Video of the free-floating ball hydrophobic valve in action
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Working principle: This valve utilizes the principle of buoyancy; the float rises and falls as the water level changes depending on the amount of condensate water, thereby automatically adjusting the opening degree of the valve seat and enabling continuous discharge of the condensate water. When the condensate water stops flowing in, the float descends to the bottom due to its own weight, thereby closing the drain valve seat hole. Since the drain valve seat hole is below the condensate level, water and air separate naturally, forming a water seal that prevents any leakage of fresh steam. The two main components of a free-floating ball hydrostatic valve. . 1. It relies entirely on the spherical surface of the ball inside the valve for sealing, and there are two types of spherical sealing as well. The first type: Balls manufactured by ordinary domestic manufacturers have welds in their center; the weights of the two semi-circles forming the ball are not equal. As a result, the heavier side always ends up on the bottom as the sealing surface, which leads to concentrated wear (and eventual leakage). The second type: In this case, the ball inside the valve has uniform wall thickness, and its circular accuracy can reach 2 microns; the entire surface of the ball can be used as a sealing surface, eliminating concentrated wear. Such balls can be used in natural gas degassing valves, with zero leakage. Second, regarding the automatic air release devices inside the valve, manufacturers generally use three types of such devices: 1. Manual air release device (similar to a needle valve), which needs to be operated manually at the start of operation. 2. It is an air-removal device using bimetallic strips (bimetallic strips have a certain degree of fatigue, so their service life is short and they are not very sensitive). 3) It refers to the world’s most advanced Y-shaped or X-shaped components at present (which operate through the processes of liquefaction, gasification, and liquefaction again), with virtually no signs of fatigue
This post was last edited by Yang Wei, an overseas Chinese, on 2022-5-17 at 14:39. The attached file is a video showing the performance/advantages of this device: 1. It can continuously discharge saturated condensate water; no water accumulates inside the heating equipment, thereby achieving the highest heat exchange efficiency. 2. Unaffected by changes in steam pressure: The float can automatically adjust the opening degree of the drain valve seat, ensuring continuous operation and stable performance. 3. Good sealing: The stainless steel float balls have high roundness and excellent sealing performance. 4. Good air discharge performance: The Y-series components can automatically remove non-condensable cold and hot gases, preventing air blockages and ensuring excellent heating effects. 5. Long service life: The entire spherical surface of the float can serve as a sealing surface, resulting in no concentrated wear during operation. 6. Low supercooling allows for a high back pressure. 7. It can continuously discharge condensate water with a stable flow, making it particularly effective for use in condensate recovery systems.
In theory, a quality free-floating ball steam trap is capable of achieving zero leakage. **Professional testing agencies require that the leakage rate of such traps under no-load conditions be no more than 0.5%, while top domestic manufacturers are able to achieve a leakage rate of less than 0.15% under no-load conditions. . . . Reputable manufacturers can achieve a steam leakage rate of 0 even under load for their hydrophobic valves. Why? In a loaded and operational state, there is always condensed liquid inside the chamber of a steam trap; in a good steam trap, each point on the spherical sealing surface within the chamber can serve as a sealing surface. Moreover, the water level is high, so there’s no way steam can leak out. It should also be mentioned here the leak rate at no load – the amount of steam that leaks when the condition is one of completely saturated steam in front of the steam trap. The leak rate at load – the amount of steam that leaks from the steam trap under a given compliance level