Effect of Frequency Content of Earthquake on the Seismic Response of Interconnected Electrical Equipment

To ensure the stable operation of safety-related nuclear power plant (NPP) equipment, they are tested by following the seismic qualification procedures. The in-cabinet response spectrum (ICRS) is used to test the mounted components. However, the ICRS varies significantly with the number of uncertainties that include (1) loaded and unloaded condition of the cabinets, (2) the number of connected cabinets (grouping effects), and (3) higher frequency contents in the seismic inputs. This study focuses on the ICRS generation and alteration induced due to the listed uncertainties. A prototype of an electrical cabinet was experimentally examined. Followed by the numerical modeling of the cabinet, the seismic analysis for the group of cabinets was performed using artificial ground motion compatible with the standard design spectrum and the real accelerograms of high and low frequency contents. The seismic response using finite element (FE) analysis manifests (1) natural frequency of loaded cabinets reduced due to the in-cabinet components while for the unloaded cabinets it increased significantly, (2) a consistent reduction in ICRS due to the grouping effect was recorded when excited by the lower-frequency motion, while it was amplified dramatically due to high-frequency pulses. Interconnected cabinets under the low-frequency input motions have a significant reduction of 50% in the ICRS that corresponds to the higher stiffness of the cabinets, while a 100% increase under the high frequency of ground motion was obtained. High frequency of ground motion, usually above 10 Hz, can cause the interconnected cabinets to resonate as the natural frequency of these equipment lies in this range.