Valves

Dr. Akepati S. Reddy: Thapar University Patiala (PUNJAB) 147 004

Valve
An integral component in piping system primarily used to control flow and its direction and pressure. Performs any of the following functions:
Stops and starts fluid flow Varies the amount of fluid flow Controls direction of fluid flow Regulates downstream system (or process) pressure Relieves overpressure in any component or piping Valves may be operated continuously (control valves) or intermittently (isolation valves) or rarely (safety valves) A valve can be an extremely simple, low cost item or it may be and extremely complicated, expensive item.

Parts of a Valve

Body Packing

Bonnet Seat

Stem Disk

Actuator

Parts of a valve
Valve body
Principal element of a valve assembly providing framework and housing/holding all other parts of the valve cast or forged into a variety of shapes inlet and outlet pipes are fit onto the valve body (threaded/bolted/welded) Resists fluid pressure loads from the connecting piping -must be strong enough to take the maximum pressure of the fluid and must be made of material that is not attacked by the fluid Fluid passes through valve body when valve is open

Bonnet

Parts of a valve

Acts as a cover on the valve body (a removable cover fitted to the body) Some support the moving parts of valve - others just close hole in the body through which the moving parts pass for assembly and dismantling The internal parts are put into the body and then bonnet is attached to hold everything together inside

Valve TRIM
Internal elements of a valve are collectively referred to as TRIM and typically include :
Opening/closing element (disk) - closes the fluid path through the valve body Valve stem - connects the actuator to the closing element Valve seatmakes a seal with the closing element when the valve is closed

Stem Connects the actuator and the disk - responsible for positioning the disk. Typically forged and connected to the disk by threaded or welded joints Two types: rising stems and non-rising stems rising stem: the stem rises above the actuator as the valve is opened no such rising for non-rising tem Actuator Operates the stem and the closing element (disk) assembly may be manually operated hand wheel, manual lever, motor operator etc. In some, the actuator is supported by the bonnet. In other designs, a yoke mounted to the bonnet supports the actuator.

Parts of a valve

Part of a valve
Packing Valves use some form of packing to prevent leakage from the space between the stem and the bonnet Commonly a fibrous material forms a seal between internal parts of a valve and outside where the stem extends through the body Disc and seat Disk provides the capability to permit and prohibit fluid flow Seat or seal rings provide seating surface for the disk - fine surface finish of seating area of the disk is necessary for good sealing when the valve is closed

Types of Valves
Block Valve: allow full flow or stop flow Flow Control Valve: control flow rate Non-Return Valve: prevent flow reversal Pressure Control Valve: prevent fluid pressure exceeding a set maximum value

Block Valve
Either allow full flow or stop flow completely, but not meant to control flow rate Should only be operated in fully open or fully closed positions Partial opening can offer lot of resistance to flow - fluid friction and turbulence cause loss of pressure and vibrations Types of block valves:
Gate valve Ball valve Plug valve

Block valves: Gate Valves

Used to start or stop flow completely (flow can be in either direction) Should not be used to control flow - partial open position can damage the valve gate can be eroded and proper sealing against seat becomes impossible Closing element is a wedge-shaped disc or gate attached to the end of the stem and fitting into a wedge-shaped seat in the valve body to stop flow through the valve Classed as a linear-motion valve - closing element moves in a straight line (down and up to close and open the valve) Can have rising or non-rising stems
In rising stem, the stem moves up and down with the gate and the stem is fixed to gate and can not turn in it. Non-rising stems are bottom threaded and mates with thread in the gate

Block valves: Ball Valves and Plug Valves

Ball valve
Classed as rotational-motion valve - starts and stops flow by rotating a ball-shaped closing element The ball has a hole through it of the same diameter as the pipeline - valve is open when the hole lines up with inlet and outlet of the valve body. The open valve leaves a clear path for flow with no obstruction

Plug valve
Classifed as rotational-motion valves and operates similar to the ball valve Main difference is in the shape of the closing element (a tapered plug of circular section with a hole called a port) Normally used in non-throttling, frequent on-off operations.

Flow Control Valves

Also called as flow regulating valves. Control of flow is done by reducing the area of flow path through the valve. Unlike block valves, these are designed to operate partially opened with little pressure loss and turbulence. These valves also reduces the fluid pressure. Types of flow control valves
Globe Valves Butterfly Valves Diaphragm Valves Needle Valves

Flow control valves: Globe valves

A linear-motion valve looks very similar to a gate valve from outside Has rising stem, but, unlike a gate valve, the actuator is fixed to the stem and rises with it Its design makes it good for flow regulation as well as starting and stopping flow. Globe valves can have three main types of body
Z-type- Here, the fluid pressure helps to push the valve open - used mainly for small-size, low-pressure applications Angle - In Angle-type globe valve the flow changes direction only once and the pressure drop is less than for the Z-type. It can be used for medium-pressure applications. Y-type - Y-type globe valve have the seat at about 45 to the flow direction, hence straightens the flow path and reduces the pressure drop. It can be used for high-pressure applications.

Z-Type Globe Valve

Angle-Type Globe Valve

(a) Valve Closed

(b) Valve Open

Y-Type Globe Valve

Butterfly Valve
A rotational-motion valve but needs only a (a) Valve Closed quarter turn (90) to fully open or close Very simple and take up little space especially good for use in large pipelines (or where there is not much space) Can be used to start, stop and regulate flow (not very good at completely stopping flow) The closing element is a circular disc of a similar diameter to the pipes ID (b) Valve Open Operating a butterfly valve takes lot of force - one has to push it against the fluid pressure - larger valves have geared actuators for ease of operation

Diaphragm Valve
Closing element of a diaphragm valve has a sheet of flexible material called a diaphragm. Diaphragm totally separates the valve trim from the flowing fluid - fluid does not contact trim and stem needs no gland packing Diaphragm valves are rising-stem, linear-motion valves - as the actuator turns, stem screws into or out of the sleeve attached to the actuator.

Needle Valve
Needle valves are linear-motion valves. These can make very small adjustments to flow rate. Its name comes from the long, tapered shape of the bottom of the spindle that forms the closing element.

Non-return (Check) Valve (NRVs)

NRVs, also known as check valves, stop flow reversals (allows flow in one direction) Pressure of the fluid flowing in the correct direction opens the valve automatically, and if the flow tries to reverse, the valve closes automatically. There are a number of designs of NRVs - some rely on the weight of the closing element, others have a spring to help close the valve. Types of NRVs
Swing Check Valves Lift Check Valves Piston Check Valves Ball Check Valves Stop Check Valves

Swing Check Valve

The valve disc is hinged at the top and when there is no flow, weight of the disc closes the valve The valve must be mounted in a horizontal pipeline, with the disc hinge at the top to allow gravity to close it

Lift Check Valve

These valves have valve body and seating arrangement similar to globe valves. Flow must enter from under the seat to lift the closing element. Reverse direction flow pushes closing element against the seat Closing element may be free to fall under its own weight, or it may be helped by a spring

Piston check valve

Piston check valves are similar to lift check valves , but, instead of a valve disc there is a piston that sliding in a cylinder This gives a smoother motion during operation.

Ball check valve

These valves have spherical (ballshaped) closing elements. The closing element may operate by gravity or by the flow pressure or it may be spring-loaded

Stop Check Valve

A non-return valve similar to a globe valve but the valve disk is free to slide on the stem. With the valve stem raised, it acts as a lift check valve allowing flow only from below the disc. If there is no flow, or if flow reverses, the disc drops into the seat. When the stem is lowered to closed position, the disc can not lift and flow is stopped in both directions.

Pressure Control Valve

Divided into three main types Pressure reducing valves - Pressure reducing valves operate where a pressure drop is needed between two parts of a process Pressure relief valves - Pressure relief valves maintain fluid pressure below a maximum allowable value for a process Pressure safety valves - Pressure safety valves protect the plant from damage caused by overpressure.

Pressure Reducing Valve

These automatically reduce liquid/gas pressure to a pre-set value
Common use is to control pressure of gas leaving a gas bottle or vessel (pressure reducing valves on gas welding machine) During operation, the valve continuously opens and closes to maintain a flow of fluid at the reduced pressure The operation depends on the balance between the fluid pressures acting above and below a piston, and a spring force

When the force of the low pressure fluid plus the spring force pushing down on the piston is more than the force of the high pressure supply fluid pushing up, the piston closes the valve.
When the force of the low pressure fluid drops, the new lower pressure plus the spring force pushing down on the piston becomes less than the force of the high pressure fluid pushing up and the piston opens the valve

 Used mainly to relieve overpressure of liquids (happens when a liquid in a closed container or pipeline expands as its temperature increases) Under normal operating conditions, a spring holds the PRV closed Fluid pressure pushes against the spring to open the valve - the fluid pressure needed to push the valve open is called set-point pressure (usually the maximum normal operating pressure of the liquid). When the liquid pressure exceeds the set-point pressure, the valve opens slowly and releases just enough liquid to bring the pressure down to the normal operating pressure The spring then closes the valve slowly so that normal operations can continue The outlet from the valve is connected back into the inlet so that no liquid is lost

Pressure Relief Valve

Pressure Safety Valve

Used mainly to relieve overpressure of gases and vapours (e.g. steam). The set-point pressure is greater than the maximum normal operating pressure of the process fluid but less than the maximum safe working pressure of the equipment. When the fluid pressure exceeds the set-point pressure, the valve pops fully open. This happens very quickly to release overpressure as quickly as possible. The pressure at which the valve closes again is lower than the opening set-point pressure. The valve outlet diameter is greater than the inlet (this allows fluid to escape quickly to bring pressure down to normal - Working both as PRV and PSV!).