海底管道整体式止屈器性能研究与穿越压力预测

整体式止屈器可有效抑制海底管道屈曲传播并避免管道的大规模屈曲失效。为探究整体式止屈器的止屈特性,预测其穿越压力,利用ABAQUS软件建立有限元模型,分析了整体式止屈器厚度、长度、径厚比等参数对穿越压力和穿越形式的影响机制,揭示了整体式止屈器的止屈特性。研究结果表明:在平行穿越阶段,增加止屈器厚度、有效长度可明显提升穿越压力;而在垂直穿越阶段,穿越压力增长速率明显放缓。结合有限元模拟结果,拟合得到了整体式止屈器在不同穿越形式下的穿越压力预测公式,其相较于已有经验公式准确性更高,对整体式止屈器的设计和建造具有重要的指导意义。     

整体式止屈器数值模拟方法与优化研究

海底管道是海洋石油主要的运输方式，但海底管道在外部静水压力作用下很可能发生局部屈曲压溃，造成灾难性后果。安装止屈器可有效阻止屈曲传播，保证管道安全，整体式止屈器在实际中应用最为广泛。整体式止屈器存在通过减小止屈器体积以节约成本进行优化的可能性，因此，在保证止屈器止屈效果的前提下，可通过减小止屈器的体积，以达到减轻重量、节约成本、减少安装难度等多种目的。研究过程中使用ABAQUS进行模型的仿真模拟，比较了广义弧长法的优缺点，决定选用更方便的静水流体单元法，计算得到不同止屈器的穿越压力以及相应的体积，对比各止屈器的穿越压力变化和体积变化，实现结构优化的目标。基于以上研究，可以得出减少止屈器体积的结构优化方案具有可行性的结论。     

On elastic-plastic collapse of subsea pipelines under external hydrostatic pressure and denting force

This paper presents analytical and numerical researches on the buckling or collapse of offshore pipelines under external hydrostatic pressure. Firstly the case of homogeneous ring model is investigated followed by a detailed study on corroded rings. The elastic-plastic collapse pressure could be treated as the least root of an elementary function. We prove that collapse pressure is a strictly increasing function of mode number in this paper and present some interesting structures of the roots. Partially corroded ring is parametrized by corrosion depth and angle extent. A comprehensive comparison shows that plasticity should not be neglected when the ring is thick-walled. Moreover, a study on large deflection deformation of 3D cylindrical shells quasi-statically dented under constant external pressure is carried out theoretically and numerically. The buckle propagation pressure is shown to be a meaningful value to normalize external pressure. This paper serves to enhance the understanding of destabilizing effect of external pressure mainly applicable and relevant to subsea offshore industry.     

双拱初始缺陷海底管线水平向整体屈曲数值模拟分析

为了研究具有双拱反对称初始缺陷海底管线的整体屈曲特性,采用模态分析法将最可能出现的缺陷形态引入数值分析模型中。针对管线在高温高压作用下发生整体屈曲的动态变形特征,运用显式动力数值模拟方法研究了管线整体屈曲过程中水平向变形与轴向变形随温度和内压的变化规律,建立了在整体屈曲过程中屈曲管段与滑动管段轴力的变化过程与初始缺陷形态的关系。将数值模拟结果同经典解析解和室内模型实验结果进行对比,验证了本方法的可靠性。工程算例的分析结果表明,管线整体屈曲的发生是一个由低阶向高阶发展的过程,具有双拱缺陷的管线首先发生二阶模态的整体屈曲,而后过渡到四阶模态;管线整体屈曲的变形包括屈曲段的水平向变形和滑动管段的轴向缩进,其中水平变形释放了管壁内的轴力,轴力的释放量随初始缺陷尖锐程度的降低而增大;轴向缩进变形由于受到地基土的摩阻力使滑动管段内的轴力发生累积,轴力的累积量随初始缺陷的尖锐程度的降低而增加。以上研究成果对指导实际工程具有现实意义。     

Global buckling of pipelines in the vertical plane with a soft seabed

Offshore pipelines are usually buried to avoid damage from fishing activities and to provide thermal insulation. Provided that the buried pipelines are sufficiently confined in the lateral direction by the passive resistance of the trench walls, they may be subject to vertical buckling caused by a rise in temperature. Vertical buckling is usually called upheaval buckling because the heated pipeline is assumed to move upwards conventionally. However, the seabed may be very soft, especially where a pockmark or abyssal ooze appears. Consequently, under thermal compressive force, the pipeline may buckle downward and penetrate into the seabed because the downward soil resistance is small. In this study, we extended an analytical solution for vertical pipeline buckling on a rigid seabed to a soft seabed, and the effects of soil resistance on pipeline stability, buckling mode and amplitude are illustrated and analyzed.     

The cross-over mechanisms of integral buckle arrestors for offshore pipelines

Local buckling of submarine pipelines is unavoidable under extreme conditions and it can propagate along the pipeline. Thus, arrestors are installed in a periodic placement along the pipeline to limit the extent of catastrophic collapse between two adjacent arrestors. Generally, the integral buckle arrestors are crossed by two modes: the flattening mode and the flipping mode. This paper focuses on the cross-over mechanisms of arrestors by analyzing results from experiments and numerical simulations. Fifteen groups of full-scale and reduced-scale physical experiments are conducted to investigate the effect of local ovality of the downstream pipes on the arrestor performance. Furthermore, an extensive parametric study of cross-over modes of arrestors is performed by FE models to supplement the experimental results. It is found that the local ovality of the downstream pipes impacts the cross-over modes of integral buckle arrestors, which is more likely to deform by ovalization in the same sense as the local ovality. On the other hand, a new formula involving the major geometric and material characteristics of pipes and arrestors is proposed to estimate the flattening mode and the flipping mode of arrestors when the downstream pipes are intact. And the switch point of the two cross-over modes is 0.265.     

非对称局部壁厚减薄海底管道的屈曲分析

在深海环境中,海底管线不仅承受较高外压,还会因为海水及运输介质的常年侵蚀而形成腐蚀缺陷,而腐蚀缺陷往往会导致管道的外压承载力下降。基于壳体稳定性理论,建立了含有非对称局部壁厚减薄管道在外压作用下的屈曲压力理论公式。公式具有广泛的适用性,当内、外局部壁厚减薄深度相等时,可用于计算含有对称局部壁厚减薄管道屈曲压力,而当内部或外部缺陷深度为零时,便可用于计算只含外部或者内部腐蚀缺陷的管道屈曲压力。通过有限元分析验证了该公式的正确性,结果表明公式可以准确预测不同缺陷位置及尺寸时管道的屈曲压力。详细研究了局部壁厚减薄缺陷位置、长度和深度等参数对屈曲压力的影响。研究表明,局部腐蚀对管道的屈曲压力产生重要影响,尤其当腐蚀角度和深度较大时,在腐蚀形成初期就会造成管道的承载力急剧下降,并且管道的屈曲压力与缺陷的径向位置有关,腐蚀缺陷位于管道外侧时的屈曲压力明显大于其位于管道内侧时的屈曲压力。     

A lateral global buckling failure envelope for a high temperature and high pressure (HT/HP) submarine pipeline

Submarine pipelines are the primary component of an offshore oil transportation system. Under operating conditions, a pipeline is subjected to high temperatures and pressures to improve oil mobility. As a result, additional stress accumulates in pipeline sections, which causes global buckling. For an exposed deep-water pipeline, lateral buckling is the major form of this global buckling. Large lateral displacement causes a very high bending moment which may lead to a local buckling failure in the pipe cross-section. This paper proposes a lateral global buckling failure envelope for deep-water HT/HP pipelines using a numerical simulation analysis. It analyzes the factors influencing the envelope, including the thickness t, diameter D, soil resistance coefficient μ, calculating length L_f, imperfection length L and imperfection amplitude V. Equations to calculate the failure envelope are established to make future post-buckling pipeline failure assessment more convenient. The results show that (1) the limit pressure difference p_max (the failure pressure difference for a post-buckling pipeline when it suffers no difference in temperature) is usually below the burst pressure difference p_b (which is the largest pressure difference a pipeline can bear and is determined from the strength and sectional dimensions of the pipeline) and is approximately 0.62–0.75 times the value of p_b and (2) thickness t has little influence on the normalized envelopes, but affects p_max. The diameter D, soil resistance coefficient μ, and calculating length L_f influence the maximum failure temperature difference T_max (the failure temperature difference for a pipeline suffering no pressure difference). The diameter D also significantly affects the form of the normalized envelope.     

刚性连接双层海底管道高温侧向屈曲分析方法研究

以惠州25-3/1双层海底管道为例,提出高温荷载下刚性连接双层海底管道的侧向屈曲分析方法,并研究该类管道的侧向屈曲特性.将解析分析与有限元技术相结合,在提出刚性连接双层海底管道屈曲分析方法的同时,发展了Hobbs公式的应用范围,使其成为屈曲分析有限元建模指导工具.以分析不稳定平衡问题的改进Riks方法被证明为高温海底管道屈曲分析的有效算法,得到的弧长-载荷比例因子曲线能够充分地描述双层管道的屈曲失稳过程.惠州管道的分析结果表明,刚性连接双层海底管道的整体热稳定性较高,在海床上一般不容易发生侧向屈曲,但热荷载作用下内管的后屈曲将有可能引发较高的应力集中,对此需要充分校核;另外环空间隙的减小有利于提高内管的临界屈曲载荷,从而提升管道的整体性能.     

Effect of geometric and material discontinuities on the reeling of pipelines

The winding and unwinding of a pipeline onto a large diameter reel as practiced in the reeling installation method, induces bending strains of 1–3% followed by straightening, and reverse bending. The operator must ensure that such plastic deformations are sustained free of local buckling or rupture in the line. Such failures are for example precipitated by pipeline discontinuities in wall thickness and yield stress as they act as stress risers, lead to localized deformations severe enough to result in local buckling. The effect of such discontinuities is studied using a large-scale nonlinear finite element model that simulates the reeling/unreeling of a pipeline. Nonlinear kinematic hardening is used to capture the elasto-plastic behavior of the material imposed by the bending/reverse bending history. Discontinuities in wall thickness and yield stress are shown to result in sharp local changes in curvature that extend over 3–4 pipe diameters accompanied by severe local straining and ovalization. The extent of the disturbance is governed by the bending strain imposed by the ratio of pipe to reel diameter. It can be reduced by an increase in the applied tension but at the expense of additional ovalization of the pipeline. It can also be reduced by increasing the pipe wall thickness but with the consequent increase in costs. A parametric study of the effect of such discontinuities demonstrates that for some combinations of process parameters, the disturbance can lead to local buckling either during winding or unwinding. It is concluded that a modeling framework such as the one presented should be used to generate a design protocol for reel-installed pipelines.     

Lateral Global Buckling of Submarine Pipelines Based on the Model of Nonlinear Pipe–Soil Interaction

With the increasing development and utilization of offshore oil and gas resources, global buckling failures of pipelines subjected to high temperature and high pressure are becoming increasingly important. For unburied or semi-buried submarine pipelines, lateral global buckling represents the main form of global buckling. The pipe–soil interaction determines the deformation and stress distribution of buckling pipelines. In this paper, the nonlinear pipe–soil interaction model is introduced into the analysis of pipeline lateral global buckling, a coupling method of PSI elements and the modified RIKS algorithm is proposed to study the lateral global buckling of a pipeline, and the buckling characteristics of submarine pipeline with a single arch symmetric initial imperfection under different pipe–soil interaction models are studied. Research shows that, compared with the ideal elastic–plastic pipe–soil interaction model, when the DNV-RP-F109 model is adopted to simulate the lateral pipe–soil interactions in the lateral global buckling of a pipeline, the buckling amplitude increases, however, the critical buckling force and the initial buckling temperature difference decreases. In the DNV-RP-F109 pipe–soil interaction model, the maximum soil resistance, the residual soil resistance, and the displacement to reach the maximum soil resistance have significant effects on the analysis results of pipeline global buckling.     

海底管线水平向整体屈曲及失效判断方法研究

海底管线是海洋石油的重要输运手段。为满足输送工艺的需要,正常工作条件下管线往往被施加较高的温度和压强,高温高压使管线内产生附加应力,当附加应力大于土体对管线的约束力时,管线就会发生整体屈曲。过度的水平向整体屈曲会导致截面产生较大的弯曲应力和压缩应变,对管线系统的安全运行造成威胁,因此需要对发生水平向整体屈曲后的管线进行验算。采用解析解法、规范法和有限元法对管线的整体屈曲进行分析,提出了应用临界屈曲荷载值域空间和值域下限来判断不同缺陷大小下管线是否发生水平向整体屈曲的方法。结合工程实例,分别采用内力控制标准和位移控制标准对管线水平向整体屈曲后是否失效进行了验算。研究指出,相较于位移标准,内力控制标准更为严格。     

后挖沟深度对深海海底管道屈曲影响数值分析

鉴于海底管道的服役水深越来越深,主要采用犁式挖沟机对预铺设于海床之上的海底管道采取后挖沟的方式将海底管道埋设于海床之下,以保护其免受不必要的损伤。针对后挖沟深度H是海底挖沟机的重要设计参数,也是影响管道悬跨的重要因素的问题,对SMD(UK)犁式挖沟机展开参数优化,确保作业过程中悬跨段管道在外部静水压力作用下,海底管道不会发生屈曲破坏。采用ABAQUS软件,分别建立了作业前和作业中两种工况下的悬跨模型,分析机械手对接触部分管道的损伤,结果显示,作业中的机械手对悬跨管道的损伤更大;同时,建立了作业中不同管径下,后挖沟深度对管道损伤的安全裕量关系曲线。进一步,结合作业中不同挖沟深度下的管跨段屈曲数值模型,对处于外部静水压力作用下的悬跨管的屈曲失效展开分析,结果显示,随着后挖沟深度的加大,不同管径下的悬跨段管道局部出现塑性压溃的临界压力值不断降低;管道外径的增大,降低了同一后挖沟深度下发生屈曲失效的压力值。最后,在后挖沟深度与外部静水压力组成的区域内,建立屈曲失效临界关系曲线,并划分出工作区和压溃区,为深海管道后挖沟埋管的施工提供工程参考。     

海底管线整体屈曲过程中塑性变形研究

海底管线是海洋油气工程中主要的输送手段。在工作状态下,受高温高压的影响,深海管线可能会发生水平向整体屈曲。随海洋油气作业水深的增大,施加于管线的温度和压强也逐渐增加,导致管线产生较大的屈曲位移和截面应力,使得截面产生塑性应变。本文采用数值模拟方法,对海底管线整体屈曲过程中塑性区的分布及其与整体屈曲影响因素的关联性、塑性变形对水平向变形的影响和塑性变形造成的截面椭圆度的变化规律进行分析,研究塑性变形对整体屈曲过程影响的规律。     

Small- and large-scale model tests on the buckling property of slender pile

Slender piles embedded in soft ground or liquefied soil may buckle under vertical load. In this paper, both small- and large-scale model tests are conducted to investigate the buckling mechanisms of a slender pile and the lateral earth pressure acting on the pile. To observe the buckling of a slender pile, the strain-controlled loading method is adopted to apply a vertical load. When the two ends of a slender pile are hinged, the buckling mechanisms of small- and large-scale model tests are same. It should be noted that this applies only to a system with a small ratio of pile bending stiffness to soil bending stiffness. An applied vertical load increases with an increasing pile head settlement until it reaches the critical buckling load. By further increasing the pile head settlement, the measured load approaches the critical buckling load. In the large-scale model test, the measured lateral earth pressure (i.e., active and passive) acting on the slender pile varies linearly with the lateral pile displacement when the measured range is 3–5?m beneath the ground. A critical buckling calculation method has been adopted to compare with the conventional “m” method. The two-sided earth pressure calculation method can achieve more approximate results with the model test.     

不同径厚比的海底管道压溃屈曲研究

为了探索不同径厚比海底管道的压溃屈曲特性,本文分别采用挪威船级社（Det Norske Veritas,DNV）规范、有限元模拟和深海压力舱模型试验,研究不同径厚比海底管道承载外部水压的能力,并就DNV规范压溃屈曲计算公式对不同径厚比管道的适用性进行了讨论,优化了小径厚比海底管道压溃屈曲的设计方法。研究表明：小径厚比管道的压溃屈曲临界压力对管道径厚比的变化更敏感;DNV规范计算小径厚比管道的压溃屈曲临界压力偏小,在进行深海管道的压溃屈曲设计时,建议采用模型试验结合有限元模拟的方法,计算管道实际可提供的压溃屈曲承载力。     

Numerical analysis of cross-section ovalization in the deep-sea pipeline lateral buckling process

Abstract

The deep-water pipeline is the main means of transportation in offshore oil and gas development engineering. The deep-water pipeline may incur lateral global buckling due to the high temperature and pressure that are applied on the pipeline to ensure the contents’ liquidity. With the increasing operating water depth, a higher temperature and pressure are applied to the pipeline, causing large lateral deformation and a large bending moment. Due to the inhomogeneous distribution of the bending moment on the cross-section, different points on the cross-section will deform differently. This kind of deformation causes the cross-section to turn into an oval ring. The cross-section ovalization caused by global buckling was rarely analyzed in former engineering practice since the load is relatively low. With the increase in operation water depth and operation load, the ovality caused by global buckling is noticeable. This article analyzed cross-section ovalization caused by pipeline lateral global buckling with a numerical simulation method. The pipelines with different initial cross-section shapes were simulated, and the influence of several impact factors, including load, pipeline and soil factors on the ovality of the cross-section, were analyzed. The results show that the initial cross-section shape type has little effect on the pipeline ovalization pattern. The initial ovality of the pipeline with an oval ring cross-section shape has little influence on the residual ovality. Among all the factors analyzed in this paper, the pressure difference is the primary factor that should be considered in a pipeline ovalization check.     

Effect of Longitudinal Plastic Bending of Pipeline on Buckle Propagation Pressure

A plastic ring-beam model simulating the longitudinal transition zone of submarine pipelines in the buckle propagation is presented. The nonlinear relationships between the buckle propagation pressure and the length of the transition zone and the position parameter of the longitudinal plastic hinge are derived using the energy principle. The related values are obtained by means of solving a set of nonlinear equations. The model conforms better to reality than the ring models for considering the effect of the longitudinal plastic bending of the transition zone. The computations for some stainless steel and aluminium tubes with different geometrical parameters are performed. The results obtained agree better with the experimental results than existing theoretical predictions.     

Failure Pressure Analysis of Corroded Moderate-to-High Strength Pipelines

Based on the elastic-plastic, large-deformation finite element method, burst capacity of steel pipeline with longitudinal corrosion defect subjected to internal pressure is studied. The appropriate stress-based criterion is used to predict the failure pressure of finite element model of corroded pipeline under internal pressure. By considering the pipe steel grades and geometries of corrosion defects, a series of finite element analyses is conducted. The effects of corrosion depth, length and width on burst capacity are also discussed. A specific failure pressure solution for the assessment of corrosion defects in moderate-to-high strength pipeline is proposed on the base of numerical results. The failure pressures predicted by the proposed method are in better agreement with the experimental results than the results by the other methods.     

管道热屈曲动力过程数值模拟

运输高温高压油气的海底管道会发生整体热屈曲现象。管道热屈曲过程中可能会产生平衡状态的跃迁(snapthrough),且这样的跃迁过程必然会伴随着动力响应。管道热屈曲动力过程中侧向弹出的速度以及轴向缩进的速度对管土相互作用参数的取值有很大影响,然而关于管道热屈曲动力过程的研究却很少。本文给出了数值模拟过程中管道系统阻尼值和升温速率的确定方法,研究了管道初始几何缺陷以及海床参数对管道热屈曲动力过程的影响。