Valve Seats

In a four-stroke race engine, the valve seats play an important part in the mechanical reliability and heat management of the valves. In general, the valve seat will conduct much of the heat away from the valve head during the time the valve is shut. If we leave mechanical and dimensional considerations aside, a valve seat material with greater thermal conductivity will transfer heat from the valve to the cylinder head, and then to the cooling water circuit, more efficiently than one of lower thermal conductivity.
The most common materials used for making valve seats for race engines are copper alloys. They have excellent thermal conductivity, good wear characteristics and reasonably high strength. Copper Beryllium Alloys that contain small additions of Beryllium are commonly chosen for race engines.