Ball Valves for Industrial and Commercial Use

Is a Ball Valve the Right Option for Your Operation?

Among the many options available, ball valves stand out for their versatility, quick operation, and excellent shut-off capabilities. To determine if a ball valve is the optimal choice for your specific application, this quick guide can help you make an informed decision.

• Quick Operation: Quarter-turn design allows for fast opening and closing.
• Excellent Shut-off: Provides reliable bubble-tight sealing.
• Low Pressure Drop: Full-port designs offer minimal flow restriction, leading to energy efficiency.
• Compact Size: Generally smaller and lighter than other valve types for similar flow capacity.
• Versatility: Available in a wide range of materials, sizes, pressure ratings, and configurations for diverse applications.
• Low Maintenance: Simple design with few moving parts, leading to reduced maintenance requirements.
• Visual Indication: The position of the handle clearly indicates whether the valve is open or closed.
• Not Ideal for Throttling: Standard ball valves are not designed for precise or continuous throttling. Partially open positions can lead to excessive wear on the seats due to high velocity flow across a small opening, potentially causing leakage.
• Cavity Trapping: In some designs, a small amount of fluid can be trapped in the body cavity between the ball and body when the valve is closed. This can be problematic for certain fluids, like those that expand significantly with temperature changes, or hazardous fluids. However, this issue can be mitigated in trunnion-mounted designs or with specialized seat designs.
• Slurry Limitations: While better than some valves for slurries, abrasive slurries can still cause wear on the soft seats over time. Metal-seated ball valves are available for abrasive services but are more expensive.

Trunnion vs. Floating Ball Valves

The key difference between trunnion and floating ball valves lies in how the ball is supported. In a floating ball valve, the ball “floats” between the valve seats. When fluid pressure builds, it pushes the ball against the downstream seat, creating a tight seal. The valves are generally simpler and more compact, making them suitable for low to medium pressure applications and smaller sizes. However, they require more operating torque as pressure increases.

In trunnion valves, the ball is anchored at the top and bottom by a support shaft called a trunnion, which holds it firmly in place. The seats are spring-loaded and press against the ball to seal. This design reduces friction and wear on the seats, allowing for higher pressure applications and larger valve sizes with lower operating torque.

Our Trunnion Ball Valve Design

Body Construction
The body is made of three forged parts, and the bolted construction allows disassembly in the field for repairs. Our valves come with a ¼” NPT drain plug and forged fittings for both stem and seat emergency sealing. Graphite rings are provided for compliance with API 6FA fire-safe standards.

We manufacture trunnion ball valves using a full range of carbon, stainless and high alloy materials. As a standard, our commodity valves are A350 LF2 and 3 mil ENP carbon steel trim. Material test reports are in accordance with EN10204 3.1.

Stem Construction
The stem function is to transmit torque and to absorb the line pressure thrust together with the trunnion. Our design for CL150 through CL600 comes with a standard Dual Stem bearing system. Force is balanced from resultant forces on both bearings, which creates less stress and lower operating torques.

Emergency Sealant Injection
As an excess of impurities in fluids may have a harmful effect on seat ring seals, our trunnion valves 6” and above are equipped for emergency sealant injection. This consists of special holes and grooves in the seat rings and valve body through which sealants can be injected. Each body injection port is equipped with an inner check valve and a grease button head fitting.

Our Ball Valve Design and Materials

Ball valves are renowned for their excellent bubble-tight shut-off capabilities, minimizing leakage when in the closed position. This is achieved by the ball pressing firmly against soft seats made of PTFE, TFM, or other polymers. A defining feature of ball valves is that they open or close with a 90-degree or quarter-turn rotation of the handle or actuator. This allows for very quick on/off action. Additionally, when fully open, full-port ball valves offer minimal flow restriction, resulting in very low pressure drop across the valve.

With relatively few moving parts, ball valves are known for their long service life and dependable performance, even after long periods of disuse.

Specifications, Features, and Options