By Torben W. Ibsen, CEO, M.Sc. (Mech.Eng.

), FlowCon International ApS, Denmark

Original 04.2011
Republished 03.2023

FlowCon Topic Letter

PICV vs. Differential Pressure Control Valve, Double Regulating Valve and
Modulating Control Valve

Hydraulic balancing should ensure that the flow

through a thermal unit never exceeds the design
flow and that the - by BMS or stand-alone thermostat
- required flow is proved. If the flow is different from
these criteria, the system balancing will be incorrect
which effectively will be hampering the indoor comfort
and building energy consumption.
Figure 1: DPCV + DRV + CV in a typical coil layout
The most common problems in terms of achieving
the above-described balancing are as follows:
1. Pressure fluctuations result in flow fluctuations.
Component Description
Differential Pressure Control Valve, DPCV
2. Valve authority - the Control Valve (CV) and The DPCV is designed to maintain a constant
the Double Regulating Valve (DRV) are fighting differential pressure between 2 specified points.
for the pressure drop and thereby the authority. DPCVs are normally used in strategic locations in
the system in order to isolate specific system
sections and thereby minimize the pressure
Description of DPCV + DRV + CV System
fluctuations in the overall system. How the
The trinity consisting of a Differential Pressure
pressure is distributed “behind” the 2 specific points
Control Valve (DPCV), a Double Regulating Valve
is not controlled by the DPCV. A DPCV can
(DRV) and a Control Valve (CV) in a coil layout
therefore only be used to maintain a constant ΔP
typically looks as shown in figure 1.
over an area, which normally contains a set of
thermal units as per figure 1.
DPCV - differential pressure control valve
DRV - double regulating valve Double Regulating Valve, DRV
CV - control valve
IV - isolating valve
The DRV is installed to balance the system which,
ST - strainer in a combination with a modulating Control Valve,
effectively means that the valve is to ensure that
the maximum flow is never exceeded. The DRV is
pressure dependent, and any pressure fluctuation
will result in changed maximum flow - lower

Topic Letter · www.flowcon.com Page 1 of 3

differential pressure across the unit will result in
lower flow rates and vice versa as per the formula
Q = Kv * √ΔP.
Control Valve, CV
The CV is installed to allow the BMS system or
stand-alone thermostat units to control and
modulate the flow rate anywhere between 0% and Figure 2: PICV in a typical coil layout
100% of the design flow. The CV modulates the
flow by adjusting the CV opening and thereby
The PICV is basically a DPCV, a CV and a dynamic
changing the flow. As the valve is also operating
balancing valve built into one unit. The dynamic
within the formula Q = Kv * √ΔP, any pressure
valve acts as an overflow preventer ensuring that
fluctuation will result in changing flow.
overflow is never present in the coil. The DPCV
In the configuration shown in figure 1 the DPCV is ensures that the differential pressure across the CV
used to control the differential pressure across the section remains constant and that flow therefore
coil arrangement, the DRV is used to set the does not change with system pressure fluctuations.
maximum flow and the CV is used to ensure Due to the fact that the differential pressure is absorbed
modulation within 0-100% of the design flow. inside the PICV, the valve will always have 100%
DPCVs are normally used for riser, branches, or authority making pressure drop calculations obsolete.
coils and the further away from the coil it is installed Furthermore, the PICV is self-balancing meaning that
- and thereby expanding the number of coils it no balancing - or re-balancing - of the system is
controls - the smaller the impact it will have on the required.
individual coil. In case the DPCV is used on a
branch - or further downstream - the CV will have
Comparison
to change position to compensate for pressure
The usage of a DPCV + DRV + CV solution have
fluctuations providing an unstable ΔT in the coil.
several problems, that affects the performance of
The CV and the DRV will both try to control the flow the system and the lifespan of particularly the CV.
rate - a controversy described by the CV authority. All the listed problems below will be solved if the
The valve authority is aimed at around 50%, which trinity is replaced with a PICV valve.
is an industrial guideline. In order to achieve such
• The differential pressure will despite the
authority, the pressure drop across the balancing
introduction of DPCVs still fluctuate within the
valve will have to be calculated and based on this
series of thermal units mounted “behind” the
is the Kv-value for the CV selected. Due to limited
DPCV.
Kv-options available, the control valve is often
oversized which again will result in reduced • Any system pressure fluctuations must be
authority and thereby reduced controllability. handled by CV movement, resulting in more
wear and reduced actuator life.

Description of PICV system • The flow through the DRV will fluctuate with
The common Pressure Independent Control Valve changes in load conditions within the series of
(PICV) in a coil layout typically looks as shown in thermal units located in the sub-system. Higher
figure 2. pressure than designed will result in overflow.

• The control valve will have to fight the DRV

PICV - pressure independent control valve
regarding the pressure drop and thereby control
IV - isolating valve
ST - strainer authority of the flow. During design, an authority
of 50% is targeted, but this value will in practice
normally be substantially lower as both CV and
coil are commonly oversized. Furthermore, the
authority equation only includes the specific coil
system and not the full system, meaning that

Topic Letter · march 2023 · www.flowcon.com Page 2 of 3

 pressure overtaken from other parts of the
system is not included in the theoretical
assessment.

• System has to be balanced and over time re-

balanced to perform optimally.

• DRVs require valves installed on main, riser,

branch and coil resulting in higher number of valves
and thereby increased system pressure drop.

• CV pressure drop has to be minimum 2 times

the DRV pressure drop to ensure authority
resulting in relatively large pressure drops and
thereby larger energy consumption.

Conclusion
The closer the pressure controlling functions are to
the coil the more effective it is and therefore it is
recommended that DPCVs are installed on each
coil for optimal performance. A PICV has the
function of maintaining a constant differential
pressure over a specific area built in and therefore
by definition it is applied on the coil where used.
PICVs always have 100% authority, due to the
pressure independent function, whereas the CV
and DRV are pressure dependent meaning that
100% authority can never be obtained. High
authorities can only be achieved through high
resistance in the CV, with high pressure drop and
thereby high energy consumption as a result.
CVs must be selected as per pressure drop
calculation introducing a time-consuming selection
process. PICVs are selected based on the pipe
diameter, flow and pressure drop and are therefore
FlowCon International can accept no responsibility for possible errors in any printed material. All rights reserved

less dependent on manual errors and free from

time-consuming calculations. Also, in a PICV
solution, fewer valves are required resulting in
lower pressure drop and reduced risk of pipe
leakage. Furthermore, the PICV solution is self-
balancing meaning that time spent on balancing /
commissioning is substantially reduced.

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