Development of Valve Performance Qualification Methodology and Testing

Valves play important roles in piping systems. In the oil and gas industry, for example, they are used to control flow rates in pipes, isolate flow, and provide over pressure protection of equipment. Given the role of valves in process industries, it is important that valve end-users feel confident that the valves they procure meet the design and qualification requirements in the specification. This paper presents a case study where there have been breakdowns in the qualification of valves being offered by valve suppliers to the industry that did not comply with industry standards which can adversely impact plant operations and personnel safety. The loss of valve supplier credibility is a concern that rarely occurs in mature economies but seem to be more prevalent in countries where design and testing standards are either relatively new or non-existent. To address this issue, the author presents a systematic approach that can be used to ensure that valves supplied to end-users in oil and gas industries in emerging countries meet the design requirements and standards they are required to meet. The process used to control the manufacturers begins with a qualification plan which each supplier has to establish for its product line. Following compliance with the qualification plan, a valve type criticality matrix is introduced to the manufacturers that classifies the criticality of each valve in the system and the associated testing program(s) that the manufacturers need to meet. The qualification program is conducted by the national oil and gas company and acknowledged by the country’s regulator. The recently established program has shown some merit and could be applied to all manufacturers in emerging countries to ensure consistency. The details of the qualification program used and how the process is evaluated are covered in the body of the paper together with examples of how the process has worked.