Experimental study and simulation principles of an oil-gas multiphase transportation system

Presented is an experimental study on the performance of an oil-gas multiphase transportation system, especially on the multiphase flow patterns, multiphase pumping and multiphase metering of the system. A dynamic simulation analysis is conducted to deduce simulation parameters of the system and similarity criteria under simplified conditions are obtained. The reliability and feasibility of two-phase flow experiment with oil and natural gas simulated by water and air are discussed by using the similarity criteria.

Saltation in wind blown sand

The Boltzmann equation of the sand particle velocity distribution function in wind-blown sand two-phase flow is established based on the motion equation of single particle in air. And then, the generalized balance law of particle property in single phase granular flow is extended to gas-particle two-phase flow. The velocity distribution function of particle phase is expanded into an infinite series by means of Grad's method and the Gauss distribution is used to replace Maxwell distribution. In the case of truncation at the third-order terms, a closed third-order moment dynamical equation system is constructed. The theory is further simplified according to the measurement results obtained by stroboscopic photography in wind tunnel tests.

Simulations of oil spread on a water surface

Numerical simulation of an oil slick spreading on still and wavy surfaces is described in this paper. The so-called sigma transformation is used to transform the time-varying physical domain into a fixed calculation domain for the water wave motions and, at the same time, the continuity equation is changed into an advection equation of wave elevation. This evolution equation is discretized by the forward time and central space scheme, and the momentum equations by the projection method. A damping zone is set up in front of the outlet boundary coupled with a Sommerfeld-Orlanski condition at that boundary to minimize the wave reflection. The equations for the oil slick are depth-averaged and coupled with the water motions when solving numerically. As examples, sinusoidal and solitary water waves, the oil spread on a smooth plane and on still and wavy water surfaces are calculated to examine the accuracy of simulating water waves by Navier-Stokes equations, the effect of damping zone on wave reflection and the precise structures of oil spread on waves.

Liquefaction and Displacement of Saturated Sand Under Vertical Vibration Loading

In order to investigate the influence of the vertical vibration loading on the liquefaction of saturated sand, one dimensional model for the saturated sand with a vertical vibration is presented based on the two phase continuous media theory. The development of the liquefaction and the liquefaction region are analyzed. It is shown that the vertical vibration loading could induce liquefaction. The rate of the liquefaction increases with the increase of the initial limit strain or initial porosity or amplitude and frequency of loading, and increases with the decrease of the permeability or initial modulus. It is shown also that there is a phase lag in the sand column. When the sand permeability distribution is non-uniform, the pore pressure and the strain will rise sharply where the permeability is the smallest, and fracture might be induced. With the development of liquefaction, the strength of the soil foundation becomes smaller and smaller. In the limiting case, landslides or debris flows could occur.

Formation Mechanism of Cracks in Saturated Sand

The formation mechanism of “water film” (or crack) in saturated sand is analyzed theoretically and numerically. The theoretical analysis shows that there will be no stable “water film” in the saturated sand if the strength of the skeleton is zero and no positions are choked. It is shown by numerical simulation that stable water films initiate and grow if the choking state keeps unchanged once the fluid velocities decrease to zero in the liquefied sand column. The developments of “water film” based on the model presented in this paper are compared with experimental results.

Sedimentation Process of Saturated Sand under Impact Loading

The initial small inhomogeneity of saturated sand could be amplified during the sedimentation process after liquefaction, and cracks could be observed in the sand column. Layers of fine sand could also be found at the exact place where cracks developed and disappeared. The phenomena and the whole process were experimentally shown by X-rays images. To account for the phenomena, a linearized stability analysis of the sedimentation of saturated sand was conducted; however, it did not produce a satisfactory result. A three-phase flow model describing the transportation of fine sand is presented in this paper. It is shown that such a kind of erosion/deposition model was qualitatively in good agreement with the experimental observation.

Mechanics of a grip system of three-key-board hydraulic tongs developed for offshore oil pipe lines

This paper carries out the analysis of mechanics of a grip system of three-key-board hydraulic tongs developed for offshore oil pipe lines which has been successfully used in oil fields in China. The main improvement of this system is that a lever frame structure is used in the structural design, which reduces greatly the stresses of the major components of the oil pipe tongs. Theoretical analysis and numerical calculation based on thirteen basic equations developed Show that the teeth board of the tongs is not easy to slip as frequently happens to other systems and is of higher reliability.

On the mechanism of the formation of horizontal cracks in a vertical column of saturated sand

Extended horizontal cracks have! been observed experimentally in a vertical column of saturated sand when a flow of water is forced to percolate upward through it. This paper provides a theory for this phenomenon. It will be shown that the presence of inhomogeneity in permeability along the length of the column is essential for such cracks to develop. It will also be shown that small initial inhomogeneity may be magnified through the transport of the finer component of the sand by percolation. Under certain conditions liquefaction takes place at a section of the sand column causing a crack to initiate and grow there. This theory is found to be in good qualitative agreement with the experimental findings.

Sand-Dust Storm and Two-Phase Flows

从稀相气固两相流理论出发,针对沙尘暴问题的特点,给出描述固相拟流体本构关系和气固相间相互作用的方法,探讨确定沙尘悬浮临界判据的途径,导出多场耦合下含尘大气运动的基本方程,从而可为定量预报沙尘暴系统结构特征和长距离输送传播提供理论基础。

Oil-Water Two-Phase Flow Inside T-Junction

The oil/water two-phase flow inside T-junctions was numerically simulated with a 3-D two-fluid model, and the turbulence was described using the mixture k - epsilon model. Some experiments of oil/water flow inside a single T-junction were conducted in the laboratory. The results show that the separating performance of T-junction largely depends oil the inlet volumetric fraction and flow patterns. A reasonable agreement is reached between the numerical simulation and the experiments for both the oil fraction distribution and the separation efficiency.

Experimental Investigation On The Slip Between Oil And Water In Horizontal Pipes

This work is devoted to study of the slip phenomenon between phases in water-oil two-phase flow in horizontal pipes. The emphasis is placed on the effects of input fluids flow rates, pipe diameter and viscosities of oil phase on the slip. Experiments were conducted to measure the holdup in two horizontal pipes with 0.05 m diameter and 0.025 m diameter, respectively, using two different viscosities of white oil and tap water as liquid phases. Results showed that the ratios of in situ oil to water velocity at the pipe of small diameter are higher than those at the pipe of big diameter when having same input flow rates. At low input water flow rate, there is a large deviation on the holdup between two flow systems with different oil viscosities and the deviation becomes gradually smaller with further increased input water flow rate. (C) 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Experimental Investigation On The Holdup Distribution Of Oil-Water Two-Phase Flow In Horizontal Parallel Tubes

An experimental investigation was conducted to study the holdup distribution of oil and water two-phase flow in two parallel tubes with unequal tube diameter. Tests were performed using white oil (of viscosity 52 mPa s and density 860 kg/m(3)) and tap water as liquid phases at room temperature and atmospheric outlet pressure. Measurements were taken of water flow rates from 0.5 to 12.5 m(3)/h and input oil volume fractions from 3 to 94 %. Results showed that there were different flow pattern maps between the run and bypass tubes when oil-water two-phase flow is found in the parallel tubes. At low input fluid flow rates, a large deviation could be found on the average oil holdup between the bypass and the run tubes. However, with increased input oil fraction at constant water flow rate, the holdup at the bypass tube became close to that at the run tube. Furthermore, experimental data showed that there was no significant variation in flow pattern and holdup between the run and main tubes. In order to calculate the holdup in the form of segregated flow, the drift flux model has been used here.

Experimental Investigation Of Particle Velocity Distributions In Windblown Sand Movement

With the PDPA (Phase Doppler Particle Analyzer) measurement technology, the probability distributions of particle impact and lift-off velocities on bed surface and the particle velocity distributions at different heights are detected in a wind tunnel. The results show that the probability distribution of impact and lift-off velocities of sand grains can be expressed by a log-normal function, and that of impact and lift-off angles complies with an exponential function. The mean impact angle is between 28 degrees and 39 degrees, and the mean lift-off angle ranges from 30 degrees to 44 degrees. The mean lift-off velocity is 0.81-0.9 times the mean impact velocity. The proportion of backward-impacting particles is 0.05-0.11, and that of backward-entrained particles ranges from 0.04 to 0.13. The probability distribution of particle horizontal velocity at 4 mm height is positive skew, the horizontal velocity of particles at 20 mm height varies widely, and the variation of the particle horizontal velocity at 80 mm height is less than that at 20 mm height. The probability distribution of particle vertical velocity at different heights can be described as a normal function.