Cavitation
A damaging phenomenon in liquid service where the local pressure drops below the liquid's vapour pressure, forming vapour bubbles that collapse violently as pressure recovers. Causes severe noise, vibration, and erosion of valve trim. Prevented by using anti-cavitation trim, multiple-stage pressure reduction, or changing valve location.
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What is Cavitation in the context of industrial valves?
A damaging phenomenon in liquid service where the local pressure drops below the liquid's vapour pressure, forming vapour bubbles that collapse violently as pressure recovers. Causes severe noise, vibration, and erosion of valve trim. Prevented by using anti-cavitation trim, multiple-stage pressure reduction, or changing valve location.
How does Cavitation affect valve selection and sizing?
A damaging phenomenon in liquid service where the local pressure drops below the liquid's vapour pressure, forming vapour bubbles that collapse violently as pressure recovers. Valve sizing must account for this phenomenon to prevent premature failure, excess noise, and vibration. For control valves, ISA-75.01 and IEC 60534-2-1 cover sizing for incompressible and compressible flow. Vajra Industrial Solutions can assist with valve sizing calculations - contact sales@vajravyuh.com with your process data sheet.
What valve types minimise Cavitation problems?
The choice of valve type and trim significantly affects susceptibility to flow-related problems. Anti-cavitation trims, low-noise cages, multi-stage pressure reduction, and proper Cv sizing reduce velocity-related damage. For critical applications, control valve sizing is performed using the ISA/IEC methodology with FL (liquid pressure recovery factor) and Fd (valve style modifier) for the specific valve geometry.
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