Development of an Experiment Setup of Air and Solid Blockage inside Pipeline
Publication: Journal of Pipeline Systems Engineering and Practice
Volume 12, Issue 3
Abstract
This study investigates the developments of a new experimental setup for the detection of air and solid blockage inside pipes. Earlier research utilized a hollow capillary composed of thin plastic material to detect the existence of air inside the pipeline. The experimental setup is even easier for detecting solids. Prior to the experiment, a simulation using the finite element method (FEM) was conducted to investigate the behavior of acoustic pressure in two phases, namely, liquid solid and liquid gas. An ultrasonic sensor circuit consisting of a transmitter, a receiver, and signal conditioning circuits was constructed. For this experiment, an acrylic pipe with a diameter of 110 mm and a thickness of 5 mm was used, while polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes were used as the blockage subject. Two scenarios were considered, which are: a PVC with water inside, and a PVC with air inside. Based on the experimental results, the acoustic wave energy was more attenuate as the size of the blockage inside the pipeline increased, and air is a great discontinuity to ultrasonic transmission.
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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.
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) through Fundamental Research Grant Scheme Vot No. K074. The authors would also like to thank the University Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia for its support.
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© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 13, 2020
Accepted: Feb 19, 2021
Published online: Jun 10, 2021
Published in print: Aug 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Nov 10, 2021
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