BY FUNCTION
Steam Traps
What the valve is asked to do in the line — isolation, non-return, regulation, protection or diversion.
Choosing Steam Traps
A steam trap removes condensate and, depending on design, air while limiting steam loss. Thermostatic, mechanical and thermodynamic types respond to different physical conditions. Selection depends on the equipment and drainage behavior rather than only the steam-main pressure.
What to include in the RFQ
- Provide running and start-up condensate loads, upstream pressure and return backpressure.
- Describe air venting, permitted condensate backup and operating orientation.
- Check capacity at the lowest available differential and the maintenance/test arrangement.
Selection scenario
For a temperature-controlled heat exchanger, review what happens as steam pressure falls at low load. Drainage can become the limiting issue even when a trap passes the nominal condensate flow at full pressure.
Common selection mismatch
Do not reuse a steam-main drainage choice for every process vessel. Match the trap and any pumping arrangement to the actual drainage conditions.