Are you in the market for floating ball valves but feeling overwhelmed by the options? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! In this ultimate guide, we will walk you through everything you need to know before making a purchase. From their functionality to the benefits they offer, we’ll provide all the essential information to help you make an informed decision.
What Are Floating Ball Valves, and How Do They Work?
Floating ball valves are an essential component in various industries, known for their reliability and durability. But what exactly makes them different? Unlike trunnion ball valves, which rely on a fixed pivot point, floating ball valves float in the pipeline, allowing for greater sealing capabilities. The ball, when subjected to fluid pressure, presses against the seat to provide a tight seal, preventing any leaks.
The Benefits of Floating Ball Valves
When it comes to choosing the right valves for your application, understanding the benefits is crucial. Floating ball valves offer several advantages that make them a popular choice among industry professionals. Firstly, their compact design and ease of operation make them suitable for tight spaces and quick shut-off requirements. Additionally, their floating design allows for self-alignment, ensuring a tight seal even in high-pressure systems. Moreover, their versatility and compatibility with various fluids and temperatures make them a reliable choice for a wide range of applications.
Key Factors to Consider Before Buying Floating Ball Valves
Before making a purchase, it’s important to consider certain factors that can impact the performance and longevity of your floating ball valves. These factors include valve size, pressure rating, material selection, end connections, and seat material. Understanding the specific requirements of your application and consulting with experienced valve suppliers can help you choose the right specifications to meet your needs.
Structural Features of Floating Ball Valves
Switch Indication of Manual Float Ball Valve
As the moving parts of the valve, ball, stem and handle are an assembly unit. The head of the stem is shaped as a diploid, thus easy to distinguish whether the valve is in the “ON” or “OFF” position from the handle position. When the handle or stem diploid is in parallel with the pipe axis, the valve is in “ON” position; when the handle or stem diploid is vertical to the pipe axis, the valve is in “OFF” position.
Valve Locking Device
To prevent misoperation, the fully opened or closed position of the valve can be locked up, especially when valves are mounted outdoors or when valves are not allowed to be opened or closed by technical process. To prevent misoperation by other persons, it seems very important to have the valve position locked up. Thereby, the lock hole locating tab is designed if requested by users to meet the technical requirement of users.
Anti-blow Out Structure of Valve Stem
When medium passes through the valve, the pressure in the valve body may possibly push the stem out, or when the valve is repaired, if there is pressure in the middle cavity, the stem or medium seems to easily blow out upon disassembling the valve, which causes injuries to human beings. To prevent these possibilities, a dummy club is placed at the lower part of the stem. In this way, even if there is fire, packing and thrust bearing are burnt or packing is damaged due to other causes, the pressure of the medium in the valve body will make the dummy club of the stem in close contact with the upper seal face of the valve body, thus to prevent medium leaking out from the damaged packing position.
Antistatic Device
When operating the valve, the friction between the ball and the nonmetal seat, like PTFE, etc. will produce electrostatic charges that can be accumulated on the ball. To prevent the static spark, an antistatic device is placed on the valve to derive the electric charge accumulated on the ball from the static channel between the ball and stem, or between the stem and valve body.
Fire Protection Structure
In case of fire, the nonmetal packing or seat (non-fireproof material) will be burnt, the considerable medium leakage may possibly cause fire spread. Here, the fire protection structure functions to prevent the medium from mass leakage. As shown in the figure, once the seat is burnt, the ball will directly contact the metal face on the valve body, thus to prevent medium leaking out from the burnt seat. The design of fire protection and antistatic structure shall conform to the requirements of API 607, GB/T6899 and the second part of BS 6755.
Middle Flange Leak-Tight Structure
The connection between the valve body and the left body is sealed by a gasket. To prevent seal leakage that resulted from fire, high temperature or vibration, etc. the body and the left body is designed with metal-to-metal contact, thus to form up a seal flange to ensure leak-tightness.
Reliable Seating Structure
The two-way sealing structure embodying the years of our manufacturing experience in ball valves and the internationally advanced technology can release the pressure at the valve seat and ensure a reliable seal under high or low pressure and vacuum state. When the pressure of the medium is low, the contact area between the valve seat insert and the ball is relatively small, thus providing a high sealing load to ensure a reliable seat seal. When the pressure medium is high, the contact area between the valve seat insert and the ball is relatively large, so that the valve seat insert can endure the considerable medium thrust and not be damaged.
Regarding ball valves of very low working pressure, in consideration that the pressure of medium cannot guarantee the reliable seal of the valve seat. And that the pre-tightening force will decrease after a longtime of service, so we apply a leaf spring-loaded seating structure for valves working under low and ultralow pressure or under vacuum conditions, thus ensuring a persistent and reliable seal.
The seating structure of medium and high-temperature ball valves uses PPL for a seal ring that can serve a temperature of 300℃. Ball valves with metal seals and high-temperature resisting materials can be used to deal with even higher temperatures. This structure takes the function of a one-way seal.
Self-relieving Structure
In case of an abnormal rise of pressure in the middle cavity of the valve resulting from the medium left there suffered from changes of pipeline pressure or medium temperature, automatic pressure relief of valve seat can be offered under the pressure of the medium itself, thus to guarantee the safety of valve.
Full and Reduced Bore
We have ball valves of full and reduced bore to meet users’ different needs. Full-bore ball valves have the same inside diameter as that pipelines, with the lowest fluid resistance for the convenience of cleaning the pipeline. While reduced-bore ball valves weigh only 70% of the full-bore ball valve with the same caliber, a saver of cost and price, and its fluid resistance coefficient is only 1/7 of that of the globe valve with the same caliber, so that the reduced-bore valves are widely used abroad.
Reference Torque for Floating Ball Valve
The table and graphic torques below are for reference to choose a drive device. According to the properties of the medium, trims and the open frequency of the valve shall be considered as extra factors. Valves with corrosion-resistant trims to deal with clean lubricating mediums, their torque may be lowered by 20%. However, to deal with stringent mediums like slurry, granular medium and oxygen, the torque be increased by 50%.
Torque Form (N.m)
Flow Coefficient Table
The flow coefficient is an index to measure the flow capacity of the valve. A higher value of flow coefficient means less pressure loss of fluid passing through the valve. The value of the flow coefficient varies according to the dimensions, type and structure of the valve. Valves of different types and specifications shall be tested separately to make sure of their values of flow coefficient. Regarding valves of the same structure, the flow coefficient varies according to the flow direction of fluid through the valve. These differences are caused by different pressure recoveries.
The table below is the flow coefficient of the float ball valve. “CV” stands for the American gallons flowing through the valve per minute under 1 pound/inch2 (0.006894757 Mpa) pressure drop +60℉ (16℃) water.
Pressure-Temperature Rating
The pressure-temperature rating of the ball valve is not only related to shell materials, but also to the sealing parts of the seat, packing and gasket, etc. The materials of sealing parts may be high molecular material, graphite asbestos or rubber, etc., which depends on the composition of the medium to be handled, working to accurately make out the pressure-temperature rating of the valve under various unpredictable working conditions. Based on the years of valve manufacturing experience and the precious feedback of users, we can offer you the pressure-temperature rating of the valve under stable working conditions.
Pressure-Temperature Rating for Metal-to-Metal Seat Ball Valve
Products Performance Specification
Technical Specification
Design standard: API 6D / BS5351 / ASME B16.34
Face to Face: ASME B16.10
Flange Size: ASME B16.5
Test & Inspection: API 598
Notes: The sizes of the serial valve connecting flange and butt-welding terminal can be designed according to the customer’s requirement.
Form of Major Parts Materials
Different Types of Floating Ball Valves
Bore: Full or reduced ball
Material: Casting or forged
End Connection: Flange (FF, RF, RTJ, etc), BW (Butt-welding), SW (Socket-welding)
Pieces of Body: one, two or three pieces
Actuation: Handle, Gear, Electric or pneumatic actuator
Ensuring Proper Installation and Maintenance
Proper installation and regular maintenance are crucial for the optimal performance and longevity of floating ball valves. Here are some essential tips to keep in mind:
- Installation: Ensure that the valve is correctly aligned with the pipeline to avoid any misalignment issues. Follow the manufacturer’s guidelines for proper installation techniques and torque specifications.
- Regular Inspection: Schedule routine inspections to check for any signs of wear, leakage, or damage. Pay attention to the seats, seals, and stem packing. Promptly address any issues to prevent further damage and maintain the valve’s performance.
- Lubrication: Proper lubrication of the stem and sealing components is essential for smooth operation. Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations regarding lubrication intervals and suitable lubricants.
- Operational Considerations: Understand the limitations and operating conditions of the valves, such as maximum pressure and temperature ratings. Avoid exceeding these limits to prevent valve failure.
By following these installation and maintenance practices, you can ensure that your floating ball valves operate optimally and contribute to the overall efficiency of your industrial processes.
Conclusion
In this ultimate guide to floating ball valves, we have covered everything you need to know before making a purchase. From understanding their functionality, benefits, and key factors to consider, to exploring different types, installation and maintenance tips, and the importance of customization options, you are now equipped with the knowledge to make informed decisions.
Remember, when it comes to selecting floating ball valves, prioritize quality, reliability, and customization options to ensure optimal performance and efficiency in your industrial processes. Partnering with a reputable valve supplier who understands your requirements and offers excellent products and service is very important. DSNY Valve is your priority choice.
