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Introduction To Pressure Seal Valves

Pressure seal valves are used for high pressure applications over 170 bar. They have a unique design where the body and bonnet joint seals improve as internal pressure increases, unlike traditional designs where leaks can occur. The pressure seal design uses bonnet take-up bolts to pull the bonnet and seal it against the body with a pressure seal gasket. As system pressure rises, the sealing force also rises, decreasing chances of leaks. Pressure seal valves are available in various materials and sizes to accommodate high pressure and temperature applications.

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450 views3 pages

Introduction To Pressure Seal Valves

Pressure seal valves are used for high pressure applications over 170 bar. They have a unique design where the body and bonnet joint seals improve as internal pressure increases, unlike traditional designs where leaks can occur. The pressure seal design uses bonnet take-up bolts to pull the bonnet and seal it against the body with a pressure seal gasket. As system pressure rises, the sealing force also rises, decreasing chances of leaks. Pressure seal valves are available in various materials and sizes to accommodate high pressure and temperature applications.

Uploaded by

Ganci Zebro
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Introduction to Pressure Seal valves

Pressure Seal Valves


Pressure seal construction is adopted for Valves for high pressure service, typically in excess of
above 170 bar. The unique feature about the pressure seal Bonnet is that the body-Bonnet joints
seals improves as the internal pressure in the Valve increases, compared to other constructions
where the increase in internal pressure tends to create leaks in the body-Bonnet joint.

Pressure seal design

• A/B - BONNET TENDENCY TO MOVE UP OR DOWN AS PRESSURE CHANGES


• C - SYSTEM PRESSURE
• D - SEALING FORCES DUE TO PRESSURE

The higher the internal pressure, the greater the sealing force. Easy dismantling is made
possible by dropping the Bonnet assembly into the body cavity and driving out the four-
segmental thrust rings by means of a push pin.

Relying on fairly simple design principles, pressure seal Valves have proven their capability to
handle increasingly demanding fossil and combined-cycle steam isolation applications, as
designers continue to push boiler, HRSG, and piping system pressure/temperature envelopes.
Pressure seal Valves are typically available in size ranges from 2 inches to 24 inches and ASME
B16.34 pressure classes from #600 to #2500, although some manufacturers can accommodate
the need for larger diameters and higher ratings for special applications.
Pressure seal Valves are available in many material qualities such as A105 forged and Gr.WCB
cast, alloy F22 forged and Gr.WC9 cast; F11 forged and Gr.WC6 cast, austenitic stainless F316
forged and Gr.CF8M cast; for over 500°C, F316H forged and suitable austenitic cast grades.
The pressure seal design concept can be traced back to the mid-1900s, when, faced with ever
increasing pressures and temperatures (primarily in power applications), Valve manufacturers
began designing alternatives to the traditional bolted-Bonnet approach to sealing the
body/Bonnet joint. Along with providing a higher level of pressure boundary sealing integrity,
many of the pressure seal Valve designs weighed significantly less than their bolted Bonnet
Valve counterparts.

Bolted Bonnets vs. Pressure Seals


To better understand the pressure seal design concept, let's contrast the body-to-Bonnet
sealing mechanism between bolted Bonnets and pressure seals. FIG. 1 depicts the typical
Bolted Bonnet valve. The body flange and Bonnet flange are joined by studs and nuts, with a
gasket of suitable design/material inserted between the flange faces to facilitate sealing.
Studs/nuts/bolts are tightened to prescribed torques in a pattern defined by the manufacturer
to affect optimal sealing. However, as system pressure increases, the potential for leakage
through the body/Bonnet joint also increases.
Now let's look at the pressure seal joint detailed in FIG. 2 Note the differences in the respective
body/Bonnet joint configurations. Most pressure seal designs incorporate "Bonnet take-up
bolts" to pull the Bonnet up and seal against the pressure seal gasket. This in turn creates a seal
between the gasket and the inner dia (I.D.) of the valve body.
A segmented thrust ring maintains the load. The beauty of the pressure seal design is that as
system pressure builds, so does the load on the Bonnet and, correspondingly, the pressure seal
gasket. Therefore, in pressure seal Valves, as system pressure increases, the potential for
leakage through the body/Bonnet joint decreases.
This design approach has distinct advantages over bolted Bonnet Valves in main steam,
feedwater, turbine bypass, and other power plant systems requiring Valves that can handle the
challenges inherent in high-pressure and temperature applications.
But over the years, as operating pressures/temperatures increased, and with the advent of
peaking plants, this same transient system pressure that aided in sealing also played havoc with
pressure seal joint integrity.

Pressure Seal Gaskets


One of the primary components involved in sealing the pressure seal Valve is the gasket itself.
Early pressure seal gaskets were manufactured from iron or soft steel. These gaskets were
subsequently silver-plated to take advantage of the softer plating material's ability to provide
a tighter seal. Due to the pressure applied during the Valve's hydrotest, a "set" (or deformation
of the gasket profile) between the Bonnet and gasket was taken. Because of the inherent Bonnet
take-up bolt and pressure seal joint elasticity, the potential for the Bonnet to move and break
that "set" when subjected to system pressure increases/ decreases existed, with body/Bonnet
joint leakage the result.
This problem could be effectively negated by utilizing the practice of "hot torquing" the Bonnet
take-up bolts after system pressure and temperature equalization, but it required owner/user
maintenance personnel to do so after plant startup. If this practice was not adhered to, the
potential for leakage through the body/Bonnet joint existed, which could damage the pressure
seal gasket, the Bonnet and/or the I.D. of the Valve body, as well as creating compounding
problems and inefficiencies that the steam leakage could have on plant operations. As a result,
Valve designers took several steps to address this problem.
Figure 2 shows a combination of live-loaded Bonnet take-up bolts (thus maintaining a constant
load on the gasket, minimizing the potential for leakage) and the replacement of the iron/soft
steel, silverplated pressure seal gasket with one made of die-formed graphite. The gasket design
shown in Figure 3 can be installed in pressure seal Valves previously supplied with the
traditional type gasket. The advent of graphite gaskets has further solidified the dependability
and performance of the pressure seal Valve in most applications and for even daily start/stop
operating cycles.
Although many manufacturers still recommend "hot torquing," the potential for leakage when
this is not done is greatly diminished. The seating surfaces in pressure seal Valves, as in many
power plant Valves, are subjected to, comparatively speaking, very high seating loads. Seat
integrity is maintained as a function of tight machining tolerances on component parts, means
of providing the requisite torque to open/close as a function of gears or actuation, and
selection/ application of proper materials for seating surfaces.
Cobalt, nickel, and iron-based hardfacing alloys are utilized for optimal wear resistance of the
wedge/disc and seat ring seating surfaces. Most commonly used are the CoCr-A (e.g., Stellite)
materials. These materials are applied with a variety of processes, including shielded metal arc,
gas metal arc, gas tungsten arc, and plasma (transferred) arc. Many pressure seal Globe Valves
are designed having integral hardfaced seats, while the Gate Valve and Check Valves typically
have hardfaced seat rings that are welded into the Valve body.

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