Knife Gate Valve

Knife gate valves are similar in design to gate valves and were initially developed for use in the pulp and paper industry. As the name implies, these valves can cut through thick, porous media that may contain a high concentration of suspended solids (such as dense, sewage sludge) which had caused problems with valves not seating completely and thus leaking.

A knife gate valve works by lifting a plate with a planar or “knife” edge from the path of flow that can literally cut through various impediments during closing thereby creating complete closure against a soft sealing surface. This soft sealing surface generally dictates use in rather low-pressure systems and is not designed to handle high pressure. Both gate and knife gate valves are primarily designed for isolation or on/off service rather than a throttled or partial-flow application.Knife gate valves are a specific type of isolation valve that is typically used for media that are not hazardous such as wastewater.