Ball Valve Supplier

Ball valves are a valve with a spherical disc, the part of the valve which controls the flow through it. The sphere 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. When the valve is closed, the hole is perpendicular to the ends of the valve, and flow is blocked. The handle or lever will be in line with the port position letting you “see” the valve’s position.  See Valtorc Ball Valves for more information.

Ball valves are used extensively in industry because they are very versatile, supporting pressures up to 700 bars and temperatures up to 200C. Sizes typically range from 0.5 cm to 30 cm. They are easy to repair and operate.

Types of ball valves

There are five general body styles of ball valves: single body, three piece body, split body, top entry, and welded. The difference is based on how the pieces of the valve–especially the casing that contains the ball itself–are manufactured and assembled. The valve operation is the same in each case.

In addition, there are different styles related to the bore of the ball mechanism itself:

A full port ball valve or more commonly known full bore ball valve has an over-sized ball so that the hole in the ball is the same size as the pipeline resulting in lower friction loss. Flow is unrestricted but the valve is larger and more expensive so this is only used where free flow is required, for example in pipelines which require pigging.

V-Port Ball Valve (V-Notch Valves)

A V port ball valve has either a ‘v’ shaped ball or a ‘v’ shaped seat. This allows the orifice to be opened and closed in a more controlled manner with a closer to linear flow characteristic. When the valve is in the closed position and opening is commenced the small end of the ‘v’ is opened first allowing stable flow control during this stage. This type of design requires a generally more robust construction due to higher velocities of the fluids, which might damage a standard valve.