The Scientific Bulletin of VALAHIA University – MATERIALS and MECHANICS – Nr.

10 (year 13) 2015

FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS OF BALL VALVES

Gheorghiţa TOMESCU1, Iuliana IAŞNICU (STAMATE)2

1
SC UPET SA Târgovişte, 2 Technical College Gheorghe Asachi, Bucureşti
E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract. Finite Element Analysis is accepted in international standards, as an alternative method of designing pressure vessels
(including valves). Valves are frequently subject to repeated mechanical and thermal load. When the maximum load varies between
yield load and plastic collapse load the valves body can deforms plastically. What happens depends on the load and geometry. Is
necessary to integrate FEA into a design cycle as part for safety, quality, reliability and cost effectiveness improvements . This article
gives methodology of ball valve design by using CAD design and FEA verification at maximum loading pressure. The main purpose
is structural analysis to be carried out of determining stress and strains developed in the valve body and other elements.
Keywords: ball valves, Finite Element Analysis

1. INTRODUCTION
Trunnion ball valves are used especially for large size
equipment for the range of pressure and have a more
complex construction. In this case the ball is fixed, being
guided into the body and the bottom cover through the
drive shaft and the sphere support.
The metallic seat has the possibility to slide in the bore
processed in the body. A ring of PTFE, Viton or PTFE
with hardeners (glass, carbon) is pressed into the seat .
Soft sealing material meets the good seal with an easy
handling under normal temperatures (<1200C).
For the adequate strength, the design must be based on a
calculation method supplemented by an experimental
design method or experimental design method, without
calculation, if the product of the maximum allowable
pressure PS and the volume V is less than 6000 bar x
liter or the product PS x NPS is less than 3000 bar [1].

2. DESIGN AND EVALUATION METHODOLOGY

The studied equipment is a closure ball valve NPS 500
mm (10 in), NP 25 (class 150) with movable seats, full
bore, split body, double-blocking construction, and
discharging inline, supplementary sealing injection, Fig.1.Trunnion ball valve NPS 500, NP 25 (with ball in
purging and venting, fire-safe and antistatic (fig.1). CLOSED position)

The design of valves requires, at first, their

dimensioning: calculation of wall thickness of envelope For this reason the design can be used to evaluate
under pressure, the dimensions of sealing non-metal / experimental methods using strain gauges applied to test
metal and the fire-safe sealing (metal / metal), prototype [2] or finite element analysis method accepted
dimensioning the drive shaft and shutter actuators (lever by the PED rules.
or gear reducer quarter turn) [3].
To determine the resistance of the pressure equipment at
Because of the complex distribution of the loads or the issue, the calculations must take into account the
complex geometry of the components, calculation maximum allowable pressures, the calculation
methods are not sufficiently precise. temperatures, all possible combinations of temperature
and pressure operating conditions of the equipment
reasonably foreseeable, maximum effort and stress
concentrations.

171
 The Scientific Bulletin of VALAHIA University – MATERIALS and MECHANICS – Nr. 10 (year 13) 2015

The valve body is made of cast steel GP 240GH (EN

10213-2) [4] and the seat and ball are provided to be
made of stainless martensitic cast steel GX12Cr12 (EN
10283) [5].
The sphere is designed as a cast part because of its size,
reduce material consumptions and therefore a slight
rotation of the obturator. The surface flow tube is
materialized by rolling a sheet of X6CrNiMoTi17-12-2
(EN 10088-1, 2)[6] to be welded inside the sphere.
Evaluations of each parts behavior and body-seat-sphere
assembly in the case of the valve with mobile seats NPS
500, NP 25, were performed by the finite element
method with the software CAD-embedded
SOLIDWORKS Simulation. To study the behavior of Fig. 3 Sealing detail
static and mainly, stresses and deformations developed
in the sphere, we assembled the three parts and was
imposed achieve a sealing contact between the valve seat 3.3 The stages of study
and spherical surface of the obturator.
Study 1 was made without considering temperature, an
equivalent study with a valve seal test. To verify stress,
displacements and deformations equivalent in the
3. FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS
presence of mechanical and temperature loads was
performed two study: study 2 using temperature values
3.1. Defining constraints which were measured during in the fire test an ball valve
and study 3 using minimum temperatures imposed for
The constraints were applied to the 20 holes surfaces R1
calorimeter cubes at 15 minutes after initialising the fire
to the flange of the connection Body – Body 2,
(565 oC), assuming that these cubes calorimeter
respectively, on the 20 holes R2 in the flange of in touch
represent body wall and thus represent its temperature.
with the pipeline. Constraints R 3 and R 6 were
added,on the guides of sphere coaxial with R4 and R5, 3.3.1. Study 1
those to the body (fig.2) [7].
Application of loads
3.2. Defining contacts
Loads corresponding to this study are presented in Table
For this assembly the seat and sphere in contact on Sc 1, and surfaces that apply are those specified in fig. 4.
surface were considered (Fig. 3). In functioning the
Table 1
sealing is done by pressing the upstream seat on the
obturator surface.
Pressure S1 inner surface of the body , The internal test
1 surfaces S1' on seat and pressure
surface S1 " on sphere - with
pressure 2,5 N / mm 2

Force 1 On the 20th annular surfaces The force required

S2, in contact with the seat
surfaces of nuts, 47 526 N
axial force is applied
uniformly distributed

Force 2 927940 N force evenly The force required to

distributed on the surface S3 ensure sealing of
body connection

Force 3 On the eight surfaces S4 was The force given by

applied axial forces 8455 N stuffing box flange
fasteners

Force 4 On the 20 annular surfaces, in The force given to

contact with the nuts, the the fasteners
axial force 74 720 N is between the body and
applied uniformly distributed the body 2

Force 5 The force of 262 540 N, The force

Fig. 2. R1-R6 surfaces which impose constraints
evenly distributed on the calculated,necessary
surface that makes sealing of to ensure the seal
the body with Body 2 body - Body 2

172
 The Scientific Bulletin of VALAHIA University – MATERIALS and MECHANICS – Nr. 10 (year 13) 2015

This study was aimed, in particular, determination of

Force 6 The force of 308 N, evenly Sums up the force
distributed over the 20 seat given by elements sphere behavior. For this graphically equivalent tensions
surfaces of the elastic elastic preloaded and displacements total equivalent of nodes located on
elements the surface sphere in contact with seat were established.
Force 7 On the seat surface S3' the Sums up the force Table 3
force from 6160 N is applied given by elements
evenly distributed elastic preloaded
Name Type Max Location

Static nodal VON: von 250.81 (MPa) (-10 mm,

stress Mises stress
Node:130914 257.636 mm,
35.623 mm)

Static URES: 0.00065 m (245.848 mm,

displacement Resultant
displacement Node: 149608 6.09366 mm,
-12.3545 mm)

Equivalent ESTRN: 0.00109 (-10 mm,

strain Equivalent
strain Node: 130914 257.636 mm,
35.623 mm)

Static nodal stress von Mises, in the seal area, have low
values ( max 56 MPa) relative to the characteristics of
the material (for GX12Cr12 material, yield strength is
450 MPa conventional at 20oC).
Fig. 4. The surfaces on which the mechanical stress applied
Meshing structure was done with solid type finite
element, tetrahedral with curved sides (mesh details are
contained in table2).
Table 2
The type of finite element Tetrahedral finite
element
The number of nodes in which to make 4 puncte
determinations (Jacobian Check)
The dimensions of elements 25 mm
Tolerance 1.75 mm
The number of elements 87529
Fig. 5. Equivalent stress (von Mises)
Number of nodes 153073

Defining materials
For each piece a material was accordingly assigned and
they were defined by the corresponding mechanical
characteristics (constant or variable depending on the
temperature) according to material standards.
The study results
The results show that maximum demands are on the
sphere, in the pivot, which was expected because all
loads imposed on the sphere are taken in this area. Total
equivalent displacements are maximum in area of flow
tube protector of the sphere (Table 3 and icons in fig. 5
and 6).
Fig. 6. Total equivalent displacements

173
 The Scientific Bulletin of VALAHIA University – MATERIALS and MECHANICS – Nr. 10 (year 13) 2015

applied average temperatures measured during the test

fire a ball valve subject to a number tests and in study 3,
the outer surface have imposed minimum temperature of
calorimetry cubes at 15 minutes from init fire, namely
the 565 oC .
Fire test is performed on a valve mounted in the test
installation, with the obturator in the closed position,
with horizontally stem and flow bore. The installation is
filled with water and pressurized (to a value determined
by applicable standard ). The flames of the burners
(760oC ÷ 980 oC) is directed on the test valve during a
period of 30 min, simulating in this way a possible fire
in a plant. Is determined internal and external losses in
this period and after extinguishing the fire.
For studies which take into account the pressure and
temperature effects, pressure 1 (din table 1) has a value
of 1.875 MPa corresponding to the required standard fire
test (75% the maximum allowable working pressure of
the valve [1]).
a)
Additional loading of arson and surfaces that apply are
given in Table 4 and fig. 8.

b)

Fig. 8. Distribution of temperatures on the outside

surface of the valve body

Table 4.
c) Additional The surface for applying and
Fig. 7. The graphs nodal stress equivalent (von Mises)(b) loading of arson
the temperature value (fig. 8)
and total displacements (c) in selected nodes on sealing
ring S1” (a) Temperature – 1 The surface T1, with temperature 471 0 C
Temperature – 2 The surface T2, with temperature 408 0 C
3.3.2. Study 2 (the effect of pressure and Temperature – 3 The surface T3, with temperature 437 0 C
temperature) Temperature – 4 The surface T4, with temperature 464 0 C
If study 1 was made without taking into account the Temperature – 5 The surface T4, with temperature 419 0 C
temperatures in study 2 outside mechanical loads were

174
 The Scientific Bulletin of VALAHIA University – MATERIALS and MECHANICS – Nr. 10 (year 13) 2015

Fig. 10. The graphs nodal stress equivalent (von Mises) and
total displacements in selected nodes on sealing ring

Fig. 9 The graphs nodal stress equivalent (von Mises) and

total displacements in selected nodes on sealing ring

An increase of static nodal stress to a maximum of 360.1

MPa, but with a mean value low (99,71 MPa) is noticed.
Equivalent displacements have higher values, reaching
up to 0.56 mm.

3.3.3. Study 3 (effect of pressure and temperatures

of uncontrolled fires) Fig.11. Area of maximum displacement
Study 3 approximate conditions for fire longer, with
possible serious consequences, that temperature imposed
on external surfaces of the body is 565oC. It can be seen 4. CONCLUSION
that static stress and displacement nodal are not changed The checks which were made on trunnion ball valve with
significantly from the previous study and this may be mobile seats NPS 500 (mm), NP 25 (bar) can be seen
explained by the large size of envelope and high keeping tensions within acceptable values and equivalent
temperatures do not significantly affect the sealing area. strains for equipment loading concomitant mechanical
and thermal stresses, confirming in this way, the design
of the product, before its approval by effective test.
Extreme values of static nodal stress (von Mises)
obtained in the points in the near to the generatrix plan
through hole of the sphere, in the studies 2 and 3 may be

175
 The Scientific Bulletin of VALAHIA University – MATERIALS and MECHANICS – Nr. 10 (year 13) 2015

subject to a new inspection by decreasing the size of the

mesh element or using finite elements by higher order.
The static displacements values on the sealing area is
compared with the displacements of nodes selected by
the metal sealing ring with the exception of nodes that
are in the vicinity of the plane of the generatrix of the
passage opening, wherein the wall thickness of the
sphere is smallest. (fig. 11).

REFERENCES:
[1] DIRECTIVE 97/23/EC –Pressure Equipment
Directive- ICS 23.020.30 –Edition February 1998
[2] Polacek, Jaroslav - Optimization of piping and valves
with respect to stress state – Die Schwerindustrie der
Tschechoslowakei, nr 11/1984, pg. 29-32
[3] Jatkar, K.H. ; Sunil S. Dhanwe- Finite element
Analysis of Gate Valve- International Journal o
engineering and Innovative Technology (IJEIT)
Volume 2, Issue 10, April 2013 pg. 277-281
[4] EN 10213 -Steel castings for pressure purposes
[5] EN 10283- Corrosion resistant steel castings
[6] EN 10088- Stainless steels
Part 1: List of stainless steels.
Part 2: Technical delivery conditions for sheet/plate
and strip of corrosion resisting steels for general
purposes
[7] Structural Research and Analysis Corporation (SRAC)
- Introducing COSMOSWorks, Manual COSMOS
Analysis Products, Los Angeles, California, 2004 .
[8] API 6FA - Specification for Fire Test for Valve

176