Experiments on Interaction Between Current-Induced Vibration and Scour of Submarine Pipelines on Sandy Bottom

In order to understand the dynamic behavior of submarine pipelines exposed to current and the mechanism of the interaction between current-induced vibration and scour of pipelines on a sandy bottom, an experimental investigation is conducted with a small scale model A test model which can be tested in the flume is set up by taking into account the typical working conditions of the pipelines and by applying the similarity theory. The interactions between the shape of the scour hole and the behavior of the pipeline as well as the flow patterns of the current are detailed, and the interaction mechanism outlined. The effect of vibration of the pipeline on the development of dynamic scour at different stages is found out. The proposed experimental method and test results provide an effective means for design of marine pipelines against scouring.

Corrosion-Based Integrity Analysis of Offshore Pipeline for Hydrocarbon Transportation

Conventional pipeline corrosion assessment methods result in failure pressure predictions that are conservative, especially for pipelines that are subjected to internal pressure and axial compressive stress. Alternatively, numerical methods may be used. However, they are computationally expensive. This paper proposes an analytical equation based on finite element analysis (FEA) for failure pressure prediction of a high toughness corroded pipeline with a single corrosion defect subjected to internal pressure and axial compressive stress. The equations were developed based on the weights and biases of an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model trained with failure pressure from finite element analysis (FEA) of a high toughness pipeline for various defect depths, defect lengths, and axial compressive stresses. The proposed model was validated against actual burst test results for high toughness materials and was found to be capable of making accurate predictions with a coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.99. An extensive parametric study using the proposed model was subsequently conducted to determine the effects of defect length, defect depth, and axial compressive stress on the failure pressure of a corroded pipe with a single defect. The application of ANN together with FEA has shown promising results in the development of an empirical solution for the failure pressure prediction of pipes with a single corrosion defect subjected to internal pressure and axial compressive stress.