Frequently Asked Questions

Typical 'line-of-sight' valves used in slurry control applications are highly susceptible to erosion and cavitation, often resulting in frequent valve replacements and damaged pipes. SlurryFlo control valves provide a unique solution to the downtime and labour costs associated with replacing conventional control valves.

SlurryFlo control valves excel in any application where valve performance and life expectancy are critical. Variable orifice technology centers flow within the pipe, protecting the valve body and downstream piping. SlurryFlo delivers a quantum leap in service life, lasting 3-10 times longer than other severe service control valves.

Variables such as revised flow conditions, changes to the process, new piping geometry and valve relocation can significantly affect valve behavior. These complexities can be difficult to overcome, however SAF's engineering team is prepared to implement a solution.

SlurryFlo control valves can be supplied with either an enclosed bonnet, or an open bonnet design. The enclosed bonnet uses a simple gate stem packing arrangement, which delivers several benefits to the client. Our open bonnet design however, eliminates the bonnet cavity which is often only used in unique flow conditions.

Industrial valve maintenance falls under two categories; planned and response maintenance. An effective planned (or preventative) maintenance program requires a schedule for inspecting and servicing the valve. Much less ideal is response (or emergency) maintenance, which is executed when a valve fails, or its performance has degraded to a point where it is detrimental to the process.

Because they are! Welded overlays such as those applied on SlurryFlo control valves (i.e. Tungsten Carbide, Chrome Carbide, Stellite, etc) are used by many industries to provide wear resistance for demanding applications. Due to the hardness of these overlays, it is common to see 'stress relief cracking.' The surface cracks occur during the cooling process (post welding), when internal stresses within the overlay are relieved.

Learn about the fundamental differences between a SlurryFlo linear control valve with sintered tungsten carbide trim and common slurry control valves with Ceramic trim (such as a V-port ball valves, plug valves or butterfly valves).

Many control valves (and all SlurryFlo control valves) are uni-directional, meaning they are designed to operate in one flow direction only. Installing these valves incorrectly, or reversing the direction of flow during operation may cause premature wear and/or catastrophic valve failure, as well as damage to piping and ancillary equipment.

In the rare case that the selected control valve has insufficient Cv for the application, customers may opt for a trim design with significantly larger open area. This will provide an increase in flow capacity, however when fully ‘closed’, the valve will not provide ‘shut-off’ capability.

When the application requires a control valve to modulate clean fluid, there are many designs that will provide both tight shut-off and excellent control. However, when the media contains solids (i.e. a slurry), there is no perfect valve. These standard control valves will typically provide shut-off when brand new, however erosion from abrasive fluid often results in the valve leaking shortly after being in service.

Rangeability refers to a control valve’s inherent characteristic; it is the ratio between the maximum and minimum controllable flows. Turndown Ratio refers to a valve’s installed characteristic; it is the ratio between the normal maximum system flow and the minimum controllable flow.