Pipelines, apparatus and systems made of borosilicate glass 3.3 which carry the CE mark, are manufactured and quality monitored in compliance with the Pressure Equipment Directive (97/23/EC). At the same time, the chemical/physical material characteristics of borosilicate glass 3.3 and the design of glass components are subject to national and international standards.
The type of flange for glass parts is not standardised, but is determined according to the user's technical demands. Whilst, for instance, a flat safety flange is excellently suited to GMP system engineering due to its construction with little dead space, a ball and socket system is highly valued for its flexibility.
For this reason, QVF has included the ball and socket pipeline system from the former Schott catalogue 6076, in this supplement, to the WPR catalogue, as the "KF pipeline system" and is manufacturing it with state-of-the-art technology and in line with the aforementioned standards and directives as an alternative coupling system for glass system engineering.
The KF pipeline system has therefore not only been given the CE mark, but certification for compliance with the Clean Air Act has also been provided for the valves and couplings. Accuracy of manufacturing, storage and quality control all correspond to WPR 2002.

Reference Numbers
The Schott KF system from catalogue 6076 is a common coupling system in the fields of industry and research. The referrence numbers listed in this catalogue supplement therefore correspond to those from catalogue 6076. In those instances in which the technical properties have been changed, an "N" (new) has been added to the reference number.
Whilst the parts made purely of glass are listed identically to listings in catalogue 6076, for hand-operated valves, for instance, the important dimensions for connection compatibility are identical, but internal parts have been given a second seal and a cone as standard to improve regulation. An "N" has been added to the order number for these valves (e.g. VEN 25).

Material Properties/Operatipn Data
The "KF pipeline system" is a supplement to the QVF catalogue "Process Plant Components", also known as "WPR 2002". Thus, the information given in the catalogue on

• borosilicate glass 3.3, chemical, physical properties
• permitted operating conditions
• dimensioning of components
• labelling of components
• danger analysis and potential hazards

also applies to the "KF pipeline system".