Prediction of the Driving Force for the Bidirectional Pig Based on the Cantilever-Kelvin Combination Model
Publication: Journal of Pipeline Systems Engineering and Practice
Volume 12, Issue 2
Abstract
The precise prediction of the driving force has significant meaning in preventing blockage accidents in oil and gas pipeline pigging engineering. In this paper, a novel prediction model is established for the typical bidirectional pig with the method of combing a theoretical model and finite-element (FE) simulations. The three-dimensional (3D) FE model of the pigging operation is established first, which is verified with a custom-built experiment from the literature. Then, friction characteristics such as deformation and contact area are analyzed based on the established model. The flexural-cantilever model and creep-Kelvin model are used to describe the bending and compression deformation, respectively, and a mechanical model, named the cantilever-Kelvin combination model, for presenting the stress state of the sealing disk, is built according to the simulation results. Finally, a prediction model of the driving force is established based on the cantilever-Kelvin combination model. The research results indicate that the bending deformation and contact area have a similar variation trend as the interference under different friction coefficients. A series of case analyses are conducted to verify the accuracy of the established prediction model, which is proven to satisfy the arbitrary interference and friction coefficient conditions.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code generated or used during the study are proprietary or confidential in nature and may only be provided with restrictions (computational models and code).
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the National R&D Program of China (Nos. 2016YFC0802105 and 2016YFC0802306) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 11472309).
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Published In
Journal of Pipeline Systems Engineering and Practice
Volume 12 • Issue 2 • May 2021
Copyright
© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jan 19, 2020
Accepted: Nov 6, 2020
Published online: Feb 17, 2021
Published in print: May 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Jul 17, 2021
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