The gate valve is the next version of the ball valve. The valve has a hand wheel and opens or closes by revolving it. It is often called the knife and sluice valve as it ultimately allows or restricts the flow of fluid through it. One of the valve’s most prominent features is its straight-through, unobstructed passage.
The valve does not contribute to maintaining the regular flow of fluid as a ball valve. Instead, it is only used in its fully open or closed position. A valve is the most common way of supplying water and isolates particular areas in case of different working processes like maintenance, new installations, and repair projects.
Components of Gate Valve
The valve comes under the category of commonly used valve today because of its low-pressure drop service. It will not cause any pressure drop in pipelines and can clean the pipe using a cleaning pig. As far as it concerned to its construction, the gate valve is manufactured by using different featured working parts.
- Body
- Bonnet
- Solid wedge
- Body seat
- Stem
- Back seat
- Stem nut
- Yoke nut
- Gland follower
- Gland flange
- Handwheel
- Handwheel nut
- Stud and bolts
- Nuts
- Bonnet gasket
- Lubricator
- Gland packing
Working of a Gate Valve
Want a full flow of water? Or looking to shut off the water flow completely. The gate valve offers an excellent way to manage the water flow in various pipelines. The system works by rotating the stem in a clockwise direction; it will enable the gate to move throughout the threaded portion of the stem by moving up and down.
When you rotate the handle clockwise, the gate will move and squeeze between the two seats. There is no leakage to the fluid when the valve is completely closed. But if you turn the wheel in an anti-clockwise direction, the valve will open in the chrome closed position. It will allow the liquid to start flowing through the gate valve.
When the gate opens, different situations occur in the flow of water. When the gate is fully open, it will not have any resistance or may have a slight resistance to fluid flow. If the entrance is semi-opened, it will not prove very good as it may cause erosion when the fluid strikes.
Gate Valve Installation
It is crucial to install the gate appropriately to enhance its working duration. Besides durability, the installation also ensures the proper functioning of the gate. Let’s get down and look at the installation practices of this valve.
- Ensures that the flange must be at room temperature when you are going to install the valve
- Installing the device upright is highly recommended to get easy handwheel access.
- Keep some space in the pipe flanges, as it will make it easy for the future service practices of the valve.
- Complete the welding jobs before installing the gate.
- Before installing the valve, wash off all the waste residues and sludges.
- Make a proper alignment of the valve and check the pipe handling of the valve weight.
- Properly check all the material of all the parts to ensure that there will be no damage to the valve parts.
- The bolts connected to the pipe are correctly tightened and then checked to ensure that pressure will be equally distributed throughout the valve.
- Parts of the pipe flange and valve that are connected must be cleaned.
- After installing, check the valve to ensure everything is stable.
Types of Gate Valve
The gate valve, after being so effective then classified into different categories. These are
Parallel Vs. Wedge-Shaped Gate Valve
There are two parallel seats present in the similar gate valve. It allows the shut off water between these two parallel seats. It shuts the gate when the water comes from the pipe and seals the disc. In this case, the parallel gate prevents any material’s flow.
In contrast to a parallel gate valve, a widget gate valve uses a wedge structure to shut off the fluid. The gate stays on two seats that are connected in opposite directions. A seal in the gate is tightened by providing extra pressure.
Resilient Seated Vs. Metal Seated Gate Valves.
The metal seated gate valve is a new type of Control Valve known for its cone-shaped structure. It is added into the valve that has a hole at its bottom. The valve will not remove the impurities, making this type of valve less demanding.
Unlike the metal seated gate valve, resilient valves have a flat base, allowing the impurities to pass the hole. Along with this, a rubber element in the gate helps in sucking the impurities when the gate is closed and supplies pure water when the gate is open.
Non-Rising Vs. Rising Stem-Designed Gate Valves
The rising stem gate valve has a stem outside the valve, allowing the gate’s movement. When the gate moves upward, the stem will also show the same movement as the gate.
But if we compare the non-rising stem with the rising stem, the stem moves when the gate shows inside the movement. An indicator is present that helps in determining the way the flow.
Advantages of Gate Valve
While using an instrument, everyone is curious to know what benefits they will get from the device and how the tool makes their life easy. With its perks, the valve helps you efficiently fulfill your daily tasks and maintain an excellent water flow.
1- Sealing Operation
The valve has a better sealing operation compared to the shutoff valve. The valve works quickly and has faster closing and opening opera ions.
2- Bidirectional Flow
The most significant advantage of the valve is it offers a two-way flow mechanism. When you want to switch off the flow direction, the gate valve p moves to be the most effective and desired. The medium will not depend only on a path within this quality valve.
3- Minimal Flow Resistance
Getting any hurdle during work may slow down the whole process, but resistance will be acceptable for longer with this valve. The valve is highly differentiated from other valves as it allows the rapid flow of material. The gate valve will not affect the flow of material.
4- Offers Various Applications
The applications of its uses are unlimited as they are used to manage fluids and different gases. This valve can contain oil, steam, slurry, and other suspended fluids. The valve also performs as a low vacuum system or venting valve.
5- Removal of Impurities
The valve is highly efficient in removing impurities of various types. The flowing media will remove all the impurities in the water. M recover, with its high-pressure conditions, the valve helps reg late the media flow or completely shut off the flow.
Conclusion
The gate valve allows the complete flow and restriction of the liquid. From installation to the usage of the material, you need to care for the device properly. The valve offers you many benefits by collaborating with multiple components.
There is a variety in size of the valve and offer you a chance to choose that better suits your needs. The valve will last longer if it is properly maintained.