Introduction

The control valve is used to control fluid flow by varying the sizes of the flow passage and is widely used in oil and gas and water and water waste management industries. It is considered as a critical part of the control loop and manipulates flowing fluid, gas, water, chemical and steams and also keeps the regulated process variable close as possible to the desired set point.

Application in Oil and gas industry is holding a significant share in the market

The oil and gas industry is expected to be one of the prominent industries demanding control valves in various applications. Expanding the oil and gas industry is expected to be one of the prime drivers favoring the control valve market trend during the forecast period. Also, companies are investing heavily in the oil and gas expansion plans which further provides ample opportunities for control valve manufacturers in the coming years, especially in the energy and power industry. For instance,  Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) in India invested nearly US$2.73 billion on drilling oil and gas wells in the fiscal year 2018-2019. In March 2019, Brookfield acquires Reliance Gas Transportation Infrastructure now known as East-West Pipeline (EWPL) for nearly US$1.80 billion. Also, according to the BP plc report gas demand in Bcm in developing countries like India will increase from 54 in 2017 to 185 by 2040 showing a growth of more than two forty percent.

The control valve market share for water and water waste management industry is growing exponentially during the forecast period

The water and water waste management industry is growing with the increasing demand for safe and efficient waste collection facilities in various parts of the world. Favorable government policies to tackle the issue of water and water waste are propelling the growth opportunities for control valves over the next five years. In 2015 the United Nations set out its ambition to tackle water issues in its 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Rapid urbanization is leading to the acute water shortfalls for many cities in the world and industrialization has driven a dramatic increase in both demand and water pollution leading to boost the demand for the control valve. Furthermore, one of the biggest challenges posed by climate change will ultimately manifest as water issues and now the organization is taking steps to reduce its impact by investing in facility expansion.

The Asia Pacific is the key driver

Asia Pacific region is anticipated to grow at exponential growth in the coming years owing to its highly dense populated countries like India and China. Increasing per capita income coupled with the rapid industrialization and urbanization the control valve market trend is experiencing a significant attraction. With the rapid urbanization, there is an increasing demand for advance and innovative control valve solutions in water waste treatment plants.

Detailed analysis of some of the products by Emerson one of the leading player in the market are below:

Fisher™ Vee-Ball™ V150 Flanged Control Valve; it is considered as one of the best choices for performance and cost-effectiveness across a broad range of applications. Carbon Steel, Stainless, Duplex, and Alloy are the material used and are generally used in critical services such as Noise Abatement, Cavitation, Dirty Service, Erosive, Low Flow and General Service.

Baumann™ 26000 Corrosion-Resistant Control Valve is a unique corrosion-resistant valve featuring a flangeless wafer valve body and powerful multi-spring diaphragm actuator. It usually comes in stainless (PTFE Lined) material and is generally used in critical services such as Low Flow, Corrosive and General Service.

Fisher™ A11 High-Performance Butterfly Valve is a reliable, high-performance Butterfly valve for both throttling and on/off applications. Carbon Steel, Stainless and Alloy are the material used and is used for General Service only.

KTM Model V¬Port Control Ball Valve is a long-life V-port control ball valve with good flow characteristics for various fluids including slurries and fibers. It comes in 316 Stainless Steel, 304 Stainless Steel, Stainless Steel material and is generally used for Corrosive and General Service.

Recent deals, investments, product launches

In March 2020, Total Valve Systems launched a new control valve management system that integrates a range of services designed to maximize efficiency, return on investment and reliability. The new product relies mostly on electrical, hydraulic, or pneumatic actuators to ensure a valve attains a specified degree of opening. The new management system combines valve sizing software, live monitoring, valve diagnostics, maintenance services, system analytics, and reliability reports.

In February 2020, a CIRCOR International brand RTK®, and an international leader in the design and manufacture of control valves and actuators, introduces the REflex Quick Change Seat Control Valve with REact 30 DC-PoP smart actuator, all of them are a flexible all-in-one solution for noise reduction and high-pressure drop applications. The respective REflex QCS Control Valve assembles and disassembles in four quick steps without the need for special tools, and accelerating maintenance by up to eighty-five percent for efficiency and cost-savings.

In January 2020, Severn Glocon Group an engineering firm specializing in control valves secured a multimillion-pound investment from Blue Water Energy to support its five-year growth plan. The company headquartered in Gloucester employs more than 900 staff worldwide, 370 of which are based in the United Kingdom across sites in Gloucestershire, Yorkshire, Rugby, and Scotland. As part of the investment, Severn Glocon management team member Colin Findlay takes on the role of new chief executive and founder Maurice Critchley has been appointed non-executive director and remains an investor alongside Blue Water.

In December 2019, the Spirax Sarco US announces the addition of stainless steel to its Spira-trol™ line of modular control valves, which can be shipped in four days or less through the company’s Quick shipping program. The valves leave the factory preconfigured for the intended application, simplifying installation and reducing customer downtime.

In June 2019, Bürkert one of the leading providers of control valve systems developed the latest generation of valve island—Type 8647 AirLINE SP—in partnership with Siemens.

In 2018, Bürkert (Germany) launched two new control valve products: AirLINE (Type 8652) and AirLINE SP (Type 8647).

Conclusion

There is an increasing number of developments in the control valve market share worldwide, it is evident that all stakeholders engaged in this market are active in all sorts so development in the oil and gas and water and water waste management industry. The market is expected to witness exponential growth opportunities on account of the growing adoption of the growing demand for energy and the introduction of IoT and industry 4.0 in various parts of the world.

The night vision device is known as night optical/observation device (NOD) and night vision goggles (NVG) is an optoelectronic device that allows images to be produced in levels of light approaching total darkness. The night vision devices help in the conditions like with little or no light. The night vision devices were made for use at the time of war but with advancing technology, its applications are also increasing. This is driving the market for night vision devices. The night vision devices have three basic functions. That is Detection, Recognition, and Identification. It helps in detecting an object in limited light, recognizes the object, and helps in identifying distinguishing features. The night vision devices come in four different standards starting from Generation 0 then Generation 1, Generation 2, and lastly Generation 3. This is been segmented based on advancing technology and its rising properties with the rise in up-gradation. The night vision devices come in three technologies Thermal Imaging, Infrared Illumination, and Image Intensification or Enhancement. The night vision devices are used in three kinds of products Camera, Goggle, and Scopes. The growing application of night vision devices with advancing technology includes Navigation, Security and Surveillance, for hunting and watching animals in dark, nature observation, increase in nocturnal activities, and many more. The advancing technology is expected to grow the market share of the Semiconductor Industry.

Thermal Imaging

The thermal imaging uses thermographic technology in thermal imaging cameras for detecting the relative difference in the temperature of an object to release or emit heat. The thermography is a general term for scanning, detecting, measuring, and displaying medium wavelength infrared (MWIR) and long-wavelength infrared (LWIR) radiation. The thermal imaging works by capturing high-frequency infrared light (IR) and heat rather than visible light. The thermal imaging device captures the thermal-IR light, and then scans that light with an array of IR detector elements and then interprets the IR light as a sort of heat-map and then converting it into electrical impulses. At last, the impulses go through the device’s processing unit, which further converts the data into an image and sends it to the display. The thermal imaging device is unaffected by smoke or fog and they can be used in absolute darkness since they are not dependant on the visible light. The thermal imaging is highly used for security and surveillance purposes as they can catch any activity through heat reading in total darkness. The increased use of thermal imaging is increasing demand in night vision device market.

Image Intensification/Enhancement

The image intensification or enhancement uses light-amplifying technology that requires minimal light to operate and is used in devices like monocular, binoculars, goggles, and riflescopes. The night vision goggles use image enhancement technology to collect all the available light and then amplifying it to see easily in the dark. Most night vision goggles use image enhancement technology.

Infrared Illumination

The infrared illumination can be used for improving the performance of image intensification devices. It helps in providing a light source to produce enhanced images in a very low-light environment. The infrared illuminators use three illumination technologies incandescent, light-emitting diode (LED) or laser. The

Applications of Night Vision Device are:-

 

Security Application

The night vision device can be used for a variety of security applications like long-range detection, covert surveillance, use in harsh environmental conditions, and provides greater sensitivity in darker locations. The night vision device can help in catching intruders without even them being aware of surveillance and with thermal imagers in dark locations provides the user with detection capability even when intruders attempt to camouflage themselves. The increase in the use of night vision devices for security applications is increasing the night vision device market share.

Law Enforcement Applications

The image intensifiers night vision device can provide high-quality images using very low levels of ambient light and reveal details that thermal imaging cameras may miss. The night vision devices are helpful in search and rescue operations, surveillance, apprehension, forensics, hazardous material response, tracking, and navigation.

Natural Resource Agency Applications

The night vision device can be used for managing natural resources and for observing nocturnal wildlife for research and inventory. The thermal imagers are useful solutions for detecting wildlife fires, animal inventory, detecting disturbed earth, forensic examination, and tasks related to topography and mapping.

Medical Applications

The use of thermal image scanning is a non-invasive medical procedure that requires no physical contact with the patient. The infrared images provided by using thermal imaging provide data that is useful in the evaluation of muscular performance and blood flow. The thermal imagers can also be used for detecting feverish persons in a crowd.

Use of Night Vision Devices in Different Products: –

Scopes

The night vision scopes are normally handheld or mounted on a weapon; scopes are monocular (one eyepiece). The scopes are handheld and not worn like goggles. They can help in viewing a specific object when required and then can be turned back to normal viewing conditions. The scopes can provide a magnification of 2x and higher. The scope is mainly used for target acquisition since the narrow FOV does not provide adequate breadth for night surveillance. The scopes may be waterproof or camera adaptable depending on the application.

Goggles

The goggles are mostly worn on the helmets and goggles are generally binocular (two eye-pieces) and may have a single or stereo lens, depending on the model. Goggles are excellent for constant viewings, like moving around in a vehicle, boats, or aircraft at night. While the monocular and binocular goggles are best used for surveillance and “stop and look” situations. To increase the magnification and to configure them to be more useful for surveillance accessories can be added. Some of the goggles come with water resistivity and provide improved durability.

Cameras

The cameras with night vision technology are mainly used for security purposes. It can record and capture the image and send it to monitor for display or to a VCR for recording. There are wide types of an assortment of adapters available for digital cameras, 35mm cameras, CCTV, and video equipment for night vision devices.