Study of Scour around Submarine Pipeline with a Rubber Plate or Rigid Spoiler in Wave Conditions
Publication: Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal, and Ocean Engineering
Volume 138, Issue 6
Abstract
This paper presents results from laboratory experimental model studies investigating scour by waves around a pipeline attached to a flexible rubber plate or rigid spoiler. The rubber plate was placed between the submarine pipeline and bed, while the rigid spoiler is attached to the top of the pipe. The scour around pipelines with and without a rubber plate or a rigid spoiler under regular and irregular waves was observed and measured for a range of pipe sizes, wave amplitudes and frequencies, and the length of the plate/height of the spoiler. The experiments reveal that although the rigid spoilers can enhance the scour depth and extent (thus accelerating the self-burial of the pipe), they also have significant influence on both the upstream and downstream bed topography as sand ripples and dunes are formed. On the other hand, the rubber plates cannot only significantly increase the scour depth but also have little effect on the upstream and downstream bed. The experiments show that when the length of the plate is about 1.5 times the pipe size, it provides the optimum performance in terms of the largest scour depth while restricting the impact on nearby beds for the parameters investigated in this study.
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Acknowledgments
This study was financially supported by the National High-Tech Research and Development program of China (863 Program, Grant No. 2008AA09Z309), National Nature Science Fund of China (Grant No. 50879084), China Scholarship Council, University of Aberdeen, Guanghua Fund for College of Civil Engineering, Tongji University, and Open Funding from the State Key Laboratory of Hydraulics and Mountain River Engineering, Sichuan University (SKLH-OF-1105). The constructive comments and suggestions made by the two reviewers and associate editor have significantly improved the quality of the paper.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal, and Ocean Engineering
Volume 138 • Issue 6 • November 2012
Pages: 484 - 490
Copyright
© 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 28, 2011
Accepted: Mar 2, 2012
Published online: Mar 6, 2012
Published in print: Nov 1, 2012
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