{"id":18130,"date":"2018-12-16T17:15:30","date_gmt":"2018-12-16T17:15:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/?page_id=18130"},"modified":"2026-02-08T00:33:56","modified_gmt":"2026-02-08T00:33:56","slug":"flow-analysis-of-a-butterfly-valve","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/docs\/validation-cases\/flow-analysis-of-a-butterfly-valve\/","title":{"rendered":"Validation Case: Butterfly Valve"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This validation case belongs to fluid dynamics and the aim of this case is to validate the following parameters inside a pipe with a butterfly valve:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Pressure drop<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Torque<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The simulation results of SimScale were compared to the results presented in the study done by Song, Xue Guan and Park, Young Chui with the title &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.iaeng.org\/publication\/WCECS2007\/WCECS2007_pp759-763.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Numerical Analysis of Butterfly Valve &#8211; Prediction of Flow Coefficient and Hydrodynamic Torque Coefficient<\/a>&#8220;\\(^1\\). <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"hw-block hw-btnWrapper hw-btnWrapper--alignCenter \">\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/workbench\/?pid=3323214511990384785\" class=\"hw-btn    \" rel=\"noopener \" target=\"_blank\"    >\n        View Project    <\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"geometry\" class=\"wp-block-heading\" >Geometry<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The model used in this validation case is a pipe with a discus-shaped butterfly valve inside, which can be seen below: <\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/Model-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"301\" src=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/Model-1-1024x301.jpg\" alt=\"butterfly valve at 20 degrees inside pipe\" class=\"wp-image-33691\" style=\"width:1024px;height:301px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/Model-1-1024x301.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/Model-1-300x88.jpg 300w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/Model-1-768x226.jpg 768w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/Model-1.jpg 1129w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Figure 1: Pipe model with butterfly valve inside opening at 20\u00b0 angle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The dimensions of the pipe can be seen in the table below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table aligncenter\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Dimension<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Value \\([m]\\)<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Upstream length<\/td><td>14.4<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Downstream length<\/td><td>27<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Valve &amp; pipe diameter (D)<\/td><td>1.8<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Valve maximum thickness<\/td><td>0.36<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Table 1: Pipe and valve dimension<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">9 variants of valve opening angles ranging from 20\u00b0 to 85\u00b0 were used as a comparison to the reference study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"analysis-type-and-mesh\" class=\"wp-block-heading\" >Analysis Type and Mesh<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Tool Type<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/openfoam.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">OpenFOAM\u00ae<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Analysis Type<\/strong>: Steady state, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/docs\/analysis-types\/incompressible-fluid-flow-analysis\/\">Incompressible<\/a> with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/docs\/simulation-setup\/global-settings\/k-omega-sst\/\">K-Omega SST<\/a> turbulence model<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Mesh and Element Types<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">The<\/span> mesh was created with SimScale&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/docs\/simulation-setup\/meshing\/standard\/\"><em>Standard<\/em><\/a> mesher and the following table lists the details of the mesh:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Mesh Type<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Number of cells<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Type<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Standard<\/td><td>6.4 Million<\/td><td>3D Tetrahedral\/Hexahedral<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Table 2: Mesh data for butterfly valve validation case<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/FluidDomainMesh.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"190\" src=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/FluidDomainMesh-1024x190.jpg\" alt=\"fine mesh for flow domain for butterfly valve validation case\" class=\"wp-image-33500\" style=\"width:1024px;height:190px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/FluidDomainMesh-1024x190.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/FluidDomainMesh-300x56.jpg 300w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/FluidDomainMesh-768x142.jpg 768w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/FluidDomainMesh.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Figure 2: Mesh of flow domain with fineness level 7<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Furthermore, region refinements were also added in the area near the hinges of the valve so the calculation in those areas could be done accurately.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/ValveMesh.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"598\" height=\"477\" src=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/ValveMesh.jpg\" alt=\"refined mesh of butterfly valve performed using simscale standard algorithm\" class=\"wp-image-33501\" style=\"width:598px;height:477px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/ValveMesh.jpg 598w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/ValveMesh-300x239.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 598px) 100vw, 598px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Figure 3: Standard meshing performed on valve with refinements at hinges<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 id=\"simulation-setup\" class=\"wp-block-heading\" >Simulation Setup<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Fluid<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Water\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Kinematic viscosity \\((\\nu)\\): 9.338e-7 \\(m^2\/s\\) <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Density \\((\\rho)\\): 997.3 \\(kg\/m^3\\)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Boundary Conditions<\/strong>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/BoundaryCondition.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"164\" src=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/BoundaryCondition-1024x164.jpg\" alt=\"boundary condition overview\" class=\"wp-image-33502\" style=\"width:1024px;height:164px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/BoundaryCondition-1024x164.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/BoundaryCondition-300x48.jpg 300w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/BoundaryCondition-768x123.jpg 768w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/09\/BoundaryCondition.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Figure 4: Boundary condition overview where flow goes from left to right<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The boundary conditions are the same for all opening angles and were assigned as shown in Table 3:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Boundary Condition<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Value<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Velocity inlet<\/td><td>3 \\(m\/s\\)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Pressure outlet<\/td><td>0 \\(Pa\\)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>No-slip wall<\/td><td>Pipe walls and valve surface<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Table 3: Boundary conditions for pipe and valve<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"reference-solution\" class=\"wp-block-heading\" >Reference Solution<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The reference solution for the flow coefficient and the torque coefficient is given in the following formulae:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Flow coefficient<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">$$c_v = Q \\sqrt{\\frac{S_g}{\\Delta P}}$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">where:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\\(c_v\\): flow coefficient<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\\(Q\\): flow discharge \\((GPM-Gallons\\,per\\,minute)\\)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\\(\\Delta P\\): pressure drop \\((psi)\\)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\\(S_g\\): specific gravity of water<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Torque coefficient<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">$$c_t = \\frac{T(x)}{\\Delta P \\times d^3} \\tag{2}$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">where:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\" id=\"block-091b414d-20f1-4549-9c1a-759cfed4577b\">\n<li>\\(c_t\\): torque coefficient<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\\(T(x)\\): torque in the x-axis \\((N.m)\\)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\\(\\Delta P\\): pressure drop \\((psi)\\)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\\(d\\): diameter of pipe \\((in)\\)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"result-comparison\" class=\"wp-block-heading\" >Result Comparison<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Comparison of the flow and torque coefficients obtained from SimScale against the reference results obtained from [1] is given below:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/FlowCoefficientComparison.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"545\" src=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/FlowCoefficientComparison-1024x545.png\" alt=\"flow coefficient comparison\" class=\"wp-image-33668\" style=\"width:1024px;height:545px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/FlowCoefficientComparison-1024x545.png 1024w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/FlowCoefficientComparison-300x160.png 300w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/FlowCoefficientComparison-768x409.png 768w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/FlowCoefficientComparison-1536x817.png 1536w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/FlowCoefficientComparison-2048x1090.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Figure 5: Flow coefficient comparison between reference results and SimScale<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/TorqueCoefficientComparison-2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"545\" src=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/TorqueCoefficientComparison-2-1024x545.png\" alt=\"torque coefficient comparison\" class=\"wp-image-33692\" style=\"width:1024px;height:545px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/TorqueCoefficientComparison-2-1024x545.png 1024w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/TorqueCoefficientComparison-2-300x160.png 300w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/TorqueCoefficientComparison-2-768x409.png 768w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/TorqueCoefficientComparison-2-1536x817.png 1536w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2020\/10\/TorqueCoefficientComparison-2-2048x1090.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Figure 6: Torque coefficient comparison between reference results and SimScale<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The flow contours inside the pipe when the valve is opened at the simulated opening angles as observed in our online post-processor:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"930\" height=\"508\" src=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-1.jpg\" alt=\"cutting plane of velocity distribution when the valve is opened at a 20\u00b0 - 50\u00b0 angle\" class=\"wp-image-80288\" style=\"object-fit:cover;width:662px;height:361px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-1.jpg 930w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-1-300x164.jpg 300w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-1-768x420.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Figure 7: Velocity magnitude contours inside the pipe at the centerline when the valve is opened at a 20\u00b0 &#8211; 50\u00b0 angle.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"744\" src=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-2-1024x744.jpg\" alt=\"cutting plane of velocity distribution when the valve is opened at a 60\u00b0 - 85\u00b0 angle\" class=\"wp-image-80289\" style=\"object-fit:cover;width:648px;height:471px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-2-1024x744.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-2-300x218.jpg 300w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-2-768x558.jpg 768w, https:\/\/frontend-assets.simscale.com\/media\/2023\/09\/valve-validation-case-results-2.jpg 1030w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Figure 8: Velocity magnitude contours inside the pipe at the centerline when the valve is opened at a 60\u00b0 &#8211; 85\u00b0 angle.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class='hw-block hw-references hw-references'>\n    <p class='hw-references__title'>References<\/p>\n    <ul class='hw-references__list'>\n\n        <li><cite><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iaeng.org\/publication\/WCECS2007\/WCECS2007_pp759-763.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Song, Xue Guan, Park, Young Chui, Numerical Analysis of Butterfly Valve &#8211; Prediction of Flow Coefficient and Hydrodynamic Torque Coefficient, Proceedings of the World Congress on Engineering and Computer Science 2007, 2007.<\/a><\/cite><\/li>\n    <\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"hw-block hw-note hw-note--info hw-note\">\n    <div class=\"hw-note__title\">\n        <p class=\"hw-note__titleText\"><i class=\"fa fa-exclamation-circle\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>Note<\/p>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"hw-note__body\">\n        <p>If you still encounter problems validating you simulation, then please post the issue on our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/forum\/\">forum<\/a> or <a href=\"mailto:support@simscale.com\">contact us<\/a>.<\/p>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This validation case belongs to fluid dynamics and the aim of this case is to validate the following parameters inside a...","protected":false},"author":94,"featured_media":80288,"parent":17191,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"templates\/template-documentation.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-18130","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/94"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18130"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18130\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/17191"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80288"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}