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Determining The Pressure Drop To Be Used in A Control Valve Sizing Calculation

Determining the correct pressure drop (Δp) to use when sizing a control valve is important. The Δp accounts for pressure lost to all fixed elements in the system, like pipes and heat exchangers. These losses are set at the required flow rate. Only the control valve is variable. To calculate Δp: start at the known upstream pressure and subtract losses until reaching the valve inlet (p1). Then start at the known downstream pressure and add losses until the outlet (p2). The actual Δp is p1 - p2. This process should be repeated for each design flow rate to properly size the valve. Using realistic Δp values along with other process data enables accurate valve sizing to ensure optimal

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Antonio Lebrun
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268 views2 pages

Determining The Pressure Drop To Be Used in A Control Valve Sizing Calculation

Determining the correct pressure drop (Δp) to use when sizing a control valve is important. The Δp accounts for pressure lost to all fixed elements in the system, like pipes and heat exchangers. These losses are set at the required flow rate. Only the control valve is variable. To calculate Δp: start at the known upstream pressure and subtract losses until reaching the valve inlet (p1). Then start at the known downstream pressure and add losses until the outlet (p2). The actual Δp is p1 - p2. This process should be repeated for each design flow rate to properly size the valve. Using realistic Δp values along with other process data enables accurate valve sizing to ensure optimal

Uploaded by

Antonio Lebrun
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Determining the Pressure Drop to be Used in a Control Valve

Sizing Calculation
Perhaps the most misunderstood area of control valve sizing is the selection of the pressure
drop, p, to use in the sizing calculation. The p cannot be arbitrarily specified without regard
for the actual system into which the valve will be installed. What must be kept in mind is that
all of the components of the system except for the control valve (pipe, fittings, isolation
valves, heat exchangers, etc.) are fixed and at the flow rate required by the system (to cool a
hot chemical to a specified temperature, maintain a specified level in a tank, etc.) the
pressure loss in each of these fixed elements is also fixed. Only the control valve is variable
and it is connected to an automatic control system. The control system will adjust the control
valve to whatever position is necessary to establish the required flow (and thus achieve the
specified temperature, tank level or whatever). At this point the portion of the overall system
pressure differential (the difference between the pressure at the beginning of the system and
at the end of the system) that is not being consumed by the fixed elements must appear
across the control valve.

Assuming that you need to size a control valve for a system that has been designed, but not
yet built, or perhaps a system that is running, but it is not possible, or convenient, to get
reliable pressure measurements near the control valve, the correct procedure for determining
the pressure drop across a control valve at the flow rate for which you plan to perform a
sizing calculation, is as follows: Start upstream of the valve at a point where the pressure is
known (for example a pump where the pressure can be determined from the head curve) and
subtract the pressure loss in each of the fixed elements. When you get to the valve inlet you
know p1, the pressure immediately upstream of the valve. At this point you cannot directly
calculate the pressure drop across the valve, because you have yet to determine both its size
and the percentage of opening at which it will be operating. The next step is to go to a point
downstream of the control valve where the pressure is known (for example, a tank where the
head is known) and then work upstream toward the control valve, adding the pressure loss of

each of the fixed elements. (You are adding the pressure losses because you are working in
the direction opposite to the flow.) When you get to the valve outlet you know p2, the
pressure immediately downstream of the valve. The actual pressure drop across the control
valve is the difference between the upstream and the downstream pressures, that is p = p1 p2. If you plan to perform sizing calculations at more than one flow rate (for example, at both
maximum and minimum design flows) you must repeat the calculation of p1 and p2 at each
flow rate, since the system pressure losses (and pump head) are dependent on flow. With
realistic pressure drop data, determined as above, along with your other process data, we
can use state-of-the-art control valve sizing software to size your control valve correctly for
the application to insure optimal control while reducing noise and valve wear.

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