CCI Providing Choke Valves for Unmanned Platform in North Sea, UK
24 August 2001
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA – CCI was awarded a contract to supply five choke valves to the world’s first unmanned oil platform. Designed to specifications well in excess of design standards used elsewhere on the platform, these choke valves were subjected to performance tests at all the extreme design conditions, resulting in the most tested choke valves CCI has ever manufactured.
Utilizing DRAG® technology and advanced materials, the choke valve will be designed to maximize both the performance and the life of the valve and trim. Because fluid velocity is the predominant factor in erosion, the fluid velocities within the trim of the CCI choke are typically 1/3 to 1/4 that of conventional single stage chokes. This velocity control protects the trim from erosion, and increases the trim life many fold. Another benefit of velocity control is that the noise and vibration levels of a CCI Severe Service Choke™ will be significantly reduced compared to that of conventional single stage chokes.
To test the technology and endurance of the valve, it was subjected to a performance test that exposed it to all operational extremes. The test was run with temperatures that ranged from –80 C to 100 C, with pressures alternating from zero to the design maximum. In addition, the valve was actuated at the temperature extremes more than 900 times during the course of testing, more than double the average actuations that a choke valve will see through its life. Testing for this unit was based upon API 6A PR2 Appendix F, with increased temperatures extremes, and increased pressure and temperature cycles added.
CCI is the world’s leading manufacturer of severe-service control valves and hydraulic and pneumatic actuators for coal, oil, gas, and nuclear power plants; the oil and gas producing and hydrocarbon industries; and pulp and paper plants worldwide. With headquarters in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, and offices worldwide, CCI also operates major design and manufacturing facilities in Winterthur, Switzerland; Osaka, Japan; and Kyunggi-Do, South Korea, Saffle, Sweden; and Vienna, Austria.
