Failure Modes and Causes for Swing and Lift Type Check Valves.
Prior to the recent work performed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)relative to nuclear industry check valve performance, no information was readily available regarding the failure characteristics of check valves based on valve type (e.g., swing check, lift check). Although it had been recognized by component experts that the two most significant factors in determining check valve performance were valve design (i.e., type) and operating conditions, no industry data was available relative to the former. In cooperation with the Nuclear Industry Check Valve Group (NIC), ORNL has reviewed and analyzed check valve failures from the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations` (INPOs`) Nuclear Plant Reliability Database System (NPRDS) according to several parameters,including valve type. Since the valve type identification is not inherently included within the NPRDS engineering record for each component, ORNL had to rely upon input from NIC, valve manufacturers, and catalogs to supply the missing information. As a result of this effort, approximately 77% of the check valve failures occurring during the 1991-1996 study period and nearly 62% of the overall installed population were identified according to type. This data provided the basis to perform previously unavailable cross-correlations between parameters such as valve type versus failure mode and failure cause. Design characteristics and service applications differ markedly among check valve types, resulting in discernible differences in performance. This paper focuses on the performance characteristics of swing and lift type check valves since failure and population distributions have shown these to be the two most common types employed in a wide range of nuclear plant applications.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States); Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 621557
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9707112-1; ON: DE97009381; NC: NONE; TRN: AD-A332 01
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 6. EPRI valves symposium, Portland, ME (United States), 14-16 Jul 1997; Other Information: PBD: 1997
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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