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Resistive Pipe LP - Simulate hydraulic pipeline which accounts for friction losses and port elevations

Library

Low-Pressure Blocks

Description

The Resistive Pipe LP block models hydraulic pipelines with circular and noncircular cross sections and accounts for resistive property only. In other words, the block is developed with the basic assumption of the steady state fluid momentum conditions. Neither fluid compressibility nor fluid inertia is considered in the model, meaning that features such as water hammer cannot be investigated. If necessary, you can add fluid compressibility, fluid inertia, and other effects to your model using other blocks, thus producing a more comprehensive model.

The end effects are also not considered, assuming that the flow is fully developed along the entire pipe length. To account for local resistances, such as bends, fittings, inlet and outlet losses, and so on, all the resistances are converted into their equivalent lengths, and then the total length of all the resistances is added to the pipe geometrical length.

Pressure loss due to friction is computed with the Darcy equation, in which losses are proportional to the flow regime-dependable friction factor and the square of the flow rate. The friction factor in turbulent regime is determined with the Haaland approximation (see [1]). The friction factor during transition from laminar to turbulent regimes is determined with the linear interpolation between extreme points of the regimes. As a result of these assumptions, the tube is simulated according to the following equations:

where

p	Pressure loss along the pipe due to friction
q	Flow rate through the pipe
Re	Reynolds number
Re_L	Maximum Reynolds number at laminar flow
Re_T	Minimum Reynolds number at turbulent flow
K_s	Shape factor that characterizes the pipe cross section
f_L	Friction factor at laminar border
f_T	Friction factor at turbulent border
A	Pipe cross-sectional area
D_H	Pipe hydraulic diameter
L	Pipe geometrical length
L_eq	Aggregate equivalent length of local resistances
r	Height of the roughness on the pipe internal surface
ν	Fluid kinematic viscosity
z_A, z_B	Elevations of the pipe port A and port B, respectively
g	Gravity acceleration

The block positive direction is from port A to port B. This means that the flow rate is positive if it flows from A to B, and the pressure loss is determined as .

Basic Assumptions and Limitations

The model is based on the following assumptions:

Flow is assumed to be fully developed along the pipe length.
Fluid inertia, fluid compressibility, and wall compliance are not taken into account.

Dialog Box and Parameters

The block dialog box contains two tabs:

Basic Parameters

Pipe cross section type: The parameter can have one of two values: Circular or Noncircular. For a circular pipe, you need to specify its internal diameter. For a noncircular pipe, you need to specify its hydraulic diameter and pipe cross-sectional area. The default value of the parameter is Circular.
Internal diameter: Pipe internal diameter. The parameter is used if Pipe cross section type is set to Circular. The default value is 0.01 m.
Noncircular pipe cross-sectional area: Pipe cross-sectional area. The parameter is used if Pipe cross section type is set to Noncircular. The default value is 1e-4 m^2.
Noncircular pipe hydraulic diameter: Hydraulic diameter of the pipe cross section. The parameter is used if Pipe cross section type is set to Noncircular. The default value is 0.0112 m.
Geometrical shape factor: The parameter is used for computing friction factor at laminar flow and depends of the shape of the pipe cross section. For a pipe with noncircular cross section, you must set the factor to an appropriate value, for example, 56 for a square, 96 for concentric annulus, 62 for rectangle (2:1), and so on (see [1]). The default value is 64, which corresponds to a pipe with a circular cross section.
Pipe length: Pipe geometrical length. The default value is 5 m.
Aggregate equivalent length of local resistances: This parameter represents total equivalent length of all local resistances associated with the pipe. You can account for the pressure loss caused by local resistances, such as bends, fittings, armature, inlet/outlet losses, and so on, by adding to the pipe geometrical length an aggregate equivalent length of all the local resistances. The default value is 1 m.
Internal surface roughness height: Roughness height on the pipe internal surface. The parameter is typically provided in data sheets or manufacturer's catalogs. The default value is 1.5e-5 m, which corresponds to drawn tubing.
Laminar flow upper margin: Specifies the Reynolds number at which the laminar flow regime is assumed to start converting into turbulent. Mathematically, this is the maximum Reynolds number at fully developed laminar flow. The default value is 2000.
Turbulent flow lower margin: Specifies the Reynolds number at which the turbulent flow regime is assumed to be fully developed. Mathematically, this is the minimum Reynolds number at turbulent flow. The default value is 4000.

Vertical Position

Port A elevation wrt reference plane: The parameter specifies vertical position of the pipe port A with respect to the reference plane. The default value is 0.
Port B elevation wrt reference plane: The parameter specifies vertical position of the pipe port B with respect to the reference plane. The default value is 0.

Restricted Parameters

Global Parameters

Fluid density: The parameter is determined by the type of working fluid selected for the system under design. Use the Hydraulic Fluid block or the Custom Hydraulic Fluid block to specify the fluid properties.
Fluid kinematic viscosity: The parameter is determined by the type of working fluid selected for the system under design. Use the Hydraulic Fluid block or the Custom Hydraulic Fluid block to specify the fluid properties.

Ports

The block has the following ports:

A: Hydraulic conserving port associated with the pipe inlet.
B: Hydraulic conserving port associated with the pipe outlet.

References

[1] White, F.M., Viscous Fluid Flow, McGraw-Hill, 1991