The study of the dynamic response of the natural gas pipeline aerial crossing during pigging process: A Review

Natural gas pipeline aerial crossing (NGPAC), also called natural gas pipeline bridge, is an important structure for gas transmission pipelines crossing special areas that are not suitable for trenchless technologies. The typical types of large-scale NGPACs are suspension and cable-stayed pipeline bridges. During the pigging process, suspension and cable-stayed NGPACs prong to strong vibration and large displacement due to the dynamic loads generated by the moving pig and the liquid column running in front of the pig. This paper provides a review of the most relevant research progress related to the study of the dynamic response of NGPACs during the pigging process. The application history of the suspension and cable-stayed NGPACs is introduced. Also, the research progress regarding the experimental studies, pigging load simulation, and the dynamic response of the NGPAC during the pigging process are comprehensively reviewed. Besides, the research challenges of every research aspect are also discussed according to the review results. The overall research status is that there have been simulation findings of the dynamic response of NGPACs during the pigging process. But the two-phase flow-induced fluid-structure coupling vibration of a complex structure which is the core issue of the problem has not been well solved by both the theoretical and the numerical simulation research. This is jointly caused by the lack of experimental research, lack of simulation studies of the pigging load applicable to vibrated pipelines, and insufficient research of the two-phase flow fluid-structure interaction process. The systematical and joint research should be carried out based on the above three aspects to comprehensively simulate the fluid-structure interaction response and possible res-onance of NGPACs during the pigging process. The findings are of great significance for reviewing the existing research findings, future research challenges and to improve the safety management of NGPACs. (C) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This paper reviews the research progress on the dynamic response of natural gas pipeline aerial crossings during pigging processes, and discusses the challenges faced by the research. The findings suggest that the core issue of two-phase flow-induced fluid-structure coupling vibration has not been well solved, highlighting the need for more experimental research and numerical simulations to further explore the topic.