Use Load Cells to Ensure Bolt Load

Are your bolts losing their bolt load over time? Installing load cells to your bolts during your next turnaround will help give you the answer. 

It can be difficult to predict if a bolted flange assembly is going to start leaking over time due to loss in bolt load. Unfortunately some gasket types, like PTFE, can lose over 50% of their original gasket stress a week after assembly. This means the operating bolt load may not be high enough to retain the Minimum Gasket Operating Stress, Sgmin-O required by ASME PCC-1 Appendix O. 

I like to use BoltSafe load cells because of the intuitive hand held display and the ability to easily export to Excel.