JP-5 Smart, Leakless Valve
Commercial Market Innovation Provides Defense Industry Solution

Curtiss-Wright has a distinguished history of designing innovative technologies to solve customer needs.  One of our most successful introductions was a fully automated, sealed solenoid valve, which operates the flow of liquid, gas and steam.  With capabilities ranging up to 2500 psi pressure and 670°F temperature, this innovative design quickly became the valve of choice in critical applications such as nuclear power plants where radioactive fluid flows through the valve.  Curtiss-Wright’s valve became the preferred option in over 500 applications per nuclear plant and has an installed base of over 10,000 valves today.

Building on the valve’s success in the commercial nuclear power market, Curtiss-Wright introduced its solenoid valve to the processing industry as a solution to challenges in addressing more stringent emission standards required by the Clean Air Act.  Based on its performance in the nuclear industry, which has zero tolerance for leakage, this valve was an excellent solution and was awarded certification after 100,000 cycles of usage.  Today, the same valve has accumulated over 1,000,000 cycles and is still operating without incident. 

Most recently, Curtiss-Wright was able to introduce its innovative valve to the U.S. Navy as a replacement for motor-operated valves that required significant maintenance to avoid leakage of JP-5 jet fuel during transfer on aircraft carrier decks.  The Curtiss-Wright valve replacements have operated essentially maintenance free during the last five years of service in the aircraft fueling systems.  Curtiss-Wright currently has a $62 million contract to retrofit all of the pumping station valves on the U.S. Navy’s aircraft carrier fleet.  Additionally, we have identified a number of auxiliary ship systems and ship classes that will provide significant market opportunities for this unique product in the future.

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