In this paper, a nonlinear model-based adaptive control approach is proposed for a solenoid-valve system. The challenge is that solenoids and butterfly valves have uncertainties in multiple parameters in the nonlinear model; various kinds of physical appearance such as size and stroke, dynamic parameters including inertia, damping, and torque coefficients, and operational parameters especially, pipe diameters and flow velocities. These uncertainties are making the system not only difficult to adjust to the environment, but also further complicated to develop the appropriate control approach for meeting the system objectives. The main contribution of this research is the application of adaptive control theory and Lyapunov-type stability approach to design a controller for a dynamic model of the solenoid-valve system in the presence of those uncertainties. The control objectives such as set-point regulation, parameter compensation, and stability are supposed to be simultaneously accomplished. The error signals are first formulated based on the nonlinear dynamic models and then the control input is developed using the Lyapunov stability-type analysis to obtain the error bounded while overcoming the uncertainties. The parameter groups are updated by adaptation laws using a projection algorithm. Numerical simulation results are shown to demonstrate good performance of the proposed nonlinear model-based adaptive approach and to compare the performance of the same solenoid-valve system with a non-adaptive method as well.