Design a high-pressure test system to investigate the performance characteristics of ball valves in a compressible choked flow

[Display omitted] •Design a high-pressure test system in a compressible choked flow.•A high-pressure test system was designed.•In the supersonic flow, flow coefficients and local loss factor of valve are dependent on several parameters.•Local loss factor has an inverse relationship with the pressure. In this study, a high-pressure test system was designed to understand the performance characteristics of ball valves in a compressible flow. By measuring the flow parameters, including pressure and temperature at different points in the air circuit, the flow coefficient, and the loss coefficient in the valve are determined in different cases. Determining the flow coefficient variation versus the valve opening condition (by percent) is so effective in controlling the flow. In addition, it will help us to optimize the cross-sectional area of the valve to achieve the desired function. In the supersonic flow, flow coefficients and loss coefficient of the valve are dependent on several parameters, including pressure and fluid flow rate. The basic flow coefficient at different angles indicates that, with decreasing pressure, the base sensitivity of the flow coefficient to the discharge rate decreases, and consequently, it decreases. In addition, by increasing the opening angle of the valve (by increasing the angle from 20° to 80°), the flow coefficient increases (from 0.23 to 49.32). The valve loss coefficient diagrams at a given angle always show a higher sensitivity to the pressure reduction than the discharge rate. This means that the loss coefficient has an inverse relationship with the pressure. Also, with an increase in the valve-opening angle, the amount of loss coefficient decreases, so that it reaches 2 from 10,000 by increasing the angle from 20° to 80°.