In modern industrial pipeline systems, the performance of valves directly affects the operating efficiency and safety of the entire installation. As working conditions become increasingly complex, traditional ball valves and gate valves gradually reveal limitations in sealing, operational efficiency, and adaptability to high-pressure and large-diameter environments. To meet the industry's demand for higher reliability, lower maintenance costs, and superior sealing performance, a new structure that integrates the advantages of various types of valves, Orbit Ball Valve, has emerged. With its unique opening and closing trajectory and innovative combined ball structure, it successfully compensates for the shortcomings of traditional valves and brings an important technological breakthrough to the industrial valve field.
In traditional industrial valve applications, gate valves and ball valves are both widely used. Gate valves are used extensively because of their reliable shutoff performance, but they have shortcomings such as complex operation and large size. Ball valves are favored for their quick opening and closing, easy operation, and low fluid resistance, but in certain high-pressure and large-diameter working conditions, their sealing performance and operating torque still have room for improvement.
The Orbit Ball Valve was created precisely to overcome these deficiencies in traditional valves. It cleverly combines the advantages of gate valves and ball valves while eliminating their drawbacks, becoming a new type of high-performance valve.
The core component of the Orbit Ball Valve is its unique combined ball. The middle of the ball is a wedge-shaped cone, with 5° inclined surfaces on each side, and on both ends are two spherical valve plates with inclined surfaces. The spherical valve plates are connected to the cone through dovetail grooves or T-shaped grooves, allowing relative sliding between the two. The upper and lower ends of the spherical valve plates are limited by limit rings and adjustment shims, ensuring that they cannot move up or down with the wedge cone, but can only translate or rotate within a horizontal space along with the wedge cone. This unique structural design lays the foundation for the Orbit Ball Valve's efficient opening and closing and excellent sealing performance.
The lower end of the stem is integrally connected with the wedge cone through threads and a pin shaft, while the upper trapezoidal thread cooperates with the stem nut. The stem nut can be driven by a handwheel, bevel gear, electric actuator, or pneumatic actuator, and such diversified driving methods enable the Orbit Ball Valve to meet different operational requirements. A track pin is installed in the middle of the stem, with a roller on each end. These rollers move within the guide slots of the support, and the movement trajectory of the stem is restricted by the guide slots. This design makes the stem movement more stable and precise, ensuring reliable opening and closing of the valve.
The opening and closing process of the Orbit Ball Valve is simple and efficient. When the valve needs to be closed, rotating the handwheel clockwise drives the stem nut to rotate, which in turn drives the stem and the wedge cone to rotate 90° to the closed position, and then move outward to expand toward both sides, pressing against the valve body sealing surface to achieve valve closure. During this process, due to the sliding cooperation between the spherical valve plates and the cone, and the limitation by the limit ring and adjustment shims, the spherical valve plates can accurately fit the sealing surface of the valve body, achieving reliable sealing.
When the valve needs to be opened, rotating the handwheel counterclockwise drives the stem nut and stem to lift the wedge cone upward, causing the valve plates to retract inward and separate from the valve body sealing surface. Then the wedge cone drives the valve plates to rotate 90° to open the valve. This opening and closing method has the multi-turn characteristic of gate valves and the 90° rotation feature of ball valves, making the Orbit Ball Valve open and close both quickly and smoothly, greatly improving operational efficiency.
The performance advantages of the Orbit Ball Valve lie not only in solving many problems found in traditional valves but also in bringing new breakthroughs to industrial valve technologies, driving continuous technological advancement and becoming a critical component in numerous industrial applications.
The sealing performance of the Orbit Ball Valve is one of its major highlights. During opening and closing, the upward and downward movement of the cone drives the spherical valve plates to expand or contract, achieving sealing or separation with the valve body sealing surface, without generating friction between sealing surfaces. Therefore, the valve has excellent sealing performance and long service life.
Compared with gate valves, the sealing surfaces of the Orbit Ball Valve do not experience relative motion, avoiding sealing problems caused by friction between sealing surfaces in traditional valves. The sealing surfaces of the valve seat and spherical valve plates may be welded or coated with high-hardness and corrosion-resistant alloy materials, enabling the valve to be used in various high-temperature, high-pressure, low-temperature, and corrosive media pipelines, further enhancing its sealing performance and adaptability.
The operational efficiency of the Orbit Ball Valve is far higher than that of traditional gate valves. For example, a DN500 gate valve requires a stroke of 525 mm, whereas a DN500 Orbit Ball Valve needs only about 60 mm.
A DN500 ordinary gate valve requires 55 turns of the stem to complete its stroke; using a 1:3 bevel gear reducer and operating the handwheel at 20 turns per minute, it takes about 8 minutes.
In contrast, the Orbit Ball Valve requires only 8 turns of the stem; with the same reducer and handwheel speed, it takes only about 1 minute — increasing efficiency by 7 times.
This high-efficiency performance makes the Orbit Ball Valve particularly advantageous in applications requiring frequent opening and closing.
The Orbit Ball Valve has a compact structure and low installation height, which is less than one-third that of a gate valve of the same size, making pipeline layout easier.
For example, a DN500 gate valve has a center height of 2750 mm, and when considering the stem extension after opening, the installation height is around 3500 mm.
A DN500 Orbit Ball Valve has a center height of about 950 mm, and its stem does not extend out when opened, eliminating the need for an operator platform.
This compact design saves installation space and reduces installation costs and maintenance difficulty.
The Orbit Ball Valve is very easy to maintain. Due to its unique design, valves installed on pipelines can be directly inspected and repaired online, reducing plant shutdowns and lowering costs.
Because of its special stem design, the valve can be easily operated with a small handwheel. The valve relies on mechanical force provided by the stem to press the ball wedge onto the valve seat for sealing, meaning its sealing performance is not affected by pipeline pressure differences, ensuring reliable sealing under various working conditions.
This ease of maintenance enables long-term stable performance and lowers maintenance costs.
The Orbit Ball Valve also ensures high safety performance. It eliminates the problem of media in the valve cavity causing abnormal pressure rise that affects operational safety. The valve seat is embedded into the valve body using mechanical interference cold pressing, rather than welding, threading, or adhesive installation.
During opening and closing, the shutoff channel is instantly fully opened or fully closed, and no high-velocity fluid locally erodes the valve seat sealing surface, further extending sealing life.
The valve has bidirectional sealing capability and can withstand differential pressure in both directions. Its fire-safe design complies with API 6FA and API 607 standards, ensuring fire safety and suitability for harsh working conditions.
The widespread use of Orbit Ball Valves is owed to their excellent performance. They are primarily used in industries requiring strict shutoff, such as oil, chemical processing, and municipal water systems.
In the petroleum industry, they are used in crude oil pipelines and refinery process pipelines to reliably shut off flammable and explosive media, ensuring production safety.
In chemical processing, Orbit Ball Valves are suitable for pipelines carrying various corrosive media, and their corrosion-resistant sealing materials and reliable sealing performance prevent leakage and ensure safe chemical production.
In municipal water systems, Orbit Ball Valves are used in water supply and sewage treatment pipelines, where their efficient opening/closing and good sealing ensure proper water distribution and efficient wastewater treatment.
They are also widely used in power generation, metallurgy, pharmaceuticals, military, and aerospace industries. In power plants, Orbit Ball Valves are used in cooling water and steam systems and can satisfy high-temperature and high-pressure requirements.
In metallurgy, they are used in steelmaking process pipelines and withstand abrasive and corrosive environments.
In pharmaceuticals, they ensure hygienic sealing for material transportation pipelines.
In military and aerospace applications, the high reliability and safety of Orbit Ball Valves make them ideal for critical systems operating under extreme conditions.
In summary, as a new type of high-performance valve, the Orbit Ball Valve, through its unique structure, excellent performance, and wide application range, occupies an important position in the industrial valve market. It not only solves many issues found in traditional valves but also provides more reliable, efficient, and safe solutions for industrial pipeline systems. With continuous technological advancement and growing market demand, Orbit Ball Valves are expected to play an even more important role in future industrial development, contributing greatly to stable operation and sustainable industrial growth.
