In food and drink processing, keeping the media separated from the valve is essential to prevent contamination. In some industries the opposite is true: it's the valve which needs protection from media such as solvents, glues or aggressive chemicals. But in both cases, the sanitary pinch valve is a practical and simple solution, with several advantages over more complex technologies. Not least of which is the straight-through flow it offers, with very little pressure drop over the valve, and minimal volume loss when transitioning between batches.

Design Features

The sanitary pinch valves comprise of a robust body made of stainless steel that shuts off the flow of material by squeeze closing the passage through fluid pressure. They are full bore valves that enable proportional control of the flow or to be used in an on/off manner. Sanitary valves are designed for low pressure control, and low flow rate of fluids to maintain their sterility.

The sanitary pinch valve's simplicity also eliminates dead volume, where fluid can be trapped and become a potential contamination source. Of course, its simple design also reduces downtime for fitting, tubing changes and valve replacement.

Sanitary pinch valves consist of three major components: a rubber sleeve/hose/diaphragm, a shell body of pharmaceutical grade stainless steel, and sometimes a digital controller for maintaining valve reliability and enhancing its performance. All the three components work in unison to maintain the high efficiency of the process. The digital controller allows the user to monitor the condition and operating health of the valve assembly, thus enabling them to know when the system requires maintenance.

Why Choose Sanitary Pinch Valves

The sanitary pinch valves are constructed in a way to ensure accurate control of the process and high purity of the flow media without contamination. Unlike conventional valves such as ball valves, pinch/squeeze type valves have high positioning resolution which provides better control over flow rates. The valve construction allows the system to self-drain, preventing any kind of contaminant build up. Moreover, the stainless-steel shell enables hassle-free changing of the process tubing.

Since these valves have a straight-through port design, they are free from any dead spots and crevices, reducing the possibility of bacteria growth.

Due to their ability to be used in highly controlled and sterile environments, they are an ideal option for the following applications:

• Food, Diary, and Beverage – the manufacturing of products requires controlled processes and sterile equipment to ensure their colour, texture, aroma, and taste is the same in every batch.
• Biotechnology, Medical and Pharmaceutical – since the process fluid will eventually be consumed or integrated in the human body, the sanitary valves make sure that it is contamination free.

BPV Series Sanitary Pinch Valves

Carten's BPV Series sanitary pinch valve offers unique advantages over traditional 'throw away' polymer components for shut-off single use applications. The valve structure and top works is manufactured utilising polished stainless steel, allowing all tubing brands and compounds to be operated indefinitely from batch-to-batch, with no physical break to the process tubing preventing any possibility of contamination. These feature-rich sanitary pinch valves are customizable with quick turn-around time.

Single use tubing sizes from 1/8" to 1" ID can be covered using just two differing valve sizes, allowing the end user to interchange just two components whenever a new line size is required. Manual valves provide accurate flow control, with pneumatic top works and instrumentation available as required.

Carten's BPV series hybrid pinch valve for single use applications provides the most efficient and best-in-class for optimum flow control, adaptability, minimal footprint, cost effective, maintenance friendly design for critical sterile processes. Key product features include:

• Quick Change Out
• Maintenance Friendly
• Multiple sizes available depending on flow patterns
• Readily automated

If you'd like to find out more and are looking for experienced professionals in the design and manufacturing industry, you may contact Fujikin Singapore at enquiry@fujikin.com.sg or at +65 6848 5760.