Pigging dynamics in two-phase flow pipelines: Experiment and modeling

Journal Article · Wed Nov 01 04:00:00 EST 1995 · SPE Production and Facilities

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2118/26568-PA· OSTI ID:136660

Minami, K ^[1]; Shoham, O ^[2]

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1. Petrobras, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
2. Univ. of Tulsa, OK (United States)

Standard design procedures for two-phase pipelines subject to pigging operation still rely on steady-state methods. Because the flow behavior under a pigging operation is transient, more rigorous methods must be developed for a proper design of such operations. This paper presents an experimental and theoretical study on transient pigging operation. An extensive experimental program was carried out to acquires two-phase transient flow and pigging data on a 420-m-[1,378-ft-]long, 77.9-mm-[3.068-in.-]diameter horizontal pipeline. A computer-based data-acquisition system was used to obtain detailed information of the flow behavior during the experimental runs. The data include measurements of the time variation of the liquid slug size ahead of the pig, flow rates during the slug delivery, pig velocity, and pressure and liquid holdup distributions. The data were acquired at four measurement stations installed along the pipeline. A pigging model was developed for predicting the dynamics of a pigging operation. The model incorporates an improved simplified transient model that has been validated with the experimental data. A mixed Eulerean-Lagrangean approach was used to couple the transient model and the pigging model. The resulting computer simulator can predict the transient two-phase flow in a pipeline with or without pigging.

• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• OSTI ID: 136660
• Journal Information: SPE Production and Facilities, Journal Name: SPE Production and Facilities Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 10; ISSN 1064-668X; ISSN SPRFEZ
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
03 NATURAL GAS
CALCULATION METHODS
MAINTENANCE
OPERATION
PETROLEUM
PIPELINES
REMOTE HANDLING EQUIPMENT
TRANSPORT
TWO-PHASE FLOW