Normally Closed Solenoid Cartridge Valves 08 to 16 Cavity, 18 to 190 L/min

Screw-in normally closed solenoid cartridge valves for common cavity manifolds. With no power the valve is shut; energise the coil and it opens. Four different internal designs cover everything from a simple on/off shut-off to a bi-directional poppet that will pass full flow both ways.

Coils, DIN plugs and bodies are supplied separately – the coil column in the table below tells you exactly which coil suits each cartridge.

Ways to buy:

• Off the shelf – pick your cavity size, flow and function below.
• Need the valve open with no power instead? See the normally open range linked below.
• Need three or four ports? See the 3-way and 4-way range linked below.
• You will also need a body and a coil – both linked below.

Pick your part

Which normally closed valve?

• No reverse flow when energised – blocks both ways when off, opens one way when on. The plain on/off valve. Cheapest.
• With reverse flow when energised – opens fully in both directions when energised. Use it where oil has to get back the other way.
• Spool type, bi-directional – spool rather than poppet, so it shifts smoothly and passes flow either way, but it leaks slightly by design. Not a load holder.
• Poppet type, bi-directional – poppet sealing with two-way flow. Tighter than a spool, higher pressure ratings.
• Manual override – a push pin so the valve can be shifted with no power. Worth the extra on anything that has to be released to recover a machine.

What the cavity code means

Every screw-in cartridge has a cavity code – 08-2, 10-3, 12-2, 16-2 and so on. The first number is the frame size, the second is how many ports the cavity has. A 10-3 cartridge only fits a 10-3 body. Get the cavity right and everything else follows; get it wrong and nothing you buy will thread in.

Cartridges, bodies and coils are supplied separately. Refer to the datasheet for full flow and pressure-drop curves.

Technicians Advice

Three things kill solenoid cartridges, and all three are avoidable. Contamination is the first – these are precision spools and poppets in a screwed-in sleeve, and a single piece of swarf left in the body will hold one open.

Flush the manifold before the cartridge goes in, never after. Over-torquing is the second: wind the cartridge in to the maker’s figure with a torque wrench on the hex, not the coil nut, because crushing the sleeve distorts the spool bore and the valve sticks. Coil mismatch is the third – the coil is a separate part and the catalogue tells you exactly which one suits each cartridge; a 13 mm coil will slide onto a 16 mm stem and look fine, then run hot and burn out.

Fit the coil dry, do the nut up hand tight plus a nip, and support the loom so the coil is not carrying the weight of the cable.

Remember these valves are not leak free unless the datasheet says so: a normally closed poppet holds a load for a shift, not for a fortnight, so anything that must not creep needs a pilot operated check or a counterbalance in the circuit as well.

Complete your setup

Normally Open Cartridge Valves3-Way and 4-Way Cartridge Valves2-Port Cartridge BodiesSolenoid Coils

Need help choosing? Call 1300 146 737 or email sales@mhfgc.com.au – real technicians, real answers.