Control valve sizing is discussed in depth in Section 6.

15, and therefore only a few general recommendations are made

here. One should first determine both the minimum and maximum C v (Kv in Europe) requirements for the valve, considering
not only normal but also start-up and emergency conditions.
The selected valve should perform adequately over a range of 0.8 Cv min to 1.2 Cvmax . If this results in a rangeability requirement that exceeds the capabilities
on one valve, use two or more valves. Control valves should not be operated outside their rangeability. Driskell (see Bibliography) properly points to the fact

that all “fat” settles in the control valve. In constant speed

pumping systems, each design engineer will add their own

safety margin in calculating pressure drops through pipes and

exchangers, and finally in selecting the pump.

Therefore, the control valve will end up with all these

safety margins as added pressure drops, resulting in a muchoversized

valve. A highly oversized valve will operate in a

nearly closed state, which is an unstable and undesirable

operating condition. In variable-speed pumping systems, this

problem does not exist, because there the pump speed is

adjusted to meet the load, and therefore the effect of accumulated

safety margins is eliminated.