A primer for air and gas check valves

Check valves by their nature Application-specific Pulsating flow

are often looked at as a
necessary evil because they
rob us of valuable pressure
and are never important until
they are needed. Check valves
are an insurance policy, they
are a critical safety device that
prevents the unwanted from
happeningback-flow.
By definition, check valves
are automatic valves that
open with forward flow and
close against reverse flow.
Flow regulation is necessary
to ensure reciprocating
compressors run properly
and flow is not reversed
through rotary and centrifugal
compressors or standby
units. Check valves also
prevent the reverse flow from
contaminating a process.
No single check valve design
is suited for all applications.
Check valve selection should
be based on the actual
operating conditions that the
valve will see. These operating
conditions are pressure,
temperature, line size, gas
composition, flow rate and
whether the flow is constant or
pulsating.
Minimum pressure drop
Your goal is to select a check
valve that is both efficient and
durable. A correctly selected
valve will have minimal
pressure loss (p) across the
valve. Minimum pressure
drop means less work for the
compressor and better energy
savings; or, in the case of an
industrial gas supplier, higher
product volume which equates
to better revenues.
If the application has
pulsating flow, you need
to ensure that the sealing
element in the valve does
not flutter. Flutter is the
uncontrolled opening and
closing of the sealing element.
If the sealing element does
experience flutter, it could
lead to premature wear, which
could cause valve failure.
Select a valve design that
withstands the demands of
a pulsating flow and is able
to provide a long service with
minimal maintenance.

Rapid closure
A check valve that does not
close quickly could cause
high surge pressures. Surge
pressures are destructive to
both the valve and the piping
system as they can cause
unwanted vibrations that
weaken welds and supports.
To prevent the formation of
surge pressures, the check
valve must close fast enough
to prevent the development
of a significant reverse flow
velocity.

HOERBIGER 2006
Types of check valves
The basic types of check
valves fall into four groups:

Lift Check Valves.

Swing Check Valves.

Tilting Disk Check Valves

Diaphragm Check Valves
HOERBIGER plate-type, lift check valve
HOERBIGER 2006
Lift Checks
In lift checks, the closing
member travels in the
direction parallel to the plane
of the seat. Common lift check
designs are the plate, ball,
and piston. Lift check valves
main advantage over most
other types is that since they
need only a relatively short lift
to obtain full opening, they
are also fast closing which
greatly inhibits the amount of
backflow through the valve.
It is from this fact that some
of the lift check valves are
also known as Non-Slam
check valves. Certain lift
checks designs are usually
the only choice for demanding
pulsating flow conditions.
However, some lift check
valves may require that the
closure member moves in
a guide to ensure that the
seating elements mate upon
on closing and in some
designs, if dirt enters the
guide area it could hang-up
the closure member.
Swing Checks
Swing Checks have a disc-
like closing member that
swings about a hinge, which
is mounted outside the seat.
The travel of the disk from
fully open to closed position
is often greater than lift check
valves; therefore, is not usually
the choice for pulsating flow
applications.
Also as the size of the swing Back Flow
check valve increases, weight
and travel distance of the
disk eventually become too
great for satisfactory valve
operation. To help counter
this effect some swing checks
may be equipped with a
lever-mounted counter-weight,
have special springing or be
Flow
designed with multiple disks.
However, in dirty service
applications the swing check
may not be as easily hindered
as some guided lift valves are.
Tilting Disk Checks Back Flow
These are similar to swings,
but the closing member
tilts about a hinge, which is
located just above the center
of the seat. Because of this
balancing of the disc, each
disc half will have a shorter
path between the opened and Flow
closed positions, and therefore
tilting discs are usually faster
closing than the standard
swing valves. Tilting checks
are also known as balanced
swings. However, they are
usually more expensive and
more difficult to repair than Back Flow
standard swings.
Flow
Top: Lift check valve (piston
type); Middle: Swing check
valve; Bottom: Tilting disk
check valve
Selecting a check valve
When purchasing a check
valve, contact several
manufacturers and be sure to
ask:

Is the check valve correctly
sized so that normal flow
holds the closure member
firm against the seat?

Is the check valve capable
of closing quickly to
prevent any reverse flow?

Is the check valve
efficient and meet the
desired p requirements?

Is the check valve durable
and can be relied on to be
in good working condition
in the years ahead?
Compare each check valve
against each other to see
which type of valve is right
for the specific job. Can the
valve be installed on multiple
mounting planes? How easy
is it to repair the valve? If
my process changes, is the
valve easy to modify to new
operating conditions?
Request the vendor to provide
a predicted pressure loss
based on your actual operating
conditions. Even a slight
change in the temperature,
pressure, flow or specific
gravity of the gas may greatly
affect the pressure loss
calculation; therefore, do not
accept predictions based on
a generalized chart, unless
it matches your operating
conditions exactly. Remember,
a check valve that is not right
for the application is just
that... it is not right for the
application!
To help you accurately predict
the expected pressure losses
across a HOERBIGER check
valve, we provide customers
HOERBIGER 2006
with a check valve selection
program. The program allows
you to run all the what ifs
of determining the calculated
pressure loss. (What if
the flow rate, pressure or
temperature is increased or
decreased? Or what if the gas
composition changes?).
In summary remember
that a check valve should
be selected based on the
operating conditions it will be
used in: the gas, temperature,
pressure and flow-rates. It
is from these items that the
correct materials, ANSI Class
and the associated pressure
losses can be determined.
Then choose the design that
offers both positive back-flow
protection and durability.
References:
Zappe, R.W. Valve Selection
Handbook, 3rd Edition,
Houston: Gulf Publishing
Company
Clark, E. E. Rotating
Equipment Loss Prevention
- An Insurers Viewpoint,
Proceedings of the Twenty-
fifth Turbo Machinery
Symposium, Turbomachinery
Laboratory, Texas A&M
University, College Station,
Texas (1996).
Andrews, F.A. and Carrick,
H.B. Check Valves For
Compressor Protection - A
Users
View, Proceedings of the
Twelfth Turbo Machinery
Symposium, Turbomachinery
Laboratory, Texas A&M
University, College Station,
Texas (1983).
What the experts say ...
Mr. Edward E. Clark, of Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection
Insurance Company, presented a paper at the 1996
Turbomachinery Symposium dealing with accidents involving
rotating equipment in chemical, petrochemical, petroleum
and gas plants. In his paper, he cited several instances where
malfunctioning check valves resulted in severe compressor
damage due to reverse rotation and back-flow of process
materials. Mr. Clark went on to stress that the correct type of
check valve must be used and in some instances two check
valves in series may be required to achieve the required level
of reliability.
Compressors and blowers can go down at anytime, whether
planned or unplanned, and it would behoove the responsible
equipment personnel to take precautions to protect
themselves from catastrophic disasters as mentioned in
Mr. Clarks paper. One of the best ways to help protect
your equipment is to have the right check valve for the job
installed correctly.
Mr. R. W. Zappe, in his book, Valve Selection Handbook,
states that in general a compressor type check valve, such
as the Hoerbiger Design, is a good choice for use in gas
service. Depending on the flow conditions, the valve may be
used either as a constant-flow check valve, in which case the
valve remains fully open in service regardless of minor flow
fluctuations; or as a pulsating-flow check valve, in which case
the valves opens and closes with each pulse of the flowing
gas.
Constant-flow check valves are usually used after centrifugal,
lobe type and screw compressors or with reciprocating
compressors, if the flow pulsations are low enough not to
cause plate flutter. Pulsating-flow design check valves should
be used after reciprocating compressors where the flow
can cause the valve to open and close with each pulsation.
These check valves are designed on the same principle as
compressor valves, to withstand the repeated impacts of the
closing member against the seating element in a silent and
non-slamming manner.
Check Valve Selection Program
Know the pressure drop before you buy the check valve

HOERBIGERs check valve

selection program recommends
a specific valve design and
calculates the pressure drop
from application data you
provide to the program.
Call the HOERBIGER Service, Inc.
location nearest you to receive a copy of
the Standard Check Valve Engineering
CD-ROM.

HOERBIGER 2006