Characteristics of Vibrational Wave Propagation and Attenuation in Submarine Fluid-Filled Pipelines

As an important part of lifeline engineering in the development and utilization of marine resources, the submarine fluid-filled pipeline is a complex coupling system which is subjected to both internal and external flow fields. By utilizing Kennard＇s shell equations and combining with Helmholtz equations of flow field, the coupling equations of submarine fluid-filled pipeline for n=0 axisymmetrical wave motion are set up. Analytical expressions of wave speed are obtained for both s=1 and s=2 waves, which correspond to a fluid-dominated wave and an axial shell wave, respectively. The numerical results for wave speed and wave attenuation are obtained and discussed subsequently. It shows that the frequency depends on phase velocity, and the attenuation of this mode depends strongly on material parameters of the pipe and the internal and the external fluid fields. The characteristics of PVC pipe are studied for a comparison. The effects of shell thickness/radius ratio and density of the contained fluid on the model are also discussed. The study provides a theoretical basis and helps to accurately predict the situation of submarine pipelines, which also has practical application prospect in the field of pipeline leakage detection.

Nonlinear vibration analysis of pipeline considering the effects of soft nonlinear clamp

Soft nonlinear support is a major engineering project,but there are few relevant studies.In this paper,a dynamic pipeline model with soft nonlinear supports at both ends is established.By considering the influence of the Coriolis force and centrifugal force,the dynamical coupling equation of fluid-structure interaction is derived with extended Hamilton’s principle.Then,the approximate analytical solutions are sought via the harmonic balance method.The amplitude-frequency response curves show that different effects can be determined by approximate analysis.It is demonstrated that the increase in the fluid velocity can increase the amplitude of the pipeline system.The frequency range of unstable response increases when the fluid pressure raises.The combination of the soft nonlinear clamp and the large geometrical deformation of the pipeline affects the nonlinear vibration characteristic of the system,and the external excitation force and damping have significant effects on the stability.

Scour depth beneath a pipeline undergoing forced vibration

This paper studies the coupling effect of the pipeline vibration on the seabed scour. A vertical two- dimensional model is applied to numerically investigate the local scour below a vibrating pipeline with different amplitudes and periods. Using the scour underneath a fixed pipeline as a reference, this paper focuses on the impact of the pipeline vibration on the equilibrium scour depth. Generic relationships are established between the non-dimensional scour depth and the non-dimensional vibrating parameters, i.e., amplitude and frequency. The normalization process takes into account the influences of such parameters as the incoming flow velocity, pipe diameter, and Shields parameter. An empirical formula is proposed to quantify these relationships.

Experimental study on barrel viscous dampers and pipe hoops in pipeline vibration reduction

The centrifugal air compressor outlet pipeline vibration was not decreased after barrel viscous dampers were installed in a petrochemical plant in Tianjin.A pipeline-damper experiment apparatus was built for studying the influence factors of the barrel viscous damper and pipe hoop in pipeline vibration reduction.The performance of the damper under different frequency and amplitude was researched respectively,the results showed that damping effect dependsed mainly on frequency and was not related to amplitude.Damper will fail when its vibration frequency exceeds its limit working frequency which was 40 Hz in test.The mechanical properties and energy dissipation were analyzed by using the Maxwell model,which explains experimental results well.According to damping effect and calculation of stiffness with ANSYS in different hoop width,hoop stiffness should match pipe stiffness and keep uniform along transfer path.Damping effect will get worse when local stiffness is too small or too large.Finally,the outlet pipeline vibration was decreased by 70%after using appropriate pipe hoop width and replacing the original damping liquid.

Experiment and performance analysis of serpentine-shaped cantilever beam for pipeline vibration-based piezoelectric energy harvester prototype development

Pipelines produce vibrations during fluid or gas transportation.These vibrations are less likely to cause structural failure as they exist with a small magnitude and can be harvested into useful energy.This paper presents a study on the piezoelectric energy-harvesting method converting mechanical energy from pipeline vibration into electrical energy.The performance of the serpentine-shaped piezoelectric cantilever beam was observed to check whether the design can produce the highest output voltage within the allowable vibration region of the pipeline from 10 to 300 Hz through finite element analysis using COMSOL Multiphysics software(Supplementary Material).In addition,this study investigates the energy-harvesting potential of the proposed design under real pipeline vibration conditions through a lab vibration test.The harvested energy output is evaluated based on various vibration frequencies and amplitudes,which gives an idea of the device and its performance under different operating conditions.The experiment result shows that the energy harvester produced an open-circuit voltage of 10.28-15.45 V with 1 g of vibration acceleration.The results of this research will contribute to the development of efficient piezoelectric energy harvesters adapted for pipeline environments.

Frequency-domain analysis of fluid-structure interaction in aircraft hydraulic pipeline systems: numerical and experimental studies

The fluid-structure interaction(FSI)in aircraft hydraulic pipeline systems is of great concern because of the damage it causes.To accurately predict the vibration characteristic of long hydraulic pipelines with curved segments,we studied the frequency-domain modeling and solution method for FSI in these pipeline systems.Fourteen partial differential equations(PDEs)are utilized to model the pipeline FSI,considering both frequency-dependent friction and bending-flexibility modification.To address the numerical instability encountered by the traditional transfer matrix method(TMM)in solving relatively complex pipelines,an improved TMM is proposed for solving the PDEs in the frequency domain,based on the matrix-stacking strategy and matrix representation of boundary conditions.The proposed FSI model and improved solution method are validated by numerical cases and experiments.An experimental rig of a practical hydraulic system,consisting of an aircraft engine-driven pump,a Z-shaped aero-hydraulic pipeline,and a throttle valve,was constructed for testing.The magnitude ratio of acceleration to pressure is introduced to evaluate the theoretical and experimental results,which indicate that the proposed model and solution method are effective in practical applications.The methodology presented in this paper can be used as an efficient approach for the vibrational design of aircraft hydraulic pipeline systems.

Flow-pipe-soil coupling mechanisms and predictions for submarine pipeline instability

The stability of a submarine pipeline on the seabed concerns the flow-pipe-soil coupling, with influential factors related to the ocean waves and/or currents, the pipeline and the surrounding soils. A flow-pipe-soil coupling system generally has various instability modes, including the vertical and lateral on-bottom instabilities, the tunnel-erosion of the underlying soil and the subsequent vortex-induced vibrations（VIVs） of free-spanning pipelines. This paper reviews the recent advances of the slip-line field solutions to the bearing capacity, the flow-pipe-soil coupling mechanism and the prediction for the lateral instability, the multi-physical coupling analysis of the tunnel-erosion, and the coupling mechanics between the VIVs and the local scour. It is revealed that the mechanism competition always exists among various instability modes, e.g., the competition between the lateral-instability and the tunnel-erosion. Finally, the prospects and scientific challenges for predicting the instability of a long-distance submarine pipeline are discussed in the context of the deep-water oil and gas exploitations.