Analysis of magnetic force of electromagnet ball valve during pipeline hydraulic transients

On the experimental study of hydraulic transients in water hydraulic pipeline, the initial water flow should be shut down immediately to trigger transient pressure pulsations. To achieve this goal, a self-made electromagnetic ball valve is designed. A steel ball is released from upper reservoir to hit a valve seat shutting off water flow in a horizontal straight copper pipeline and triggering pressure transients. The valve seat is wrapped by electrified coils to create magnetic force that prevents the ball from bouncing. In order to keep the ball stick on the valve seat during pipeline hydraulic transients, the magnitude of magnetic force should be investigated. In this article, a 3D sketch of the electromagnetic ball valve is introduced. The influences of coil input current and distance between the steel ball and the valve seat on the magnitude of magnetic force are investigated using finite element software JMAG. The simulation results indicate the validity of the self-made electromagnet ball valve.