The electric actuator has become a mainstream product in the mechanical market

Most modern production control systems opt for electric valve  actuators, which are safer and simpler in structure compared to traditional valve control devices, with longer service life. The electric valve Actuator can generally be divided into two parts: the upper section for electrical control and the lower section for the valve body. With its wide range of applications and high adaptability to various working conditions, it has gained popularity among users and has consistently been regarded as a safe and intelligent valve control device.
When the Electric Actuator is in actual operation, users must properly navigate three stages. The first is the initial operation phase, also known as the break-in period. Most failures during this period are caused by improper selection, design, installation, or environmental factors. For instance, selecting a torque that is too small may directly affect the adjustment speed of the electric valve actuator. If power lines and signal lines are intertwined during installation, it can lead to significant signal interference, impacting the motor's stable operation. These issues must be promptly identified and addressed to avoid unnecessary losses.  As the valve electric head enters the mid-operation phase, the overall performance of the control mechanism also reaches an adaptation period, typically remaining relatively stable with occasional minor faults. Users only need to perform appropriate maintenance to handle these issues. When the electric valve actuator reaches the late-operation phase, most components experience aging problems, particularly severe wear in various transmission parts, leading to reduced stability in control and operation or decreased positioning accuracy in the intelligent positioner module. For these issues, users should identify the causes and resolve them through repairs or component replacements for better solutions.
Electric Actuators have become the mainstream product in the mechanical market. The most essential component in automatic valves is the Electric Actuator, which can effectively save energy consumption during operation. The advantages and performance of electric actuators determine whether they can effectively improve work efficiency and energy saving during use. There are various types of electric motors, including angular stroke electric heads and other electric heads with different properties in the market. The most commonly used electric head is the most traditional electric head.
Traditional electric actuators also have advantages. The access to energy is relatively convenient, just plug in the power supply to start working. When transmitting signals, the speed is relatively fast and it can transmit over long distances. In long-distance transmission, control will not be affected, and it still has strong accuracy during control, so it will not be impossible to control due to the distance being too far. The visual wiring process for installation is relatively simple and not cumbersome. When a fault occurs, the problem point can be quickly identified, and when replacing the line, the faulty line can be quickly replaced with a new one. The maintenance is relatively simple and does not require a large amount of maintenance costs.
The disadvantage of electric actuators is that they have a complex structure and are prone to malfunction. Due to its complex structure, maintenance personnel with strong professional knowledge and high technical skills are required. When an electric actuator malfunctions, it can be quickly resolved. Maintenance personnel with low professional knowledge and skills will consume a lot of time during the repair process. Reduced work time and lowered work efficiency.
The most extensive definition of an actuator is a driving device that can provide linear or rotational motion, utilizing a certain driving energy source and working under the action of a certain control signal. The actuator uses liquid, gas, electricity, or other energy sources and converts them into driving force through motors, cylinders, or other devices.
There are three basic types of driving modes: Part Turn, Multi Turn, and Linear.
The basic actuator is used to drive the valve to the fully open or fully closed position. The actuator used to control the valve can accurately move the valve to any position. Although most actuators are used for opening and closing valves, the design of today's actuators goes far beyond simple switching functions. They include position sensing devices, torque sensing devices, electrode protection devices, logic control devices, digital communication modules, and PID control modules, all of which are installed in a compact housing.
As more and more factories adopt automation control, manual operations are replaced by mechanical or automated equipment. People demand that the actuator can play an interface role between the control system and the mechanical movement of the valve, and also require the actuator to enhance work safety performance and environmental protection performance. In some hazardous situations, automated actuator devices can reduce personnel injuries. Some special valves require emergency opening or closing in special circumstances, and the valve actuator can prevent further spread of danger while minimizing factory losses. For some high-pressure large-diameter valves, the required output torque of the actuator is very large. In this case, the required actuator must improve mechanical efficiency and use a high output motor in order to operate the large-diameter valve smoothly. For some small torque valves, compact electric valves are also used, which have the advantages of light weight, compact structure, and complete functions compared to ordinary types.
In order to successfully achieve process automation, the most important thing is to ensure that the valve itself can meet the special requirements of the process and the medium inside the pipeline. The production process and process medium usually determine the type of valve, the type of valve core, as well as the structure and materials of the valve internals and valves.
After selecting the valve, the next step is to consider the requirements of automation, that is, the selection of the actuator. The actuator can be considered simply based on two basic types of valve operation.
Rotary valve:
This type of valve includes: plug valves, ball valves, butterfly valves, and dampers or baffles. This type of valve requires an actuator that can rotate 90 degrees with the required torque
Multi turn valve:
This type of valve can be a non rotating lifting stem or a rotating non lifting stem, or they require multiple rotations to drive the valve to the open or closed position. This type of valve includes: straight through valve (globe valve), gate valve, knife gate valve, etc. As an option, pneumatic or hydraulic cylinders or membrane actuators with linear output are also used to drive the aforementioned valves.
Advantages of electric actuators:
The main advantages of electric actuators are high stability and a constant thrust that can be applied by users. The maximum thrust generated by the actuator can reach up to 225000kgf, and only Hydraulic Actuators can achieve such a large thrust. However, the cost of Hydraulic Actuators is much higher than that of electric actuators. The anti deviation ability of electric actuators  is very good, and the output thrust or torque is basically constant, which can effectively overcome the unbalanced force of the medium and achieve accurate control of process parameters. Therefore, the control accuracy is higher than that of Pneumatic Actuators. If equipped with a servo amplifier, it is easy to achieve the exchange of positive and negative effects, and it is also easy to set the cut-off signal valve position state (hold/fully open/fully closed). In case of a fault, it must stay in its original position, which Pneumatic Actuators cannot do. Pneumatic actuators must rely on a combination protection system to achieve position protection.