Fluid control valve

• US 8,366,070 B2
• Filed: 02/21/2012
• Issued: 02/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dresser, LLC (GE Aerospace)
• Original Assignee: Dresser Incorporated (Nagano Keiki Company Limited)
• Inventors: Rimboym, Vladimir, Etinger, Vladimir
• Primary Examiner(s): KEASEL, ERIC S
• Application Number:
  US13/401,200
• Publication Number:
  US 20120145939A1
• Time in Patent Office: 350 Days
• Field of Search: 251/118, 251/121, 251/127, 251/315.16, 137/625.31, 137/625.32, 138/42, 138/44
• US Class Current: 251/127
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 47/045 and the closure member being rotatable
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 5/0605 with particular plug arrangements, e.g. particular shape or built-in means
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/0379 By fluid pressure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/86743 Rotary

Abstract

A valve includes a body, a throttling ball, and a shoe. The body includes an upstream flow passage and a downstream flow passage in fluid communication with an interior cavity of the body. The throttling ball is rotatable within the interior cavity on an axis to adjust the valve from a closed position to an open position and includes a fluid conduit extending through the throttling ball, where the fluid conduit is alignable with the upstream flow passage and the downstream flow passage. The shoe is disposed in the cavity abutting an interior surface of the cavity and includes a fluid passage there through having an inlet being alignable with the flow conduit of the throttling ball and an outlet being alignable with the downstream flow passage of the body. The interior surface of the shoe is disposed adjacent to and tracking an external surface of the throttling ball.

Claims

1. A valve comprising:

a body including an upstream flow passage and a downstream flow passage in fluid communication with an interior cavity of the body;

a throttling ball disposed within the interior cavity, the throttling ball rotatable within the interior cavity on an axis to adjust the valve from a closed position to an open position, the throttling ball including a fluid conduit extending through the throttling ball, the fluid conduit being alignable with the upstream flow passage and the downstream flow passage;

a shoe member disposed in the cavity abutting an interior surface of the cavity and detachably secured to the body, the shoe including a fluid passage there through having an inlet on an upstream side being alignable with the flow conduit of the throttling ball and an outlet being alignable with the downstream flow passage of the body, the shoe having an interior surface comprising at least a partial hemisphere with an opening therein, the interior surface of the shoe disposed adjacent to and tracking an external surface of the throttling ball;

a diffuser disposed through the throttling ball, the diffuser including a diffuser plate at an upstream end of the flow conduit, the diffuser plate including a plurality of apertures allowing fluid communication there through substantially orthogonal with the axis of rotation of the throttling ball;

an internal trim disposed in the fluid conduit, the internal trim comprising a plurality of flow plates aligned substantially perpendicular to an axis of rotation of the throttling ball, each flow plate allowing fluid communication through a plurality of orifices disposed through the flow plate, the fluid communication through the orifices substantially orthogonal to the fluid communication through the plurality of apertures of the diffuser plate; and

the internal trim further comprising at least one support plate disposed generally parallel to an axis of rotation of the throttling ball and between at least two flow plates, the support plate secured to the at least two flow plates, the support plate allowing fluid communication through a plurality of orifices disposed through the support plate.

2. The valve of claim 1, wherein the diffuser plate is a first diffuser plate, the diffuser including a second diffuser plate proximate the fluid outlet, the second diffuser plate including a plurality of apertures allowing fluid flow there through substantially orthogonal with the axis of rotation of the throttling ball.

3. The valve of claim 1, wherein the flow plate includes a plurality of orifices there through allowing fluid communication substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the throttling ball.

4. The valve of claim 1, wherein the internal trim comprises between and including two flow plates and five flow plates.

5. The valve of claim 1, wherein two flow plates and two support plates form a rectilinear flow passage through the trim.

6. The valve of claim 1, an inlet diverter detachably secured to the upstream flow passage, the inlet diverter including a plurality of slots allowing fluid communication there through.

7. The valve of claim 6, further comprising an inlet closure member that includes a sleeve insertable in the upstream flow passage, the sleeve substantially cylindrical and adapted to allow fluid communication to the fluid body.

8. The valve of claim 1, wherein the interior cavity is substantially cylindrical and an exterior surface of the shoe is adapted to mate with at least a portion of an interior cylindrical surface of the body.

9. The valve of claim 1 further comprising at least one of an inlet closure member detachably secured to the body and having the upstream flow passage there through, and an outlet closure detachably secured to the body and having the downstream outlet passage there through.

10. The valve of claim 9, wherein the inlet closure includes a sleeve insertable in the upstream flow passage, the sleeve substantially cylindrical and adapted to allow fluid communication to the fluid body.

11. The valve of claim 10 further comprising an inlet diverter detachably secured to the sleeve in the upstream flow passage and extending from the sleeve, the inlet diverter including a plurality of slots allowing fluid communication there through.

12. The valve of claim 1 further comprising a seat adjacent the body, the seat adapted to contact the throttling ball and substantially prevent fluid communication between the external surface of the throttling ball and the interior cavity.

13. The valve of claim 1, wherein the throttling ball further comprises a ball plate disposed in a downstream transverse passage of the throttling ball that intersects the fluid conduit through the throttling ball, the ball plate including a plurality of orifices allowing fluid communication there through.

14. The valve of claim 1 further comprising a stem insertable through the body along the axis of rotation of the throttling ball, the stem coupled to the ball on an inboard end of the stem, the stem coupled to a valve actuator on an outboard end of the stem.

15. A valve comprising:

a body including an upstream flow passage and a downstream flow passage in fluid communication with an interior cavity of the body;

a throttling ball disposed within the interior cavity, the throttling ball rotatable within the interior cavity on an axis to adjust the valve from a closed position to an open position, the throttling ball including a fluid conduit extending through the throttling ball, the fluid conduit being alignable with the upstream flow passage and the downstream flow passage;

a shoe member disposed in the cavity abutting an interior surface of the cavity and detachably secured to the body, the shoe including a fluid passage there through having an inlet on an upstream side being alignable with the flow conduit of the throttling ball and an outlet being alignable with the downstream flow passage of the body, the shoe having an interior surface comprising at least a partial hemisphere with an opening therein, the interior surface of the shoe disposed adjacent to and tracking an external surface of the throttling ball;

an internal trim disposed in the fluid conduit, the internal trim comprising a plurality of flow plates aligned substantially perpendicular to an axis of rotation of the throttling ball, each flow plate allowing fluid communication through a plurality of orifices disposed through the flow plate, the fluid communication through the orifices substantially orthogonal to the fluid communication through a plurality of apertures of a diffuser plate; and

the internal trim further comprising at least one support plate disposed generally parallel to an axis of rotation of the throttling ball and between at least two flow plates, the support plate secured to the at least two flow plates, the support plate allowing fluid communication through a plurality of orifices disposed through the support plate.

16. The valve of claim 15, wherein the flow plate includes a plurality of orifices there through allowing fluid communication substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the throttling ball.

17. The valve of claim 15 further comprising an inlet diverter detachably secured to a sleeve in the upstream flow passage and extending from the sleeve, an inlet diverter including a plurality of slots allowing fluid communication there through.

18. The valve of claim 15, wherein the internal trim comprises between and including two flow plates and five flow plates.

19. The valve of claim 15, wherein two flow plates and two support plates form a rectilinear flow passage through the trim.

20. The valve of claim 15, wherein the interior cavity is substantially cylindrical and an exterior surface of the shoe is adapted to mate with at least a portion of an interior cylindrical surface of the body.