Featured Story

No clear or universal industry definition or mechanism exists to describe and accurately define severe service valves (SSVs) from general purpose valves, yet such a definition would allow clients to benefit from improved process performance, increased profitability, safety and environmental protection. This high level paper looks to offer an objective definition for better communication between users, specifiers and suppliers.

Valves don’t necessarily need to be made from, for example, stainless steel, or grey cast iron. Plastic valves are used in numerous areas to convey fluids through pipes, and they need not shy away from uncomfortable environments.

The sharp decline in crude prices and the subsequent volatility has meant that it’s been an onerous two years for oil producers, a period marked with budget cuts. The situation for the offshore side of the business has been far more severe. Once hailed as the bulwark from peak oil, the massive costs associated with its development in the face of low margins have made it increasingly difficult for companies to commit investments in recent times. Anurag Agrawal reports.

Turkmenistan has undergone steady economic growth in recent years, sustained by its abundant reserves of natural gas which rank the country as fourth largest by production volume worldwide. President Berdimuhamedov seems set to continue the policy of developing high-value-added natural gas products as well as diversification of their gas exports. One example is the current construction of a new fertilizer plant in Garabogaz, due for completion in July 2018.

There are a number of standards to which process valves can be tested and certified in order to guarantee their emission tightness. The ISO 15848-1 testing protocol is making headway to be the accepted standard in the European region while the API 624 standard seems to be the predominant standard in the United States. In Germany all the valves that shall be used in the chemical and petrochemical industry shall have the VDI 2440 certification done.

Stan Hale has worked a long time in the motor-operated valve testing within the nuclear power industry. Here he reflects on how far the industry has come.

Picking up on comments that bar stock might not necessarily be a bad choice for manufacturing valve bodies, Valve World editor James Hoare canvassed opinions from throughout the industry. Indeed, his appeal for insider information quickly yielded expert viewpoints from far and wide…

Discovered in 2008 by Maersk Oil and its co-venturers, the Culzean gas condensate field has enormous potential with an estimated 250-300 million barrels of oil equivalent. The development was approved by the UK Oil & Gas Authority in August last year. Production is anticipated to commence in 2019, and continue for another 13 years with an estimated plateau production of 60,000-90,000 barrels per day.

Water is perhaps the most valuable resource on the planet and essential to all life. In facilities such as Dunea Duin and Water close to The Hague, dedicated staff like electrical engineer Cees van de Noort work tirelessly to ensure residents have access to a reliable supply of safe drinking water. Mr. Van de Noort invited Valve World to see for ourselves how a PROFIBUS installation ensures operations run efficiently and on budget.

Against a backdrop of the environment issues, more and more natural gas, high calorific value fossil fuel, has been used as a clean alternative energy to replace oil. Following this trend, the application technology of natural gas has been rapidly developed, especially in the field of transportation where liquefied natural gas (LNG) is often used because of its efficiency.