Adopting The Tesla Valve as A Transient Protection Device

This study presents the potential of Tesla Valves in managing transient pressures in water distribution systems (WDSs). A Tesla valve, or valvular conduit, is a passive check valve with a fixed geometry. It is a device that allows fluid to flow preferentially in one direction without requiring any moving parts. The interior of the conduit is provided with enlargements, recesses, projections, baffles, or buckets that affects the hydraulics of the flow. When flowing in on direction, a fluid encounters little resistance, aside from surface friction, while in the opposite direction, it forms a nearly impenetrable barrier. Originally, Tesla illustrated this device showing one possible construction with a series of eleven flow-control segments, although any other number of such segments could be used as desired to increase or decrease the flow regulation effect.
This study introduces Tesla valve as a low-cost alternative solution in addition to the more conventional non return valves (NRVs) approach for managing pressure transients. for instance, mounting it to the downstream of a pump can help reduce the shock waves generated at shutdowns replacing non return check valves. With no moving parts, Tesla valves are much more resistant to wear and fatigue, especially in applications with frequent pressure reversal such as a pulsejet. The Tesla valve is used in microfluidic applications and offers advantages such as scalability, durability, and ease of fabrication in a variety of materials. It is also used in macrofluidic applications. Two case study applications of increasing complexity are presented to demonstrate the potential of this approach.