Kammprofile Gasket Basic Style

Kaxite KXT-1100 Kammprofile gasket basic style is built on a concentrically serrated solid metal core with no guide ring — neither an integral outer ring nor a loose floating ring. A soft sealing layer — graphite or PTFE — is bonded to both facing surfaces. The serrated geometry concentrates seating stress on the sealing faces, producing a high-integrity seal at bolt loads significantly lower than those required by solid metal gaskets. Because the gasket carries no centering ring, it relies on the flange groove itself for positioning, which is precisely the geometry of tongue-and-groove, male-female and recessed flange pairs.

The data below covers the standard KXT-1100 configuration. Non-standard core alloys, facings, thicknesses and diameters are quoted to drawing; include the flange type (tongue-and-groove, male-female or recessed) and dimensions in the enquiry for accurate pricing and lead time.

The basic style exists because some flanges do not need a centering ring. On tongue-and-groove and male-female flange pairs, the tongue and groove geometry mechanically constrains the gasket position — the gasket cannot shift radially once the flange is bolted up. Adding an outer or inner ring in that situation is redundant at best, and can interfere with the tongue seating at worst. The basic style removes the ring entirely, giving the simplest possible geometry for these flange types.

For standard raised-face and flat-face flanges, the basic style is not the correct specification — without a centering ring, gasket alignment depends entirely on the flange groove, and there is nothing to prevent the gasket from displacing during installation. Buyers specifying for raised-face flanges should use the Kammprofile gasket with integral outer ring or the Kammprofile gasket with loose outer ring instead.

Cross-section: serrated core with facing on both sealing surfaces, no inner or outer centering ring.

The most common upgrade path for KXT-1100 is replacing double jacketed gaskets in heat exchanger service. Double jacketed gaskets have a thin metal jacket over a soft filler; they are economical but require higher bolt load to develop a seal, and the thin jacket can be damaged during handling or in service. The basic-style Kammprofile provides a much wider seating stress window — it seals reliably at low bolt load and tolerates high bolt load without crushing — while still fitting into the same tongue-and-groove flange groove that was originally designed for the double jacketed gasket.

This matters most on heat exchanger channel and shell cover flanges where bolt load is limited by flange size or bolting condition, and on narrow-flange connections where there is simply not enough radial space for a centering ring. Additional service areas include vessel manways with tongue-and-groove closures, valve bonnet joints on grooved-bonnet valves, and pump and compressor casing splits on equipment originally designed around jacketed or sheet gaskets. For very low pressure and non-critical utility lines, a non-asbestos sheet gasket may be more cost-appropriate; KXT-1100 is positioned for the mid-to-high integrity end where the flanges are grooved and the operating envelope exceeds what sheet gaskets can reliably seal.

A practical installation note: when KXT-1100 is used in a heat exchanger flange that has a raised nubbin inside the groove, the nubbin should be machined out before installation. The nubbin is a legacy feature designed to crush into the soft filler of a double jacketed gasket; on a Kammprofile basic style the serrated metal core needs flat, parallel seating surfaces and the nubbin can prevent proper seating.

Two independent selections define the KXT-1100 envelope: the core alloy sets the temperature ceiling and mechanical strength, the facing material sets chemical compatibility and seating behaviour. The standard pairing — SS 316L core with flexible graphite facing — covers the broadest range of steam, hydrocarbon and high-temperature service. PTFE facing is specified where graphite is not chemically acceptable, at a lower temperature ceiling.

The three Kammprofile configurations are not interchangeable — each is designed for a specific flange geometry. The comparison below summarizes the differences relevant to a procurement decision.

The serrated core concentrates stress at the groove crests, so a reliable seal develops at bolt loads significantly lower than those demanded by solid metal gaskets, while the same design tolerates high bolt loads without crushing. This is the practical reason the basic style is preferred as a double jacketed upgrade — the double jacketed gasket needs significantly higher bolt load to develop a seal, and on older heat exchangers with limited bolting, that margin may not be available.

The metal core is reusable after service: the gasket is disassembled, the core cleaned and inspected (including profile tracing where specified), and new facing material bonded before reinstallation. On expensive alloy cores — Monel, Inconel, Hastelloy or titanium — this can materially reduce lifecycle cost compared with single-use constructions. Reusability does not apply where the core shows mechanical damage, corrosion pitting or groove wear; the decision to reuse rests with the inspecting engineer against the applicable procedure.

Flange surface finish matters. Kammprofile gaskets with sealing layers are typically recommended for a surface finish of 3.2–6.3 μm Ra, with flange faces flat and free from deep radial scratches or dents. On tongue-and-groove flanges, both the tongue and groove faces should be inspected for flatness and freedom from nubbin remnants or burrs before installation. For guidance on gasket selection across different flange types and service conditions, the broader industrial gasket range provides a comparative starting point.

KXT-1100 is manufactured at Kaxite’s Ningbo facility and supplied factory-direct for OEM, MRO and project procurement. Core alloy and facing material are selected against the duty conditions, and the gasket OD / ID are sized to the tongue-and-groove or male-female flange geometry — not to a raised-face flange standard, since the basic style is incompatible with raised-face flanges. For buyers consolidating a gasket package, KXT-1100 can be combined with compression sheet and braided packing lines in a single shipment.