By Peter Telle, Founder & CEO, Ultra Control Valves
Ask anyone who has spent time on a mine, and they will tell you that valves do not get much glory. But when one fails, you will feel it. Pressure drops. Slurry spills. Downtime clocks in. And you can bet no one is smiling when you are shutting down a tailings line to swap out another chewed-up seat.
After more than four decades working in fluid control across Africa’s copper belts, coalfields, and deep-level shafts, I have learned this: when it comes to abrasive service, most valves are not built for the fight.
That is why, at Ultra Control Valves, we have focused on designing and sourcing solutions that last. Not simply in the lab, or on a brochure, but in the red dust and black water of real mines. Today I would like to introduce two valves that have truly earned their keep: the Valvtron Titan Severe Service Ball Valve and the new Cone Plug Valve. Both are built for harsh slurry, high pressure and remote sites where maintenance is not always a phone call away.
Slurry: The Silent Saboteur
Let us start with the real villain in this story: abrasive slurry. It is not merely water with a bit of grit; it is a constantly moving mixture of sharp, angular solids that hit every bend, valve seat and restriction in the line like a barrage of tiny chisels.
What does that mean on the ground?
- Erosion of valve internals, even hardened ones.
- Cavitation that pocks and pits metal faster than you would believe.
- Sealing damage from particles wedged into seats.
- Vibration and fatigue that wear down stems, bearings, and actuators over time.
And when you are miles from the nearest depot, or flying in spares by charter, these failures are not simply inconvenient; they are exceptionally costly.
The Titan: A Ball Valve with Teeth
Now, about the Valvtron Titan. I will be blunt: this is not your standard metal-seated ball valve. It was built for one thing: survival in brutal conditions.
Here is what makes it different:
- The ball and seat are coated in Tungsten Carbide (TC) – one of the hardest materials on earth – applied using HVOF (High Velocity Oxygen Fuel), a high-velocity, high-temperature spray that does not just coat the surface, it bonds to it. It is protection you can feel with your thumb.
- The seat is integral to the valve end piece. There are no crevices or cavities behind the seat to trap solids. And thanks to a strong Belleville spring, there is constant pressure keeping the ball and seat in contact – even when conditions fluctuate.
- Every Titan is hand-lapped and precision ground. We do not rely on tolerance ranges; we build matched pairs. That means reliable shutoff, every time, with no erosion jet carving a path through a leaking seal.
- And perhaps most importantly, it is mechanically simple. Two moving parts, both TC-coated. No trunnions. No seat cavities. Just rugged, straightforward engineering that keeps working.
I have seen this valve hold its own in 150 bar slurry service and keep modulating, not just opening and closing. That is rare. Most valves in this class give up the ghost if you try to throttle with them. The Titan does it day in, day out.
The Cone Plug Valve: Control Without Compromise
Where the Titan shines in slurry shutoff and throttling, the Cone Plug Valve brings control to some of mining’s more complex hydraulic challenges – high flow, sediment-heavy water, and systems prone to water hammer.
We have seen too many sites over-engineer around valve weaknesses. Complex sequences. Overbuilt pump stations. Auxiliary controls. All because the valve in the line cannot handle surge, abrasion, or throttling. The Cone Plug changes that.
Its strength lies in its non-contact sealing design. When the valve is fully open or fully closed, the sealing surfaces do not touch the flow at all. There is nothing in the way, no seat being ground away by sand or grit. And when it is time to actuate, a simple “lift and turn” motion engages the seal – no scraping, no galling.
This alone extends its life dramatically. But it does not stop there:
- The valve body is rugged ductile iron, housing fully enclosed internals protected from both media and the environment.
- Metal-to-metal seats, designed to handle both positive pressure and vacuum, ensure tight shutoff even in unpredictable systems.
- The flow path is a straight pipe. No obstruction, no unnecessary turbulence. That means lower pump energy, less vibration, and better system stability.
- Critically, the Cone Plug includes controlled open/close cycles. That is your first line of defence against water hammer – the violent pressure spike that can wreck pipes, pumps, and valves in seconds.
And while we talk a lot about automation, it is worth noting this valve was designed so that even a 2-metre unit can be closed manually in an emergency. No actuators, no backup power. Just solid engineering that respects the realities of remote mining.
Designed for the Work We Actually Do
Between them, the Valvtron Titan and the Cone Plug Valve cover a vast range of duties in African mining, including:
- Slurry pipelines and tailings isolation.
- Deep-level dewatering at extreme pressure.
- Mud columns and dense-phase discharge.
- Surge protection and precise flow control in pumping stations.
- High-pressure switching and diverter duties in process plants.
And they do not need babying. They are built for dirty water, fine solids, unpredictable pressure spikes and 12-month inspection intervals – not weekly call-outs. Such reliability not only allows engineers greater peace of mind; it also directly cuts operating costs, reduces unscheduled stoppages, and liberates skilled maintenance teams to concentrate on higher-level issues.
Final Thoughts
Mining is tough enough without equipment letting you down. When valves fail, and they do more often than anyone likes to admit, the knock-on effects are immediate: lost production, site safety risks and a maintenance scramble no one planned for.
That is why I believe in going beyond “fit-for-purpose.” A valve must not merely survive its duty cycle; it should actively render your operation more predictable, more efficient and more robust. And over the lifespan of a mine, that is where real value lives.
At Ultra Control Valves, we do not chase shiny specs or cheap solutions. We work with clients across the continent to solve real problems with gear that holds the line, even when conditions do not.
If you are in the business of mining Africa’s wealth, do not settle for valves that are not up to the job. You have got enough to manage. Let the equipment do what it is supposed to, without compromise.