Faculty of Chemical Engineering

UiTM Pulau Pinang

CEV544
PROCESS CONTROL AND 
INSTRUMENTATIONS
 LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this chapter, student should be
able to:

Explain the working principles of several 
types of final control element. 
Calculate the correct size of control valve 
for a given flow
VALVE
VALVE
Unit 1: Process Control Loop

Process control loop

Pressure
Flow
Level
Process Temperature
pH

dP cell
Capacitance
I/P
Sensor Radar, Sonic
Magnetic
Resistance
IR/Laser

Transmitter 4-20 mA
1-5 Vdc

Controller PID
Fuzzy logic

Transducer 4-20 mA
3-15 psig

Linear
Control valve Equal percentage

© Abdul Aziz Ishak, Universiti Teknologi MARA Malaysia (2009)

 Valve
The most important aspects of control valves:
1. Selection of their action and fail position
2. Capacity and sizing
3. Flow characteristics
4. Gain
5. Transfer function
 Action (A)
Control valve
• Most common final control elements
• Adjusting the flow that affect the controlled
variables.
• Act as a variable restriction in a process pipe.
• The controller output signal positions the valve,
determining the valve position (determine the
degree of restriction to the flow).
• The controller output signal is the input to the
valve, and the flow is the output of the valve
 Introduction

• Purpose
to regulate flow of any phase (liquid, gas, fluid
and mixed phases) that could pass through it.
At the moment, solid phase (such as sand,
flour, sugar) is not possible.

• Chemical process applications

>80% of final control element found in chem.
proc. ind.

• Symbols

=
 Construction

Actuator

Body

Plug
Seat
The control valve actuator

• air pressure actuator is the most common to adjust the position of

control valves
• The controller signal m(t) is in percent controller output (%CO), as
opposed to mA or psig
• the actuator convert the controller output m(t), into the valve
position, vp(t)
• The valve position usually expressed as a fraction –varies between
zero and unity.
• When the valve position is zero – the valve is closed and 
the flow is zero
• When the valve is unity –the valve is fully opened and the 
flow is maximum.
• For full range valve actuator, a 1% change in controller 
output results 0.01 change in fraction valve position.
• Most control valves use a full range actuator
Control valve action
• What do I want to do when energy supply fails?
• When the safest position of the valve is the closed 
position 
–specify a ‘fail‐closed’ (FC) valve
–this valve required energy to open and is also called ‘air‐
to‐open’ (ATO) valve
• When the safest position of the valve is the 
opened position
–specify a ‘fail‐open’ (FO) valve
–this valve required energy to close and is also called ‘air‐
to‐close’ (ATC)
 Selection Criteria
Valve action: ATO vs. ATC
 Air-to-closed (ATC) or Fail open (FO).  Air‐to‐open (ATO) or Fail closed (FC). Use to
Use to allow flow of fluid during loss of prevent flow when no pneumatic air supply.
pneumatic air supply. This action may This action may prevent hazardous chemical or
save overheating of temperature related flammable fluid from endangering lives.
processes such as catalyst heating or
heating of polimerization process.

compare

compare
compare
compare
 • What we want each valves to do if the 
3 electrical or air supply were fail?

• 1‐fail‐closed –prevent high steam flow    
that could vaporize all the liquid and 
overheat the coil 

• 2 ‐ fail‐closed – keep the liquid in the 

1
tank

• 3‐ fail‐open – allow the vapor to flow 
out and prevent the vapor pressurized 
2
the tank
• The action of the valve determine the sign of the 
gain of the valve
• Air‐to‐open valve  has a positive gain
• Air to‐closed valve has a negative gain
• Formula relating valve position to the controller 
output
 Exercise
– If 10 psig is sent to the control valve, what is the 
valve position?
• For air‐to‐close system
• For air‐to‐open system
TYPE OF CONTROL VALVES
• Purpose of control valve
• For throttling purposes and general flow 
control

• Control valve is classify into 2 categories:
• Reciprocating stem
• Rotating stem 
• Reciprocating stem
– globe valve 
» the most common valves in existence. 
» The globe valve derives its name from 
the globular shape of the valve body.
» The essential principle of globe valve 
operation is the perpendicular 
movement of the disk away from the 
seat.
» Valve is divided into 2 areas:
• Actuator – converts the energy      
input into mechanical motion
• Body
• Example of globe valve
– Single seated sliding stem globe valve
– Double seated sliding stem globe valve
• Reciprocating stem
– Three way valves 
» Split one stream into two other stream
» Blend two steam into one stream
– Y‐style valves 
» Commonly used in molten metal  or cryogenic service
– Pinch or diaphragm  valves 
» Consist of some kind of flexure that can be moved 
together to open or close the area of flow.
» Commonly used for highly corrosive fluids, slurries, 
high‐viscosity liquids, some food processing
– Gate valves 
» Mainly used as block valve
» Fully open or fully closed services.
Gate valve Y type valve

3 ways valve Pinch valve

 • Rotating stem
– Butterfly valve 
• consist of a disk rotating about a 
shaft
• A flat circular plate is positioned in 
the center of the pipe
• Require minimum space for 
installation and provide high‐
capacity flow at low cost
‐ Ball valve 
• Valve that opens by turning a handle 
attached to a ball inside the valve. 
• The ball has a hole, or port, through 
the middle so that when the port is in 
line with both ends of the valve, flow 
will occur
• provide high‐capacity flow at low cost
 Control valve actuator
• converts the energy input, either pneumatic or electrical 
into mechanical motion to open or close the valve.

Pneumatically operated diaphragm

actuators
• Working principle – pneumatic 
signal pressure is sent to the air 
chamber of diaphragm actuator.
• The pressure act on the diaphragm 
to produce a pressing force  which 
compress a spring to cause the 
movement of the rod and valve 
stem.
Electrohydraulic and electromechanical actuator
– most common one – solenoid 
actuator
– By making or breaking an electrical 
current signal
– When current flows through the coil, a 
magnetic field forms around the coil. 
– The magnetic field attracts the 
armature toward the center of the 
coil.  As the armature moves upward, 
the spring collapses and the valve 
opens. 
– When the circuit is opened and current 
stops flowing to the coil, the magnetic 
field collapses. This allows the spring 
to expand and shut the valve.
• Piston Actuators
 Used when maximum thrust output is required 
along with fast response
 When the pressure of the supply air is high 
enough, the actuator forces are higher than with 
diaphragm actuators
 Working against high process pressure
 The compressed air is applied to a solid piston 
contained within a solid cylinder.
 Question
Determine type of valve. FC or FO? Why?
OTHER FINAL CONTROL ELEMENT
 Metering pump
 A metering pump is a pump used to pump liquids 
at adjustable flow rates which are precise when 
averaged over time. 
 Delivery of fluids in precise adjustable flow rates 
is sometimes called metering.
 Although metering pumps can pump water, they 
are often used to pump chemicals, solutions, or 
other liquids. 
 Many metering pumps are rated to be able to 
pump into a high discharge pressure. 
Piston pump
 Variable speed drive
 A variable speed drive is a piece of equipment 
that regulates the speed and rotational force, 
or torque output, of an electric motor
Electrical 
AC Drive Motor
supply

Supply power 2.Drive regulate power into

Motor received
into AC Drive motor
AC power from
3. Inside drive, AC convert
driver
to DC
4. DC power insert to
capacitor to smooth out the
wave form
5. DC power goes to
inverter and convert back
to AC
Source of information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbswgXV0eu8 ( retrieved 28/4/2015)
 Solenoid valve
 The solenoid valves are used to control the flow of the 
liquid or the gas (called as fluids) in the pipeline or in 
certain process. 
 The solenoid valve is the electromechanical valve 
comprising of the solenoid coil and a plunger which is 
connected to the stem of the valve. 
 In solenoid valves the core around which the insulated coil 
is wound is hollow. 
 In this hollow portion there is round shaft like plunger or 
piston that can move up and down inside the hollow space. 
 The plunger is connected to the spring that keeps it in place 
and controls its motion (refer the figure below for various 
parts of the solenoid valve).
Source: http://www.brighthubengineering.com/manufacturing-technology/56397-parts-of-the-solenoid-valve-how-
solenoid-valve-works/#imgn_1, (Retrieved on 28/4/2015)
 Solenoid valve
• Sense the process
Sensor • Send current signal to S.V.

• Current is passed through S.V and get energized. 
Solenoid 
valve
• The magnetic field is generated to trigger plunger.

• Move upward / downward to open and close 
Plunger orifice 

• Open/Close based on the plunger movement
Orifice
 Control valve 
Capacity and sizing
CONTROL VALVE CAPACITY AND SIZING
 Control valve capacity and sizing

• To regulate flow, the flow capacity of the control valve 
varies from zero when the valve is closed to a maximum 
when the valve is fully opened.

• Flow capacity of a control valve is determine by its capacity 
factor or flow coefficient, Cv 

• Cv is the flow in US gallon per minute (gpm) that flow 
through the valve at a pressure drop of 1 psi across the 
valve. 
• e.g valve with Cv of 25 can deliver 25 gpm of water when it 
has a 1  psi pressure drop. 
• Liquid
‐Liquid flow through the valve 

Conversion unit

Mass  flow , lb/h   =
• Compressible flow (Gas or vapor)
‐equation of gas or vapor flow in cubic feed per hour, at 
o
standard conditions of one atm and 60   F
• Mass rate through the valve:

•
w is gas flow in lb/h
Mw is average molecular weight of the gas
A 3‐in Masoneilan valve with full trim has a capacity factor of 110 gpm/(psi)1/2 when 
fully opened. The pressure drop across the valvel is 10 psi. Calculate the flow of a gas 
with average molecular weight of 35 when the valve inlet conditions are 100 psig 
and 100 oF
Gas Mw=35, G=35/29 = 1.207, P1=100+14.7 =114.7 psia, T=100+460 
=560 oR, Cf=0.9
Sizing of control valves
• Sizing control valve for liquid service
– Flow through the valve
– Pressure drop across the valve
– Specific gravity of the liquid

• Sizing control valve for compressible flow
– Flow through the valve
– Pressure drop across the valve
– Specific gravity of the liquid
– Inlet pressure and temperature
– Average molecular weight of the fluid
• For sizing the valve, use the information to calculate 
the Cv coefficient
• Once the Cv coefficient is known select a valve that is 
large enough for the service.
• Generally, the calculated Cv falls between two 
different valve sizes. Select the larger valve.
• Capacity factor/ flow coefficient =


f = flow through the valve at nominal production rate (nominal flow ) 
‐ obtained from the process steadystate design conditions. 
pv = pressure drop across the valve, psi
Gf =specific gravity of liquid
• The valve coefficient must be greater than the one 
calculated from the equation

• Ratio of the valve coefficient when the valve is fully open 
opened to the valve coefficient at nominal flow = 
overcapacity factor of the valve

• Calculate the overcapacity factor of the valve,
Cv ,max

Cv

• Overcapacity factor 1.5 for 50% overcapacity
• Overcapacity factor 2 for 100% overcapacity
Example
A control valve is to regulate the flow of steam into a
distillation column reboiler with a design nominal flow of
16,100 lb/h. The supply steam is saturated at 20 psig. Size
the control valve for a pressure drop of 5 psi and 100%
overcapacity. Assume Cf = 0.8. Given the molecular weight
of steam, Mw is 18lb/mole. The steam saturation
temperature is 259oF.
• Answer
• The valve pressure is 20+14.7 =34.7 psia, 
• The specific gravity is G=18/29 =0.621, assuming Cf =0.8
• The Tinlet = 259 + 460 = 719 oR

• For 100% overcapacity, the valve coefficient when fully opened
 Masoneilan’s valve catalog

• Cv, max is between 640 and 1000
• Therefore valve size is 10 inch
Exercise 
• A control valve is used to regulate the flow of steam. The 
nominal flow of the steam is 180,000scfh. The valve condition 
are 100 psig and 60oF, and the outlet pressure is 80 psig. Size 
the control valve for 100% overcapacity. Steam MW= 18 and 
Cf=0.8. (Masoneilan)
 Selection Criteria
Capacity and sizing

P in psi

P
Q  Cv
S .G . Fluid S.G. Q
Flowrate
In gpm

Example

Calculate the Cv of a control valve Q 12 .5

when a 12.5 gpm fluid having a SG of Cv   3
0.8 pass through it. The pressure P 14
drop across the control valve is 14 S .G . 0 .8
psi.
 Selection Criteria
Control valve size selection

Select an equal percentage control valve for the following condition. (S.G=1)

Flow condition Flowrate, gpm Pressure drop, psi Valve lift, %

Maximum 120 10 80

Normal 42 15 50

Minimum 13 20 20

 
Flow condition Flowrate, Pressure Valve Cv Cv
gpm drop, psi lift, % calculated actual

Maximum 120 10 80 37.9 37.3

Normal 42 15 50 10.8 10.8

Maximum 13 20 20 2.9 2.93

Contiunue on next page for valve rangeability calculation…

 Selection Criteria
Control valve rangeablity

The size of an equal percentage control valve

= 2”
ISSUES ON CONTROL VALVE
• What make a control valve becomes linear,
equal percentage or quick opening control
valve?

• Why flashing and cavitation are serious

problem in control valve?

• What causing flashing and cavitation in a

control valve?
What make a control valve becomes linear, equal
percentage or quick opening control valve?

The amount of flow produced with

respect to steady increment in
stem travel.
Why flashing and cavitation are serious
problem in control valve?

Erosion
 What causing flashing and
cavitation in a control valve?

• Flashing • Cavitation
Pressure of the liquid falls below  If pressure recovery experienced by 
its vapor pressure, liquid change  the liquid is enough to raise the 
phase to vapor phase. pressure above the vapor pressure 
of the liquid, the vapor bubbles will 
start collapsing/imploding
What causing flashing and cavitation
in a control valve?
INSTALL VALVE CHARACTERISTICS
• When the pressure drop in the line and equipment in series 
with a valve is significant compared with pressure drop across 
the valve, the valve pressure drop varies with the flow 
through the line.

• Variation of flow with valve position to be different from the 
variation of the Cv coefficient.

• Installed flow characteristics of the valve are different from 
the inherent Cv characteristic.
There is total pressure drop , Δ po that is independent of
flow

Total pressure differential available across the valve plus

the
line and equipment
• Flow 

kL= constant friction coefficient for the line, fitting, equipment psi/(gpm)2

• Maximum flow

• Rangeability
Control valve characteristic
• The Cv coefficient (flow coefficient) of a control valve depends 
on the valve position.

• Varies from zero (when the valve is closed, vp=0) to a 
maximum value, Cv,max (when the valve is fully opened)

• The variation in the Cv allows the valve to continuously 
regulate the flow

• The particular function relating the Cv coefficient to the valve 
position is known as inherent valve characteristics.

• 3 common valve characteristics:  quick‐opening, linear, equal 
percentage. 
 Selection Criteria
Valve characteristics: Linear, equal percentage and quick opening.
What make a control valve becomes linear, equal
percentage or quick opening control valve?

The amount of flow produced with

respect to steady increment in
stem travel.
• Quick opening 
– not suitable for regulating flow because most of the variation 
in the valve coefficient takes place in the lower third of the 
valve level
– very little variation in coefficient takes place for most of the 
valve travel
– appropriate for relief valves and for on‐off control system
• Two characteristics normally used to regulate flow 
are : linear and equal percentage

• linear
– The function for linear characteristics
Cv (vp)=Cv,max vp
‐ Produce a coefficient proportional to the valve opening 
‐ Used when the process is linear and the pressure drop 
across the valve do not vary with flow
‐ 50% valve position = 50% Cv of its maximum coefficient
• equal percentage
– The function for equal percentage characteristics
Cv (vp)=Cv,max αvp‐1 α = rangeability parameter having a
value of 50 or 100
50 is most common
‐ Produce a exponential function to the valve opening
result in equal relative / percentage increments
‐ Used when the pressure drop across the valve do not vary
with flow, and with process which the gain decreases
when the flow through the valve increases.
‐ Exponential function has a property that equal increments
in valve position result in equal relative or percentage
increments in the valve coefficient
‐ When increasing the valve position by 1% the flow
increases by 1% of its value at the past valve position.
 Question
Valve characteristics: Linear, equal percentage and quick opening.

What will be the flowrate when the Example

indicator shows 0.75? 8 gpm

Quick opening
Flow coef. =
6 gpm
Flowrate =

Linear
Flow coef. = 4 gpm
Flowrate =

Equal percentage 2 gpm

Flow coef. =
Flowrate =
0 gpm
• Valve rangeability
– Also called turn down ratio
– Ratio of the maximum controllable flow to the 
minimum controllable flow. 
– Measure of the width of operating flows the valve 
can control
– Common way to define the maximum and 
minimum flow at 95 and 5% valve position

– Another definition uses 90 and 10% valve 
positions
• If the pressure drop across the valve is independent 
of flow, the flow through the valve is proportional to 
its Cv coefficient. We can calculate the valve 
rangeability from its inherent characteristics.
• linear characteristic  Cv (vp)=Cv,max vp

– Rangeability = 0.95/0.05 = 19
• Equal percentage characteristic
– Rangeability =α‐0.05 / α‐0.95 = α 0.9
• α = 50 , rangeability =33.8                     Cv (vp)=Cv,max αvp‐1 
• α = 100 , rangeability =63.1

• Quick opening characteristic
– Rangeability = 3 (small range)
CONTROL VALVE GAIN & TRANSFER 
FUNCTION 
Control valve gain and transfer function
Gain
• Gain of the valve – change in output divided by the 
change in the input
• Output of valve – flow
• Input of the valve is the controller output signal (in 
percent controller output)
df gpm Ib/hr or scfh 
Kv 
dm %CO
• The valve gain obtained from three term
– Dependence of the valve position on the controller output
– Dependence of the Flow coefficient, Cv on the valve position 
– Dependence of the Flow on the flow coefficient , Cv

dvp dCv df
Kv 
dm dvp dCv
• Dependence of the valve position on the controller 
output
– Simply the conversion of percent controller output to 
fraction valve position

– +ve sign for valve fails closed (air‐to‐open)
– ‐ve sign for valve fails open (air to close)
=

• Dependence of the Flow coefficient, Cv on the 
valve position
– Linear characteristic

‐ Equal percentage
• Dependence of the Flow on the flow coefficient , Cv
– For liquid service
• Constant valve pressure drop

• Variable valve pressure drop
 Constant valve pressure drop
• The gain of a valve with linear characteristic

= 

The gain of a valve with equal percentage 
characteristic
 Variable valve pressure drop
• The gain of a valve with linear characteristic

• The gain of a valve with equal percentage 
characteristic
•
 Question 1
• Find the gain and the valve position 
• Cv,max=2000
• Cv=500
• Density of liquid =800kg/m3
• Inlet pressure =100 psig
• Outlet pressure =80 psig
• α (rangeability parameter) = 50
• Consider both a valve with linear characteristics 
and equal percentage valve
• Transfer function
 Question 2
• Using the valve gain obtained in Question 1,
1. Write the transfer function of the valve if the 
time constant of the valve actuator is 0.3 min
2. Draw the block diagram of the valve