COMMON QUESTIONS

1. What are the common control valve applications?

Control valves are used in following applications:

• Pressure Reducing

• Pressure Relief/Sustaining

• Pump Control

• Rate-of-Flow Control

• Level Control

• Cavitation Control

• Surge Anticipation

• Electronic Control

• Metering

2. What is a pressure reducing valve?

Pressure reducing valve reduces a higher inlet pressure to a constant downstream

pressure regardless of demand and supply pressure fluctuations. It enables delivery
 of water at safe pressures and adequate levels in various applications such as main
feed, fire and irrigation systems.

3. What is a pressure relief valve?

Pressure relief valve relieves excess pressure while maintaining a minimum upstream
pressure. It prevents downstream demand from sacrificing supply of an upstream
zone. It is typically installed in protection of in-line distribution piping at booster pump
stations.

4. What is the rate of a flow control valve?

Rate of flow control valve maintains a maximum flow rate setting downstream
regardless of pressure changes. It is typically installed within distribution systems and
process control applications.

5. Can two control valves be used in series in high pressure drop applications?

Dropping the pressure across two valves rather than one is theoretically better.
However, in practice, the two valves will not usually control well together unless the
process can operate with a very low proportional band with slow response times.

A better and usually less expensive approach is to use a valve that is designed with
multiple pressure drop restrictions inside the trim.

6. Can two control valves be used in parallel to handle high turndown

applications?

Two valves in parallel working on split range signals can give very high
turndown capability. The situation that should be avoided if possible is that the
larger valve operates in the "cracked open" position – one way to avoid this is
to program the PLC or DCS to shut the small valve and use only the larger
unit once the capacity of the small valve is exceeded.

An alternative to the two valves in parallel is to select a valve with a high

rangeability such as a V-port ball valve.

7. Is flow through a Control Valve – Turbulent or Laminar?

Flow through control valves is almost always turbulent.

 Laminar flow takes place with liquids operating at low Reynolds numbers. This occurs
with liquids that are viscous; working at low velocities. Laminar flow in gases and
vapors very seldom will be experienced in process plants.

8. The control valve size is essentially always equal to the line size. Is this
correct?

NO. The control valve does not need to be of the same size as the pipe.

Don’t assume a 4” valve will handle the flow in a 4” line. The flow path is the critical
factor and shape of the flow passage in the valve can be a problem. Look at the
pressure through the valve and if the valve creates a pressure drop, then a slightly
larger valve may be needed. Always calculate the flow coefficient. Even for a given
size of valve, there is no industry-wide standard pressure for valve sizes; no two
manufacturers design a 4" valve the same way, and different designs have different
pressure considerations. Contrary to conventional wisdom, it is better to make an
error in under sizing a control valve than to oversize it.

9. Is the velocity of a fluid in a control valve critical?

The velocity is one of the most important considerations in sizing a control valve. For
long life on liquid applications the velocity at the exit of the valve body should be less
than 10 m/s. This compares with generally accepted line velocities of about 3 m/s,
which explains why control valves often are smaller than the line size.

On gases and vapors the velocity at the exit of the valve body should be less than
0.33 Mach (1/3rd of sonic) for noise control valves and less than 0.5 Mach where
noise is not a consideration.

10. What is a “modulating pressure independent” control valve?

A modulating pressure independent control valve does not allow a change in flow rate
when the pressure differential across the valve changes. Flow only changes with a
change in valve position.

11. What pressure and temperature requirements should be considered in

selection of control valves?

The selection of a control valve must be in accordance with established material

properties. ANSI Standard B16.34 lists the allowable temperature and pressure
 combinations for a variety of body materials. Standard pressure classes include ANSI
Classes 150, 300, 600, 900, 1500, 2500 and 4500. For a given body material, each
class denotes the maximum working pressure for a given operating temperature. Due
to loss of material strength, the allowable working pressure decreases as the
operating temperature rises. Lower temperature limits are also specified due to loss
of ductility in some materials. Although a pressure class is usually indicated for an
application, proper attention to selection of the pressure class is crucial to the safe
operation of the control valve.

12. What's the difference between balanced and unbalanced valves?

Outlet balancing is required for proper valve functioning in those applications where
the outlet pressure is more than 25% of the inlet pressure. When the outlet pressure
is relatively high compared to the inlet pressure, the normally closed poppet will
sometimes be pushed up off the internal orifice by the back pressure on the valve.
Outlet balancing prevents the backpressure from acting on the poppet.

13. How do the characteristics of the actuator influence the control valve
operation?

The valve and actuator are engineered to work together. Most manufacturers provide
an anti-hunting algorithm in the valve that prevents the valve from modulating until it
exceeds the tolerance of the valve. Use spring-loaded diaphragm type actuators
where practical. Spring-less operators and cylinder operators are acceptable only
when spring-loaded diaphragm type actuators cannot provide the desired
performance. Select the actuator so that the valve or damper that it controls will fail
safe. Fail safe is defined as lock in position or take a position (either open or closed)
that will result in the least upset.

14. What type of end connections specified for control valves?

Most control valve specifications request raised face flange connections suitable for
bolting to the process piping. In power piping and nuclear applications, butt weld ends
suitable for welding to the process piping are typical. For limited applications, screwed
end connections (NPT) and socket-weld ends are specified for globe valves in sizes
2-inch and smaller. Some high pressure applications may require the use of RTJ
(ring-type joint) flanges. Flangeless, wafer-style connections are specified in
applications where rotary valves are suitable for the process conditions. These
connections are usually raised face.
15. What are the common types of flow characteristics for control valves?

There are three basic types of control valve characteristics. These are quick opening,
linear, and equal percentage. A quick opening valve would flow approximately 70% of
its full flow at a valve opening of approximately 30%; a linear valve would flow
approximately 50% of its full flow at a valve opening of approximately 50%; and the
equal percentage valve (logarithmic) would flow 30% at approximately 70% of its full
opening. So the question is - where would you use one style of valve over another?

• A quick-opening characteristic is recommended for shut off service only. Not

much use for modulating process control except in ON-OFF application.

• If the piping and downstream equipment cause significant resistance to the

system, equal percentage will provide better control. This is a condition, when the
valve pressure drop at the maximum flow rate is less than about one third of the
overall system pressure drop (valve + line).

• If most of the pressure drop is taken through the valve and the upstream pressure
is constant, a linear characteristic will provide better control. Also use linear
characteristic when a PLC is used to control the valves in a system. Avoid linear
flow characteristics at low flow conditions.

Control valves with equal percentage flow characteristics are generally specified for
most applications. Both types offer the best throttling control. In case of doubt, use
equal percentage.

16. What are 3-way valves and how these are different from 2-way control valves?

In HVAC applications, control valves are used to maintain space temperature

conditions by altering the flow of water to the cooling coil. Valves can be two-
position or modulating 3-port configuration. The difference between the two
applications is in the piping layout and the internal design of the valve.
Two-way valves throttle flow while three-way divert or mix flow. Two-way valves
have two ports and are used to control the flow in variable flow systems. Three-
way valves have three ports and can be piped for by-pass application either in
mixing or diverting service.

Mixing Valves- A three-port valve with two inlet flows and one common outlet flow
is defined as a mixing valve, and it provides a variable temperature outlet at a
constant flow rate. A three-port motorized valve can be used to MIX, in varying
proportions, two flows of different temperatures while maintaining a constant rate
of flow in the common outlet port. Example: Mix hot and cold water (2 inlets) to
make warm water (1 outlet). This is like a single handle sink faucet where you move
the lever to get the water temperature you want. A mixing valve is used normally for
radiator circuits.

Diverting Valves- A three-port valve may also be used to divert a common flow in
varying proportions. The valve will have one inlet and two outlets and provides a
constant temperature and variable flow rate. Example: 100 GPM of flow (1 inlet) is
divided into a 70 GPM stream and a 30 GPM stream (2 outlets). A diverting valve is
used normally for circuits with convective heat transfer such as; heat exchangers,
primary coil in indirect cylinder, heater battery, cooling coil.

2-way Valve or 3-way Valve

A 2-way valve is best used when applied with variable speed pumps. In fact,
variable-pumping systems should only use 2-way valves to reap the energy saving
benefits.
The constant volume systems may employ a 2-way or 3-way valve. While pumping
costs will decrease to a small amount with a 2-way valve, other problems occur.
The 2-way valves with constant volume system may some time lead to balancing
problems in a large network and may lead to water scarcity at some terminal
locations. The pumps must incorporate the minimum recalculating system should
the 2-way valve/s close to 100% close position. The systems incorporating a 3-
way valve ensure continuous circulation.

The type of a 3-way valve selected will determine its location in the system.

2-way and 3-way Valve Circuits for HVAC Applications

 Note - The mixing valves are placed on the return side of the circuit and the diverting
valves are placed on the supply side.

17. What are the common issues associated with the control valves selection?

The major issues in valve selection are summarized below. The relative importance of
each issue depends upon the specific application; for example, one application might
require a low pressure drop, while another might require a large range. Generally, we
find that the greater the requirements for good performance, the higher the cost for
purchase and maintenance. Therefore, we must find the proper balance of
performance and cost, rather than always specify the best performing valve.

Precision

Ideally, the valve would move to exactly the position indicated by the signal to the
valve, which is usually a controller output. However, the valve is a real physical
device that does not perform ideally. The following factors prevent ideal performance.

• Deadband - A valve with dead band acts like there is some backlash between the
controller output and the actual valve position. Every time the controller output
changes direction, the dead band has to be traversed before the valve physically
starts moving. Although dead band may be caused by mechanical backlash
(looseness or play in mechanical linkages); it can also be caused by excessive
friction in the valve, an undersized actuator, or a defective positioner. Many
people use the term Hysteresis instead of dead band but the ISA clearly calls the
mechanical backlash phenomenon in control valves as dead band.

• Resolution - The smallest amount that the signal to the valve can be changed
without a change to the valve opening (stem position). This change is after a
change that has overcome deadband and is in the same direction.

Two major causes of non-ideal valve behavior are backlash and stiction.

• Backlash - A relative movement between interacting parts, resulting from

looseness, when motion is reversed.

• Stiction - Resistance to the start of motion usually required to overcome static

friction. If a valve with stiction stops moving, it tends to stick in that position. Then
additional force is required to overcome the stiction. The controller continues to
change its output while the valve continues to stick in position. Additional pressure
 mounts in the actuator. If enough pressure builds up to overcome the static
friction, the valve breaks free. The valve movement quickly absorbs the excess in
pressure, and often the valve overshoots its target position. After this, the valve
movement stops and the valve sticks in the new position. Stiction might be
caused by an over-tight valve stem seal, by sticky valve internals, by an
undersized actuator, or a sticky positioner.

The valve precision can be improved by the addition of a valve positioner.

Noise

Valve components will tend to vibrate whenever they are subjected to high velocity
turbulent flow. Standard control valves will therefore tend to be noisy on high pressure
drop applications particularly where flow rates are high, since the low pressure
experienced downstream of the seat ring (at the vena contracta) is accompanied by
very high velocities reaching as high as the speed of sound.

If noise level is less than 100 dBA, the most economical way to reduce noise would
be to use some form of path treatment such as insulation, heavier walled pipe, or a
silencer. Noise level greater than 100 dBA may create dangerous pipe vibration. Path
treatment alone is not likely to be effective, so some form of source treatment (such
as labyrinth plugs or multi-step angle valves or using some flow restrictor in series
with the valve) is needed.

Upstream Pressure Increase

If a control valve is sized incorrectly and is too small, fluid velocity upstream of the
valve will be slow, causing an increase in pressure (much like when the end of a
garden hose is partially obstructed). This increase in upstream pressure can be
detrimental to certain processes, i.e. membrane filtration processes, where a large
pressure difference across the membrane is desired. If the valve increases the
pressure on the permeate side of the membrane, the driving force for separation will
be reduced.

Hysteresis

Hysteresis, regarding control valves, is the principle that a control valve is dependent
on the prior valve position. A common valve opening may correlate to different flow
rates depending on if the valve was opened or closed to get to that position. This
shows that the direction a valve is being changed may need to be accounted for in a
control system to obtain a desired flow rate. If hysteresis becomes too large, it can
cause the control architecture to force a system to oscillate around a desired point.

Fire-Safe or Not

In many processes, it may be necessary to minimize dangerous product leakage and

maintain effective shutoff of a valve. Valves that satisfy this condition are known as
fire-safe. This term fire-safe is one of the least understood valve specifications. To
date, there is no test protocol to establish whether a valve is fire-safe. The common
definition used for a fire-safe valve is when a valve is exposed to fire conditions, it will
allow minimal leakage through the seat and stem, and continue to provide effective
shutoff during or following a fire or exposure to excessive temperatures.

Gate and globe valves made from metals that do not melt during a catastrophic fire
have also been classified as fire-safe. Their design and construction assured metal-
to-metal seating before, during and after a fire. Butterfly valves are commonly
manufactured with a "tandem" soft seat over metal to achieve a fire-safe application.

Cost

Engineers must always consider cost when making design and operations decisions.
Valves involve costs, but when selected properly they provide benefits. These must
be quantified and a profitability analysis performed. In some cases, a valve can affect
the operating costs of the process, where the pumping (or compression) costs can be
high, and the pressure drop occurring because of the valve can significantly increase
the pumping costs. In such situations, a valve with a low (non-recoverable) pressure
drop is selected.

Remember that the total cost includes costs of transmission (wiring around the plant),
installation, documentation, plant operations, and maintenance over the life of the
valve.