| Summary: Barb fittings have
been used in water applications in the past with limited success. This article
reexamines barb fittings and flexible tubing making the jump from the medical
industry to the water industry and offering advantages, specifically in reverse
osmosis (RO) applications. | 
 | ost
industries
benefit from technologies proven in other unrelated industries. |
| Those
of us in the water purification industry have the opportunity to benefit from
technologies proven in the medical market. Medical equipment manufacturers demand
that critical tolerances be met on a consistent basis for millions of component
parts. Barb fittings
and flexible tubing have been widely used in the medical industry with great success
for a number of years. A few of these applications include intravenous drip lines,
peristaltic pump connections, various | | |
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| Single
barb fittings and flexible tubing samples. | | |
| surgical
devices and even components within devices implanted in humans. Much of this success
can be directly attributed to the design and quality of the single barb fitting.
Single barb
fittings
There
are many advantages to single barb fittings. Many designers aren't aware of the
benefits of using a single barb vs a multi-barbed fitting, but the barb design
can greatly affect your application. It's impossible to mold a multi-barbed fitting
without a | |
parting
line formed where two halves of a mold come together to complete the part. Improper
tooling causes a sharp edge along the parting line, which can create a potential
leak path in the tubing and becomes more pronounced as the tooling wears. Where
there is a parting line there is a built-in leak path. When you look for a single
barb fitting look carefully to ensure that there is no parting line on the barb.
The parting line will run the entire length of the barb. Those molded without
a parting line will ensure the greatest seal and will hold higher pressures, eliminating
leaks.
Be sure
to examine the flow path
the water will take. Look for fittings without crevices
or ridges where bacteria can grow in this dead space (see Figure 1). Multiple
barbed fittings offer several crevices and spaces for bacteria to grow. This is
the characteristic that has limited thair applications in
the past.
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