Oxygen Ball Valve

Under ambient conditions, oxygen is a colorless, odorless gas. It is not flammable but promotes combustion. The air contains 21 vol% oxygen. Already small amounts of higher oxygen rates increase the burn rate significantly. This can lead to fire ignition of materials. With increased oxygen concentrations, there is an increased risk of fire and explosion!

Especially during opening and closing operations of valves, high speeds can occur. At high oxygen concentrations, this can lead to the ignition of plant parts if impurities of any kind are present in the valve together with unsuitable materials or lubricants.

The Three Essential Points in the Production of Oxygen Valves

Selection of oxygen-suitable metallic materials
- The media-contacted parts must be made of metallic materials suitable for oxygen. When selecting suitable materials, we follow the IGC oxygen standard of the European EIGA. This standard indicates, that carbon and stainless steel may no longer be used at higher pressures, but only special so-called “exempt materials”. Therefore we produce these ball valves from brass or monel and Inconel (at higher temperatures). Alternatively, we grade up standard materials such as carbon and stainless steels with innovative welded-on corrosion protection layers, examples of which are nickel plating or copper plating.
Selection of suitable sealing materials
- The sealing materials must be carefully selected when manufacturing oxygen valves. The sealing materials used at Hartmann have all been approved by the German Federal Office for Materials Research (BAM) in regard to oxygen burnout safety for the related pressure and temperature range.
Ensuring oil and grease-free production
- Already natural grease like from our hands may be sufficient to cause ignition of materials in an oxygen environment. Therefore, we have strict rules for the production of the valves, which are fixed in our oxygen work instruction, such as ultrasonic cleaning and the assembly and testing of the fittings in a separate oxygen room. In addition, only special lubricants suitable for oxygen are used in very small amounts during assembly, and the leak test that follows is carried out exclusively with gas. After successful testing, the oxygen ball valves will be packed in welded foil and separately marked to indicate that they are free of oil and grease.

Oxygen Globe Valve

The oxygen globe valve is one of the special valves for the oxygen pipeline network. It not only has the function of an ordinary globe valve but also has the characteristics of good flame retardancy, good conductivity, fast heat transfer, compact structure, oil proof, safety, and reliability. With the development of the metallurgical industry, oxygen globe valves and oxygen ball valves are widely used in iron and steel, metallurgy, medicine, chemical industry, and so on.

Oil-free
- Compressed oxygen exposed to a small amount of oil will immediately burn violently and cause an explosion, so oxygen pipeline pipes, fittings, cushions, and all materials in contact with oxygen must be strictly degreased before installation and use.
Flow direction
- Oxygen special valves should be selected for the valves in oxygen pipelines. Globe valves are mostly used in domestic oxygen pipelines. The flow direction of common valve media is down-in, up-out. Under the condition of oxygen, the valve runner is different from the ordinary valve. Choose up-in, and down-out to ensure that the stem is well stressed and the spool closes quickly.
Internal chamber
- At the same time, the inner chamber of the valve should be smooth, and without sharp angles. The chamfer of the inner parts should be rounded, and the streamlined type should be adopted as far as possible so as to make oxygen flow without sudden change of pressure and direction.
Material
- Oxygen and other similar gases contribute to combustion, so the valve material should be anti-rust, and good flame retardancy, so at least stainless steel CF8 CF8M CF3 at least, copper alloy was preferred

ZECO Valve