Valve

Claim 1

A BALL VALVE FOR USE IN HIGH PRESSURE GAS SYSTEMS, COMPRISING A VALVE HOUSING HAVING AXIALLY ALIGNED INLET AND OUTLET PORTS, A ROTATABLE BALL DISPOSED IN THE SPACE WITHIN SAID HOUSING AND HAVING A CENTRAL BORE WITH A DIAMETER SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO THE DIAMETER OF SAID PORTS AND BEING ARRANGED IN A FIRST ROTATIONAL POSITION OF SAID BALL TO BE ALIGNED WITH SAID PORTS TO PROVIDE COMMUNICATION BETWEEN SAID PORTS, A FIRST ANNULAR VALVE SEAT ADJACENT AND CONCENTRIC WITH SAID OUTLET PORT, A SECOND ANNULAR VALVE SEAT ADJACENT AND CONCENTRIC WITH SAID INLET PORT, AND FIRST AND SECOND ANNULAR SEAL RINGS DISPOSED IN SAID FIRST AND SECOND SEATS AND ARRANGED TO CONTACT THE SURFACE OF SAID BALL TO SUPPORT THE LATTER IN SAID HOUSING, SAID BALL, IN A SECOND ROTATIONAL POSITION THEREOF, BEING ARRANGED WITH SAID BORE OUT OF COMMUNICATION WITH SAID PORTS, SAID BALL HAVING A PAIR OF AXIALLY ALIGNED HOLES EXTENDING THROUGH DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSITE WALLS OF SAID BALL BETWEEN SAID BORE AND THE OUTSIDE OF SAID BALL, THE OUTSIDE SURFACE OF SAID BALL HAVING A CONCAVE RECESS AT THE JUNCTURE OF EACH OF SAID HOLES WITH THE OUTSIDE SURFACE OF SAID BALL, SAID CONCAVE RECESSES HAVING A DEPTH EQUAL TO ABOUT ONE-QUARTER THE DIAMETER OF SAID HOLES, THE AXIS OF SAID HOLES LYING IN A COMMON PLANE WITH THE AXIS OF SAID BORE BUT BEING INCLINED RELATIVE THERETO BY A SUBSTANTIAL ANGLE SO THAT IN A THIRD ROTATIONAL POSITION OF SAID BALL INTERMEDIATE SAID FIRST AND SECOND POSITIONS EACH OF SAID HOLES COMMUNICATES DIRECTLY WITH A RESPECTIVE ONE OF SAID PORTS, THE DIAMETER OF SAID HOLES BEING SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER THAN THE DIAMETER OF SAID BORE SO THAT PRESSURE EQUALIZATION BETWEEN SAID PORTS OCCURS AT A CONTROLLED RELATIVELY SLOW RATE WHEN SAID BALL IS IN SAID THIRD ROTATIONAL POSITION, SAID HOLES BEING SPACED FROM SAID SEAL RINGS WHEN SAID BALL IS IN SAID THIRD ROTATIONAL POSITION THEREOF TO PREVENT EROSON OF THE DOWNSTREAM SEAL RING DURING PRESSURE EQUALIZATION.