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VALVES

INTRODUCTION

Valves are mechanical devices designed to direct, start, stop, mix or regulate the
flow, pressure or temperature of a process fluid. The common types of valves
available are gate valves, globe valves, butterfly valves etc. the materials
commonly used for construction are iron, steel, plastic, brass or a mixture of
special alloys.

According to their function valves may be classified as on-off valves, non-return

valves, and control valves. The on-off valves are used to start or stop the flow
through the process. Gate valves and pressure relief valves are examples of on-
off type of valves to mention a few. The non-return valves allow the fluid to flow in
one particular direction only. The control valves are used to regulate flow,
temperature or pressure through a system.

ON-OFF VALVES:
GATE VALVES
Gate valves are linear motion valves having a closure element perpendicular to
the process flow that slides into the main stream to provide shut off. These are
used in low-pressure systems. The problem with these valves is that they cannot
handle throttling operations, are easily fouled and cannot be used in systems
having high-pressure drops. It is difficult to obtain tight shut off with these valves
and they take longer to open or close than any other manual valves. The different
types of gate valves are parallel gate valves knife edged gate valves and through
conduit gate valves.
BUTTERFLY VALVES
These valves are mainly used as an on–off valve. It is mainly a rotary motion
valve that uses a rotating round disk as a regulating element. There are two
types of butterfly valves –concentric and eccentric butterfly valves. These valves
can be directly installed in between two flanges without any special end
connections owing to their very narrow face-to-face dimensions. It has a large
flow coefficient and due to rotary motion of shaft the friction forces generated are
far less than a linear motion valve. They have a high pressure recovery factor.
These valves are used in low pressure applications. Cavitation and choked flow
can occur easily with these valves when installed in an application with high
pressure drop.
PLUG COCKS AND BALL VALVES
For temperature below 250 C, metallic plug cocks are useful in chemical process
lines. As in laboratory stopcock, a quarter turn of the stem takes the valve from
fully open to fully closed, and when fully open, the channel through the plug may
be as large as the inside of the pipe itself, and the pressure drop is minimal. In a
ball valve the sealing element is spherical, and the problems of alignment and
“freezing” of the element are less than with a plug cock. In both plug cocks and
ball valves the area of contact between moving element and the seat is large,
and both can therefore be used in throttling service. Ball valves find occasional
application in flow control.
NON RETURN (CHECK) VALVES
Non-return valves allow the fluid to flow only in the desired direction. The design
is such that any flow or pressure in the opposite direction is mechanically
restricted from occurring. All check valves are non return valves.
Non return valves are used to prevent back flow of fluids, which could damage
equipment or upset the process. Such valves are especially useful in protecting a
pump in a liquid application or compressed gas applications from back flow when
pump or compressor is shut down . Non return valves are also used in process
systems that have varying pressure which must be kept separate.

There are two types of check(non-return) valves, swing types and spring types.

In the swing type, the pressure of the water forces the valve gate to 'swing' open,
but once the flow stops, gravity causes the gate to fall closed , preventing a
reversal of the flow. This type of valve must be mounted vertically or horizontally
to work properly.

In contrast, the gate in a spring check valve is spring loaded. Water pressure
forces the gate open just as in the swing type, but when the flow stops, the
spring, not gravity, forces the gate closed. This enables the valve to be mounted
in any position and at any angle.
GLOBE VALVES
A globe valve is a linear motion valve characterized by a globe style body with a
long face to face dimension that accommodates smooth, rounded flow passages
sufficiently long enough to ensure smooth flow through the valve without any
sharp turns. These valves can be used in both gas as well as liquid applications
and can handle severe conditions of temperature and pressure. The majority of
the globe valves have a top entry design thus permitting a easier servicing of the
internal parts and allowing the valves to remain in line when maintenance is
taking place. But these valves have certain disadvantages also. They have a
high cost and a large size factor and cannot be used for unclean liquids. They
are mainly used for flow control and in cases involving vacuum or high
temperature extremes.
SOLENOID VALVE:

Solenoid valves are best suited for small, short-stroke on-off operations requiring
very high speed of response. These valves can open or close in 8 to 12
milliseconds. However, they are limited to pressure drops below 20.7 bars
although when pivoted with pilot levers or double seats, they can handle higher
pressure drops. A solenoid valve contains a valve body, a magnetic core
attached to the stem and disc, and a solenoid coil. A small spring assists the
release and initial closing of the valve. The valve is electrically energized to open.
When an electrical signal is input to a solenoid valve (magnetic changeover
valve), the drawing force of the solenoid moves the spool, changing the direction
of flow. Because the electrical signal is switched at the valve, remote control and
automatic control are simple. Stronger springs are used to overcome the friction
of the packing when it is required. Reversing the valve plug causes reverse
action (open when de-energized). These valves are quite expensive.
FAIL SAFE SYSTEMS

There are two readily available fail-safe schemes for control valves. The choice
must be based on detailed knowledge of the valve application in the overall
process or system. Two generalizations are that in a heating application, the
valve should fail close and in cooling applications, it should fail open. There are
applications where either failure mode is equally safe, then considerations of
standardization may be used. Fail safe involves the selection of actions of
actuator and inner valve. Both actuator and inner valve usually offer a choice of
increasing air pressure to push the stem down or up which may open or close the
inner valve. The process application of the valve must be investigated to
determine whether on instrument air failure it would be better to have the valve
go fully open or fully closed.

Air fail to close valve

Bellow Seal Valve

Bellow seal valves are a special type of globe valves which are used for fine
control of flow. The main difference between the ordinary globe valves and the
bellow seal valve is that in the globe valve there is gland packing along the stem
but in the bellow seal valve, a bellow is used to prevent leakage instead of the
packing. Bellow seal valves are totally leak-proof. They are used to handle
corrosive liquids. This type of valve has been used in the butadiene extraction
unit.

Wheel

Stem

Bellows

Bellow seal valve (globe)

MATERIAL OF CONSTRUCTION OF VALVES

The selection of the valve body material is usually based on pressure,

temperature, corrosive properties and erosive properties of the flow media. Also
the choice of the materials depends on economic factors. Majority of control
valves involve non corrosive fluids at reasonable temperatures and pressure.
Therefore cast iron and cast carbon steel are most commonly used valve body
materials.

MATERIAL ATSM PROPERTY USE

DESIGNATION
1. Cast Carbon ASTM A216 Can withstand higher Control of
steel grade –WCB temp (>4130C) and air,
pressure than cast iron. saturated or
Very expensive superheated
steam, non-
corrosive
liquid and
gases.
2. Cast chrome- ASTM 217 grade- Have corrosion and creep For very
moly steel WC9 resistance. Can withstand high
temp to 5660C 1.5 times temperature
as costly as WCB application.
3. Cast chrome- ASTM A217 Popular steel alloy can Used on
moly steel grade-C5 withstand temp up to high-
5930C. pressure
Resistant to erosion and steam, oils,
creep at high gases,
temperature. petroleum
vapors,
seawater
and other
mild
corrosives.
4. Cast type 304 ASTM A351 Suitable for use above Used to
stainless steel grade-CF8 5380C and below –1010C. handle
oxidizing or
very
corrosive
fluids.
5. Cast type 316 ASTM A351 Greater resistance to Used to
stainless steel grade CF8 corrosion, pitting and handle
oxidizing fluids. Slightly oxidizing or
expensive than type 304 very
but provides greater corrosive
 resistance. fluids
6. Cast iron ASTM A126 Inexpensive, non-ductile Used for
material. valve bodies
controlling
steam,
water and
corrosive
fluids.

7. Cast bronze ASTM B61 and Good resistance to Most

B62 corrosion and suitable for frequently
cryogenic temperatures used for
satisfactory materials for valve trim
steam, air, water, oil, non- parts.
corrosive gas and some
dilute acid service.

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here

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