New tungsten carbide process could improve offshore valves

Total Carbide claims its Intraform technology will give engineers better flexibility when designing flow-control components and reduce the impact and cost of downtime through component failure or unexpected maintenance requirements.

Tungsten carbide — a compound containing tungsten and carbon atoms — is stiffer and harder than steel, and has an extremely high melting point.

These hard-wearing characteristics mean the material has started to find a use in harsh environments, where abrasive or corrosive fluids are handled, such as the oil industry.

However, there are still difficulties when it comes to using tungsten carbide in complex components, as Andy Hunt of Total Carbide explained to The Engineer.

‘Before [Intraform], components were either made out of steel which obviously hasn’t got the wear characteristics, or it would had to have been two pieces of tungsten carbide.

‘The problem with that is, if you’re pressurising an internal form the fluids always find the weakest spot, which is the joint.’