6 - Rupture Discs

Abstract

Rupture discs are the pressure and temperature sensitive element of non-reclosing pressure relief devices, consisting of the rupture disc and a holder. They are designed to protect pressure systems against damage from excessive overpressure or vacuum by bursting at a predetermined pressure differential across the disc. The use of a rupture disc is the most basic method of protecting a piping system from over-pressurization. A rupture disc is a sacrificial component and after the disc has been ruptured during over-pressurization, this component must be replaced to protect the vessel and the piping system. Solid-metal forward-domed rupture disc and flat metal rupture discs are of the tension-loaded type in which the fluid pressure stretches the disc material as the fluid pressure increases. The continuing effort to raise the operating ratio of rupture discs led to the development of reverse-buckling discs. This type of disc is domed against the fluid pressure so that the fluid pressure introduces a compression load on the convex side of the disc.