Seismic Test Results of Air-Operated Valve Actuators for Nuclear Power Plants (Air-Operated Globe Valve (Cylinder Type))

It is believed that air-operated globe valves are able to operate during and after earthquakes, leading to maximum accelerations beyond the existing allowable acceleration for nuclear power plants in Japan (6 × 9.8 m/s²). In this work, this assumption is verified using a resonance shaking table for seismic testing at acceleration levels of 20 × 9.8 m/s² (see Ref. [1]). Results show that the active components used in existing air-operated globe valve designs remain operable at 22 × 9.8 m/s² (horizontal (X and Y) and vertical (Z) directions).