ENG1015: Design and Manufacture 1

Globe Valve Lab Report

Introduction

Valves are devices used in pipe systems for flow control of liquids and gases which could
be pressurized or not. This report will cover analysis of one of the most common type of
valve, the globe valve, used in a variety of applications from irrigation in agriculture, to
chemical feed control in industry or boiler steam vents and drains in power stations. The
specific globe valve covered in this report was intended for on-board ship use, and so
analysis of its materials and design will be mainly focused around this context. Globe
valves restrict flow through the lowering of a disc or plug into an orifice through which
the fluid would otherwise flow. In this report individual parts of a globe valve will be
analysed, together with the material and design choices, and the probable
manufacturing processes used for production of the globe valve in an industrial context.
Methods for the testing of the globe valve to meet with the criteria required for its
intended use under its working conditions (on board ship) will then be covered, together
with a brief conclusion and summary of findings made in producing this report.

Globe valve components

The following components were found to build the globe valve analysed, drawings of
each of them are found in appendix 2 at the end of the document.
I. Hand-wheel
II. Stem
III. Gland and gland stud
IV. Bonnet
V. Gland Packing
VI. Gasket
VII. Disc Stem Nut
VIII. Disc or plug
IX. Body
X. Seat

Figure 2.1 globe valve and main components

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I Hand wheel
The purpose of the hand wheel is to rotate the stem and introduce or withdraw
with this motion the plug from the seat allowing/cutting fluid flow. A hand wheel
is an example of a valve actuator (the part that controls the stem and disc
movement). It is outside the pressure boundary (the pressure within the pipe
and valve caused by the fluid), and therefore only suffers loads imposed on it
whilst operating the valve in service conditions, that is the torque whilst turning
the hand wheel. The hand wheel analysed was made out of cast iron with the
probable manufacturing process used being die casting. Alternative materials to
make the hand wheel could have been steel or high carbon steel, and the hand
wheel could have also been made via sand casting. Cast iron was probably used
in this case because of its low price in addition to the hand wheel not being in
contact with sea water no corrosion resistant material is required. Torque testing
should be carried out on this part connected to the stem to see the maximum
force and torque required for it to reach its yield point (breaking point).

II Stem
The stem transmits the rotational motion from the hand wheel to the plug, and
the power screw on it converts the rotational motion of the hand wheel into a
vertical motion positioning the disc in its seat and blocking the flow orifice. The
stem is attached to the hand wheel in this valve via 4 flat edges at the top,
screwing into the power screw the hand wheel and then locking it into place via
a nut. At the bottom, the plug is screwed into the stem, being locked into place
via the disc stem nut. For this reason, the stem will suffer torsional loads taken
by the power screw. The stem analysed was made out of bronze metal probably
to allow for corrosion resistance in case of contact with sea water, and
manufactured with high chance from stock metal rods, turned on a lathe to cut
the screw threads twice whilst the square section designed to hold the hand
wheel being milled. Alternative materials could have been brass alloys although
leach of zinc and weakening of the stem could have occurred if in contact with
the sea water. Testing for maximum torque the stem could hold should be done
after attaching it to test hand wheels and plugs to see what is the limit on the
power screw before the plug or the hand wheel or the plug is dislodges and the
screw permanently damaged.

III Gland and gland stud

The gland and gland stud compress the gland packing onto the stem and act as
a seal to stop leakage from the valve. They experience pressure loads due to
compressing the gland packing an in this case are made of bronze, probably due
to contact with sea water to avoid corrosion. Manufacturing processes for these
parts are probably casting of the pieces and then further machining for its
circular section. Testing of this piece should be done to ensure it can hold the
pressure being subjected to via pressurizing it from the exterior and seeing what
is the maximum pressure it can hold before yielding.

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IV Bonnet
The bonnet is the part that closes the opening of the valve. It is a pressure
bearing part, holding with the body the full pressure of the fluid as it flows
through the valve as its service loads. It is secured in place by a threaded stud
and nuts. It also acts a support for the gland, and in this case made out of bronze,
the bonnet will usually be made out of the same material as the body of the
valve. This material choice occurs as it is going to be used a corrosive sea water
environment where steel or cast iron would fail. The bonnet, as the body itself
looks to have been sand cast, and the holes machined into it and threaded to
allow attachment to the body and the gland. The bonnet together with the body
and the disc could all be made of stainless steel too, but the price of the valve
would dramatically increase, and would not perform sensibly better than bronze
for the intended lifespan of the ship valve. The bonnet will be tested fully when
mounted into the valve, although mechanical testing of its yield point by exerting
pressure on the face facing into the valve would allow for verification of
maximum pressure of operation of this part.

V Gland Packing
The gland packing seals the bonnet and stem stopping leaks of water and will be
squashed into place by the gland follower being a piece of string clamped up
griping into the stem. It will be in contact with the sea water and so will
periodically have to be replaced after the string wears out. The string will
probably be made out of a durable polymer, and could be tested by running
tensile tests on it to see its flexibility and elastic coefficient.

VI Gasket
Gaskets are static seals in a joint that clamped against the surfaces of it expand
to fill up the imperfections in the material. They can be made of materials such
as Teflon or compressed paper, as the one we analysed, which has binding
agents that are non-adsorbent. The gasket will be working under pressure and
sea water wearing so will probably have to substituted throughout the valves
lifetime. Tensile stress tests should be carried out on the gasket showing at which
point of force the material breaks. Gaskets are also tested in a process commonly
known as hot compression test in which the gasket is compressed in a
hydraulic press and the temperature is increased whilst the decrease in thickness
of the gasket is tested.

VII Disc Stem Nut

The disc stem nut attaches the stem to the plug. Its threading attaches it to the
disc whilst the wider plane of the stem locks the screw into place. The disc when
screwed will be pressed against the wider hexagonal plane of the disc stem nut.
It will have service loads against its threading and be compressed by the pushing
of it down when closing the valve, and will be exposed to the full pressure of the
fluid flowing through the valve. This piece has been made out of bronze like the
rest of the parts in contact with sea water, and an alternative material would be
stainless steel. Manufacturing processes used to make this piece will probably
be die casting of the piece, turning of it in a lathe to produce the threading and

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machining of the hexagonal face to remove imperfections for a tight seal. Testing
should be carried out on the piece testing compressive yield point for the piece
and expansion in the x-y plane.

VIII Disc
The plugs task is to block the opening of the valve allowing or restricting fluid
flow. It is screwed into the disc stem nut which locks it in place with the stem.
Once lowered it blocks the flow by being compressed upon the seat. The plug
will take the full pressure of the fluid flowing through the valve and must produce
a tight seal with the seat, and its threading will take the load of the pressure of
the fluid exerting an upwards force on it. This piece will be made out of bronze
as it will be in contact with the sea water with an alternative material being
stainless steel. It is highly likely to have been sand or die casted and then turned
on a lathe to produce its thread. Its edges will be machined to produce a tight
seal with the seat. It will have to be tested for its yield point upon compression
and the strength of its thread calculating the maximum force it can take as a
load.

IX Body
The body of the valve is the framework upon which all of the other pieces are
attached. It is the main pressure boundary of the valve, meaning it will take the
full load of the pressure of the fluid flowing through the valve, together with the
loads of the pipes attached to it. It acts as the container for the fluid to flow in and
receives the input and output of fluid. The body of the valve is sand cast, its side
is turned to seal and attach the gasket. It is machined on both sides to fit the bolts
for a tight hold. Milling is done on the piece for a tight fit of the bonnet with a
pilot locating the hole and a flat seat being produced for the nuts. Underside of
the body where the bonnet fits is threaded as access is difficult for other type of
machining. The body is made out of bronze as it is more corrosion resistant than
brass, which has zinc leaching issues weakening the alloy structure. Testing of the
body must be performed to ensure it can sustain the pressure it is intended for via
tensile strength tests calculating stiffness and yield point.

X Seat
The seat is the section into which the plug fits, and in the valve being analysed for
this report the seat is integrated into the body. It is machined into it and must have
a tight seal with the disc. Testing of the seat will be carried out whilst testing the
body.

Testing of the valve

Testing of the assembled valve should be carried out to ensure correct mating and fitting
of all its components. The valve should be attached to two pipes, with the input one
carrying sea water of set temperature, pressure and flow rate. The output pipe should then
pass through a sensor which would measure all of this parameters. The dimensions of the
valve should be taken opened and closed, and then taken as the parameters are varied.
Temperature of the valve should be taken too. This will allow for measuring of expansion
of valve due to pressure and any losses in pressure, temperature and flow rate in operation.
See appendix 2 for testing diagram.

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Conclusion
As a whole this reverse engineering exercise has proved that an insight into design choices
can be derived from a final engineered component. Tearing apart the valve and analysing
its components has also proven that even though carefully produced, all pieces leave
traces of the various manufacturing processes that were imposed upon their creation. It
has also been of interest to understand that even the most apparently simple and non-
complex pieces of a mechanism require great engineering behind them to produce them
at the cheapest marginal cost but providing the maximum efficiency possible.

Appendix 1: Machining Processes

A brief explanation of the machining processes mentioned in the report.

Die casting
In die casting a metal is injected into a mould made out of two steel parts called
tool dies, which have been machined to produce the parts shape. It is usually used
with metal alloys not containing iron and produces a piece with a really good
surface finish characteristic to the process. The die casts are then removed once
the piece is set and the processed repeated.

Figure A1.1 Cold

chamber die casting

Sand Casting
Sand casting involves the use of sand as the mould material, and is much cheaper
both in running and initial capital expenses than die casting. It produces a rougher
finish in the pieces sand casted caused by the grains.

Figure A1.2 Sand casting

process

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Turning
Turning is the machining process in which a non-rotary cutting tool is moved in
helix toolpath whilst the workpiece rotates.

Figure A1.3 Turning

Milling
In milling a rotary cutter moves whilst the piece is fed to it at an angle.

Figure A1.4 Milling

Appendix 2: Drawings of parts and valve test arrangement

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ENG1015: Design and Manufacture 1

References:
2.1- Flow Control Norway, diagram of a globe valve:
http://www.flowcontrol.no/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Globe-valve.jpg
A.1.1 -
http://www.engineerstudent.co.uk/Images/die_casting_diagram_large.png
A.1.2- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sand_casting - /media/File:Haandform-
e.png
A.1.3-
http://www.efunda.com/processes/machining/images/lathe/turn_turning_dia
g_1.gif
A.1.4-
http://www.efunda.com/processes/machining/images/mill/end_milling_2.gif

Sources for this report:

http://www.thermosealinc.com/products/sealing/original-green/hot-
compression-test
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turning
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sand_casting
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Die_casting
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasket
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brass
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bronze
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Die_casting
https://www.documentation.emersonprocess.com/groups/public/documents/i
nstruction_manuals/d500237x012.pdf
http://www.wermac.org/valves/valves_globe-valves_linear-motion-valve.html
http://160.75.46.2/staff/sogut/den322/Notes/Valves.pdf

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http://www.ijetae.com/files/Volume4Issue10/IJETAE_1014_61.pdf
http://www.lntvalves.com/download/final/L&T-Gate-Globe-Check-Valves-
ASME-B16-34.pdf
http://es.jc-valves.com/public/media/pdf/PDF_GGC.pdf
http://www.documentation.emersonprocess.com/groups/public/documents/b
ook/cvh99.pdf
http://www.easyfairs.com/uploads/tx_ef/Globe_valves_according_to_API.pdf
http://www.valvemagazine.com/web-only/categories/standards/5978-new-
api-standard-for-globe-valves.html
http://www.powellvalves.com/docs/150.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Globe_valve