VALVE FOR A REFRIGERATION SYSTEM

A valve (10) for a refrigeration system has a valve body (12) with an inlet port (14), an outlet port (16), and walls forming a main cavity (22). A cartridge (20) is configured to reside within the main cavity (22) and has a cylinder in which a piston (30) is movable in a first direction to permit fluid flow from the inlet port to the outlet port and in a second direction to impede fluid flow from the inlet port to the outlet port. A port plate (18) is removably mounted to the valve body for closing an end opening of the main cavity through which the cartridge can be inserted into and removed from the main cavity, and has a plurality of functional ports (26a, 26b, 26c). Each of the functional ports is configured to accept at least one of plural valve control elements (28) for controlling the piston to permit or impede the fluid flow from the inlet port to the outlet port, and is disposed at an acute angle relative to a central axis of the piston, so that a functional component mounted to a respective functional port will not block access to fasteners securing the port plate to the valve body so that the port plate can be removed from the valve body without removal of the control element(s) from the port plate.