DOC 40

Hygienic Engineering of Valves in Process Lines for Dry

Particulate Materials
October 2010
European Hygienic Engineering and Design Group
EHEDG Secretariat
Lyoner Str. 18
D-60528 Frankfurt, Germany

Tel.: +49-69-66 03-12 17

Fax: +49-69-66 03-22 17
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website: www.ehedg.org

THE ENGLISH VERSION OF THIS EHEDG DOCUMENT IS THE OFFICIAL VERSION. THE RESPONSIBILITY
FOR THE PREPARATION, DEVELOPMENT AND ISSUANCE OF SUCH GUIDELINES LIES WITH EHEDG.
DUE TO THE TECHNICAL AND GENERAL NATURE OF THE GUIDELINES, EHEDG MAY NOT ASSUME ANY
LIABILITY RESULTING FORM THE INTERPRETATION, APPLICATION OR USE OF SUCH GUIDELINES.
Contents Page

Introduction.........................................................................................................................................................5
1 Objectives and scope............................................................................................................................5
2 Normative references............................................................................................................................6
3 Definitions ..............................................................................................................................................6
4 Shut-off and metering valves ...............................................................................................................6
5 Butterfly valves......................................................................................................................................8
5.1 Principle .................................................................................................................................................8
5.2 Disc of the butterfly valve.....................................................................................................................8
5.3 Housing and seals.................................................................................................................................9
5.4 Design of inlet and outlet....................................................................................................................11
5.5 Wet cleaning requirements ................................................................................................................13
6 Slide gate valves..................................................................................................................................14
6.1 Principle ...............................................................................................................................................14
6.2 The unilateral slide gate valve ...........................................................................................................14
6.3 Horizontally turning slide gate valve.................................................................................................16
7 Ball segment valves ............................................................................................................................17
7.1 Principle ...............................................................................................................................................17
7.2 Housing and ball segment..................................................................................................................18
7.3 Seals .....................................................................................................................................................19
7.3.1 Shaft seals............................................................................................................................................19
7.3.2 Seal (seat) for the ball segment .........................................................................................................20
7.4 Wet cleaning requirements ................................................................................................................21
8 Other valves .........................................................................................................................................22
8.1 Pinch-off valves ...................................................................................................................................22
8.2 Ball and plug valves ............................................................................................................................23
8.2.1 Ball valves ............................................................................................................................................23
8.2.2 Plug valves ...........................................................................................................................................24
8.3 Cone valves..........................................................................................................................................25
9 References ...........................................................................................................................................26

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 3 of 26
 Hygienic Engineering of Valves in Process Lines
for Dry Particulate Materials *

K.H. Bahr (1), M. Louwe Kooijmans (2), K. Mager (3) **, K. Masters (4), G.M.H. Meesters (5),

S. Multer (6), E. Polman (7), J. Roels (8), W. Rumpf (9), M. Stephan (10), M. Waskow (11)

©EHEDG

(1) Cargill Haubourdin SAS, 7, rue du Maréchal Joffre, F-59482 Haubourdin, France

(2) Danone , P.O. Box 75538, 1118 ZN Schiphol Airport, The Netherlands

(3) Givaudan, P.O. Box 2, 1400 CA Bussum, The Netherlands

(4) SprayDryConsult, Krathusparken 2, DK-2920 Charlottenlund, Denmark

(5) DSM Food Specialties, P.O. Box 1, 2600 MA Delft, The Netherlands

(6) Hecht Technologie GmbH, Schirmbeckstrasse 17, D-85276 Pfaffenhofen, Germany

(7) Hosokawa Micron B.V., P.O. Box 98, 7000 AB Doetinchem, The Netherlands

(8) J-Tec Material Handling, Lieven Gevaertsraat 11, 2950 Kapellen, Belgium

(9) Zeppelin Reimelt GmbH, P.O. Box 1220, D-63305, Roedermark, Germany

(10) Coperion GmbH, Niederbieger Strasse 9, D-88250, Weingarten, Germany

(11) Glatt Ingenieurtechnik, Nordstrasse 12, D-99427 Weimar, Germany

* Prepared by the Subgroup "Dry Materials Handling” of the European Hygienic Engineering and Design
Group (EHEDG, see www.ehedg.org), October 2010

** Chairman

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 4 of 26
Introduction

Every process plant is equipped with valves. In dry particulate materials processing, valves fulfil numerous
functions: shut-off and opening of flow lines, direction and flow control, protection against excessive or
insufficient pressure and against intermixing of incompatible media at intersection points in the process.

The quality of the valve has a considerable influence on the quality of the production process and hence, the
product itself. Hygienic deficiencies resulting from poor valve design must be regarded as a production risk in
the food industry which must ensure that only valves strictly conforming to hygienic requirements are used.

In this Guideline, hygienic requirements of the following valves are described:

⎯ Butterfly valves

⎯ Slide gate valves

⎯ Ball segment valves

Valves that are only briefly mentioned in this guideline are:

⎯ Pinch-off valves

⎯ Ball and plug valves

⎯ Cone valves

The typical features of the above valves are summarized in Table 1.

Rotary valves and diverter valves are also widely used in dry particulate material (product) handling. In fact,
rotary valves are probably the most used valve type in industry. Therefore the hygienic design requirements of
rotary and diverter valves are subject of separate EHEDG Documents (Doc. 38 for rotary valves and Doc. 41
for diverter valves).

1 Objectives and scope

This Guideline applies to valves used in hygienic processing lines for dry particulate food and food constituent
materials (products).

The objective of this Guideline is to provide guidance on the essential hygienic requirements of valves.

Although valves can be used in both liquid and dry product handling, this Guideline only considers use in dry
product processing.

When only dry products are handled and only dry cleaning requirements are applied, standard hygienic valves
can be used. When applying wet cleaning more restrictions apply. This guideline focuses on dry material
handling valves requiring dry cleaning. Where wet cleaning procedures apply, additional recommendations will
be made. EHEDG-Document 14 describes valves for wet operations in more detail.

However, further recommendations on the use of butterfly valves that require wet cleaning will be given in this
Guideline as this operational aspect is not mentioned in EHEDG Document 14.

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This Guideline is intended for use by persons involved in the design, sizing and installation of these valves for
operation under hygienic conditions.

Hygienic design is the main consideration in this Guideline. Valve operation where there is an explosive
atmosphere risk is outside the scope of this Guideline, but is the subject covered by the EU ATEX Directive
1999/92/EC and the accompanying guide of good practice

2 Normative references
The following documents contain provisions that, through reference, constitute provisions of this EHEDG
Guideline. At the time this Guideline was prepared, the editions listed below were valid. All documents are
subject to revision, and parties are encouraged to investigate the possibility of applying the most recent
editions of the documents indicated below.

EN 1672-2:2005+A1:2009 Food processing machinery – Basic concepts – Part 2: Hygienic Requirements

EN ISO 14159:2008 Safety of machinery – Hygiene requirements for the design of machinery

3 Definitions
The definitions in the EHEDG glossary (see www.ehedg.org) apply to this Guideline. Relevant definitions
specific to this document about valves are:

Product
A dry particulate material in powder, agglomerate, granulated or pelletized form

Dead space
Locations within a valve where product can deposit and remain

Bridging (arching)
Product build-up over the entire cross-sectional area of a pipe, duct or vessel causing product flow to cease

Housing
A part which is constructed around the valve internals. It is the static part of the full valve system being often
mounted directly on the process line

4 Shut-off and metering valves

When valves are used to stop the flow of dry product, they are classified as shut-off valves. When used to
control the flow of dry product, they are classified as metering valves.

Combinations of two shut-off valves in series can be used as a pressure lock acting together in a
synchronised mode.

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 Type Butterfly Slide pinch-off Pinch-off Ball segment Ball valves Cone
gate valves valves valves valves
valve (mechanical) (pneumatic)

Metering yes (1) yes no yes no no yes

Diverting no no no no no no no
Shut-off yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
Possibility
of product no yes no no no yes yes
build-up
Dead yes yes yes
no (2) minimal minimal minimal
spaces (critical) (critical) (critical)
Full bore no yes yes yes yes yes yes
< atm
yes yes no yes yes yes yes
pressure
> atm
yes yes no yes (2) yes yes no
pressure
Typical
pipe less less
50 50 38 80 80
diameter then 10 then 10
min. (mm)
Typical
more more
pipe more then
then then 150 500 150 >1500
diameter 500
500 500
max (mm)
Heated/
cooled no no no no yes(2) yes(2) no
jacket
Inflatable
seals yes(2) yes(2) n.a n.a yes(2) yes(2) no
possible
Gravity yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
Pneumatic
yes no no yes yes no no
conveying

Table 1: Several valves and their properties

(1) also as vibrating butterfly or alpha/beta valve available
(2) not standard / special design

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 7 of 26
 5 Butterfly valves

5.1 Principle

Although butterfly valves are used extensively in liquid handling, there are also important applications
for this valve in dry product handling as shut-off and sometimes metering valves. Butterfly valves are
mostly used as a shut-off valve, but sometimes are used as a metering valve installed in gravity feed
and pneumatic conveying systems. When used in pneumatic systems the valves need to be air tight.

Shaft seal / bearing

Seal

Disc

Housing

Figure 1:
Example of a butterfly valve.

5.2 Disc of the butterfly valve

The disc is the part of the valve which is in most contact with the product.

The recommended disc material is stainless steel (304 or 316; see EHEDG Document 8).

As the edge of the disc comes in contact with the seal, the edge should be rounded off to ensure
smooth closing of the valve. The disc surface should have a roughness of less than Ra = 0.8 µm [see
EHEDG Document 22, paragraph 6.1]. This requirement is based on cleanability. However a higher
surface quality (less roughness) is recommended for handling products where special operational
features are required i.e. less abrasion, lower risk for bridge (arching) formation. Sometimes discs are
coated to reduce the surface friction (product dependent). However, this is not recommended from a
hygienic design point of view. Coatings can break or wear off and contaminate the product.

No labelling on any part that comes into contact with product is allowed.

Another critical design aspect is the connection between the shaft and disc. If the diameter of the shaft
is larger than the thickness of the disc, special attention needs to be given to prevent build up of
product at the joining point. The shape of the disc should be such that it smoothly transforms into the
shaft (Figure. 2).

If the shaft and disc are separate parts, the connections are a hygienic risk especially in cases where
wet cleaning procedures are applied. Difficulties involve cleaning the two blind holes in the disc
(design shown on the left of Fig 2) and the threads and one blind hole of the disc (design as shown on
the right of Fig 2).

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 Figure 2:
Examples of the shape of two disc of a butterfly valve. Both designs pose a hygienic risk since they
are not made out of one piece.

A recommended option is a disc and shaft to be made out of one piece (Figure 3). In this case the housing is
made out of two parts.

Figure 3:
Smooth surface of the disc and fully welded with the shaft

5.3 Housing and seals

Most butterfly valves have an elastomer seal which can be a hygienic risk (often made out of rubber or food
grade elastomers).

The right choice of the material is crucial and depends on the type of product and the applied cleaning
procedure.

PTFE can be applied to strengthen the seal material (Figure 4). Here the seal has a PTFE coating applied on
the outside of the seal. Figure 4 also shows a bearing which makes the disc more stable in operation.

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 Bearing /
shaft seal

PTFE coated
seat-seal

Disc

Figure 4:
Butterfly valve with PTFE lined seals

To prevent damage to the seal, the valve should not be operated when the disc is in a static column of
product. When the disc closes under these conditions, it scrapes the seal and here a risk arises since part of
the elastomer can break or wear off. When using the valve as a shut-off valve at the end of a process line,
there is less risk of seal damage.

Contrary to what is shown in picture 4 a heavy duty bearing is recommended, which still should be checked
regularly as regards to their proper working and/or need to be replaced.

When the valve is installed on process components e.g. fluid bed dryers, operating either above or below
atmospheric pressure, additional sealing of the shaft is needed. Additional sealing of the shaft can be done by
O-rings, lip-seals, etc (see also EHEDG Document 22). When metal-to-metal contact butterfly valves are used
(no seat-seals are applied - use as a product tight valve, not as an air tight valve), shaft sealing is essential to
prevent product entering (ingress) the gap between shaft and housing.

The shaft seal is often combined with the inner seal of the disc. Often typically a hole is made in the seal
through which the shaft operating the disc is mounted. This is the place of highest hygienic risk (Figure 5).
Around the area where the shaft of the disc enters the inner valve, much friction can be induced. If abrasive
powders are present, the seal may be damaged during movement. Here a hygienic problem may arise around
this hole in the seal. For that reason a vulcanised O-ring can be integrated into the seal to make sure the seal
remains tight around the shaft. Even with this additional O-ring, the seal needs to be checked on a regular
basis.

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 For more stability of the A vulcanised O-ring is
seal a profiled seal is made integrated into the seal
to ensure more stability to opening of the shaft to
prevent the movement of prevent leakage of product
the seal in the housing or air through the seal
opening

Figure 5:
Example of an O-ring integrated into the seal opening of the shaft

When only dry cleaning procedures apply, seals should be checked regularly and replaced when necessary,
especially if the valve handles an abrasive dry product where risk of wear is high. Wear of the seal causes air
leakage and can be significant, especially if the valve operates below atmospheric pressure causing air to
possibly enter the process line.

Inflatable seals may be considered for the butterfly valves (EHEDG Document 22). The advantage of these
inflatable seals is reduced abrasion of the lining, thus reducing the risk of liner damage, which can result in a
hygienic risk. Typically inflatable seals are selected when the valve handles a very abrasive product.

If sticky products are handled in gravity lines (vertical product flow), there is an increased risk of bridging
(arching). During valve opening product can be also compacted against the disc, in the conical inlet or in the
upstream connecting duct/pipe. This may result in product lumping or product sticking within the valve. To
reduce this risk, the diameter of the valve can be increased. In any case, a proper cleaning validation is
needed.

5.4 Design of inlet and outlet

The inlet and outlet inner diameter of the connecting flanges should have the same inner diameter. Moreover
the connecting flanges have to be centred such to avoid misalignment.

To reduce the number of possible joints, it is preferred to have a single seal for the flanges and the valve itself.

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 11 of 26
 Figure 6:
Typical inlet and outlet design of valve, with the conical inlet above the valve. On the right, the bottom
of the valve protected with a cap

When the valve is an exit port of the process line in connection with a container, truck etc, and therefore can
be in contact with the outside environment, precautions need to be taken in order to avoid contamination of
the non-product side. This can be done by using caps (Figure 6).

An alternative is the use of the alpha beta valve design variant (Figure 7). This design is used for:

⎯ Protecting the product from contamination

⎯ Protecting people from contamination by the product itself

Sources of contamination (valve parts in contact with the outside environment) come together and are only
operated as one part. During operation, the contaminated parts of the valve do not come into contact with the
product. From a design point of view and in addition to what has been mentioned for standard butterfly valves:

⎯ The two parts should exactly fit on each other

⎯ It should not be possible for product to come into contact with the contaminated part of the disc

Other advantages include:

⎯ Possible dust-free connection

⎯ Possible handling of dry food products in a lower hygiene zone of the process layout as it is fully closed

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 12 of 26
 Passive part
(mounted on
the e.g.
transportable
container)
Active part
(mounted on
receiving
powder
container)

Figure 7:
Alpha-Beta valves with active and passive parts of the disc

5.5 Wet cleaning requirements

As mentioned previously wet cleaning in dry particulate material handling systems should be avoided.
However, when wet cleaning is essential, this cleaning procedure should be validated. Keep in mind that when
wet cleaning is applied, the valve might need to be dismantled and dried before re-installing in the process
line. Wet cleaning- in- place (CIP) is therefore not recommended, since visual checks are not performed in
that case.

If CIP is needed in a dry processing operation, the butterfly valve should be designed for wet cleaning.
However, be aware when the butterfly valve is designed for wet processing, this does not automatically mean
that the valve is also suitable for use in all dry products processing involving a wet cleaning requirement.
There is a higher seal abrasion risk if the product has abrasive tendencies since seals will become rougher
due to abrasion, posing higher hygienic risks. This also might be the case for EHEDG certified butterfly valves
for liquid processing. This means that for each product, proper cleaning validation is needed. When the
validation is done with a new valve, an abrasive product might damage the seal and a new validation is
needed after a certain period of use.

Valve modifications can reduce hygienic risks by welding the shaft of the valve to the disc (Figure 3) and
ensuring that the housing can be dismantled into two parts without removing the disc.

Special attention is needed for the housing, where stainless steel (typically type 316 should be used to
withstand the CIP liquids) should be used for both housing and disc.

In dry processing, product may build up around the shaft of the valve, and the seal will eventually wear out,
even with additional O-rings present in the seal. This also means that wet cleaning holds a greater hygienic
risk, since this area around the shaft seal is neither easily cleaned nor dried.

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6 Slide gate valves

6.1 Principle

A slide gate valve is used to:

⎯ open or close a port for product flow

⎯ metering dry material

The valve consists of a slide plate which is actuated pneumatically, electrically or by hand. A positioning unit
enables any valve opening to be set, thereby achieving metering accuracy.

Slide valves are very difficult to construct as a fully hygienic design. These difficulties arise from product
adhering in crevices and in confined pockets.

Typically two types of slide valves are available; a design where the disc slides unilaterally and a design
where there is a horizontal turning movement of the gate blade.

6.2 The unilateral slide gate valve

Unilateral slide gate valves are used in the dry product handling areas. However, the basic design is not
hygienic. Therefore special attention is needed when selecting this valve type. The critical aspects and
recommendations are described below.

Figure 8:
Schematic drawing showing the basic design of a unilateral slide gate valve

Hygienic problems associated with the basic design of unilateral slide gate valve (Figure 8) are as follows:

⎯ Powder sticking on the gate blade may be transported out through the gland seal when opening.

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 14 of 26
⎯ Powder can stick on the contact area between gland seal and gate blade

⎯ Powder might build up in the housing in front of the gland seal. This might result in functional (not fully
opening or closing) and hygienic problems (product deposits or cross contamination).

⎯ Product compaction between the gate blade and the guides for the gate within the housing

⎯ Product compaction between gate blade and housing surface during closing

Therefore these types of valves are not recommended when processing dry food products and in exceptional
cases only to be used if:

⎯ It is a completely dry process (no wet cleaning)

⎯ The formation of condensation is avoided

⎯ There are proper provision for inspection

⎯ The product is not hygroscopic, is free-flowing and has a low moisture content

⎯ Schedule is established for frequent dry cleaning

Another design is shown in Figure 9. It shows:

⎯ The gate blade will stay in the product area even in the open valve position.

⎯ The gate blade is designed such that compaction does not occur between the gate and housing surface
in the closed valve position.

⎯ This slide gate valve is easy to dismantle for cleaning purposes

⎯ The point of attention in this design is that the rollers are in the product flow, which is a hygienic hazard.

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 15 of 26
 axis

Slide seal

rollers

axis

axis

part taken off

rollers

push rods

Part taken off

Figure 9:
Unilateral slide gate valve with rollers mounted in the product zone. Here too the disc remains in the
product area. The axis is extended here as well to prevent the axis being in contact with the outer
environment. The disc also has a part taken off to prevent compaction of powder during closing

Another major hygienic issue arises from possible condensation on the gate due to temperature and humidity
levels inside the process and chamber (esp. when the slide gate valve is placed outdoors e.g. under a silo)
differing from those of the outside ambient surroundings. Therefore gas purging of the chamber is a possibility
to avoid this condensation problem.

Gate seals (mostly a soft silicon type seal) are used, but a valve without such a seal can be used as well. The
seals just ensure an air tight closure of the gate system. When a seal is used, it requires regular inspection.

6.3 Horizontally turning slide gate valve

This type of gate valve is normally used as a dosing gate. This slide valve (Figure 10) features the slide
turning horizontally and thus does not have the problem of the large shaft stroke. To reduce the hygienic risk,
only a standard seal is needed around the turning shaft.

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 Figure 10:
Slide valve using a turning movement of the disc

Horizontal turning slide gate valves are only used in dry product flows. Upon closing, dry product can get
trapped between the gate and the seal and become compacted. This creates a hygienic risk.

CIP should not be used for these valves, since product and soil (dust) may be trapped between the moving
parts (gate and seal). The valve needs to be dismantled for cleaning. This is not so easy since these valves
are quite large in size. When completely dismantled, the manual wet cleaning can be carried out.

7 Ball segment valves

7.1 Principle

A ball segment valve is a device for shutting off, controlled charging and discharging of dry products involving
such plant equipment as reactors, mixers, dryers, vessels, tanks etc. This valve type has been developed for
use on plant equipment that requires a valve with the ability to operate both at full vacuum and at elevated
pressures (here butterfly valves will fail) and elevated temperatures.

The ball segment has the ability to move to open- or closed positions in a full product stream.

A hygienic ball segment valve (Figure 11) features an unobstructed full-bore opening where product build up
is minimised and accumulation or capturing between the ball segment and housing is minimised also. Due to
these hygienic features, a ball segment valve is very suitable for food applications.

Ball segment valves are normally used in large diameter lines up to 500 mm. Due to construction limitations,
the minimal size of the ball segment valve is 80 mm.

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 Figure 11:
Ball segment valve

7.2 Housing and ball segment

The valve consists of a housing and a segment of a ball. The segment of the ball (here after called: ball
segment) has two spokes (legs) with protruding shafts into the housing and are sealed in the wall of the
housing.

Figure 12:
Construction of a ball segment valve

The shaft bearings should be outside the product contact area. Due to its unobstructed full bore design and
the shape of the housing, the ball segment and even the seal (seat) of the ball segment have the possibility to
be positioned out of the product stream when fully opened, which requires only a 90° turn. This is especially
beneficial for abrasive products. Both the ball segment and the housing should be made out of one piece.

Stainless steel is the recommended material for the entire ball segment valve (See EHEDG Document 8). The
product contact surfaces should have a roughness of <= Ra 0.8 µm (see EHEDG Document 22, par. 6.1).

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 18 of 26
7.3 Seals

The ball segment valve contains two different types of seal for the rotating parts:

⎯ Shaft seal

⎯ Ball segment seal (seat)

Materials of the seals should be food grade elastomers (see EHEDG Document 8).

7.3.1 Shaft seals

Ball segment shafts are in contact with dry product, and if there is no effective seal with the housing, a
hygienic risk exists due to the possibility of soil (dust) entering the shaft housing and contaminating the dry
product.

Both lipseals and mechanical seals can be used in dry product handling. The actual seal design is determined
by the processing conditions (pressurised, vacuum, atmospheric) and the acceptable level of leakage. It is
recommended to use lubricant-free seals.

Air/inert gas purge seals are recommended to prevent soil (dust) entering the seal and the product area.
Design principles of purged seals are illustrated in Figure 13.

Static seal

Lipseals

Ball segment
shaft

Product

Figure 13:
Purged Seal Positioning

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All seals need frequent inspection, proper maintenance and cleaning. Seals and their housings can generate
local areas where dry product can collect causing microbial growth opportunities in both wet cleaning and
possible dry product contamination. Valve designs should, therefore, be selected that provide easy seal
access for cleaning and inspection.

The static seal and its position in figure 13 should only be used in processes involving dry cleaning. For wet
cleaning requirements the seal design and positioning should fulfil the guidelines in EHEDG Doc. 16 section 7.

In cases of shaft seals with a gas purging (air, inert gas), the gas purge should be always on. The gas purge
pressure should always be higher than the pressure in the dry product contact area and the ambient
surroundings. This is to ensure a flow of gas into the valve and especially the dry product contact area.

Filtered dry and oil-free purge air/gas suited for contact with food products should be used to prevent
contamination from the purge medium.

Regular checks of the pressure drop over the seal should be carried out to ensure proper functioning of the
seal. An option is to install a pressure sensor in combination with a gas flow sensor.

The air/gas purge should be always on, also during wet and dry cleaning of the valve. The pressure of the
purge should always be higher than the pressure inside the product area, this to ensure an airflow across the
seal.

The gas purge assists in the drying-out of the seals after wet washing and also secures a dry seal condition
prior to again operating the valve. This helps prevents any risk of immediate product build-up through product
wetting.

7.3.2 Seals (seats) for the ball segment

Examples of different Seals (seats) for the ball segment

Envelope seal:
This type of seal contains a rigid envelope (i.e. PTFE) in combination with an internal elastic polymer (i.e.
FKM/FPM), Figure 14. In this version the internal polymer will continuously press the envelope against the ball
segment to obtain the sealing. This type of seal does touch the ball segment while it is moving and is therefore
not recommended for abrasive products. The risk of these kinds of gaskets is that the envelope gets cracks
and creates hollow bodies on the inside. Therefore other sealing materials should be used.

Ball segment

Seal
Ball segment
shaft

Product

Figure 14
Envelope Seal Positioning

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Air supported seal:
An air supported seal is created when the internal polymer function is replaced by compressed air or nitrogen.
In this version the elastomer envelope will be pressurized against the ball segment to obtain the sealing. The
seal is pressurized only when the valve is in a closed position. This type of seal lightly touches the ball
segment while it is moving and therefore can be used for slightly abrasive products.

Inflatable seal:
This type of seal has an elastic envelope which can be inflated and deflated. By inflating, a proper sealing is
obtained in the closed position of the ball segment (Fig. 15). Before the valve can start moving to an open
position, the seal must be deflated first to avoid any damage of the seal.

The deflated seal retracts into the valve housing and does not touch the ball segment while it is moving.
Therefore this seal type can be used in rather abrasive product applications.

The construction of the seal should ensure a tight connection between the seat of the seal and the seal itself
even in a deflated position.

It is also important to have a crevice free joint between the seal and the seal housing.

Air

Ball segment

Inflatable

Ball segment

Product

Figure 15
Inflatable Seal Positioning

From a hygienic design point-of-view, air-supported and inflatable seals are recommended as they prevent dry
product build-up between the seal and the housing when in an inflated position. If the product application
requires wet cleaning, the inflatable seal is preferred.

7.4 Wet cleaning requirements

Wet cleaning should be avoided, if possible, when using this type of valve, but if wet cleaning is necessary,
the ball segment valve design is the preferred choice featuring an inflatable seal with air/gas purged shaft
seals to prevent product ingress. Requirements as mentioned in Section 5.5 need to be taken into
consideration.

Ball segment valves can be provided with several types of stationary and/or retractable cleaning nozzles/
devices to ensure a controlled and validated CIP/SIP procedure.

DOC 40 ©EHEDG 21 of 26
8 Other valves

8.1 Pinch-off valves

Pinch-off valves are opened and closed either mechanically or by use of compressed air/gas. When using
compressed air/gas the valve opens by release of pressure behind a membrane and closes by applying
compressed air/gas (Figure16).

Hygiene risk as a
crevice can be
created by
movement of the
membrane

Figure 16
Pinch-off Valve: Schematic drawing of valve internals shown on left

Pinch off valves are typically used when sticky or fatty products are handled. Due to the stretching of the
membrane, sticky products will more easily be released again back into the process line. When the valve is
open, there is a full-line diameter available for product flow and there are no obstructive moving parts or dead
spaces.

A pinch-off valve can only be closed when the product is flowing or the pipe is empty. The valve can never be
completely closed when a full column of product is present. If this valve is moved towards a closed position
when product is flowing, this condition gives much wear to the membrane.

From a hygienic point-of-view, these valves pose only a few hygienic risks,

- Membranes can be damaged and product may end up behind the membrane, especially when wet
cleaning is used.

- Movement of the membrane may create a crevice or opening between the membrane and the metal
housing, in which powder may build up which is then difficult to remove by cleaning (Figure 16).

- Wrong choice of the elastomer, esp. in relation to the product compatibility

To reduce the hygienic risks the following measures should be taken:

- Pressure should be measured at the non-product side of the membrane, so that any leakage can easily
be detected.

- The membranes should be mounted carefully, checked regularly and changed when wear is detected.

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⎯ The chance of creating an opening or crevice during the expansion of the membrane (this is due to the
elastic behaviour of the membrane) can be reduced by vulcanising the membrane to the metal surface or
by reinforcing by use of a stronger material inside the membrane where it sits in between the metal.
Special attention is needed since vulcanised joints are often not mechanically stable and create crevices.
A disadvantage is the maintenance and the exchange of the membrane.

⎯ The membrane material should be made of a FDA approved elastomer (see EHEDG Doc. 32, Materials
of construction for equipment in contact with food) and be resistant to the product and process condition
involved.

8.2 Ball and plug valves

8.2.1 Ball valves

Ball valves are often used in utility lines, but standard ball valve designs should not be used in the food
processing lines (See EHEDG Document Nr.14). They are suitable for non-food dry material handling.

The hygienic risks occur mainly when wet cleaning is applied because:

⎯ Material may build up between the housing and the ball surface,

⎯ Material may build up between the ball and the seat and this is not easily removed by wet or dry cleaning

Nevertheless, in certain applications there are almost no alternative to ball valves. They are of much interest
within dry product handling because of the full bore opening. In high pressure pneumatic conveying,
especially, (and some other high pressure systems) ball valves are the only possible choice, since the ball
segment or other valves do not have the same cross sectional area as the pneumatic conveying line. The use
of ball segment valves may lead to turbulence creating sedimentation effects and blocking of the system
(Figure 17).

Figure 17
Continuous cross section and expanded cross section (creating turbulences/sedimentation)

Since pneumatic systems are usually not wet cleaned, ball valves pose less hygienic risks. However, regular
inspection is still needed to ensure that damaged parts are replaced and that surfaces remain without
scratches.

An alternative for a full bore ball valve is a plug valve since it has the same advantages but is easier to
dismantle (Figure 19).

Ball valves present some hygienic risks; since there is a dead space (Figure 18) between the ball and the
housing in which product can build up. Keep in mind that a film of product will always form on the seals (due to
the turning movement of the valve), and the seals can only be cleaned by complete valve dismantling.

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Construction materials for ball valves are similar to those used in ball segment valves (see EHEDG Doc. 8).

Figure 18
Ball valve; the inside view of the valve in the open position is shown.

8.2.2 Plug valves

Plug valves operate in a similar way to ball valves and can therefore be an alternative to ball valves.

Plug valves have the same hygienic points of attention as ball valves, but due to their ease of dismantling they
may be considered in dry food product processing lines. Regular inspection of the surface of the valve and the
housing is necessary.

The main advantage of the plug valve over the ball valve is that plug valves are much easier to dismantle and
clean because of their shape (plug valves are conical in shape while ball valves have a ball shape).

Figure 19
Typical Plug Valve Assembly

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8.3 Cone valves

Cone valves are typically used as a bottom valve in gravity systems integrated into container, silo and big bag
systems for dosing, discharging and product shut off.

The cone-in-cone concept is typically used for discharging systems (Figure 20).

Figure 20
Typical Cone Valve Assembly

The following hygienic issues need to be taken into account when cone valves are used:

⎯ Effective sealing of the cone. Product can be compacted between the wall and the cone during the
closing of the cone and this poses a hygienic risk. This may be avoided by using pressurised air/gas
purging of the sealing surface and/or without flexible seal on the cone valve.

⎯ There is a mechanical or pneumatic actuator in the product stream to open and close the cone valve.
Here too sealing is very important. When the actuator is operated, there are arms moving into the product
stream, which after retraction may force product behind the seal.

⎯ The cone should be easily demountable and be easy to clean

⎯ Dead zones around the cone itself should be avoided

⎯ Manual wet cleaning is possible, but CIP is difficult

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9 References
[1] EHEDG Doc. 8: Hygienic Equipment Design Criteria, 2004

[2] EHEDG Doc. 9: Welding stainless steel to meet hygienic requirements, 1993

[4] EHEDG Doc. 10: Hygienic design of closed equipment for the processing of liquid food, 1993

[5] EHEDG Doc. 13: Hygienic Design of Equipment for Open Processing, 1996

[6] EHEDG Doc. 14: Hygienic requirements of valves for food processing, 2004

[7] EHEDG Doc. 16: Hygienic Pipe Couplings, 1997

[8] EHEDG Doc. 22: General Hygienic Design Criteria for the Safe Processing of Dry Particulate Materials,
2001

[9] EHEDG Doc. 26: Hygienic Engineering of Plants for the Processing of Dry Particulate Materials, 2003

[10] EHEDG Doc. 31: Hygienic Engineering of Fluid Bed and Spray Dryer plants, 2005

[11] EHEDG Doc. 33: Hygienic Engineering of Discharging Systems for Dry Particulate Materials, 2005

For a full list of EHEDG documents and order information, visit www.ehedg.org

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