Abstract: An improved radial type magnetorheological valve was developed by guiding the magnetic flux into the annular gap, changing the material properties of the typical single radial type MR valve, and making the valve have both annular flow and radial flow path simultaneously. A finite element analysis was carried out with ANSYS/Emag software to simulate the effects of material properties on the magnetic flux distribution and pressure drop change in the valve, and combined with the derived magnetorheological valve model to predict the valve performance. The experimental test rig was set up to validate the simulation results. The experimental results show that, the pressure drop of the improved radial type MR valve is superior to that of typical radial type MR valve under the same geometry conditions and the same electromagnetic parameters. At the applied current of 1.8 A, the maximum pressure drop of typical radial type MR valve is approximately 3 MPa, while the maximum pressure drop of improved radial type MR valve is approximately 4 MPa, increasing the pressure drop by 33% and enlarging its application range.