Baker Hughes expands ASME Section I portfolio to include liquid Economizer and Thermal Fluid Heater Valves

Baker Hughes announces the expansion of the Consolidated ASME Section I portfolio, to now include 1900 LA1 spring-loaded and 2900 LA1 pilot-operated B&PV code approved liquid safety relief valves as solutions for liquid over-pressure protection for Economizers and thermal fluid heaters.

As combined cycle power plants come on line, feedwater is processed through a system called the Economizer. This system adds efficiency to the power plant by incorporating a heat exchanger design using high temperature gas turbine exhaust as a source to pre-heat the feedwater prior to feeding the fluid to the HRSG where it is fully transformed into superheated steam. Similarly, thermal fluid heaters also use a liquid phase heat transfer medium to put heat energy into various processes. Consolidated announces the Section 1 portfolio expansion to now include code approved liquid trim solutions that optimize the ability to relieve in these applications operating under high temperature liquid phase fluids.

“Prior to ASME code changes in 2017, only valves designed, tested and certified with steam as the fluid media were code approved for these applications.”, notes Matt Byers, Senior Product Manager at Baker Hughes. “The application dilemma that our customers faced was steam valves were not designed to relieve in liquid applications, resulting in continuous opening/closing operation known as “chatter”, which induces premature wear and seat leakage across the valve. The 2017 changes by the ASME code committee now allow Economizers and thermal fluid heaters to have liquid-certified valves sized at 10% accumulation for over-pressure protection.”

The full Consolidated portfolio of ASME Section I valves now includes liquid trim options for both spring-loaded designs, Consolidated 1900 LA1 series, and modular pilot-operated designs, Consolidated 2900 LA1 series, to provide both technologies to best fit any type of application condition and continuing to prove the Consolidated reputation as “BEST UNDER PRESSURE”.