I have two comments regarding this post. My terminology differs some from that suggested by Mr. Pellin. I would refer to his recirculation valve as a regulating relief valve, or I would name it by its function as a pressure control valve.
Secondly, regarding kader007's post, I do not agree with his statement,
"Should relief valve discharge into the supply tank or the pump inlet?" I would say that both of the solutions are possible the difference would be only the pressure drop due to the piping (from tank to pump) that you'll avoid recycling directly to the pump inlet."
Recycling back to the pump suction results in a much more turbulent/less developed pump suction, and it fails to provide for any removal of heat. For a small inventory of liquid experiencing full recycle, this could result in rapid overheating with resulting pump problems. In my opinion, it is a thousand times better to return to the suction vessel if at all possible.