Regarding Full Bore valves and Full port valves, ball valves and gate valves
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Today I saw a valve quote submitted by a subcontractor, which mentioned full-port gate valves. Since this 8\" gate valve is to be used on a 30\" pipeline, the supplier decided on its own to use a Full Port valve. My questions are as follows: 1. Previously, I had only seen Full Bore ball valves, which are generally used in long-distance pipelines for passing balls through them; this is easy to understand, as ordinary ball valves may or may not allow balls to pass through them ； 2. It is presumed that the supplier thought a hot opening was required, which is why they recommended a Full Port. So, why did he use Full Port instead of Full bore? What is the difference between Full port and Full bore?
FULL BORE does not necessarily guarantee the ability to pass balls; it only requires that the diameter at all locations be at least the standard specified value. Whether balls can pass through depends on the type of valve. A FULL PORT appears to be a port with a full diameter; it actually means the same thing – the product standards specify that the diameter at all points along the flow channel must not be less than the size of the port. You can take a look at API6D or related standards.