Experience in Motion

Crude Oil and Refined Products Processing

High Performance Ball Valves for Severe Service Applications

Application Know-How

For more than 60 years Argus has delivered highperformance Ball Valves for the most demanding,severe service applications in the upstream anddownstream oil processing, onshore, offshore, aswell as throughout the refining process. Ourvalves resolve the most critical problems in appli-cations with high cycling, high pressure, high temperature, corrosive, erosive, and abrasivemedia.

Argus valves provide an extended lifetime, improving the overall operational safety and thelife cycle cost.

All our valves are guaranteed bubble-tight zeroleakage, exceeding Class VI shut-off, tested ac-cording to ISO 5208.

Fire-safe designed, approved, certified and testedaccording to: API-6D, ISO 10497, API 607 FifthEdition, API RP 6F, Exxon Partial Burn, BS 5146,BS 6755 Part 2 and OCMA FSV.1

Certified functional safety suitable for SIL 2higher,andNACEMR-01-75.

Argus valves meet the requirements of ISO 14313for pipelines.

Fugitive emissions certified to ISO 15848.

Quality, safety, availability, local service supportand in-depth technical know-how are combined ina world class product offering. Solutions for todayshould also spell secure investment for times tocome. Each user-specific development is basedon experience and a vision for the future.

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Argus ball valves are recognized all over the oil processing industry for their outstanding durabilityand reliability. Argus is the brand to trust and relyon for the most severe service applications.

The Argus design provides important advantages,such as reduced torque up to half less, comparedto other ball valves on the market, which makesthe required actuator size smaller, and reducesweightachieving significant savings in the overallinvestment. At the same time, improving the lifetime of the system.

Since 1953 when Argus introduced the first ballvalve in Europe, it has been at the vanguard ofthe ball valve development for severe service applications.

This postition of leadership and expertise hasbeen constantly reinforced, introducing to themarket exceptional full metal-to-metal ball valvesexceeding bubble tight, class VI shut-off.

Full metal sealing systems made of different ma-terials and alloys are extremely durable and keeptheir sealing capabilities much longer, as compared to other sealing systems.

The ARGUS design and manufacturing technology, based on a vast experience designingand constructing exceptional metal seated ballvalves, assures a long life of ball and seats, evenunder extreme conditions, keeping the ARGUStraditional feature of zero leakage, bubble tight asa standard without maintenance requirements foroutstanding periods.

Expertise in Ball Valves for the Oil Processing

Unique engineering design, outstanding material expertise and a solid application know-how arecore strengths of Argus included in every valve we supply.

Product and industry specialists develop effective solutions for the most demanding, severe serviceand critical applications under highly challengingworking environments.

Argus has the design and manufacturing capability to handle any severe service, critical application requirement anywhere in the world,from custom-engineered solutions to large projects, for sizes from ½” thru 40”, soft-seatedand metal-seated, floating design and trunniondesign ball valves.

Argus valves can be found in many processeswithin the petroleum production on-shore and off-shore, including oil sands bitumen and heavyoil processing, upgrading process, refining,pipeline, storage and distribution.

Argus valves are corrosion and erosion resistant.They are designed and constructed to handle andwithstand the most critical and severe service applications.

Argus is part of the Flowserve Corporation, the foremost valve and controls manufacturing organization in the world. Flowserve offers abroad selection of flow control products, which in-clude many of the most known and trusted brandsin the marketplace.

Strong recognition results primarily from the extraordinary success of Flowserve and Argusvalves and automation products with thousandsof applications in all major industries.

Engineering design and material knowledge

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Severe Service applications upstream

High performance, safety, durability andlow maintenance are key requirementsfor ball valves in the petroleum production onshore and offshore.

Argus ball valves provide excellent results in severe service, critical applica-tions such as:

• Sour crude• Crude with solids (sand)• Abrasive slurry• Secondary recovery• Tailings• Sour gas lines• Fuel gas to compressors• Emergency shut-off with extremely

short response time• Hydrogen transportation • Pipelines

Argus valves are Class VI Shut-Off as a standard. Zeroleakage, bubble tight.

95% of the components aremade in-house, including thehard surface coating of balland seats. Full port as a standard.Reduced port optional. All bodies are forged as a standard. No castings.No porosity problems.Anti-blowout stem.Increased safety.

Computer controlled mechanically lapped ball andseats.2 - 3 piece split body design.Anti-static device.Bi-directional flow.Fire-safe tested to ISO 10497,API 607 5th edition.

Fugitive emissions less than1 ppm certified to ISO 15848.API approvals.

SIL Rating

Argus valves are designed and built to resolve themost demanding and critical process applications downstream.

Our valves meet specific requirements in applica-tions such as:

• Isolation valves for cokers and hydraulic decoking systems

• UOP process• Feed isolation valves• Regeneration lock-hopper valves• Fluidized catalyst cracking units• Catalyst handling• Catalyst addition and withdrawal• Filter and pump isolation• Hydrogen lines• Slurry• Heavy oil and LC Fining• Continuous catalyst recovery• Visbreakers• VTB vacuum tower bottom• Emergency shut-off with extemely short

response time

Severe Service applications downstream

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Arguloy thickness> 500µ after lapping

Arguloy Metallic Hard-coating on ball and seats

Argus proprietary flame & fuse Arguloy® coatings achieve 63-65° HRC for the ball andseats.Arguloy is not an overlay coating but a coatingbonded metallically to the base material of the balland the seats.Arguloy is flame-sprayed and thermal after-treated.By choosing between different Arguloy coatings,the hard coating can be precisely matched to thegiven application.Argus provides metallic coating materials basedon different alloys:

CARBIDE Chrome carbide basedARGULOY 1 Chrome nickel basedARGULOY 2 Tungsten carbide basedARGULOY 3 Cobalt carbide based

Hard coating

Diffusion zone

Base material

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EPA approved stem seal

Certified leakage: < 1 ppm

Integrated Stuffing Box with additional packing on top

Anti-blowout design

Complies with ISO 1548-1

EPA Fugitive Emissions

requirements

Argus ball valves include many innovative design features meeting the highest standards in valve technology requirements including API-6D andANSI 16.34.

Bodies are all forged and totally machined inside. Longlife double stem seal. Stem is supported by bearings

to ensure seals are free from operating loads.

The unique Argus ball valve design

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Argus Trunnion design features

Trunnion bearings and sealssupport all lateral loads

Inlet Seal

Seats do not support theweight of the ball and act only

as a seal

Annular springs,live-load for the seats

Trunnion blocks support the weightof the ball and keep it in position

Purge

Secondary GraphoilSeal

Primary sealaccording to EPA

PTFE barrierprimary double seal,Secondary Graphoilseal

Additional PTFE barrierto avoid dust penetratinginto the trunion cavity.

Forged body

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Argus trunnion ball valves are designed for the highest demands.

2 - 3 piece split body with superfine finished trunnion mounted ball,spring-loaded ball seats, cavity relief and anti-static device.

Long life double stem seal system and stem supported by bearingsto ensure seals are free from operating load.

Firesafe to API 607 5th edition, and BS 6755

Fugitive emissions < 1 PPM, environmental protection according toISO 15848

Trunnion blocks support the weight of the ball and lock the ball intothe body.

Trunnion bearings absorb side load.

Seats act only as a seal

Live loaded (spring) seats.

Longer coating life for the ball and seats is achieved due to low fric-tion of the trunnion design.

Valve requires smaller actuator due to low torque needed to stroke.

Stem acts only as a drive mechanism.

Bi-directional.

Bubble-tight sealing.

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Metal seated, trunnion3-way ball valve

Service: Polymer, steamand Slurry

Sizes: 1/2” - 10” Pressure class: 150 - 600#

Pattern angle: 90º or 120º

Metal seated, trunnionvalve for high cycling

Service: Polymer, gas,cokers, hydraulic decokingsystems, coker pipelines

Sizes: 1/2” - 16”

Abrasive solids

High cycling

High temperature

Pressure class 600 - 2500#

Trunnion design

upstream sealing

No downstream seat

Smooth transition

relief of media out of

body cavity

Superfine machined

surface to avoid

material build-up

Ball Valves designed for the Oil Processing

Special reactor valve for petrochemical and chemicalprocesses

Scallop seat pocketprevents build-up of

solids behind the seat

Argus offers a full range of manually op-

erated or completly automated ball valves

including different brands of electrical,

pneumatic and hydraulic actuators,

positioners etc. according to customers

preference.

An extensive range of corrosion,

e r o s i o n ,  a b r a s i o n - r e s i s t a n t 

materials,both metallic and non-metallic

along with the materials application

expertise provide the safest, most effec-

tive solution for the critical, very difficult

severe service applications found up

stream and downstream, onshore and

offshore.

Metallic materials include an extensive va-

riety of steel and stainless steel grades,

monel, nickel, as well as exotic materials

and alloys.

Non-metallic materials include PTFE, PFA,

Lyton, PEEK, graphite, ceramics, and

many more.

Life Cycle Cost – Overall cost of ownership

While exact values may differ, 80% of the total lifecycle cost (LCC) of a critical valve with high cycling is accumulated after the equipment is purchased and installed.

A typical LCC calculation accounts for the cycle cost including:

• Initial purchase and installation

• Durability

• Maintenance and Repair

• Operational safety

• Production losses due to operational failure

• Environmental compliance

• Removal

• Replacement cost

Argus ball valves provide an excellent LCC,because of thier outstanding durability, less maintenance, increased operational safety and reduced production loses due to operational fail-ure and hazardous risks. Thus bringing benefit to

the customer.

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56,000 sq/m (14 acre) manufacturing facilities in Ettlingen, Germany

Experience in Motion

Bulletin Argus-Crude Oil Processing, July 2009. Literature is supplied for informative purposes only.

For more information about Flowserve-Argus contact your next located distributor,

or visit www.flowserve.com.