Improved safety
Our reinforced SIGRAFLEX graphite gasket sheets made from flexible graphite are highly corrosion resistant. They considerably reduce the maintenance costs of equipment and extend its service life. Above all, the use of premium SIGRAFLEX materials significantly enhances gasket safety for employees and the environment – a high priority when operating equipment.
Benefits and properties
- Sustainable high quality standard
- High leak tightness
- Excellent conformability to flange irregularities
- Outstanding chemical and thermal resistance
- Lower maintenance expenses thanks to the sealing materials’ long service life
What does low leakage of a gasket mean?
Gaskets fill the space between flange surfaces to prevent leakage e. g. of fluids at pipework joints, flange connections, pump or compressors housings, heat exchangers etc.
Since no gasket material is 100% tight, all gaskets leak to a certain degree. Therefore, it is key to reduce the leakage to a minimum – under the given conditions like load/pressure, temperature, media aggressiveness or viscosity – by using a suitable, high-quality and leak tight gasket material for a certain application. Gasket leakage is given in tightness/leakage classes, e. g. L0.1 stands for a leakage rate of 0.1 mg/(s*m) of the test medium helium.
Leak tight flat gaskets can be made from metal reinforced SIGRAFLEX gasket sheets equipped with a special impregnation to improve leak tightness. For example, helium leakage of flat gaskets made from SIGRAFLEX HOCHDRUCK, HOCHDRUCK PRO, UNIVERSAL PRO or MF® typically range from L0.01 to L0.000001 at the most common operating and surface pressures. Leakage in operation of most fluids is below that of helium.
TA Luft and emission requirements
Especially for equipment which has to meet the requirements of the “Technical Instructions on Air Quality Control” (TA Luft), our wide variety of reinforced and impregnated SIGRAFLEX graphite sheets provide the optimum sealing material – just like for stricter limit values for fugitive emissions.
Graphite flat gaskets: What does anti-stick mean?
Downtime is an extreme cost factor in any operation, so both planned and incidental maintenance are intended to be quick and kept to a minimum. Even graphite flat gaskets containing no binder or filler tend to stick to flanges. One thing is clear when it’s time for gasket replacement: The easier the gasket can be removed from the flange faces, the lower are time and effort for flange cleaning from gasket residues and the risk of flange damaging.
Flat gaskets made from SIGRAFLEX gasket sheets equipped with our anti-stick surface finish show excellent separating behavior: Adhesion to the flange faces is minimized, a clean gasket release is often possible. The materials are also favorable for partially inaccessible sealed joints, as the anti-stick effect facilitates disassembly.
Consequently, SIGRAFLEX flat gaskets with anti-stick properties allow for easier removability and save end users time and money: Resulting in reduced downtimes and total cost of ownership.
Our materials have been developed with an in-depth understanding of their use and application. Allow us to advise you – even on site. Together we will develop a sustainable solution tailored to your needs. Please just ask us. You may also use our SIGRAFLEX Product Finder to identify the ideal SIGRAFLEX sheet material for your needs e. g. extreme leak tight or anti-stick sheets.
Application-specific suitability of our SIGRAFLEX graphite gasket sheets
We offer the graphite sheet for your individual application - no matter if you are e.g. looking for a gasket sheet material which is leak tight even under high pressure or which provides support to fulfill the requirements of TA Luft. Use our product finder to quickly and easily identify the optimum gasket material for your needs.
| Scope of application | STANDARD | ECONOMY | UNIVERSAL | UNIVERSAL PRO | iNXT | SELECT | HOCHDRUCK | HOCHDRUCK PRO | APX2 HOCHDRUCK | MF | SIGRASEAL | BSSC | BTCSS | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gaskets | Kammprofile and corrugated gaskets | ○ | |||||||||||||
| PTFE envelope gaskets | ● | ||||||||||||||
| Gaskets for pumps and valve bodies | ○ | ● | ○ | ○ | ● | ● | ● | ● | ○ | ● | ○ | ||||
| One-piece gaskets up to Ø 1500 mm (59.1") | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||||
| Flange design | Flanges with sealing strips | ○ | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |
| Tongue-and-groove flanges/ highly stressed sealed joints | ● | ○ | ● | ||||||||||||
| Unstable flanges with low gasket stress | ● | ● | ● | ||||||||||||
| Vessel and equipment flanges | ○ | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ○ | ● | ● | ||||
| Emergency repairs, complex dimensions | ● | ○ | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||||||
| Operations under pressure | Low internal pressure up to 40 bar | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||||||||
| Internal pressures vacuum up to 100 bar | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ○ | ○ | |||||
| Internal pressures vacuum up to 250 bar | ● | ● | ● | ||||||||||||
| Operating temperatures | −269 °C to 300 °C (-452 °F to 572 °F) | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |
| −269 °C to ~550 °C (-452 °F to ~1022 °F)1) | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ○ | ● | ● | ||
| Leak tightness | Max. requirements acc. to the emission protection regulation TA Luft2) | ● | ● | ● | ○ | ● | ● | ● |
Material data of our SIGRAFLEX reinforced adhesive- and binder-free graphite sheet
| Typical properties | Unit | HOCHDRUCK PRO 2–9 inserts | APX2 HOCHDRUCK 1–5 inserts | MF 3–7 inserts | UNIVERSAL PRO 1–2 inserts | SELECT1) 2 inserts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metal reinforcement: Stainless steel sheet 316L | mm in | 0.05 0.002 | 0.05 0.002 | 0.05 0.002 | 0.05 0.002 | |
| Metal reinforcement: Perforated stainless steel sheet 316L | mm in | 0.1 0.004 | 0.1 0.004 | |||
| Thickness | mm in | 1.0-4.0 0.04-0.16 | 1.0-3.0 0.04-0.12 | 2.0/3.0 0.08/0.12 | 1.6/2.0/3.0 0.06/0.08/0.12 | 1.6 0.06 |
| Width | mm in | 1000/1500 39.4/59.1 | 1500 59.1 | 1000 39.4 | 1000/1500 39.4/59.1 | |
| Length | mm in | 1000/1500 39.4/59.1 | 1500 59.1 | 1000 39.4 | 1000/1500 39.4/59.1 | |
| Purity | % | ≥ 99.85 | ≥ 98 | ≥ 99.85 | ≥ 98 | ≥ 98 |
| Ash content | % | ≤ 0.15 | ≤ 2.0 | ≤ 0.15 | ≤ 2.0 | ≤ 2.0 |
| Chloride content | ppm | ≤ 10 | ≤ 25 | ≤ 10 | ≤ 25 | ≤ 25 |
Material data of our SIGRAFLEX reinforced bonded graphite sheets
| Typical properties | Unit | iNXT 1 insert | ECONOMY1) 1–2 inserts | BSSC 1 insert | BTCSS 1 insert | BSC 1 insert | BMY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metal reinforcement: Stainless steel sheet 316L | mm in | 0.05 0.002 | 0.05 0.002 | ||||
| Metal reinforcement: Perforated stainless steel sheet 316L | mm in | 0.1 0.004 | |||||
| Wire mesh reinforcement: Stainless steel 316, wire diameter | mm in | 0.19 0.0075 | |||||
| Polyester film | 0.127 0.005 | ||||||
| Bonded/adhesive-free | adhesive-free | bonded | bonded | adhesive-free | bonded | bonded | |
| Thickness | mm in | 2.0 0.08 | 0.55-3.0 0.02-0.12 | 0.76-3.05 0.03-0.12 | 0.76-3.05 0.03-0.12 | 0.76-3.05 0.03-0.12 | 0.38-3.05 0.015-0.12 |
| Width | m in | 1.0 39.4 | 1.0 39.4 | 1.0 / 1.5 39.4 / 59.1 | 1.0 / 1.5 39.4 / 59.1 | 1.0 / 1.5 39.4 / 59.1 | 1.0 / 1.5 39.4 / 59.1 |
| Length | m in | 1.0 39.4 | 1.0 | 1.0 / 1.5 39.4 / 59.1 | 1.0 / 1.5 39.4 / 59.1 | 1.0 / 1.5 39.4 / 59.1 | 1.0 / 1.5 39.4 / 59.1 |
| Purity | % | ≥ 98 | ≥ 98 | ≥ 98 | ≥ 98 | ≥ 98 | ≥ 98 |
| Ash content | % | ≤ 2.0 | ≤ 2.0 | ≤ 2.0 | ≤ 2.0 | ≤ 2.0 | ≤ 2.0 |
| Chloride content | ppm | ≤ 50 | ≤ 25 | ≤ 50 | ≤ 50 | ≤ 50 | ≤ 50 |
Find the optimum graphite gasket material
Let our Product Finder Flexible Graphite guide you to the optimum gasket material for your requirements.
Brochures, technical data and information sheets as well as approvals and test reports on our SIGRAFLEX products can be found in our Download Center.
