Simulating: Compressible Compliant and Elastic Gas Pipes Page 1 of 6

Compressible Compliant and Elastic Gas Pipes

Simulation Description

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l Cylindrical Compliant Pipe Gas Model

l Cylindrical Elastic Pipe Gas Model

Cylindrical Compliant Pipe Gas Model

The Governing Equations

Assuming that the pipe cross sectional area is constant, then the governing equations for mass,
momentum and energy in their conservative form can be defined as follows:

Mass

Equation 1

Where:

= Fluid density
u = Velocity of the fluid in the pipe
x = Distance along the pipe

Momentum

This is defined as follows:

Equation 2

Energy

This is defined as follows:

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Equation 3

Where:

p = Static pressure
g = Acceleration due to gravity
A = Pipe cross-sectional area
h0 = Stagnation specific enthalpy

= Heat flow into the pipe, per unit length and unit time
= Angle of the pipe to the horizontal (radians positive, if the pipe elevation increases along
x)
W = Frictional force per unit length of the pipe, which is defined as follows:

Equation 4

Where:

D = Internal diameter of the pipe

f = Darcy friction factor

Equations 1 - 3, have four unknowns; namely: the fluid density, velocity, pressure and
enthalpy. To close the mathematical problem, the fluid density variation with pressure and
enthalpy is introduced as follows:

Equation 5

Where:

T = Temperature of the fluid

Cylindrical Elastic Pipe Gas Model

The Governing Equations

Assuming that the pipe cross sectional area is constant, then the governing equations for mass,
momentum and energy in their conservative form can be defined as follows:

Mass

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Equation 6

Where:

= Fluid density
u = Velocity of the fluid in the pipe
x = Distance along the pipe

Momentum

This is defined as follows:

Equation 7

Energy

This is defined as follows:

Equation 8

Where:

p = Static pressure
g = Acceleration due to gravity
h = Static specific enthalpy
Angle of the pipe to the horizontal (radians positive, if the pipe elevation increases along
=
x)
A = Pipe cross-sectional area
= Heat flow into the pipe, per unit length and unit time
W = Frictional force per unit length of the pipe, which is defined as follows:

Equation 9

Where:

D = Internal diameter of the pipe

f = Darcy friction factor

Equations 6 - 8, have four unknowns; namely: the fluid density, velocity, pressure and
enthalpy. To close the mathematical problem, the fluid density variation with pressure and
enthalpy is introduced as follows:

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Equation 10

From Equation 10, we get:

Equation 11

Where:

a = The sonic speed, which is defined as:

2 = The rate of enthalpy variation with density at a constant pressure, which is defined as:

The Transient Solution

Mathematically, it is possible to manipulate the governing equations and rearrange them into a
form, that can be solved by using the Method of Characteristics. The equations are given as
follows:

Equation 12

Equation 13

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Equation 14

As shown in Figure 1 below, the characteristic equations can be integrated along their
corresponding characteristic lines, and the fluid velocity, pressure and enthalpy can then be
solved. The solution process is repeated for each internal node.

Figure 1

The Steady State Solution

After dropping off the 'time dependent' terms from the governing equations, and manipulations,
a set of differential equations are left:

Equation 15

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Equation 16

Equation 17

Equations 15 - 17 are solved for velocity, pressure and enthalpy in steady state flow, using the
fourth order Runge-Kutta scheme.

Buried Pipes

For details on the equations that describe the heat flow terms for buried pipes, click-on the
following link:

Heat Flow Terms for Buried Pipes

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