Anyone who has any familiarity with valves has likely heard of pneumatic valves. In fact, these gadgets are even regularly used by individuals in the top IT career paths. A little about these types of valves for those not in the know: These are valve assemblies that use compressed air to operate. When you increase the amount of air pressure, the result is a decrease in fluid flow through the valve. This article will go over how pneumatic valves work, why they are necessary, and what some other types of pneumatically-activated devices can do for you. By reading this post, you’ll be able to identify when these things might be helpful in your own work environment and learn some different ways that they’re used on a regular basis by professionals across many industries. We’ll begin by getting a good picture of what pneumatic valves are, how they work, who actually uses them, and why people might want to use them. We’ll also cover some other important definitions along the way that might come in handy.
What Is A Pneumatic Valve?
At its most basic, a pneumatic valve is just that: It’s a valve assembly that uses compressed air to open or close. The basic idea behind pneumatic valves is this: When air pressure decreases in the valve, the fluid being controlled by the valve either flow or stops flowing at that point. When air pressure is increased, fluid flow is decreased. When air pressure is highest, the result is that fluid flow is lowest. This isn’t really rocket science, though it might seem like it on the face of it. Pneumatic valves are used to control airflow through many different types of applications and products including packaging design solutions. In some cases, they are used along with other types of devices to provide additional functionality and control in industrial operations.
Pneumatic valves are often industrial-grade products and components because they work in harsh conditions – especially when compared to some of their electrical counterparts. Many times, pneumatic valves are able to be used in environments that have exposure to extreme heat or extreme cold. They also don’t tend to fail nearly as often as some other types of valves. The primary downside is that they do require a source of compressed air in order to function – especially when compared to other types of valves and devices that are used for controlling fluid flow. There are many different types of pneumatic valve designs, depending on the application and the needs of the user. Let’s take a look at some examples:
Ball Valves
A ball valve is one example of a very simple pneumatic valve design. A ball valve consists of a socket that fits into a piece of pipe. The ball valve operates by sliding the socket onto the pipe and turning the handle (usually located on top) to manipulate the position of the socket, which in turn affects fluid flow through the pipe.
1 Way Ball Valve Design
The idea behind this type of valve design is simple: A ball can easily slide in and out of a pipe. When air pressure is high, fluid flow is controlled by compressing air into a small space around the socket. This pressure causes friction with the surface, so air flows out from around it and through the stem that’s connected to it, so that fluid can flow. Compressed air can easily be replaced depending on the user’s needs. A ball valve works similarly to a nut and bolt in the sense that once it’s in the right position, you can either tighten or loosen the handle to open or close it.
Box Valves
Box valves are quite similar to ball valves in their functionality as well as their design, but they are much more complex. In contrast to ball valves, box valves have a large square of metal that fits into a larger square cavity inside of a pipe or fitting. The valve is designed so that fluid can flow from one side of the box to another simply by turning a handle on either end of the box (usually located on top).
2 Way Box Valve Design
This type of valve is very similar in design to the ball valve, but it’s much more complex. This is due to the much larger external dimensions and larger surface area that’s exposed. These types of valves are also more common for higher pressures and for industrial applications such as atrion services.
Gate Valves
These are other pneumatic valve design that is commonly used in industrial operations. A gate valve has a swing-arm handle built into the middle of its body. The handle can be used to push the gate closer to a sealing position on either side of the valve (usually located on top).