Oxford Flow IM gas regulators (IM100) are approaching four years of continual operation with no required maintenance or servicing.
Oxford Flow engineer and produce innovative flow control valves for gas, liquid, and multi-phase applications across various markets worldwide, including gas distribution and transmission. In December 2019, Scotia Gas Network (SGN) installed Oxford Flow’s 4” wafer IM100 gas regulators at a District Pressure Governor (DPG) in Ayrshire, UK. SGN owns and operates the gas network across Scotland and the south of England.
The Oxford Flow regulators were installed with their PRX1 Pilots, in both Active and Active-Monitor configurations. Unlike conventional regulators, which use a diaphragm, the IM100 utilizes piston technology which significantly reduces wear and eliminates fugitive emissions.
SGN was impressed by the commissioning experience – heavy lifting equipment was required to remove the incumbent, as is common with traditional valves. However, the IM100 being more compact in size and lighter in weight, enabled easy installation by hand.
During service, the IM100 performed excellently, operating with an intermediate to medium pressure of 7-2 bar in the SGN network. The regulators maintained a setpoint accuracy of +/-2.5%, stabilising in 5-10 seconds compared to the replaced incumbent, which depending on demand, required up to 15 minutes to reach stability. No failures were experienced throughout the more than three years of continuous operation to date, with zero maintenance activity. The lock-up properties of the IM were also tested regularly, with the IMs passing at every phase.
