Which are the most common types of flanges used in piping? How do they look like? The key types of flanges are the welding neck, long welding neck, slip-on flanges, socket weld, lap joint, threaded and blind flanges. In addition to these standard flanges, some special ones exist, called Weldoflange/Nipoflange and Elboflange, swivel flange, expander/reducer flange, and orifice flanges.
STANDARD TYPES OF FLANGES
The type of flange to be used for a piping application depends, mainly, on the required strength for the flanged joint. Flanges are used, alternatively to welded connections, to facilitate maintenance operations (a flanged joint can be dismantled quickly and conveniently).
Let’s now dive in, showing the key types of flanges with pictures.
WELDING NECK FLANGE
STANDARD TYPES OF FLANGES
The type of flange to be used for a piping application depends, mainly, on the required strength for the flanged joint. Flanges are used, alternatively to welded connections, to facilitate maintenance operations (a flanged joint can be dismantled quickly and conveniently).
Let’s now dive in, showing the key types of flanges with pictures.
WELDING NECK FLANGE
Long weld neck flanges (“LWN”) are similar to welding neck flanges, with the exception that the neck (tapered hub) is extended and acts like a boring extension.
Long weld neck flanges are generally used on vessels, columns or barrels. These flange types are available also in the heavy barrel (HB) and equal barrel (E) types.
SLIP ON FLANGE
A slip-on flange is connected to the pipe or the fittings by two fillet welds, one executed inside and one outside the cavity of the flange.
The bore size of a slip-on flange is larger than the outside diameter of the connecting pipe, as the pipe has to slide inside the flange to be connected by the execution of a fillet weld.
Slip-on flanges are also defined “Hubbed Flanges” and they are easy to recognize due to their slim and compact shape.