What Are the Differences Between Floating Ball Valves and Trunnion Mounted Ball Valves?

In the field of industrial fluid control, ball valves are a common key equipment. In the ball valve market, floating ball valves and fixed ball valves are two common designs. We will conduct a detailed comparative analysis of floating ball valves and fixed ball valves to explore the differences between them.

What is a floating ball valve?

A floating ball valve is a type of valve in which the ball can float freely under the action of the medium. The valve is fixedly connected to the valve seat through a valve stem. When the medium pressure rises, the ball can move upward, thereby reducing the contact surface with the valve seat, thereby reducing the fluid resistance. This structural feature allows the floating ball valve to have a small operating torque, ensuring the rapid opening and closing of the valve. Therefore, floating ball valves are often used in various application scenarios that require frequent operation, high-speed fluid control, and low resistance.

What is a fixed ball valve?

A fixed ball valve is a type of ball valve in which the ball is firmly installed inside the valve body. The ball is connected to the valve body via a valve stem and does not have the ability to float. When the medium pressure rises, the fluid exerts pressure on the ball, which will increase the contact area between the ball and the valve seat, thereby enhancing the sealing effect. The design structure of the fixed ball valve is simple and highly reliable, and it is often used in environments with strict requirements on sealing performance.

Comparative analysis of the two ball valves

1. Fluid control capability

In the field of fluid control, the ball floating mechanism of the floating ball valve can achieve faster opening and closing actions, showing superior flow control efficiency. In contrast, the fixed ball valve shows higher stability and is suitable for application scenarios with relatively constant flow demand.

2. Sealing characteristics

The design feature of the floating ball valve is that when the medium pressure rises, the floating of its ball can reduce the contact area with the valve seat, thereby reducing the resistance when the fluid passes through and improving the overall sealing efficiency. The fixed ball valve strengthens the sealing performance by increasing the contact area between the ball and the valve seat.

3. Application scenarios

The floating ball valve has the characteristics of fast opening and closing and low fluid resistance. It is widely used in fields that require frequent operation, high-speed fluid control and low resistance requirements, such as petrochemical, metallurgy, power and other industrial industries. The fixed ball valve, with its advantages of simple structure and high reliability, is more suitable for occasions with strict requirements on sealing, such as chemical, food processing, pharmaceutical manufacturing and other industries.