Feasibility of Improvement in the Design and Production of Thin Rubber–Metal Elements to Increase the Vibration-Insulating and Operational Properties of Pipeline Expansion Joints Based on Them

Various types of expansion joints are used to compensate for thermal and force movements of equipment and pipelines. At gas pumping stations and power plants and in transport, expansion joints simultaneously provide vibration isolation of equipment from pipelines, foundations, and the environment. Reduction of vibration and noise transmission is necessary in the frequency range from infrasound to a thousand hertz or more. This article considers the features of thin, elastic rubber–metal elements proposed by the Mechanical Engineering Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IMASH RAN) as elastic elements for a new type of expansion joint that improved vibration pipeline isolation by two orders of magnitude compared to commercially available expansion joints in the frequency range up to 1600 Hz. The article shows the feasibility of further improving the operational and vibration-insulating properties of expansion joints with thin rubber–metal elements due to the design and changes in the formulations of rubber, adhesives, and reinforcement material of expansion joints.