The development of the ball valves in the trunnion stem design with metal x metal seat seal began in March 2014. The K92 DN 300 PN 100 ball valve has been chosen as a prototype of this new design. The Armatury Group plans to offer this version of valves within range DN 50 – 900, PN 16 – 25, for temperatures from -60°C to +450°C.
The difference between the current version of the K92.1 and K92.2 trunnion plate ball valves and the new K92.3 and K92.4 ones is in the way the ball is mounted. Until now, the ball was mounted with plates to the bonnets of the ball valves. As far as the new design is concerned, the ball is fastened by a stem to the body of the valves and it makes the position of the ball towards the seats more accurate. This allows the use of seats with metal x metal sealing or hard plastomers, for example PEEK. The seats in trunnion plate design are used principally with elastomers.
The K92.3 DN 300 PN 100 ball valve has been tested for tightness by water and air. The first expedition of this type of ball valves took place in January 2015, when the Armatury Group supplied DN 50 PN 63 and PN 160 ball valves for the underground gas storage in Dolní Dunajovice.