Experimental study on uplift mechanism of pipeline buried in sand using high-resolution fiber optic strain sensing nerves

Reliable assessment of uplift capacity of buried pipelines against upheaval buckling requires a valid failure mechanism and a reliable real-time monitoring technique.This paper presents a sensing solution for evaluating uplift capacity of pipelines buried in sand using fiber optic strain sensing(FOSS)nerves.Upward pipe-soil interaction(PSI)was investigated through a series of scaled tests,in which the FOSS and image analysis techniques were used to capture the failure patterns.The published prediction models were evaluated and modified according to observations in the present study as well as a database of 41 pipe loading tests assembled from the literature.Axial strain measurements of FOSS nerves horizontally installed above the pipeline were correlated with the failure behavior of the overlying soil.The test results indicate that the previous analytical models could be further improved regarding their estimations in the failure geometry and mobilization distance at the peak uplift resistance.For typical slip plane failure forms,inclined shear bands star from the pipe shoulder,instead of the springline,and have not yet reached the ground surface at the peak resistance.The vertical inclination of curved shear bands decreases with increasing uplift displacements at the post-peak periods.At large displacements,the upward movement is confined to the deeper ground,and the slip plane failure progressively changes to the flow-around.The feasibility of FOSS in pipe uplift resistance prediction was validated through the comparison with image analyses.In addition,the shear band locations can be identified using fiber optic strain measurements.Finally,the advantages and limits of the FOSS system are discussed in terms of different levels in upward PSI assessment,including failure identification,location,and quantification.

Modeling pipe-soil interaction under vertical downward relative offset using B-spline material point method

To analyze the pipeline response under permanent ground deformation,the evolution of resistance acting on the pipe during the vertical downward offset is an essential ingredient.However,the efficient simulation of pipe penetration into soil is challenging for the conventional finite element(FE)method due to the large deformation of the surrounding soils.In this study,the B-spline material point method(MPM)is employed to investigate the pipe-soil interaction during the downward movement of rigid pipes buried in medium and dense sand.To describe the density-and stress-dependent behaviors of sand,the J2-deformation type model with state-dependent dilatancy is adopted.The effectiveness of the model is demonstrated by element tests and biaxial compression tests.Afterwards,the pipe penetration process is simulated,and the numerical outcomes are compared with the physical model tests.The effects of pipe size and burial depth are investigated with an emphasis on the mobilization of the soil resistance and the failure mechanisms.The simulation results indicate that the bearing capacity formulas given in the guidelines can provide essentially reasonable estimates for the ultimate force acting on buried pipes,and the recommended value of yield displacement may be underestimated to a certain extent.