Valve-the ;regulating valve; of industrial blood

In the huge petrochemical plant, the valve is the key ;joint; of the pipeline system. When conveying inflammable, explosive and corrosive media, once the valve fails, the fire and explosion caused by leakage will bring disastrous consequences. In the urban water supply network, criss-crossing pipes go deep into every corner, and valves control the distribution and blocking of water flow. From waterworks to thousands of households, valves ensure stable water supply, and it is indispensable for water stoppage, maintenance and water pressure adjustment.

Simply put, a valve is a device to control the flow of fluid, and its basic function covers blocking the passage and preventing the transmission of medium; Adjust the flow rate and accurately control the flow rate; Change the flow direction and guide the medium to different paths. Whether it is liquid, gas or slurry, the valve can be controlled according to the demand, which is the basic guarantee for the smooth operation of industrial production and daily life.

First, looking back: the development road of China valves

(A) staggered start, difficult to explore

Looking back at the early days of the founding of New China, China's valve industry was hard to take root in a barren land. At that time, the domestic industrial base was weak and the technology and equipment were scarce, so we could only start the journey from copying simple valves. The old state-owned enterprises shoulder the heavy responsibility. In the simple factory building, technicians have repeatedly studied and experimented with limited materials and hand tools, striving to restore the exquisite structure of imported valves. It is normal that the output is scarce and the quality is uneven, which can only barely meet the basic industrial production needs. For example, an old valve factory in Shenyang, with more than a dozen workers and several old machine tools, can only produce a few hundred low-pressure small-caliber valves a year, but it has delivered the key ;blood; for the start of the local factory, which has opened a difficult preface for the valve industry in China from scratch.

(B) the spring breeze of reform, accelerated growth

The east wind of reform and opening up has injected great vitality into the valve industry. The influx of foreign capital and the introduction of advanced technology have made enterprises see the gap and hope. Coastal areas have taken the lead, and a large number of valve enterprises have sprung up like mushrooms after rain. Enterprises actively introduce foreign production lines, send backbones to study abroad, and improve the technology in combination with the national conditions after returning. R&D investment is increasing year by year, and new materials and technologies are boldly tried. New products, such as ball valves and butterfly valves, are constantly coming out, and the quality of products has been steadily improved. Some high-quality products have begun to enter the international low-end market, and the initial prosperity of the industry has gradually emerged. A valve enterprise in Zhejiang took advantage of the opening opportunity to introduce CNC machining center, and the precision and sealing performance of valves jumped sharply, and the export volume increased dozens of times in five years, becoming a pioneer in the industry.

Second, the current style: the amazing bloom of quality and performance

(a) the process is refined and the quality is excellent.

Material upgrading and foundation casting: Contemporary China valve manufacturing has stepped into the forefront in material selection. Take the field of deep-sea oil and gas exploitation as an example. Valves have been subjected to high pressure and strong corrosion impact of seawater for a long time, and traditional metals are embarrassed. Nowadays, a new type of nickel-based alloy has emerged, which is rich in chromium, molybdenum and other elements, and has built a super anti-corrosion barrier. In the deep sea and high pressure environment, the corrosion resistance is several times higher than that of ordinary carbon steel, and the service life is greatly prolonged. In the chemical industry, in the face of strong acid and alkali medium, PTFE-lined valve body material has become the ;main force;. With its extremely low friction coefficient and excellent chemical stability, PTFE not only ensures the smooth opening and closing of the valve, but also effectively blocks corrosion, so that the valve can serve stably in harsh chemical atmosphere for many years.

Precision manufacturing ensures precision: modern CNC machine tools and automated production lines have become ;standard; for valve manufacturing. In the high-end valve production workshop, the processing accuracy of parts is moving towards micron level. As the ;heart; of the valve, the surface roughness of the valve core is finely polished to below Ra0.2 micron, and the clearance between the valve core and the valve seat is controlled in a very small range, just like the gear of a precision watch. The automatic production line is transported and assembled by a high-precision mechanical arm, which eliminates manual operation errors and ensures that each valve has a stable structure and excellent sealing performance. From raw material cutting to finished product assembly, the whole process is digitally monitored. Once the size deviation exceeds the threshold, the system will immediately alarm and correct it to ensure the uniform quality and superior reliability of the off-line valve.

(B) technology empowerment, excellent performance

A new era of intelligent control: stepping into the wave of industry 4.0, intelligent valves have sprung up everywhere. In the pipeline network of large-scale chemical parks, the intelligent electric control valve is like a ;smart brain;. The built-in sensors collect pressure, temperature and flow data in real time and transmit them to the central control room rapidly by relying on the 5G network. By tapping the screen remotely, the operator can accurately control the valve opening and realize ;stepless speed change; of flow. In the face of complex production process fluctuations, intelligent valves are automatically adjusted according to preset procedures to ensure accurate material proportioning. More forward-looking, its fault diagnosis system uses big data to analyze operating parameters, predict hidden dangers such as seal wear and actuator failure in advance, give early warning in time, reserve sufficient time for equipment maintenance, and minimize downtime losses.

High-pressure adaptation shows magical power: In the field of ultra-high pressure, China valves are also legendary. In the ;West-to-East Gas Transmission; fourth-line project, some pipelines are faced with ultra-high pressure of more than 100 MPa, so special high-pressure ball valves come forward. Its valve body is forged with high-strength alloy steel as a whole, and its compressive strength has soared after multiple heat treatments. The ball and valve seat are made of metal hard seal and flexible graphite auxiliary seal. Under the double guarantee, even under high pressure impact, the leakage rate is strictly controlled in a very small range, just like a copper wall guarding the stable transmission of natural gas to the east. In the supercritical thermal power project, high-temperature and high-pressure steam (parameter: pressure 30 MPa, temperature 600℃) drives the turbine to run. The high-temperature and high-pressure stop valve at the key position, with special high-temperature resistant alloy and multi-layer sealing structure, can withstand the test of extreme working conditions, ensure the continuous and stable output of electricity, and inject surging power into industrial take-off.

Third, the benchmarking power: the pioneering journey of leading enterprises

(I) Newway Valve: an industry leader driven by innovation.

Suzhou Newway Valve Co., Ltd. was founded in 1997 and has been deeply involved in the field of industrial valves. It has established an international R&D system, and many R&D centers around the world collaborate to gather top talents, with an annual R&D investment of over 100 million yuan. Its ball valve product is the trump card, which runs stably under the working conditions of ultra-high pressure (200 MPa) and low temperature (-196℃) in deep-sea oil and gas exploitation, and its sealing reliability exceeds international standards. From design to after-sale, one-stop service covers project planning, valve selection, installation and debugging, and maintenance, which is the ;escort; for major global projects. The products sell well in more than 100 countries and are the ;China business card; in the international valve market.

(B) Shanghai Guanlong: a pioneer in water conservation through intensive cultivation.

Established in 1991, Shanghai Guanlong Valve Energy Saving Equipment Co., Ltd. has been focusing on the research and development of water-saving valves for more than 30 years. The core technology covers soft and hard sealing, protection, control and performance simulation test, and many technologies have reached ;domestic leading and international advanced;. In the urban water supply and drainage system, its intelligent water-saving valve accurately senses the water demand and dynamically adjusts the opening according to the pressure and flow of the pipe network, saving water by over 30%; Leak-proof valve uses double sealing and micro-leakage monitoring to reduce the leakage rate of pipe network from conventional 15% to less than 5%, which has made great contributions to urban water resources management, and its products are widely sold at home and abroad, which is a benchmark in the field of water saving.

Fourth, the road to breaking the game: facing the challenge directly, the future can be expected.

(A) the remaining thorns to be broken

Despite the remarkable achievements, the road ahead of China valve industry is still bumpy. In the field of high-end valves, some core technologies have not been overcome, such as the key sealing technology of high-temperature and high-pressure nuclear power valves. In the face of extreme radiation and high-temperature and high-pressure water erosion in the nuclear island, the life and reliability of domestic sealing materials are still far from the international top level, resulting in some key nuclear power valves still relying on imports. In addition, the industry concentration is low, a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises disperse the market, homogenization and low-price competition occur frequently, and some enterprises sacrifice quality for cost reduction, resulting in uneven quality of valve products in the market, which not only disrupts the market order, but also weakens the overall reputation of the industry, affecting the high-end process of domestic valves and laying hidden dangers for industrial safety.

(B) forge ahead and draw a blueprint

Looking forward to the future, China valve industry has unlimited opportunities. Enterprises will continue to increase R&D investment, join hands with scientific research institutes to build a deep integration system in Industry-University-Research, focus on key technologies of high-end valves, and strive to break through bottlenecks in materials, design and manufacturing. With the acceleration of industry integration, dominant enterprises eliminated backward production capacity through mergers and acquisitions, optimized resource allocation, enhanced industrial concentration, and shaped a large-scale and specialized industrial pattern. With the booming of new energy, deep-sea exploration, biomedicine and other emerging industries, valves as basic components usher in new application scenarios. For example, in the field of new energy, the demand for special valves adapted to hydrogen energy, solar energy and wind energy systems has surged, and enterprises have accelerated the research and development of new valves adapted to extreme working conditions and intelligent self-control, injecting surging power into the development of new energy industry, helping China valves to reach the top of the global value chain and continue to write brilliant chapters.

V. Conclusion

From being a toddler when New China was founded to striding around the world today, the valve industry in China has achieved a qualitative leap. Behind the improvement of quality and performance is the painstaking efforts of countless researchers and industrial workers. At present, standing at a new starting point, continuous innovation and strict quality control are still the ;customs clearance code; for moving towards a valve power. Looking forward to the future, under the wave of reshaping the global industrial division of labor, China Valve will paint a more beautiful chapter with innovation as the pen and quality as the ink, and will shine brilliantly on the international stage, injecting a steady stream of ;China power" into the world industrial development.