Metal Seat Ball Valve VS Soft Seat Ball Valve

Both meat seat ball valves and soft seat ball valves are more common ball valves, and there are many differences between them.

​​1. Structure

The meat seat ball valve refers to the seal between metal and metal, and the sealing ball and  seat are both metal. The seat of the soft-seated ball valve is non-metallic.

​​2. Sealing material

Under normal circumstances, the meat seat ball valve is precisely machined by the seat material to ensure the matching accuracy with the valve core (ball), generally stainless steel and copper, while the soft seal means that the sealing material embedded in the seat is a non-metallic material , Because the soft sealing material has a certain elasticity, the processing accuracy requirements will be lower than that of the metal sealing.

​​3. Using

In terms of use conditions, generally soft seals can reach high levels, while metal seals can be high or low according to requirements; hard seals can generally produced with high pressure, but soft seals cannot; soft seals need fire protection, because Under high temperature, the material of the soft seal will leak, but the metal seal does not have this problem; the soft seal cannot be used in some occasions due to the problem of the flowing medium (such as some corrosive media); the metal seal valve is generally more expensive than the soft seal.

​4. Manufacturing Standards

From a principle point of view, the metal-sealed ball valve and the soft-sealed ball valve are the same, but because it is a seal between metals, So metal seat ball valve need to consider the hardness , as well as the working conditions, what medium to working, etc. Hardening treatment is generally required by metal seat ball valve, and continuous grinding between the ball and the valve seat is required to achieve sealing. The production cycle of metal seat ball valves is long, and the processing is relatively complicated, and it is not easy to make metal seat ball valves well.

​5. Equipment Selection

The selection of soft or metal seat ball valves is mainly based on the process medium, temperature and pressure. Generally, the medium contains solid particles or has wear or the temperature is higher than 200 degrees, and the metal seat seal ball valve is selected. If the diameter is greater than 50, the pressure difference of the valve is large, and the torque is big,The metal seat ball valve are also considered. and its sealing level can reach level 6 regardless of the soft seat ball valve and metal seat ball valve .

​RXVAL work on valve solution for many year,If any doubt,Please feel free to contact with RXVAL team .