The Key Differences Between Butterfly Valves & Check Valves

When it comes to choosing the most suitable valve for a particular application, two types of valves that often come up for comparison are butterfly valves and check valves. Both of these valves are essential components for controlling the flow of fluids in industries such as oil and gas, water treatment, and manufacturing. While both types of valves have their own unique features and benefits, they also have a few key differences that set them apart from each other. In this article, we will explore these differences to help you determine which valve is right for your specific needs.

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I. Introduction

Brief overview of butterfly valves and check valves

• Butterfly valves and check valves are types of industrial valves used to regulate the flow of fluids. Butterfly valves consist of a circular disc that rotates within the valve body, controlling the flow of fluid through the pipe. They are often used in large-diameter piping systems where cost and weight are a concern. Check valves, on the other hand, allow fluid to flow in only one direction, preventing backflow. They are commonly used in applications where preventing backflow is critical, such as with hazardous or toxic fluids. Both valves have their own unique features, advantages, and disadvantages, which must be considered when selecting the right valve for a particular application.

Importance of choosing the right valve for a particular application

Choosing the right valve for a particular application is crucial to ensure efficient and safe operation of the system. A valve that is not suitable for a specific application can result in poor performance, increased maintenance costs, and potential safety hazards. For example, using a butterfly valve in a high-pressure system can cause the valve to fail, leading to leaks and potential injury to workers. Similarly, installing a check valve in a system where backflow is not a concern can restrict flow and decrease efficiency. Choosing the right valve requires an understanding of the specific requirements of the application, such as fluid type, temperature, pressure, and flow rate. Consulting with experts in valve selection can help ensure the correct valve is chosen, reducing the risk of problems down the line and improving overall system performance.

II. Butterfly Valves

Definition of butterfly valves

Butterfly valve are a type of quarter-turn valve used to regulate the flow of fluids. They consist of a circular disc that is mounted on a rotating shaft within a valve body. When the disc is turned perpendicular to the pipe, it blocks the flow of fluid. When the disc is turned parallel to the pipe, it allows the fluid to flow through. Butterfly valves are often used in large-diameter piping systems where cost and weight are a concern, as they are typically more cost-effective and lightweight than other valve types.

Types of butterfly valves (wafer, lug, double flanged)

There are three main types of butterfly valves: wafer, lug, and double flanged.

1. Wafer butterfly valves are design to fit between two flanges and are secure with bolts and nuts. They have a small face-to-face dimension, making them a cost-effective option for many applications. However, they are not suitable for high-pressure systems as they may not provide sufficient support.
2. Lug butterfly valves have thread inserts on both sides of the valve body, allowing them to be bolted onto the pipeline without the need for additional hardware. They can be installed in systems where maintenance is required without the need for removing the whole valve from the pipeline.
3. Double flanged butterfly valves have flanges on both ends of the valve body, making them suitable for use in high-pressure systems. They are typically use in larger pipelines where high flow rates and pressures are present.

Each type of butterfly valve has its own unique features and benefits, and the choice of valve depends on the specific requirements of the application.

Advantages of butterfly valves (cost-effective, easy to install and maintain, efficient flow control)

Butterfly valves offer several advantages over other valve types, including:

1. Cost-effective: Butterfly valves are typically less expensive than other valve types, making them a cost-effective option for many applications.
2. Easy to install and maintain: Butterfly valve are lightweight and easy to install, making them a popular choice in large-diameter piping systems where weight is a concern. They also require minimal maintenance due to their simple design.
3. Efficient flow control: Butterfly valves provide efficient flow control due to their ability to quickly open and close with a quarter-turn of the valve handle or actuator. This allows for precise control of the flow rate and reduces energy consumption.

Overall, butterfly valves are a versatile and reliable option for controlling the flow of fluids in a variety of industries, including chemical, food and beverage, and water treatment.

Disadvantages of butterfly valves (not suitable for high-pressure applications, limited temperature range)

Despite their advantages, butterfly valves also have some limitations and disadvantages, including:

1. Not suitable for high-pressure applications: Butterfly valves are not suitable for use in applications with high-pressure systems due to their design and lack of support. They may fail under high-pressure conditions, leading to leaks and potential safety hazards.
2. Limited temperature range: Butterfly valves are limit in the temperature range they can handle. High temperatures can cause the valve material to expand and contract, leading to leakage.
3. Limited control over flow rate: While butterfly valves provide efficient flow control, they may not be suitable for applications where precise control over flow rate is require. In certain circumstances, such as when dealing with slurries or viscous fluids, other valve types may be more appropriate.

It is important to consider these limitations when choosing a valve type for a specific application and consult with experts in valve selection to determine the best option for the task at hand.

III. Check Valves

Definition of check valves

Check valve are a type of industrial valve use to allow fluid to flow in only one direction and prevent backflow. consist of a valve body with an inlet and outlet, and a mechanism that allows fluid to flow in one direction while preventing it from flowing in the opposite direction. Check valves are commonly use in applications where preventing backflow is critical, such as with hazardous or toxic fluids. They come in a variety of designs and sizes, including ball check, swing check, and piston check valves, among others.

Types of check valves (swing, lift, ball)

There are several types of check valves, including:

1. Swing check valves: This type of valve has a disc that swings on a hinge to allow fluid to flow in one direction and block it from flowing in the other direction. When the fluid flows in the opposite direction, the disc swings closed, preventing backflow.
2. Lift check valves: These valves operate by using a disc that is lift off its seat to allow fluid to flow in one direction. When the fluid flows in the opposite direction, the weight of the disc causes it to drop back onto the seat, sealing off the valve and preventing backflow.
3. Ball check valves: These valves use a spherical ball to allow fluid to flow in one direction. The ball is hold in place by a spring or gravity. When fluid flows in the opposite direction, it pushes the ball against the seat, sealing the valve and preventing backflow.
4. Diaphragm check valves: These valves use a flexible diaphragm to allow fluid to flow in one direction. When fluid flows in the opposite direction, the pressure causes the diaphragm to flex and seal against the valve seat, preventing backflow.

Each type of check valve has its own unique design and features, and the choice of valve depends on the specific requirements of the application.

Advantages of check valves (prevents backflow, low maintenance, suitable for high-pressure applications)

Check valves offer several advantages over other types of valves, including:

1. Prevents backflow: The primary purpose of check valves is to prevent backflow, ensuring that fluid flows in only one direction, which can prevent contamination and damage to equipment.
2. Low maintenance: Check valves have fewer moving parts than other types of valves, making them less prone to failure and requiring very little maintenance.
3. Suitable for high-pressure applications: Check valves are design to withstand high pressures, making them ideal for use in applications where pressure relief is important.
4. Wide range of materials: Check valves are available in a wide range of materials including brass, stainless steel, PVC and others, making them suitable for use with a variety of fluids.

Overall, check valves are a reliable and cost-effective option for controlling the flow of fluids in a variety of industries, including chemical processing, oil and gas, and water treatment.

Disadvantages of check valves (higher cost, limited flow control, requires specific installation orientation)

Despite their advantages, check valves also have some limitations and disadvantages, including:

1. Higher cost: Check valves can be more expensive than other types of valves due to their design and construction.
2. Limited flow control: Check valves are primarily design to allow fluid to flow in one direction and prevent backflow, so they may not provide the level of flow control required in some applications.
3. Requires specific installation orientation: Check valves must be install in a specific orientation to function properly. If they are install incorrectly, they may fail to prevent backflow, which could result in damage to equipment or contamination of the fluid.

It is important to consider these limitations when choosing a valve type for a specific application and consult with experts in valve selection to determine the best option for the task at hand.

IV. Key Differences Between Butterfly Valves and Check Valves

Butterfly valves and check valves are both types of industrial valves. Use to control the flow of fluids, but they differ in several key ways:

1. Function: Butterfly valves are primarily use to regulate the flow of fluid through a system, while check valves are design to prevent backflow.
2. Design: Butterfly valves consist of a valve body with an inlet and outlet, and a disc that rotates around a spindle to open or close the valve. Check valves have a simpler design, consisting of a body with an inlet and outlet, and a mechanism that allows fluid to flow in one direction while preventing it from flowing in the opposite direction.
3. Flow control: Butterfly valves provide precise flow control due to their ability to regulate the amount of fluid passing through the valve, while check valves do not provide the same level of flow control since their primary function is to prevent backflow.
4. Pressure rating: Check valves are often rate for higher pressure applications than butterfly valves, which may be limit in their pressure rating due to their design.
5. Maintenance: Butterfly valves require more maintenance than check valves due to their more complex design and moving parts.
6. Cost: Check valves tend to be less expensive than butterfly valves since they have a simpler design and require less maintenance.

Overall, the choice between butterfly valves and check valves.  Depends on the specific requirements of the application, including the need for flow control, pressure rating, and prevention of backflow.

V. Choosing the Right Valve for Your Application

Choosing the right valve for your application is critical to ensuring that your system operates correctly and efficiently. Here are some factors to consider when selecting a valve:

1. Function: Consider what you need the valve to do. Do you need to control flow, prevent backflow, or regulate pressure? This will help determine the type of valve that will work best.
2. Fluid characteristics: Consider the properties of the fluid that will be flowing through the valve, including temperature, viscosity, and corrosiveness. Certain valve materials may be better suit for certain fluids.
3. Pressure rating: Consider the pressure range required for your application and choose a valve with the appropriate pressure rating.
4. Flow rate: Consider the required flow rate for your application. And select a valve that can handle the amount of flow required.
5. Installation requirements: Consider the space and orientation required for installation. Some valves require specific installation orientations or have space constraints that must be considere.
6. Maintenance: Consider the maintenance requirements of different valve types. Some valves may require more maintenance than others, which can impact the overall cost of ownership.

By considering these factors, you can choose the right valve for your application and ensure. That your system operates safely and efficiently. It is also important to consult with experts in valve selection. Who can help you navigate the complexities of valve selection and recommend the most appropriate option for your requirements.

VI. Conclusion

In conclusion, butterfly valves and check valves are two different types of industrial valves. That are use to control the flow of fluids in a system. The key differences between these two types of valves lie in their function. Design, flow control, pressure rating, maintenance, and cost.

Butterfly valves are primarily use for regulating the flow of fluids. And provide precise flow control due to their ability to regulate the amount of fluid passing through the valve. They also require more maintenance than check valves due to their complex design and moving parts.

Check valves, on the other hand,  use to prevent backflow and require less maintenance than butterfly valves. Since they have a simpler design and fewer moving parts. They are also often rate for higher pressure applications than butterfly valves.

When choosing between butterfly valves and check valves, it is important to consider the specific requirements of your application. Including the need for flow control, pressure rating, and prevention of backflow. By considering these factors, you can select the valve that will work best for your application. And ensure that your system operates efficiently and safely.

Link to Yaxing Valve

Valves are integral parts of piping systems for conveying liquids and gases and are available in various sizes and designs. Their sole purpose is the control and regulation of these media in a secure manner.

Gate valves and butterfly valves are two of the most popular types of industrial valves. These two have huge differences in both of their structural designs, usage, and working conditions.

In this article, we are going to discuss the differences between gate and butterfly valves. Let us start by defining these two in the next section to find their differences before we elaborate further on the details.

Defining Gate and Butterfly Valves

What is a Gate Valve?

Gate valves, also known as sluice valves, cut off a medium in a pipeline by lifting a rectangular or round &#;gate&#; from the medium&#;s path. The direction of the gate&#;s movement is perpendicular to that of the medium&#;s flow.

Gate valves are cut-off valves which are only used when minimum restrictions and uniform linear flows are desired. They can either be completely open or completely closed which does not allow the adjustment of the medium flow. The medium discharge is normally complete and no residues are left in the pipes.

What is a Butterfly Valve?

Butterfly valves are also known as flap valves. They are composed of a fixed disc on the valve&#;s stem for closing and opening the valve. This disc rotates around the valve&#;s stem to regulate the flow of the medium in the pipeline. The direction of the disc&#;s movement is in place rotation only and requires a 90° rotation to fully open or fully close the valve.

Butterfly valves can either be used for regulating or isolating fluid flows and can control the flow easily. However, they leave residual materials in the pipeline.

Differences Between Gate and Butterfly Valves

After the general definitions of gate and butterfly valves, you may have already noticed the differences between the two. Most especially their design, how they work, and their recommended applications. Let us discuss these further by tackling their differences one by one.

#1 Structural Design

Gate valves use a &#;gate&#; or a wedge whilst butterfly valves use a rotating disc to allow or prevent fluid flow. Moreover, gate valves and butterfly valves have different body and disc designs as stated below.

Gate Valve

Body-Bonnet Designs

• Bolted-bonnet gate valve,
• Screwed bonnet gate valve,
• Pressure-seal bonnet, and
• Welded-Bonnet gate valve.

Disc Designs

• Wedge gate valve,
• Double-disc gate valve, and
• Conduit or Parallel slide gate valve.

Butterfly Valve

Body Designs

• Lug type butterfly valve,
• Wafer type butterfly valve,
• Flanged butterfly valve, and
• Butt-welded butterfly valve.

Disc Offset Designs

• Zero offset (concentric) butterfly valve,
• Double offset (double eccentric) butterfly valve, and
• Triple offset (triple eccentric) butterfly valve.

For detailed descriptions of the gate valve types and butterfly valve types discussed above, you can read these two articles.

#2 Working Mechanism

Gate Valve

Gate valves use a movable door or gate to open and close the valve. This gate is lowered or raised using a mechanically assisted operator which is normally a threaded screw. Since gate valves can either be in the fully open or fully closed state, the resistance of the fluid flow when the valve is fully opened is smaller. This is because when the gate valve is fully open, the gate is entirely out of the medium&#;s path, providing an unobstructed flow.

In general, gate valves act as restrictions to the medium flow and they change the medium&#;s speed rather than its rate of flow. Moreover, the closing and opening speed of the gate valve is slow due to its high opening height.

Butterfly Valve

Butterfly valves belong to the category of quarter-turn valves and they consist of a rotating disc to regulate the medium flow. The disc is held at the center of the valve&#;s body by a stem. Unlike gate valves, butterfly valves have a short operation time since the operator is only rotated at 90° to allow or prevent fluid flow in the passageway.

A butterfly valve is usually operated using an actuator which turns the valve&#;s disc either parallel or perpendicular to the flow. The disc is parallel to the flow when the valve is in the fully open state and is perpendicular to it otherwise. In addition, the butterfly valve&#;s thickness creates resistance which obstructs the medium flow and causes the pressure to drop even if the valve is fully open.

#3 Applications

Gate Valve Applications

Gate valves have good sealing performances so they are often used for pipelines requiring strict sealing but do not need frequent switching. They can only be used in the fully open or fully closed state and not for regulating or throttling the medium flow rate because accurate control cannot be achieved.

If the valve is kept in the partially or intermediate open state, the valve&#;s seat and the gate will erode badly in just a short time. The chattering wedge will also tend to cause noises and vibrations in the pipeline.

Moreover, because the speed of the gate valve&#;s opening and closing operation is slow, they are not ideal for pipelines that require emergency shutoffs. But when pressure along the pipe is considered, gate valves can withstand higher pressures compared to butterfly valves.

Lastly, gate valves are widely used in large piping systems requiring uninterrupted bi-directional liquid and gas flows or in time-based uni-directional media discharges.

Butterfly Valve Applications

Industrial butterfly valves are lighter compared to gate valves and thus are more convenient to operate and install for applications dealing with large pipe diameters. They are ideal for installations with limited space in which wafer butterfly valve types are recommended. In fact, butterfly valves are comparatively more extensively used in large sizes compared to gate valves.

Because butterfly valves open and close quickly and can be frequently operated, they are ideal for applications that require quick opening and closing, especially for emergency shutoffs. And aside from truncation purposes, they are also used to adjust or throttle flow rates. For pipelines containing small impurity particles, it is recommended to use butterfly valves.

Moreover, butterfly valves are termed high-performance valves because of their suitability in applications under moderate to high temperature and pressure conditions.

#4 Price

Under normal conditions in the same specifications, diameter, and material, butterfly valves are more affordable compared to gate valves. Gate valves may have lower prices than butterfly valves in smaller sizes but their price also rapidly increases with the increase in caliber diameter. So in larger sizes, butterfly valves are still cheaper which makes them more extensively used in various industries.

Advantages and Disadvantages

After discussing the differences between gate valves and butterfly valves, below are the compiled advantages and disadvantages of each valve type.

Gate Valve

Advantages

1. They can provide an unobstructed flow in the fully open position so pressure loss is minimal.
2. They are bi-directional and allow uniform linear flows.
3. No residues are left in the pipes.
4. Gate valves can withstand higher pressures compared to butterfly valves
5. It prevents water hammer because the wedge has a slow operation.

Disadvantages

1. Can only be completely open or completely closed with no allowed adjustments for the medium flow.
2. The operation speed is slow due to the gate valve&#;s high opening height.
3. The valve&#;s seat and gate will erode badly when kept in the partially open state.
4. More expensive compared to butterfly valves especially in large sizes.
5. They occupy a larger space for the installation and operation compared to butterfly valves.

Butterfly Valve

Advantages

1. Can be used for throttling fluid flows and can control the flow easily.
2. Suitable for applications under moderate to high temperature and pressure conditions.
3. Light-weight and compact design requiring less space for installation.
4. Fast operation time which is ideal for emergency shut-offs.
5. More affordable in large sizes.

Disadvantages

1. They leave residual materials in the pipeline.
2. The thickness of the valve&#;s body creates resistance which obstructs the medium flow and causes the pressure to drop even if the valve is fully open.
3. The movement of the disc is unguided so it is affected by the flow turbulence.
4. Thick liquids can prevent the movement of the disc as it is always along the flow path.
5. Possibility of water hammers.

Conclusion

Gate valves and butterfly valves have their own strengths and weaknesses depending on the application requirements where they are going to be installed. In general, gate valves are ideal for applications that need strict sealing only and do not need frequent operation especially when an unobstructed flow is desired. But if you need a valve for throttling purposes that occupy less space for huge systems, large butterfly valves would be ideal.

For the majority of applications, butterfly valves are more extensively used. Huamei offers high-performance butterfly valves in different end-type connection, material body, seat, and disc designs. Feel free to contact us for further questions about our products.

For more information, please visit Difference Between a Gate Valve and a Butterfly Valve.