Characterization of the Solid Particle Erosion of the Sealing Surface Materials of a Ball Valve

Abstract

The ball valve is an essential piece of equipment in an oil and gas pipeline. The sand particles transported through the pipeline can cause erosion and wear to the ball valve, thus causing it to fail, leading to serious safety hazards. In this paper, the self-designed erosion experiment method was combined with computational fluid dynamics (CFD), while the Euler-Lagrange method was also introduced to optimize the Oka erosion model and Ford particle-wall rebound model. The erosion mechanism and characteristics of the ball valve sealing surface in gas-solid two-phase flow were simulated, while the erosion condition of the specimen was analyzed and compared when exposed to different factors, such as different particle velocities, impact angle, particle size, and specimen materials. The experimental data conformed well to the CFD erosion simulation data, verifying the accuracy of the CFD simulation analysis. The results indicated that the worn surface was caused by various wear mechanisms, while a “stagnation zone” was identified at the center of the specimen. The maximum erosion area, which was U-shaped, was also located at the center. The erosion rate increased in conjunction with an increase in the particle velocity and size, both of which failed to affect the erosion pattern. The erosion rate initially increased, after which it decreased with the impact angle, reaching the maximum value at an impact angle of 30°. This paper summarizes the erosion failure mechanism and characteristics in gas–solid two-phase flow and provides both technical support and a theoretical basis for the on-site maintenance of essential vulnerable parts in the pipeline, such as ball valves.