Patent ID: 7390580

Claim:
A gasket of compressible elastomeric material for establishing a seal between the flanges of sanitary pipes carrying a process fluid stream and for alarming of the presence of particles of said gasket causing contamination of said fluid stream from deterioration of the material of which the gasket is comprised, comprising: an O-ring portion and a portion having an essentially flat cross-section, said flat portion extending radially inward toward the lumen of said pipes, said flat portion having a surface exposed to said fluid stream, said compressible elastomeric material having incorporated therein an effective amount of finely comminuted ferromagnetic powder without deleteriously affecting the resiliency or hardness of the cured elastomeric material, said powder being provided in sufficient amount to trigger a magnetic detector monitoring said pipes for the presence of contamination arising from particles of said gasket becoming detached from said exposed surface and entering into said process fluid stream; wherein the compressible elastomeric material comprises a base elastomer selected from the group consisting of silicone rubber, fluoroelastomer, Buna rubber and EPBM.