Ball Valve
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1. What is Ball valve?
A ball valve is a type of valve that uses a ball with a circular orifice as its opening and closing element. It opens or closes the pipeline by rotating the ball 90° via the valve stem, and is mainly used to cut off or connect fluids.
2. Ball Valve Components
2.1 Valve Body
The valve body part, is the main component of a ball valve that holds pressure and connected to the pipe line system. Materials: Carbon steels, stainless steels and duplex stainless steel, are the most common materials used for high pressure connections.
2.2 Ball
The ball is the core openings and closings of a ball valve, with circular through holes or passages in its center. Thus, one must rotate the ball to open or close the medium.
2.3 Seat
The seat effectively seals with the ball May use a soft seal (PTFE) or metal structure according to various conditions of operation.
2.4 Stem
The stem is the pipe, through which ball is connected to actuating device for transferring operating torque to rotate the ball.
2.5 Sealing
These consists of stem seals, o ring s, gaskets etc. used to prevent media leakages.
2.6 Actuator
Examples of an actuator include a handwheel, gearbox or pneumatic/electric actuated that is included to provide manual or automatic control.
3. How a Ball Valve Operates
Ball valves rotate a ball-shaped apparatus that manages the flow of fluid. It works on a simple yet reliable principle:
This allows smooth operation of the medium when the ball's orifice is aligned with, and oriented in line to be positioned on either side of a pipeline centerline.
After the valve stem rotates 90 °, when the orifice is completely perpendicular to the pipeline direction, which in a word means that fully closed of valve has been realized.
The sealing surface of the ball and valve seat will not be directly eroded by medium when they are in fully open or closed position. It not only has stable sealing performance but swift to turn on (or off) and with a long life time.
4. Industry Standards
API 6D – Specification for Pipeline and Piping Valves
API 598 – Valve Inspection and Testing
ASME B16.34 – Valves: Flanged, Threaded, and Welding End
ASME B16.10 – Face-to-Face and End-to-End Dimensions of Valves
API 607 – Fire Test for Quarter-turn Valves and Valves Equipped with Nonmetallic Seats
GB/T 12237 – Steel Ball Valves for Petroleum, Petrochemical, and Allied Industries
ASME B16.5 – Pipe Flanges and Flanged Fittings
GB/T 13927 – Industrial Valves: Pressure Testing
5. Common Valve Types
5.1 Classification by Structure
Floating Ball Valve
Floating Ball Valve: A floating ball valve has the ball supported by two shafts. The fluid pressure pushes the ball against downstream seat for shut off.
It is simple in design and lower in cost, making it applicable for low pressure to medium pressure ; small diameter pipeline system. Floating Ball Valves Come in Sizes Best Suited for Water Treatment, Chemical Processing and General Industrial Applications.
Trunnion Ball Valve
Trunnion Ball Valve: In a trunnion ball valve design the ball is supported by upper and lower trunnions, which allows for a more robust structure where the fluid pressure is not transmitted directly to the seats. Therefore, the operation torque is reduced and sealing performance does not decrease.
These Ball valves are particularly designed for high pressure and large diameter pipelines, it is typically applied in oil & gas pipeline;long-distance transmission etc.
5.2 Classification by Function
V-type Ball Valve
The V shaped ball port ensures excellent throttling and control properties. Also GWC V-type ball valves are suitable for both on/off service and flow rate control, in particular those applications where accurate flow or proportional control is required.
Three-way Ball Valve
The mixing, shunt and separator function of three-way ball valve； They can be used in other operations, including compliant to L-port and T-port configurations.
6. How to choose the right ball valve?
6.1 Media Type
The important things to remember is that the techniques revolves around specifying different kinds of medium transferred in pipelines, such as:
- Water and steam
- Oil and natural gas
- Corrosive media (acid, alkali, etc.)
- Solid or impurity-laden media
Each medium has different seat material and sealing structure requirements. Stainless steel or metal seated ball valves are recommended if the media is corrosive or contains solid particles.
6.2 Operating Pressure and Temperature
The ball valve should be selected and assembled to meet both the system design pressure and its operating temperature:
- High pressure applications: floating ball valves
- High-pressure and large-diameter applications: trunnion mounted ball valves are recommended
- High-temperature applications: choose metal seated designs
Appropriately matching the pressure rating ensures safety and long service life.
6.3 Body and Sealing Materials
Valve materials should be suitable for the medium and operating environment:
- Carbon steel: for typical high-pressure and high-temperature applications
- Stainless steel: appropriate for corrosive or aggressive media
- Duplex stainless steel: combines high strength with improved corrosion resistance, making it suitable for demanding industrial applications
The seat materials available can be PTFE or metal sealing, depending on the specified operating conditions.
6.4 Valve Function Requirements
Choose the proper valve type based on system requirements:
- Standard ball valve: on/off service only
- V-type ball valve: suitable for flow regulation
- Three-way ball valve: used for changing flow direction
A clear definition of the valve function helps avoid under-specification or over-selection.
6.5 End Connection
The valve end connection should match the piping system:
- Flanged connection: secure installation and easy maintenance
- Welded connection: suitable for high-pressure or buried pipeline applications with high sealing requirements
- Threaded connection: suitable for small-bore systems
6.6 Operation Method
Choose the operation method based on control requirements and automation level:
- Manual: suitable for simple systems
- Pneumatic: fast operation, suitable for automated control
- Electric: ideal for remote control and intelligent systems
