Waters, E. O., Rossheim, D. B., Wesstrom, D. B., and Williams, F. S. G., 1979,
Development of General Formulas for Bolted Flanges, Pressure Vessel Re-
search Council Monograph, August 1979, Reprint of 1949 Taylor Forge pub-
lication.
6 Koves, W. J., 1996, Analysis of Flange Joints Under External Loads, ASME
J. Pressure Vessel Technol., 118, pp. 5962.
7 Rodabaugh, E. C., and Moore, S. E., 1976, Evaluation of the Bolting and
Flanges of ANSI B16.5 Flanged Joints ASME Part A Design Rules, ORNL/
Sub/2913-C.
8 Bibel, G., Fath, T., Palmer, W., Riedesel, R., and Westlind, T., 2001, Experi-
mental Leak Testing of 16 Inch Class 300RFWN Flange With and Without
External Bending Moment, WRC Bulletin 461, May.
9 Birembaut, Y., Ledauphin, T., Masi, V., Bouzid, H., Derrene, M., and Martelli-
Garon, P., 2002, External Bending Moments on Bolted Gasketed Joints Part
1: The Effects of Bending Moments on Bolted Gasketed Joints, WRC Bulle-
tin 473, July.
10 Rodabaugh, E. C., and Atterbury, T. J., 1966, Flexibility and Stress Intensi-
fication Factors of Piping Components With Moment Loading, Battelle Me-
morial Institute Report to American Gas Association, Oct. 21.
11 Blick, R. G., 1950, Bending Moments and Leakage at Flanged Joints, Pe-
troleum Refiner, 1950, pp. 385391.
12 ASME Section III Division 1-Subsection NC, para. NC-3658, July 1, 2005.
MAY 2007, Vol. 129 / 337