Rota Val, Chippenham, UK, was the world’s first rotary valve manufacturer to gain ATEX certification for explosion and flame containment to 10 bar for Kst2 Dust. In terms of safety and monitoring, the company remains amongst the most innovative of rotary valve manufacturers.

 

Sales manager Steve Winton points out that although casting is generally a reliable method, once in a while a flaw in the casting can occur. To x-ray every casting is impractical and expensive, so to ensure the integrity of every explosion/flame containment rotary valve that leaves the factory, Rota Val has always hydrostatically pressure tested all iron valves to 20 bar g and stainless steel to 13 bar g for 15 minutes before certification is provided. This, he suggests, is in stark contrast to the industry norm where most manufacturers simply supply a type test certificate, which means that only the original valve is tested - a photocopied version of the original certificate being offered with the valve.

 

Having gone to the trouble of pressure testing, managers at Rota Val took the decision some years ago to manufacture all iron bodies from ductile SG iron. With SG iron the nodular graphite structure inhibits the creation of cracks thereby providing the ability to withstand distortion and making it stronger than cast iron. SG iron also has much more impact and fatigue resistance, so valve life is also enhanced through better wear properties. Many Rota Val rotary valves are said to be still working over 30 after they were installed. www.rotaval.co.uk 

 

 

A Rota Val HD600 valve being pressure tested by Baseefa