Session: FSI-01-02 Thermal Hydraulic Phenomena with Vessels, Piping and Components-2

Paper Number: 121367

121367 - Computational Fluid Dynamics Model of Gravity-Induced Slurry Flow 

Process piping at a new petrochemical facility was discovered to have been infiltrated by sand during extended on-site storage.  The required post-hydrotest flushing operation failed to clear the sand, and this was ultimately implicated in damage to the pipe prior its being placed in service.  To analyze the efficacy of the flushing procedure, which relied solely on gravity-induced flow, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed for a water-sand slurry.  The model treated this multiphase flow utilizing a transient, three-dimensional Eulerian approach, including a granular submodel to simulate movement of the sand.  The CFD model was validated against a previous study that considered a similar flow problem, achieving good agreement with experimental data.  Analysis of the sand-infiltration incident then followed, with parameters such as water flow velocity, initial sand volume fraction, pipe length, and duration of flushing varied to determine their effects on the flushing process.  The CFD model revealed that, even for a pipe length about half that for a typical hydrostatic test segment, residual sand was likely to remain in the pipe at the conclusion of the flushing procedure.  In contrast, a higher-velocity (2 m/s) remedial flush performed after the initial flush successfully removed the residual sand.

Presenting Author: William Broz ESI (Engineering Systems Inc.)

Presenting Author Biography: Mr. Broz is a Principal in ESi’s Mechanics Practice. He has over 45 years of strong, diverse engineering and business experience including mechanical building system and industrial facility design, mechanical system failure analysis, construction claims, patent litigation, and economic analysis. A seasoned expert witness, Mr. Broz has given oral evidence on more than 40 occasions, in forums including U.S. state and federal court, U.S. domestic arbitration, and international arbitration. Matters have encompassed a broad spectrum of case types including design standard-of-care, construction defect, class action tort litigation, patent disputes, and property/casualty matters.

Mr. Broz has particular expertise in power and process piping design, and served for more than 10 years on the Design Task Group of the ASME Power Piping Committee (B31.1). He has designed high-temperature and -pressure piping systems for power plants and process facilities, and is highly experienced in pipe stress analysis.

Authors:

William R. Broz ESI (Engineering Systems Inc.)
Sebastian Chialvo ESi (Engineering Systems, Inc)
Sandipan K. Das Indian Institute of Technology (ISM)
Amy Gray ESi (Engineering Systems, Inc.)