Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

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Nuclear Engineering and Technology

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Original Article

A study on calculation of friction coefficient and packing stress using

static diagnosis test for a balanced globe valve in nuclear power plants
Jaehyung Kim a, *, Taemook Lim b, Ho-Geun Ryu b
a
Nuclear Equipment Qualification & Safety Research Group, Korea Institute of Machinery & Materials, South Korea
b
Soosan Industries Co. Ltd, South Korea

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: A valve assembly used in nuclear power plants must be qualified and supervised. New technical stan-
Received 29 September 2020 dards such as ASME QME-1 2007 particularly require detailed qualification using experiment and
Received in revised form analysis. Particularly, diagnostic tests and engineering studies are required for qualification of ASME
22 December 2020
QME-1 2007. Among these studies, the research on the measurement of friction coefficient and packing
Accepted 31 January 2021
Available online 8 February 2021
stress is important. The irregular change of packing stress along the stroke distance occurs because of the
abnormal phenomenon, which must be found and studied with quantitative methods. Packing stress
should be analyzed conservatively through experimentation and analysis. In this study, various formulas
Keywords:
Packing friction
were applied to measure and calculate coefficient of friction and packing stress. This study can be used in
Packing stress relation to qualification and supervision of packing materials. And the calculation using static diagnosis
Qualification test can be used to find the packing frictional force in dynamic diagnosis test with flow pressure in a pipe.
Valve diagnosis test This study has made it possible to reliably consider packing frictional force generated in a valve body.
Flow interruption and functional capability And so, it is believed that more margin can be secured when evaluating the capacity of valve actuator by
test applying the accurate frictional force generated in the valve assembly.
Balanced globe valve © 2021 Korean Nuclear Society, Published by Elsevier Korea LLC. This is an open access article under the
CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

1. Introduction production, and evaluation. As a result, the qualification of a valve

A valve assembly used in nuclear power plants (NPPs) must be
qualified and supervised regularly. The concept and method of
qualification of NPPs equipment are presented in IEEE Std.
382e1996 [1], ASME QME-1a-1998/2002 [2], and ASME OM ISTC-
2001 [3]. A valve assembly is divided into a body and an actuator.
The valve actuator is qualified according to IEEE Std. 382e1996 [1],
while the valve assembly, in which the valve actuator is attached to
the valve body, is qualified according to ASME QME-1a-1998/2002
[2]. Also, a valve assembly in NPPs is diagnosed and maintained
based on ASME OM ISTC-2001 [3].
Unlike ASME QME-1a-1998/2002 [2], which has been previously
applied, a more engineering approach is required for the applica-
tion of ASME QME-1 2007 [4]. According to ASME QME-1 2007 [4],
there is a need to analyze the parameters describing integrity and
operability of a valve assembly along with satisfying the technical
requirements proposed in ASME OM ISTC-2001 [3] that had been
applied to NPPs during operation and to use the data in design,
* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: jhkim@kimm.re.kr (J. Kim).
assembly has become more precise, but it has also become neces-
sary to perform additional tasks than before.
Of particular note, it is necessary to carry out the force balance
analysis based on an experiment with following the path of force
generated in a valve assembly. Analysis of the force generated in a
valve assembly has been mainly dealt with in ASME OM ISTC-2001
[3]. In this study, the force generated in a valve assembly was
measured and discussed on coefficient of packing friction and
packing stress. And the state changes related to integrity and
operability were also discussed.
EPRI 10104960 [5] explains abnormal phenomena that can
happen in a valve assembly and presents a qualitative description
using a performance graph in which the valve force is plotted along
the stroke distance. Without any abnormal phenomenon, the
packing frictional force occurring in the valve assembly remains
uniform along the stroke distance with a double acting cylinder
actuator, but if there is an abnormal phenomenon, the graph dis-
plays various changes. For instance, abnormal phenomena called
“worn” and “sticking seat” are characterized by a sudden change of
force in the initial stroke distance. In the case of “broken stem,”
“excess friction,” “bent stem,” “misaligned stem,” and “localized

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.net.2021.01.038
1738-5733/© 2021 Korean Nuclear Society, Published by Elsevier Korea LLC. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/
licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu
stem wear,” the graph of opening stroke and closing stroke changes
in a miniscule manner, and additional force is ultimately applied to
the stem. The contact force between stem and packing material
continues to change, and the frictional force also changes at the
same time along the stroke distance. Eventually, due to the
abnormal phenomena, there are changes in the packing frictional
force.
On the other hand, the packing material in contact with the
stem loses elasticity and finally stops becoming functional due to
the deterioration caused by heat, radiation, and mechanical wear.
Also, with respect to the coefficient of friction between packing
material and stem, the contact surface undergoes physical changes
over time. As a solution in industrial site, a gland load is added to
the packing material to compensate for the loss of elasticity by live
loading of cone type spring washer or applying the torque by torque
wrench.
Conclusionally, such deterioration in the packing materials, in
addition to the abnormal phenomena, leads to changes in the
packing frictional force that is intended to prevent leakage, which is
a key function of the packing material. Regard to these issues, EPRI
1015396 [6] shows that gland over-torque, stem taper and out-of-
roundness, and thermal gradients cause to change the packing
frictional force.
For this reason, ASME QME-1 2007 [4] requires the detailed
quantitative assessment of packing friction coefficient in valve as-
semblies for deterioration in packing materials and abnormal
phenomena. Until now, valve assembly was diagnosed conserva-
tively by calculating the average packing frictional force using
experimental results or performing the qualitative analysis of the
stem condition. However, to satisfy the requirements of ASME
QME-1 2007 [4], it is necessary to calculate the exact force of
packing frictional force along the stroke distance and experimen-
tally check the changes in coefficient of packing friction over time.
In dynamic diagnostic tests, the pressure caused by the flow in a
valve body should be considered in relation to the changes of
contact stress, which is the radial packing stress in packing mate-
rial. The characteristics of frictional force are generally analyzed
using the static diagnosis test performed in the absence of flow.
However, in the dynamic test where there is flow, the pressure has
the effect of weakening contact stress in packing material, which
affects the packing frictional force. In order to understand the
frictional force characteristics in the dynamic state, the changes in
the packing frictional force caused by the pressure of the flow must
be considered.
EPRI 1015396 [6] presents an analytical equation by deriving the
packing frictional force using a differential equation, but it has not
been actively used in design, production, and evaluation process.
J.H. Kim [7e9] studied on calculation of fluid force using the
result of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and calculation of
flow coefficient on balanced globe valve, which can be used in
application of ASME QME-1 2007 [4].
In this study, according to the technical requirements of ASME
OM ISTC-2001 [3] and ASME QME-1 2007 [4], the analytical
equation presented in EPRI 1015396 [6] was applied to calculate the
coefficient of packing friction and packing stress. That is, a method
was proposed to calculate the coefficient of friction between valve
stem and packing materials, the coefficient of friction between
stem and bonnet, and the packing stress using the analysis solution
for the coefficients of packing friction. If the coefficient of packing
friction and packing stress are calculated using static diagnosis test
and applied to dynamic diagnostic tests where there is flow, it will
be possible to consider changes in the packing frictional force ac-
cording to the fluid pressure [6]. The method applied in this study is
a test-based methodology required by ASME QME-1 2007 [4] and is
expected to contribute to promoting the safety of NPPs.
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Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522
2. Material for forces in valve assembly
2.1. Decomposition of forces in valve assembly
The valve used in this study is a direct acting valve, where the
upper diameter of the disc is larger than the lower diameter and the
flow is directed from below the disc. Thus, considering all the
aforementioned forces, the force necessary to either open or close
can be obtained by Eq. (1) [6].
FR;open ¼ Fpack  FP þ FDP þ FDF
FR;close ¼ Fpack þ FP  FDP þ FDF þ FSL (1)
where FR;open is the required force to opening direction, FR;close is the
required force to closing direction, Fpack is the packing frictional
force, FP is the piston effect force, FDP is the differential pressure
force, FDF is the frictional force caused by contact in cage and guide,
and FSL is the sealing force.
The differential pressure force (FDP ) caused by the flow in the
balanced globe valve is calculated by Eq. (2).
FDP ¼ ΔP  Adiff (2)
where ΔP is the pressure difference between front and rear ends of
the valve body and Adiff is the difference of area between upper and
lower parts of the plug.
The piston effect force (Fp ) is calculated by Eq. (3).
FP ¼ PB AS (3)
where PB is the bonnet pressure and As is the cross-sectional area of
the stem.
The sealing force (FSL ) used in the design is calculated by Eq. (4).
It is measured during a static diagnosis test without a flow.
FSL ¼ FSL0 pBMS (4)
where BMs is the average sealing contact diameter, FSL0 is the
sealing force per unit length. In the case of Class V in the valve
leakage classification, Eq. (5) is used in the design.
FSL0 ¼ 0:066667Pup þ 100 (5)
where Pup is the pressure at the front end of the valve.
The frictional force between the disc body and cage (FDF ) is
calculated by Eq. (6).
FDF ¼ 0:09 DPAð%Þ L ODSEAT (6)
where ΔP is the pressure difference between front and rear ends of
the valve body, and Að%Þ is the ratio of the total cross-sectional area
of the cage hole to the cross-sectional area inside the cage. L is the
stroke distance of the valve, and ODSEAT is the outer diameter of the
disc seat. The frictional force of the disc body and cage (FDF ) is
relatively small.
According to EPRI 1015396 [6], the packing frictional force
(Fpack ) is calculated by using coefficient of packing friction and
packing stress and geometric size of the packing material.
In general, the frictional force (Fpack ) between packing material
and stem is calculated by the product of contact stress and contact
area multiplied by coefficient of friction and load factor by Eq. (7).
Fpack ¼ mSRpDs lp Lf (7)
where, m is the coefficient of friction between stem and packing
J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu
materials, S is the gland packing stress to axial direction by gland
torque, R is the ratio of radial to axial stress in packing material, Ds
is the stem diameter, lp is the packing height, Lf is the load factor.
The load factor (Lf ) is primarily related to how well torque is
converted into preload.
Gland packing stress (S) in Eq. (7) is the axial force per unit area
on top of packing material when the force exerted by the gland nut
is transferred to the top of the packing material, having the same
concept of axial pressure and having a name as gland preload in
Fig. 1. This axial packing stress (S) is transmitted through the top of
packing material and distributed with a constant ratio to the radial
direction perpendicular to the direction of motion of the stem,
thereby causing contact stress (SR) in Eq. (7) and having a name as
radial stress in Fig. 1. In other word, the contact stress, generated to
the radial direction perpendicular to the contact area, corresponds
to the product of gland packing stress (S) and constant R. At this
time, the frictional force is generated by the product of contact
stress (SR), contact area (pDs lp ), and the coefficient of friction (m)
with adjustment of load factor (Lf ).
Meanwhile, the radial contact stress has a distribution along the
height of the packing material. Due to this distribution, the packing
frictional force in the upward opening process is different to that in
the downward closing process. Eq. (7) attempts to explain this ef-
fect with a load factor (Lf ) but it is insufficient because of no
detailed equation. Without considering these physical properties,
selecting the average packing frictional force conservatively and
finding one coefficient of friction are different to reality. In practice,
both coefficient of friction between bonnet and packing material
and coefficient of friction between stem and packing material must
be obtained.
In summary, the packing frictional force should be considered
differently in upward opening process and downward closing
process, and two coefficients of friction should be obtained with
considering how the gland packing stress (S), generated by gland
force, is transmitted axially through the top of packing material and
distributed radially in the packing material in Fig. 1.
To solve this problem, the force generated on the top of the
packing material by the gland nut, the frictional force between
bonnet and packing material, and the frictional force between stem
and packing material are used to make the equilibrium relationship
of forces generated in the packing material. The force equilibrium
equation on the small volume of the packing material is solved to
find the axial stress (or pressure) distribution shown in Fig. 1. And
Fig. 1. Schematic of packing part in a valve assembly and force balanced equation.
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Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522
the packing frictional force (Fpack ) is calculated by integration with
the radial contact stress distribution over contact area by Eq. (8),
where the product of packing height and load factor (lp Lf ) in Eq. (7)
is replaced by ð1  expð  klp ÞÞ=k. The new term ((1  expð 
klp ÞÞ=k) explains the distribution of contact stress and has the same
concept of thickness.


1  exp  klp
Fpack ¼ mi SRpdi (8)
k
where mi is the coefficient of friction between stem and packing
material. S is the gland packing stress. R is the ratio of radial to axial
stress in packing material, and it is 0.85 in the case of graphite. di is
the stem diameter. lp is the thickness of packing material. k is a
constant that determines the shape of the distribution of radial
contact stress formed in the packing material. The stress distribu-
tion constant (k) is ku in Eq. (9) to the upward direction or kd in Eq.
(10) to the downward direction.
The upward stress distribution constant (ku ) has large value
than the downward stress distribution constant (kd ). The large
value of upward stress distribution constant (ku ) explains that the
contact stress is concentrated at the top in packing material. And
the small value of downward stress distribution constant (kd ) also
explains that the contact stress is distributed almost uniformly.
And, due to the small value of downward stress distribution con-
stant (kd ), the frictional force in the downward closing process is
larger than the force in the upward opening process by Eq. (8).
m0 d0 þ mi di
ku ¼ 4R (9)
d0 2  di 2
m0 d0  mi di
kd ¼ 4R (10)
d0 2  di 2
2.2. Diagnosis system for a valve assembly
Diagnosis system for a valve assembly is control and measure-
ment system with thermal and fluid facility for valve functional
qualification in a simulated operation environment, which is
further divided into dynamic environment with fluid flow and
static environment with no flow.
J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu
In the static diagnosis test, where there is no flow, the related
forces are packing frictional force (Fpack ) and sealing force (FSL ). But
in the dynamic diagnosis test, where there is flow, the added forces
are piston effect force (FP ), differential pressure force (FDP ), fric-
tional force (FDF ) caused by contact in cage and guide.
In ASME QME-1 2007 [4], when it is impossible of dynamic
diagnosis test with high pressure and temperature test, the dy-
namic valve function is judged by inference using the static diag-
nosis test with some validation dynamic test.
Fig. 2 shows the real photograph of valve diagnosis test system
for the valve assembly in this study and Fig. 3 shows the schematic
of diagnosis test system for the valve assembly using fluid and
electric signal flow.
Pressure vessel stores the steam generated by tube steam boiler
or the air generated by air compressor, which is supplied to the test
valve with high pressure and high temperature. The fluid flows
from control valve to pipe line, differential pressure gage, pressure
transmitter, test valve, and silencer.
The signal from differential pressure gage and pressure trans-
mitter are inputted to flow computer, in which the instantaneous
density is calculated to output corrected flow rate. The corrected
flow rate is also inputted to a diagnosis equipment, whose brand
name is VIPER, through program logic controller (PLC).
Fig. 4 shows the sequence of static diagnosis test for the valve
assembly in this study. The logical flow of sequence deals with
gland torque adjustment, diagnosis equipment (VIPER), program
logic controller (PLC), and hydraulic unit. Frictional force with stem
and packing material is produced by gland packing stress, which is
mainly generated by applying a torque to bolt and nut in gland
using a torque wrench. After this, the diagnosis equipment (VIPER)
generates electric signal to operate the valve assembly. The pro-
gram logic controller (PLC) manipulates the signal and sends it to
the hydraulic unit. The hydraulic unit controls top pressure and
bottom pressure in actuator cylinder for stem to follow the required
valve displacement which is set by electric signal in diagnosis
equipment (VIPER). Simultaneously, the valve diagnosis equipment
(VIPER) measures and records the pressure in front and rear ends of
the valve body, top and bottom pressure in actuator cylinder, stem
displacement, thrust measured in strain gage attached to the stem,
and flow rate. The force calculation in dynamic diagnosis test is
performed by using the pressure in front and rear ends of the valve
Fig. 2. Photograph of the diagnosis system for a valve assembly.
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Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522
body and flow rate, which are not used in the static diagnosis test
because of no flow.
In this study, the static diagnosis test is performed on condition
that the effect by fluid flow is eliminated. The torque is applied to
stud bolt and nut in gland by a torque wrench. The diagnosis
equipment (VIPER) operates the valve assembly and measures
frictional force, stem displacement, and various pressures. Finally,
coefficient of friction and packing stress by gland force and others
are calculated.
3. Method and discussion of calculation in static diagnosis
test
In this study, the coefficients of packing friction and packing
stress, and frictional force by flow pressure were calculated using
the results of a static diagnosis test in the absence of flow as
following sequences.
(1) Perform the static diagnosis test (Fig. 5, Fig. 6, Fig. 7)
(2) Obtain upward and downward frictional force with applied
gland torque along the stroke distance (Fig. 8)
(3) Calculate the upward and downward frictional force
change(slope) according to the applied gland torque along
the stroke distance (Fig. 9)
(4) Calculate the packing stress distribution constants ( ku , kd )
along the stroke distance from Eqs. (13)e(15) (Fig. 10)
(5) Calculate the coefficients of friction ( mi , mo ) along the stroke
distance from the packing stress distribution constants (ku ,
kd ) (Fig. 11)
(6) Calculate the upward packing stress (Su ) and downward
packing stress (Sd ) along the stroke distance from Eqs. 21 and
22 (Fig. 14)
(7) Calculate the packing stress without additional force from
abnormal phenomena (Fig. 16)
(8) Calculate the packing frictional force with the application of
flow pressure from Eqs. 23 and 24.
The detail and discussion for the sequences from (1) to (5) are
shown in section 3.1. The sequences from (6) to (7) are in section 3.2
and the sequences (8) is in section 3.3.
J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

Fig. 3. Schematic of the diagnosis system for a valve assembly.

Fig. 4. Sequence of the static diagnosis test of a valve assembly.

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J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

Fig. 5. Stroke distance along the elapsed time.

Fig. 6. Thrust along the elapsed time.

3.1. Discussion of calculation for coefficient of friction
3.1.1. Sequence (1)
The force measured at the stem is the packing frictional force
(Fpack ) because there is no force produced by a flow. Fig. 5 shows the
stroke distance over time obtained in the static diagnosis test. As
time passed, the stroke distance increased in the form of a ramp
function and then decreased. This type of valve operation is used in
the flow interruption test described in ASME QME-1 [2,4], and it is
also used in ASME OM ISTC-2001 [3] and IEEE Std. 382e1996 [1].
When the electric signal (4e20 mA) is sent from diagnosis equip-
ment (VIPER) to hydraulic unit, the hydraulic unit controls sub-
valve for the stroke distance to follow the target value in the PID
controller, shown in Fig. 5, while controlling pressure and flow rate
at top and bottom chamber in the actuator cylinder. The force
generated by the valve actuator is transmitted through stem to

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J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

Fig. 7. Thrust along the stroke distance at gland torque 2.95 lbf-ft (4 N-m).

Fig. 8. Frictional force according to applied gland torque at stroke distance 0.4 inches.

valve plug. The axial force, which is also named as thrust in this
study, measured in the stem by strain gauge is shown in Fig. 6.
When the valve closes to changing direction from fully open state,
the thrust becomes rapidly reduced. In the initial stages, as shown
in Fig. 6, the valve stem starts to move from sealing condition where
the thrust corresponds to the sealing force, and in the final
downward closing process, the thrust is continuously applied to the
ending condition, where there are no changes in the stroke dis-
tance, and the sealing force is generated as a result again.
Generally, it is the technical interest of the ASME QME-1 [2,4]
and ASME OM ISTC-2001 [3] to operate the valve on condition that
the valve actuator withstands the maximum thrust along the stroke
distance. So, the thrust measured in the strain gauge is plotted
along the stroke distance in Fig. 7, which is plotted using stroke in

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J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

Fig. 9. Slope of frictional force along the stroke distance.

Fig. 10. Packing stress distribution constants ku and kd along the stroke distance.

Fig. 5 and thrust in Fig. 6.
In Fig. 7, the valve is operated upwardly in the opening process
from zero stroke position to full stroke position, where the thrust is
a positive value, with a sealing force applied in the initial stages and
at zero stroke position. And the valve is operated downwardly in
the closing process from full stroke position to zero stroke position,
where the thrust is a negative value. In general, when there are no
abnormal phenomena, in the case of valve assemblies equipped
with a double acting cylinder actuator, like as the one used in this
study, the graph shows a straight line at the top, indicating the
upward opening process, and a straight line at the bottom, indi-
cating the downward closing process, that are parallel to each
other. In other word, the thrust is uniformly constant in the
ascending curve of upward opening process and downward
descending curve of the closing process, as shown.

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J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

Fig. 11. Coefficient of friction along the stroke distance.

3.1.2. Sequence (2), (3) 

To accurately calculate the coefficient of packing friction, Eq. (8), S ¼ Fg Ag (12)
which represents the relationship between packing frictional force
(Fpack ) and packing stress (S), should be applied using only the
gland stress related frictional force without additional force by
abnormal phenomena. To this end, the gland force is increased with Fg [lbf] is the gland force and Ag [in2] is the gland cross sectional
a torque wrench and the gland packing stress is increased, the area.
packing frictional force of opening and closing processes is
measured through diagnostic test and this test result is presented
in Fig. 8, which is the thrust on each gland torque from 2.21 lbf-ft 3.1.3. Sequence (4)
(3 N-m) to 5.90 lbf-ft (8 N-m) at stroke distance 0.4 inches. On The packing frictional force change (slope) in Fig. 9 is applied to
the whole, upward frictional force, named as in Fu in Fig. 8, in the Eqs. (8)e(10) to calculate the coefficient of friction (mi ) between
opening process, and downward frictional force, named as in Fd in stem and packing material and the coefficient of friction (mo Þ be-
Fig. 8, in closing processes are increased according to increasing tween packing material and bonnet.
gland force by gland torque. It is difficult to eliminate one friction coefficient of two variables
And the change of frictional force according to gland torque directly in Eqs. (8)e(10), so the constants ku and kd representing the
change, named as slope in this study, is calculated along the stroke packing stress distribution in the packing material are calculated at
distance using Fig. 8 and plotted in Fig. 9 in case of gland torque first.
0.7375 lbf-ft (1 N-m). The upward slope and downward slope in

Fig. 9 are used as upward opening frictional force and downward 1  exp ku lp
closing frictional force in Eq. (8) while using gland packing stress (S)
Fu ¼ mi pdi SR
ku
by Eqs. (11) and (12) with gland torque (Tg ) 0.7375 lbf-ft (1 N-m) to
calculate only the coefficient of packing friction caused by gland

do 2  di 2 1  exp  ku lp
torque without no abnormal phenomena in EPRI 10104960 [5]. ¼ pðku  kd Þ S (13)
The gland packing stress (S) is calculated from the torque 8 ku
measured with a torque wrench. The constant between gland tor-

que and gland force is nut factor or torque coefficient, where the 1  exp kd lp
Fd ¼ mi pdi SR
torque coefficient is 0.16 in this study. The gland torque has the kd
relation to gland force in Eq. (11) with nut factor.


do 2  di 2 1  exp  kd lp
kg Dg Fg ¼ pðku  kd Þ S (14)
Tg ¼ (11) 8 kd
12N
If one variable ku or kd is eliminated and applied to Eqs. (13) and
where Tg [ft-lb] is the applied torque, kg is the nut factor (or torque (14), an Eq. (15) for one unknown is derived.
coefficient), Dg [in] is the nominal stud diameter, Fg [lbf] is the
gland force, N is the number of gland studs acting on gland follower. ErrFn ¼ ðFðkd Þ  F0 Þ2 or ðFðku Þ  F0 Þ2 ¼ 0 (15)
The gland packing stress (S [psi]) is calculated by Eq. (12).
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J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

However, since it is difficult to arrange the equations arith-
metically to derive the stress distribution constants (ku ; kd ), the
numerical minimization is performed with the error function Eq.
(15) and the calculated stress distribution constants (ku , kd ) is
plotted in Fig. 10. The average of the downward stress distribution
constant (kd ) along the stroke distance is 0.0001. The average of the
upward stress distribution constant (ku ) along the stroke distance is
0.3026. The fact that the downward stress distribution constant (kd )
is relatively small compared to the upward stress distribution
constant (ku ) means that the packing stress is almost distributed
uniformly when the valve is operated to the downward direction.
On the other hand, it also means that there is a biased stress dis-
tribution when the valve is operated to the upward direction.
All the calculation functions were checked using the cases
presented in EPRI 1015396 [6], and this is shown in Table 1.
The packing frictional force (Fu , Fd ) is calculated, and the results
showed consistency in 0.2% error range. It is confirmed that the
equation and calculation process are accurate.
3.1.4. Sequence (5)
The coefficient of friction (mi ) between packing material and
stem and the coefficient of friction (m0 ) between packing material
and bonnet are calculated using Eqs. (9) and (10) from the stress
distribution constants (ku , kd ) and plotted in Fig. 11. Also, the co-
efficients of friction (mi , m0 ) are almost linear along the stroke
position.
On the other hand, the function (f ðkÞ) in Eq. (16), named as f ðkÞ
thickness in this study and used in Eqs. (13) and (14), corresponds
to the thickness of the packing material. In Fig. 12, when it is
downward, the f ðkÞ thickness is 1.1810 inches on average, which is
almost same as actual packing thickness 1.1811 inches, and when it
is upward, the f ðkÞ thickness is reduced to 0.9931.


1  exp  klp
f ðkÞ ¼ (16)
k This relationship is believed to be useful.
Also, the average value of x ¼ mi di =mo do is 0.9993, which is close
to 1. Using x, the downward stress distribution constants (kd ) is as
follows.
uniform distribution over all the packing height. In this case, the
coefficient of friction (mi ) between packing material and stem cor-
responds to do =di times the coefficient of friction (mo ) between
packing material and bonnet. In this study, when x is nearly 1, the
coefficient of friction (mi ) between packing material and stem is 1.5
times the coefficient of friction (mo ) between packing material and
bonnet, which is 1.4974 times on average. In Eq. (17), if the
downward stress distribution constant (kd ) is negative, the radial
stress Pr , in Eq. (18) representing the stress distribution has a
negative value, and the f ðkÞ thickness in Eq. (16) is larger than the
actual thickness. This cannot be a real physical phenomenon.
Therefore, it can be assumed that the maximum value of x is 1.



Pr ¼ RS 1  exp  klp (18)
Therefore, when x is 1 and the downward stress distribution
constant (kd ) is 0, the packing stress to the downward direction is
uniformly distributed and the downward f ðkÞ thickness is almost
same as real thickness and larger than upward f ðkÞ thickness
shown in Fig. 12. And the packing frictional force (Fpack ) only by
gland torque in downward closing process is larger than the fric-
tional force in the upward opening process because the downward
f ðkÞ thickness is larger than the upward f ðkÞ thickness by Eq. (8).
This is the reason that the downward slope, which is the downward
packing frictional force (Fpack ) only by gland torque, is larger than
the upward slope in Fig. 9.
And it is calculated with the upward stress distribution constant
(ku ) as follows.
8Rmo do
ku ¼ ¼ 10:3652mo with kd ¼ 0 (19)
do 2  di 2
do
mi ¼ m ¼ 1:5mo (20)
di o
3.2. Discussion of additional force from abnormal phenomena

4Rð1  xÞmo do
kd ¼ (17)
do 2  di 2
The coefficient of friction and other related values at stroke
distance 0.4 inches are shown in Table 2.
In the extreme case where x , the ratio of the coefficient of
friction in Eq. (17), is close to 1, the downward stress distribution
constant (kd ) converges to 0 and the packing stress represents
In a valve assembly, the force occurs in the packing material for
reasons other than the torque of the gland nut. According to EPRI
10104960 [5], an additional force is generated in the stem due to
abnormal phenomena such as broken stem, excess friction, bent
stem, misaligned stem, and localized stem wear. Also, according to
EPRI 1015396 [6], gland over-torque, stem taper and out-of-
roundness, and thermal gradients leads to change in the frictional
force with causing an additional force on the stem. In such cases,

Table 1
Cases study of friction coefficient [6].

Given value Remarks

di 1.7 in Gland inner diameter

d0 2.5 in Gland outer diameter
mi 0.05 Coefficient of friction between packing and stem
m0 0.05 Coefficient of friction between packing and bonnet
lp 2 in Packing height
R 0.85 Ratio of radial to axial stress
S 3300 psi Packing stress
Calculated value Compared value
ku 0.21/in 0.21/in
kd 0.040/in 0.041/in
ju 3524 lbf 3567 lbf
jd 18504 lbf 18269 lbf
Fu 1220 lbf 1223 lbf
Fd 1439 lbf 1438 lbf

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J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

Fig. 12. Stress distribution function f ðku Þ and ðkd Þ along the stroke distance.

Table 2 3.2.1. Sequence (6)

Calculation of frictional coefficient and other related values at 0.4 inches stroke The packing stress is calculated along the stroke distance to
distance.
quantitatively evaluate abnormal phenomena.
Item Value Remark Upward packing stress (Su ) and downward packing stress (Sd )
ku 0.2932/in Upward stress distribution coefficient are calculated by modifying Eqs. (8)e(10) as follows.
kd 0.0001/in Downward stress distribution coefficient
mi 0.0424 Coefficient of friction between packing and stem
mo 0.0283 Coefficient of friction between packing and bonnet
Fu
Fu (slope) 47.3143 lbf Upward packing frictional force with unit torque Su ¼ ! (21)
Fd (slope) 48.6486 lbf Downward packing frictional force with unit torque pxðdo 2 di 2 Þ l 4Rð1þxÞm d
f ðku Þ 0.9982 in Eq. (16) 4ð1þxÞ 1 exp p 2 2 o o
do di
f ðkd Þ 1.1810 in Eq. (16)
lp 1.1811 in Packing height
x 0.999 x ¼ mi di =mo do

Fd
Sd ¼ ! (22)
the irregular changes in the packing frictional force occurs along pxðdo di Þ
2 2
l 4Rð1xÞm d
4ð1xÞ 1 exp p 2 2 o o
the stroke distance. do di

In no abnormal phenomena, it is possible to assume that the

thrust does not change because the packing frictional force is nearly
constant along the stroke distance. However, it is appropriate to
assume that the thrust varies along the stroke distance, rather than
remaining constant, due to various other causes in the valve as-
sembly process [5,6].
Fig. 13 shows the zooming figure of Fig. 7. As shown in Fig. 13,
there may be cases in which there is an increase according to an
increase in the stroke distance [5]. This phenomenon, in which the
thrust slightly increases, is known to occur when the stem of the
valve body and the stem of the actuator do not match [5]. The
greater the misalignment of the stem axis, the greater the thrust
along the stroke distance. Also, due to this phenomenon, the slope
in Fig. 9 may be increased along the stroke distance.
So far, the qualitative evaluation of these abnormal phenomena
has been conducted in the process of valve diagnosis or qualifica-
tion. However, according to the new ASME QME-1 2007 [4], the
change in the state can be considered and managed experimentally
with this study, making quantitative evaluation.
2519
where mi is the coefficient of friction between packing material and
stem and mo is the coefficient of friction between packing material
and bonnet in Fig. 11 with x ¼ mi di =mo do .
The upward and downward packing stresses, shown in Fig. 14,
are calculated in case of gland torque 2.95 lbf-ft (4 N-m) using Eqs.
(21) and (22). The upward opening packing stress (Su ) is 4000 psi
above 1 inch, and the downward closing packing stress (Sd ) is
shown to be 3500 psi while the gland packing stress (S) by gland
torque 2.95 lbf-ft (4 N-m) is only 1847 psi. From the engineering
point of view in Figs. 14 and 15, and Fig. 16, the change of packing
stress along the stroke distance may be due to abnormal phe-
nomenon [5] and the vertical movement of packing stress( Su or Sd )
in Fig. 14 to the stress in Fig. 16 may be due to live loading of the
cone type spring washer.
Considering that the gland packing stress (S) by gland torque is
only 1847 psi, the large difference of packing stress is shown. This
difference is due to abnormal phenomenon other than gland torque
such as misalignment of the stem axis and vertical movement
caused by any phenomenon.
J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

Fig. 13. Abnormal thrust variation along the stroke distance at gland torque 2.95 lbf-ft (4 N-m).

Fig. 14. Packing stress along the stroke distance.

3.2.2. Sequence (7)
In the equation obtained from the linear regression in Fig. 8 to
calculate the change of frictional force according to gland torque
change, the regression force when the torque is 0 is the additional
force other than gland torque is shown in Fig. 15. This force causes
additional change in the packing stress. The linear regression of
abnormal force along the stroke distance is calculated and
subtracted from Eqs. (21) and (22) and newly calculated the pack-
ing stress as shown in Fig. 16. The upward and downward packing
stresses in Fig. 16 are closely positioned.
Through this process, the packing frictional force and packing
stress caused by abnormal conditions can be calculated along the
stroke distance using the static diagnosis test results.

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J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

Fig. 15. Abnormal force along the stroke distance.

Fig. 16. Packing stress without abnormal force along the stroke distance.

3.3. Discussion of application method of flow pressure to packing



frictional force 1  exp  k lp  a
Fpack ¼ mi SRpdi (23)
k
3.3.1. Sequence (8)
According to EPRI 1015396 [6], the flow pressure changes the where mi is the coefficient of friction between stem and packing
radial contact stress distribution of the packing material and material. S is the packing stress by gland torque and others and
thereby changes the packing frictional force. calculated in the static diagnosis test. R is the ratio of radial to axial
stress in packing material, and it is 0.85 in the case of graphite. di is
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J. Kim, T. Lim and H.-G. Ryu Nuclear Engineering and Technology 53 (2021) 2509e2522

the stem diameter. lp is the thickness of packing material. k is the Operated Valve Assemblies with Safety-Related Functions for Nuclear Power
Plants, Nuclear Power Engineering Committee of the IEEE Power Engineering
stress distribution coefficients and given by Eq. (9) in the upward
Society (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, USA, 1996.
opening process and Eq. (10) in the downward closing process, [2] ASME QME-1a-1998/2002, Qualification of Active Mechanical Equipment Used
which are calculated by Eqs. (9) and (10). in Nuclear Power Plants, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 1998.
And a is the constant related to the packing thickness by fluid [3] ASME OM ISTC-2001, 2002 addenda.
[4] ASME QME-1 2007, Qualification of Active Mechanical Equipment Used in
pressure, shown in Eq. (24). Nuclear Power Plants, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 2007.
  [5] EPRI 10104960, Nuclear Maintenance Applications Center : Turbin Steam Valve
1 Psys Diagnostic Testing, Electric Power Research Institute, Palo Alto, California),
a ¼ lp þ ln (24) 2004.
k SR [6] EPRI 1015396, Nuclear Maintenance Applications Center : Application Guide for
Mortor-Operated Valves in Nuclear Power Plants-Revision 2,, vol. 1, Gate and
where Psys is flow pressure. Globe Valves(Electric Power Research Institute, Palo Alto, California, 2007.
The fluid pressure makes the packing stress distribution change [7] J.H. Kim, W.S. Cho, D.H. Kim, T.H. Lee, K.H. Ryu, Y.-J. Kim, S.H. Lee, A numerical
study on flow and thrust characteristics for A balanced globe valve used in
and reduces the thickness of pressure region in packing material. nuclear power plant, Journal of Computational Fluids Engineering 22 (4) (2017)
81e88.
4. Conclusions [8] J.H. Kim, J.H. Lee, Study on calculation of flow coefficient by CFD for valve in
nuclear power plant, Journal of Computational Fluids Engineering 21 (4) (2016)
54e60.
This study dealt with the technical requirements of ASME OM [9] J.H. Kim, D.H. Kim, S.H. Lee, A numerical study for performance characteristics
ISTC-2001 [3] and ASME QME-1 2007 [4] with respect to the of active components used in nuclear power plants, Journal of Computational
Fluids Engineering 24 (No.1) (2019) 72e78.
packing frictional force in a valve assembly by applying the equa-
tions for the analysis presented in EPRI 1015396 [6]. The methods of
Nomenclature
calculating the coefficient of friction between valve stem and
packing materials, the coefficient of friction between stem and the
di : Gland inner diameter
bonnet, and the packing stress using the analysis solution for the d0 : Gland outer diameter
coefficient of packing friction were presented. mi : Coefficient of friction between packing material and stem
This study has shown that this calculating process can be used to m0 : Coefficient of friction between packing material and bonnet
lp : Packing height
quantitatively analyze abnormal phenomena that have been qual- R: Ratio of radial to axial stress
itatively analyzed. The state change, which is occurring in the S: Packing stress
packing material caused by deterioration in the valve assembly, was Fpack : Packing frictional force
FP : Piston effect force
analyzed as changes in packing stress.
FDP : Differential pressure force
It is also applicable to the process in which the packing frictional FSL : Sealing force
force of the valve assembly is changed by the flow pressure FDF : Frictional force between disc body and cage
generated in a pipe. Thus, it is possible to calculate the packing FR;open : Required force to opening direction
FR;close : Required force to closing direction
frictional force by considering the actual flow pressure using FDP : Force of differential pressure
packing stress and coefficient of friction calculated from a static Adiff : Difference in area between upper and lower parts of the plug
diagnosis test without a flow pressure [5]. DP: Pressure difference between front and rear ends of the valve body
PB : Bonnet pressure
AS : cross-sectional area of the stem
Declaration of competing interest BMS : Average sealing contact diameter
FSL0 : Sealing force per unit length
Psys : Flow pressure
The authors declare the following financial interests/personal ODSEAT : Outer diameter of the disc seat
relationships which may be considered as potential competing L: Stroke distance of the valve
interests: Ds : Stem diameter
Lf : Load factor
This work is supported by Ministry of Trade, Industry and En- kd : Downward stress distribution constant
ergy (MOTIE, Korea) with Energy Research and Development ku : Upward stress distribution constant
Project (Title: Development of In-Situ Testing System & Condition Fu : Upward packing frictional force
Fd : Downward packing frictional force
Assessment Technique for Hydraulic Valves in Nuclear Power
ju : Maximum upward packing frictional force
Plant). And some of the contents of this paper will be used to make jd : Maximum downward packing frictional force
new patent registrations with same authors as papers. ErrFn: Error function
Tg : Applied torque
Dg : Nominal stud diameter
Acknowledgements kg : Nut factor (torque coefficient)
kg : Nut factor (torque coefficient)
This work is supported by Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fg : Gland force
Ag : Gland cross sectional area
Energy(MOTIE, Korea) with (Development of In-Situ Testing System f ðkÞ: Stress distribution function
& Condition Assessment Technique for Hydraulic Valves in Nuclear Pr : Radial stress
Power Plant). Su : Upward packing stress
Sd : Downward packing stress
a: Constant related to packing stress distribution by fluid pressure
References

[1] IEEE Std, 382-1996, IEEE Standard for Qualification of Actuators for Power-

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