What Are Pneumatic Valves And How Do They Work?

By Author: Vikram Kumar
Total Articles: 9383
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Pneumatic valves function much like the brake and accelerator pedals in a modern car. An air compressor provides the power which drives the system, much like the engine does in a car. And like that engine, when the system is in operation, the air compressor is always on, even if only at “idling” speed. When a valve is open, that is like depressing the accelerator pedal, and the system connected to that particular valve will be driven by the compressed air flowing through. When the valve is closed, however, that is like depressing the brake pedal, as that cuts off the supply of compressed air and brings the process to a halt. There are a great many different types of valves and their related components, such as Pisco tube fittings, and it is important to understand the differences and unique features of each component before attempting to integrate them into your system.

Operation

Valves can either be manually or automatically operated. With manual operation, a human operator is required to monitor the system and close or open the valve as needed. In the modern world, this type of valve is much less common than ...
... automatically operated valves, as the need for human oversight is considered expensive and inefficient. Factories and other institutions that make use of pneumatic equipment generally prefer automated valves. These are valves that make use of certain sensors to provide them with information as to whether they should open or close. In this sense, pneumatic valves have played an important part in the automation of many industrial operations.

Types

There are a great many different types of pneumatic valve, each designed to meet a specific mechanical need. It is important that you take the time to research these different types of valves so that you gain a complete understanding of the range of available valves before you attempt to design any system that require such valves. This will ensure that you select the appropriate valve for the job. Using the wrong can result in malfunctions and inefficiency at best, and catastrophic accidents at worst.

The material used to make valves differs depending on the type of application and the degree of stress the valve will be under. For lightweight uses meant for hand tools or other similar types of equipment, valves are usually made using aluminum, plastic or a combination of both, as these valves will not be put under extremely high pressures. Tools that will be operated by hand also need to be light enough for people to operate easily, so weight is an important factor that drives the selection of these materials.

In more heavy-duty applications, such as in industry, valves need to be much more sturdy and are therefore made of more durable materials. These materials not only make the valves better able to withstand higher pressures, they also allow the valves to withstand a greater amount of wear and tear. Cast metal or metal alloys are usually the material of choice when it comes to valves that need to be strong.

Quality

Pneumatic valves can also differ greatly in terms of the quality of their design and manufacture. Some types of pneumatic valves are painstakingly manufactured to meet the highest standards, whereas others adhere to much lower standards, making them cheaper but much less reliable and less efficient. The same can be said of related components, such as tube fittings. Pisco tube fittings are eminently reliable and have been proven to be of high quality, whereas some other tube fittings are of low quality and constantly leak or malfunction, causing costly stoppages and delays.

When it comes to Pneumatic valves and their related components, you should never sacrifice on the quality of such an important part of every pneumatic system, and if you require tube fittings, then only the Pisco tube fittings available from DAS Services Inc should merit your consideration!