Construction of a Gate Valve

Gate valves consist of three major components: body, bonnet, and trim. The body is generally connected to the piping by means of flanged, screwed, or welded connections. The bonnet, containing the moving parts, is joined to the body, generally with bolts, to permit cleaning and maintenance. The valve trim consists of the stem, the gate, the wedge, or disc, and the seat rings.

Two basic types of gate valves are the manufactured-wedge type and the double-disc type, and there are several variations within each of these types. A third type of gate valve, called conduit valve, is shown in Fig. A10.5.

Wedge Type

There are four types of wedges: solid, hollow, split, and flexible wedge. The solid wedge is a single-piece solid construction. It does not compensate for changes in seat alignment due to pipeend loads or thermal fluctuations. As such it is most susceptible to leakage. Except for NPS 2 (DN 50) and smaller, solid-wedge discs are generally not recommended for use in applications having temperatures in excess of 250F (121C). Solid-wedge gate valves are FIGURE A10.5 Conduit valve. considered the most economical. Almost all small, NPS 2 (DN 50) and smaller, gate valves are solid-wedge gate valves. Solid-wedge gate valves are generally used in moderate to lower pressure-temperature applications. It is common practice to use cast iron or ductile iron solid-wedge gate valves in cold or ambient water lines.

A hollow wedge is a variation of solid wedge with the exception of a hole in the center. The hollow wedge travels along the stem when the threaded stem is rotated, thus opening or closing the valve port.

The flexible wedge is also one-piece construction like a solid wedge, but areas behind the seating surfaces are hollowed out to provide flexibility. This construction compensates for changes in seat alignment for improved seating while maintaining the strength of a solid wedge in the middle. This design offers better leak tightness and improved performance in situations with potential for thermal binding.

The split wedge consists of two-piece construction which seats between the tapered seats in the valve body. The two pieces of split wedge seat flat against the valve seats as the stem is moved downward, and they move away from the valve seats when the stem is pulled upward.

In the wedge or disc-wedge types either a tapered solid or tapered split wedge is used. In the rising stem valves (Fig. A10.1), the operating threads are out of direct contact with the fluid or gas. The non-rising stem type (Fig. A10.2) is preferred where space is limited and where the fluid passing through the valve will not corrode or erode the threads or leave deposits on the threads. Also, the non-rising stem valve is preferred for buried service. When the valve is closed, the gate disc is wedged on both sides against the seat. In split-wedge gate valves (Fig. A10.6), the two-piece wedge disc is seated between matching tapered seats in the body. This type is preferred where the body seats might be distorted due to pipeline strain.

In the rising-stem type of valve, the upper part of the stem is threaded and a nut is fastened solidly to the handwheel and held in the yoke by thrust collars. As the handwheel is turned, the stem moves up or down. In the non-rising stem valve, the lower end of the stem is threaded and screws into the disc, vertical motion of the stem being restrained by a thrust collar. The rising-stem valve requires a greater amount of space when opened. However, it is generally preferred because the position of the stem indicates at once whether the valve is open or closed. Non-rising stem valves are sometimes provided with an indicator for this purpose.

Double-Disc

Type In the double-disc parallel-seat valves (Figs. A10.7a, A10.7b, and A10.7c), the discs are forced against the valve seats by a wedging mechanism as the stem is tightened. Some double-disc parallelseat valves employ a design which depends mainly upon the fluid pressure exerted against one side of the disc or the other for its tightness. The major advantage of this type is that the disc cannot be jammed into the body, an action that might make it difficult to open the valve. This is particularly important where motors are used for opening and closing the valve.

Unlike the wedge in a wedge-gate valve, which only comes into contact with the seat rings when the valve is nearly closed, each disc in the parallelseat valve slides against its seat while the valve is being opened or closed. Consequently, these components must be made of metals, which do not gall or tear when in sliding contact with each other. The double-disc parallel-seat gate valve is often favored for high-temperature steam service because it is less likely to stick in the closed position as a result of change in temperature.

Conduit Gate Valve

It is also referred to as a slide valve or parallel slide. The disc surfaces are always in contact with the body seats. Like the double-disc or parallel-seated gate valve, its disc seats against the downstream seat, depending on the flow direction. The inside diameter of a conduit gate valve is equal to the inside diameter of the connecting pipe. These valves are used in pipelines where pigs are run through the piping to perform cleaning of builtup deposits or debris. The typical applications of conduit valves include dirty river water with suspended solids or water with sludge or debris.

Conduit gate valves require a large-space envelope because of their longer disc proportions to accommodate both the blank and the spacer halves of the disc assembly. The valve is closed by moving the blank half downward to block the valve port. The spacer is accommodated in the sump part of the valve body. Refer to Fig. A10.5. Conduit valves with Teflon (PTFE) seats can be used for low to intermediate temperatures (to 450F or 232⁰C). Metal-seated valves may be used for temperatures up to 1000⁰F (538⁰C).

Thermal Binding

Thermal binding occurs when a valve is tightly shut off while the high temperature system is in operation. Later when the system is shut down and allowed to cool, thermal contraction of the valve seats move inward more than the wedge shrinkage. This can bind the wedge and seats tight enough to not allow the wedge to unseat or move when the handwheel or the valve actuator is activated to open the valve. Parallel seated gate valves are most suitable for applications having potential for thermal binding. Split-wedge or flexible-wedge type gate valves are expected to perform better than solid-wedge gate valves when thermal binding is a concern.