Safety valves and relief valves have been around for hundreds of years, dating back as far as the 17th Century with the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. Since the very first steam boiler, specially designed valves have acted to prevent overpressure from damaging equipment or harming humans working nearby. Now, though their designs have evolved, wherever you’ll find steam, water, coolant, or other fluids kept under pressure, you’ll still find relief and safety valve systems doing the hard work to keep your operations running safely and smoothly.
In this article, we’ll examine how important high-quality, precision safety and relief valves are to making industrial and commercial projects safer.
Know the Difference: Pressure Relief Valves vs. Safety Valves
A safety valve is specifically built to handle compressible fluids—such as gases, vapors, and steam. The space these fluids take up shrinks under higher pressure. For example, a pneumatic system that uses compressed air relies on pressure safety valves to prevent overpressure.
A relief valve, on the other hand, is for non-compressible fluids, such as water and many other liquids. The volumes of these fluids don’t change due to changes in pressure. Hydraulic systems that use liquids under pressure, for example, use relief valves.
A safety relief valve, as the name suggests, is designed to handle both compressible and non-compressible fluids.
What is the function of a pressure relief valve?
Ask the question, “What does a relief valve do?” and the answer might seem simple. The primary purpose of a relief valve is to relieve pressure in a system. When the pressure in your pipeline, tank, or vessel rises to a certain point, the valve automatically opens up to relieve that pressure by sending the excess liquid somewhere else. A safety valve does the same but for gases and steam.
The way relief and safety valves accomplish this, however, is anything but simple. While the earliest examples of safety valves relieved steam pressure through a simple weight suspended on a lever arm, today’s valves have a wide variety of mechanisms to do so, such as pilot valves, balanced bellows, or springs.
For example, a spring-loaded safety relief valve relies on a spring that forces the valve to open when the pressure in a pipeline or vessel rises too high. Under high pressure, fluid tries to flow wherever the pressure is lowest. In a highly pressurized pipeline or vessel, “wherever the pressure is lowest” typically means “outside.”
When the valve opens, it allows the overpressurized fluid to escape down a pressure relief pipeline to a vent or reserve tank instead of causing leaks or pipe bursts. Through this mechanism, pressure relief devices and safety valves keep the pressure in your pipelines and process lines consistent. As a result, your pipeline’s performances are more efficient and reliable—not to mention safer!
How Industrial Safety Valves and Relief Valves Make Safer Work Environments
In industrial pipelines, fluids need to be kept under high and consistent pressure so the system can move them efficiently. However, if the pressure rises higher than your equipment is rated, excess wear on your piping, vessels, and other equipment can make your work environment unsafe.
Without safety valve systems and other pressure relief devices, leaks or ruptures caused by overpressure or catastrophic pressure-related failures can cause severe injuries to workers nearby.
Kunkle Safety and Pressure Relief Valves: Engineered to the Extreme
Unsurprisingly, without the right safety and relief valves, your work environment will end up potentially unsafe for your workers and equipment alike. But what are the right valves?
From commercial HVAC systems to industrial chemical processing and power generation systems, safety and relief valves in different industrial environments have vastly different standards to meet. Pressure relief devices in an oil and gas production facility, for example, must stand up to much more extreme pressures and environmental conditions than those in a residential or commercial boiler system, for example.
Dante Valve is a factory-authorized assembler and provider of Kunkle safety and relief valves, which are designed to function reliably in the most extreme industrial environments. Both ASME-certified and non-code valves are built and assembled to the most exacting standards to make certain that your industrial processes minimize the risk of damage to your equipment and safety hazards to your workforce.
As a family-owned, quality-driven, service-oriented valve manufacturer and distributor, Dante Valve has spent generations dedicated to providing the best possible valves for rugged commercial and industrial applications. We know our products inside and out, down to the last detail—if you have questions about how to choose the right valve, you can count on us for answers.
Reach out to our team today to get started and discover the Dante difference.