Valve Selection Guide

Valve Terms

Selecting Your Valve

Valve Types

Valve Terms

Breaking Pressure:
The minimum pressure required to produce flow
through a valve.

Duty Cycle:
100% duty cycle is defined as continuous operation
without any damage occurring. For intermittent duty
cycle (<100%), alternate energized and de-energized
state at regular intervals to allow the valve to
completely cool down to room temperature.
F = active concentration / total concentration

Flow Patterns:
A diagram showing how flow can be directed using a
particular valve. (See the Flow Patterns box below for
further explanation.)

Normally Closed:
Valve stays closed in de-energized state; opens when
energized.

Normally Open:
Valve stays open in de-energized state; closes when
energized.

Pressure Differential or Pressure Drop:

The difference between the inlet and the outlet
pressure through a valve. The outlet pressure is lower
than the inlet pressure due to the restriction caused by
the valve.

Three-Way Valve:
Has three ports. Depending on the particular valve, all
three ports may be open, two ports may be open, or
all ports may be closed.

Two-Way Valve:
Has a single inlet port and a single outlet port.
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Selecting your Valve

1.

Choose a valve type depending on your application. Our manual

valve selection includes ball, check, diaphragm, elliptic, metering,
needle, pinch, plug, pressure relief, and stopcock valves. Our actuated
valve selection includes electrically actuated ball, elliptic, pinch,
proportioning, and general-purpose solenoid valves.

2.

Consider your fluid type (liquid or gas) and its characteristics

to determine compatible valve materials. Teflon withstands many
harsh or corrosive chemicals. For safety reasons, always use metal
valves for pressurized gases.

3.

Determine the temperature, pressure, and flow rate under

which your valve will be operating. In general, metal valves
withstand higher temperatures and pressures than plastic valves.

4.

For solenoid valves, consider response time and length of time

valve will be energized. Continuous (100%) duty solenoid valves
are best for frequent on/off cycling. Choose normally closed or
normally open depending on the state the valve will be in most often.

5.

Consider your maintenance requirements. Ball valves resist

plugging and are easiest to service.
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Valve Types

Angle-Seat Valves:
Utilize an ultra-compact actuator to move a piston
back and forth within the valve body. On/off control
and continuous control designs are available for gases,
steam, and liquids. The construction of the body allows
extremely high flow rates, particularly in comparison to
conventional globe valves.

Ball Valves:

Designed primarily for on/off service. These valves

contain a ball with a hole through it. A handle or
electric actuator rotates the ball 90, turning the flow
on or off. Use plastic ball valves for liquid applications
only.

Butterfly Valves:
Designed primarily for on/off service. These valves
have low pressure drops and are self-sealing so they
dont require an additonal flange gasket for
installation. For pipe sizes ranging from 1.5" to 12" dia.

Check Valves:
Self-actuated valves designed to prevent fluid from
flowing backward into your system. Flow forces a ball
or disk in one direction to open the valve; when flow
stops, the ball or disk seats to close the valve.

Diaphragm Valves:
Use a flexible diaphragm to shut off flowcenter of the
diaphragm is pushed down into a seat. Use these
valves for fluids that are dirty or have a high
particulate content.

Elliptic Valves:
Similar to ball valves except elliptic valves use an
elliptic O-ring to seal the cylinder during rotation. The
seal design makes these valves ideal for vacuum
applications.

Manifold Valves:
Have one common port to two or more additional
ports. For mixing, use the common port as the outlet;
for distributing, use the common port as the inlet.

Metering Valves:
Multi-turn valves designed to regulate the flow of fluid.
These valves generally have low flow rates and high
pressure differentials.

Needle Valves:
Feature the most accurate flow control among the
valves we offer. They are an excellent choice for
precise metering of liquids or gases.

Pinch Valves:

Use solenoid to squeeze shut a piece of tubing. Fluid

contacts only the tubingideal for your high-purity
fluid applications.

Plug Valves:
Used primarily for on/off service. Controls flow using a
plug with a hole through it. Plugs can be made of rigid
materials such as Teflon, making them ideal for highpurity applications.

Pressure Valves:
Designed to control or limit pressurenot flowin a
system. These self-actuating valves will either open a
relief port or bypass the fluid when a preset limit is
reached.

Proportioning Valves:
Designed to produce variable flow rates. Valves open
and close in proportion to the signal from your
controller.

Sample Valves:
Special three-way valve designed to tap off a portion of
the main flow for sampling purposes.

Sanitary Valves:
Feature Tri-Clamp connections and 316 stainless steel
body construction for sanitary and high purity
applications.

Solenoid Valves (Direct Lift):

Use a plunger that is actuated to open or close the
fluid path. These valves usually have low flow rates
and high differential pressure drops. They generally
have quicker response time than pilot-operated valves.

Solenoid Valves (Pilot-Operated):

Utilize pressure created by air or liquids for actuation
purposes. These valves are either piston or diaphragm
types and require differential pressure to keep valve
closed. Because they dont have a plunger, they are
usually available in larger orifice sizes than direct lift
valves.

Stopcocks:

Similar to ball valves except stopcocks are much

smaller in size. Primarily used in the laboratory for
on/off control of flow or as a crude regulation of flow
rate.
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