January 2009
Volume XV, Number 1
Valve Maintenance & Troubleshooting Strategy

To Repair or Replace?
Solenoid Valve Maintenance & Troubleshooting Strategy
The small yet robust solenoid valve is a powerful electromechanical gatekeeper. It has the important task of controlling the flow of liquid, air, gases or particles for a larger system. Yet even the most reliable of valves can fatigue or become inoperable, thus shutting down or affecting a system’s performance. As with any mechanical apparatus, proactive maintenance of a solenoid valve can extend life and ensure consistent operation.

Sealing Material Selection
Advice for Ensuring Application Performance & Longevity
Fluid sealing devices play a critical role in a wide range of processing industries, including chemicals, refining, pulp and paper and many others. In this role they keep pumps from leaking, valves from releasing emissions, flanges from spraying fluids and other undesirable and often dangerous conditions. Yet, because these devices account for a tiny fraction of the cost of the systems in which they are installed, they often do not receive the attention they warrant.

The O-Ring as Flow Control Valve
New Hydraulic Technology Overcomes Bernoulli for Improved Results
Although most companies in the process and related industries face their own unique set of challenges, many of these companies are more alike in the obstacles they must overcome than one might initially think. Whether it’s production and refinery equipment in an oil and gas operation, transfer equipment in the chemical plant or slurry transfer equipment in a food processing facility, engineers regularly have to consider reducing the real-estate required by their equipment and machinery.

Pioneers of Flow Measurement
Founding the Technologies of Today
It is easy to forget in today’s fast-paced world the importance of the many thinkers and pioneers who have made modern-day technologies possible. This is as true in the area of flow measurement as it is in other technology segments. The following looks at some of the pioneers of flow measurement, who formulated many of the principles that underlie the sophisticated flow instruments of today.

Outside of the Process Line
The Effect of Ambient Conditions on Flow Measurement
The entire flow measurement system should be operated within its constraints in order to provide accurate flow measurements. This means that each component of the flow measurement system should be considered to ensure that it is operated properly. For example, let's consider why turbine flowmeters should be operated above a certain Reynolds number.

‘A Different Article’
How Pumps Consume 20% of the World’s Energy
I’m an old maintenance practitioner. I should retire, but I can’t (for a number of reasons, which I’ll write about in a different article). So I work as a pump consultant, and occasionally I give lectures on pumps. Strangely, my most recent assignments have not been about resolving rogue pumps. I have more and more meetings these days around conference tables with corporate suits, who want to reduce the operating costs of their pumps by improving their efficiency. Why?

QUIZ CORNER:
Where is Maximum Flow In a Pipe?
Insertion flowmeters typically measure the flowrate at one or more strategic locations in the pipe in order to determine the total flow in the entire pipe. They are often used in large pipes to obtain economical flow measurements. However, locating the sensor incorrectly can cause the flow measurement to be in error by as much as 10 percent to 30 percent or more. At which location (expressed as a percentage of pipe radius from the pipe wall) will the sensor register the maximum flowrate?

VIEWPOINT:
Trends to Watch in 2009
As we begin the new year, I’d like to highlight two trends worthy of some eyeballing in 2009. The first offers a beacon of hope for a huge step forward in the evolution of plant automation. The other represents an example of how, in my opinion, the American ideal of hard work and innovation continues to fall in favor of the mindless chasing of dollars and cents with little consideration for long-term expense. So as I reveal my good and bad trends to watch in ‘09, let’s keep our fingers crossed in the hope that useful innovation wins out over senseless quests for financial gain.