7 TUBE-TO-TUBESHEET JOINTS

7.1 JOINT TYPES

A variety of methods are used for making the joint between the tubesheet
and the tubes. The joining technique must lend itself to mass production
and to uniformity of quality. The most common attachment techniques are:
(i) Roller expansion
(ii) Hydraulic expansion
(iii) Impact welding
(iv) Edge welding
(v) Butt welding
Of the above, roller expanding is by far the most common. Frequently,
one or more of the joining methods are used together to improve joint
reliability. For example, edge welding (iv) is frequently used in conjunction
with roller or hydraulic expansion.
The importance of a sound tube-to-tubesheet joint cannot be overemphasized.
However, strength requirements of the joint depend on the
operating condition and the exchanger style. It is obvious that tube joints in
fixed tubesheet heat exchangers without expansion joints are subject to
much greater axial load than those containing a shell expansion joint;
therefore, with identical operating conditions, the axial pull in the tubes of a
U-tube or floating head exchanger is likely to be much smaller than that in a
fixed tubesheet construction. The leak-tightness requirements are also
service dependent. Whereas a relatively large amount of leak would be
tolerated in a recuperator or regenerative heat exchanger (identical fluid
media inside and outside tubes), even minute leak rates may be unacceptable
in heat exchangers where the two heat exchanging fluids form an
explosive mixture. Joint leakage can have profound effects on the entire
process system. For example, in-leakage of raw circulating water into the
steam cycle at the condenser tube-to-tubesheet joint has been a vexing
problem affecting operational reliability of power plants [7.1.1]. A brief
description of the aforementioned joining techniques is presented, followed
by a simplified procedure for estimating joint strength. A method for
evaluating the joint temperature under operating conditions is also
described.
7.2 EXPANDING METHODS
Commercial tubes have a certain, though small, diametral and ovality
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K. P. Singh et al., Mechanical Design of Heat Exchangers
© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 1984
308 Mechanical Design of Heat Exchangers
tolerance. Drilled and reamed holes in the tube sheets also have a certain
scatter in their finished diameter. According to TEMA [7.2.1], 96070 of all
tube holes for 1" diameter tubes can be in the 1.008" to 1.014" diameter
range. The materials section of the ASME codes specifies that the outer
diameter of one inch SA249-TP304 (welded stainless steel) tubing can be in
the 1" ± 0.006" range. This implies that if the smallest diameter tube were
to be expanded into the largest size permissible hole, then the tubes must be
expanded by 0.020" before the tubewall contacts the hole inside surface.
Using Lame's formula for thin rings, the associated tube hoop stress is
estimated by:
(7.2.1)
where Et> 0 and a are the tube material Young's modulus, radial clearance
and tube radius, respectively. Substituting 30 x 106 psi for E(, 0.01" for 0,
and 0.5" for a, gives S = 0.6 X 106 psi.
Clearly, the circumferential strain in the tube is plastic. Upon withdrawal
of internal pressure, the tube will contract by a small fraction of the initial
expansion (elastic springback). If the expanding force were to be continued
past the point where contact with the tubesheet hole occurs, then expansion
of the tube hole commences. Initially, the tube hole deformation is elastic,
until the circumferential strain in the tubesheet at the interface diameter
reaches the material's yield point. With additional increase in the expansion
load, the plastic zone propagates into the tubesheet ligament. The most
desirable expansion is one which produces maximum interface pressure
between the tube and tubesheet hole upon withdrawal of the expansion
force. The optimal expansion is a function of a number of variables, such as
yield stress and Young's moduli of tube and tubesheet materials, width of
the ligament, and tube gage. The leak tightness of the joint also depends on
other less quantifiable parameters such as tube hole and tube surface finish,
hole and the tube ovality, surface hardness of tube and holes, expanding
technique, etc. For this reason, prototype testing is the most reliable method
to establish the correct amount of expansion.
7.3 ROLLER EXPANDING
Introduced during the mid-nineteenth century [7.3.1], this method of
tube-to-tubesheet fastening continues to be the dominant technique to this
day. The roller expander (Fig. 7.3.1) consists of a cylindrical cage which
loosely holds a cluster (3 to 7) of hardened tapered steel rollers. A similarly
tapered mandrel is inserted through the cage causing the rollers to make line
contact with the tube surface on the outside and with the mandrel on the
inside. A pneumatic or electrical drive turns the mandrel (usually in the
range of 400 to 1000 rpm) which, in turn, causes the rollers to rotate. The
axis of the rollers is set at a small angle with respect to the mandrel's axis of
rotation. This causes the rotational motion of the mandrel to produce an