CFD Simulations and experiments of flow fluctuations around a steam control valve

Under certain opening conditions (partial opening) of a steam control valve, the piping system in a power plant occasionally experiences large vibrations. To understand the valve instability that is responsible for such vibrations, detailed experiments and CFD calculations were performed. As a result of these investigations, it was found that under the middle-opening (partial opening) condition, a complex three-dimensional (3D) flow structure (valve-attached flow) sets up in the valve region leading to a high pressure region on a part of the valve body. As this region rotates circumferentially, it causes a cyclic asymmetric side load on the valve body, which is considered to be the cause of the vibrations.