Pipe Flow Expert comes with its own Fittings database that contains information on a large number of standard pipe fittings and valves for variety of different pipe diameters and sizes.

Users can select a number of pipe fittings to include on a pipe, for the purposes of calculating the flow and the additional pressure drop that occurs due to the pipe fittings. The Pipe Flow Expert software associates a k factor with each pipe fitting and this is used to calculate a pressure loss across the fitting (which will be dependent on the velocity of the flow through the fitting).

K factors are also used to model certain types of valves, where again the pressure drop across the valves will vary depending on the flow rate.


Users can add their own pipe fittings data to the fittings database and specific K values can be assigned to any fittings. The software will then automatically use the K value data as fittings are added in to the pipe model.

Fixed pressure drops, or component pressure losses that are represented by a flow versus pressure loss curve, can also be modeled by adding a special component to a pipe (rather than a standard pipe fitting). The special component also caters for valves which have a known Kv or Cv value (as opposed to a K value pressure loss coefficient, which is not the same).