• 한국유체기계학회 논문집
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• 제10권5호
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• pp.20-26
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• 2007

Some gate valves are susceptible to pressure locking and thermal binding which prevent the safety function. The safety related gate valves susceptible to pressure locking and thermal binding shall be identified and taken preventive actions to ensure the safety function. The identification of the gate valves susceptible to pressure locking and thermal binding needs the evaluation of system design, valve and piping arrangement, test requirements, and operating conditions. Application of preventive methods should consider the system safety function, applicability, effectiveness, interface with system design, and cost. The selection procedure of valves susceptible to pressure locking and thermal binding can be effectively used in industry including nuclear power plants. In order to prevent the pressure locking, the hole can be drilled through the one disc of upstream side or down stream and the external equalizing line can be installed from bonnet to downstream or upstream. The double disc parallel seat valve type can be used instead of flexible wedge gate valve to prevent the thermal binding. The identification of gate valves susceptible to pressure locking and thermal binding, and preventive actions will meet the regulatory requirements and enhance the availability and safety of plants.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제35권2호
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• pp.133-143
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• 2003

Stem-stem nut coefficient of friction(COF) in motor-operated gate/globe valves is one of the important factors which determine the performance of the valve/actuators. The COF is affected greatly by the type and condition of the stem-stem nut lubricants, environmental parameters, surface condition of the stem/stem-nuts, and the number of strokes after the lubrication. In this paper, the measured data of the COFs at stem threads of some safety-related motor-operated gate/globe valves in domestic nuclear power plants are presented. In addition, the performance of the lubricants is evaluated by comparing the COFs among those valves. The results show that the measured COF at torque switch trip are higher than the unwedging COF and conservatively applicable to the unwedging COF. It is also shown that the lubricating performance based on the measured COFs varies with the lubricants.