In the modern industrial landscape, Tri-Clamp connections have evolved from purely sanitary applications to a fundamental standard in critical process skids in the oil and gas, petrochemical, and fine chemical industries.
While these connections offer unparalleled ease of assembly and modularity, they present significant sealing challenges when process fluids and operating conditions exceed the physical limits of standard elastomers.
In high-demand environments, the gasket is often the system's most vulnerable point, requiring a shift from "standard" components to highly engineered sealing solutions.
- Key Needs: The need for absolute chemical inertness across a wide pH range (0-14) and the ability to maintain a high-integrity seal during extreme temperature fluctuations, ensuring both operator safety and process purity.
- Technical Challenges: Traditional elastomers suffer from chemical degradation and thermal hardening, while standard PTFE—although chemically resistant—exhibits cold flow. This leads to loss of clamp load and permanent gasket deformation, which can obstruct flow or create leak paths during thermal cycling.
- Use Implications: Frequent retightening required, risk of fugitive emissions, and potential environmental contamination. In critical services, seal failure can lead to unplanned downtime and a significant increase in total cost of ownership (TCO).
To address these complex challenges, Carrara SPA offers a specialized range of Tri-Clamp gaskets, with a strategic focus on Sichem Seal technology.
Sichem Seal is an advanced modified and restructured PTFE material designed to bridge the gap between the chemical resistance of virgin PTFE and the mechanical requirements of high-pressure industrial joints. Unlike conventional PTFE, Sichem Seal uses a unique manufacturing process that creates a multidirectional fibrous structure. This significantly reduces cold flow and ensures superior creep resistance, even under high clamping loads and temperature variations.
- Exceptional Creep Resistance: Sichem Seal's restructured PTFE minimizes dimensional changes under load, ensuring the seal remains in place without extruding into the flow path or receding from the sealing surface.
- Universal Chemical Compatibility: Sichem Seal is virtually inert to all process chemicals, making it the ideal solution for inventory standardization across various chemical and hydrocarbon services.
- High Temperature Stability: Designed to operate consistently from cryogenic temperatures down to -260ºC, maintaining elastic recovery properties that standard plastics and elastomers cannot match.
Compliance and Safety: Fully compliant with FDA and USP Class VI requirements, Sichem Seal gaskets provide a safe, non-contaminating sealing interface that meets the most stringent international regulatory standards.
With decades of experience in global sealing solutions, Carrara SPA continues to provide practical and highly competent support to engineering teams. By choosing Sichem Seal for Tri-Clamp connections, operators can achieve a higher level of reliability, dramatically reducing maintenance intervals and ensuring the long-term integrity of critical fluid management systems.