A Calculation Model for Leak Detection and Location of Single Pipeline With Two Leaks

Abstract

Pipeline, as one of the transportation modes, is playing an increasingly important role in national economy. But leakages in pipelines may cause severe problems, such as environmental damages and economic loss. Therefore, how to calculate the leak location and leak size has been investigated for last decades. This paper presents a calculation model based on time-domain analysis solution for detecting and locating two leaks in the pipeline. The model is based on a transient event that is generated by fast closure of the valve at the end of a reservoir-pipeline-valve (RPV) system. The presence of leak causes continuous drops in pressure waves and leak information can be revealed by analyzed the leak transient pressure waves. The time of reflection wave represents the leak location and the magnitude of the piezometric head represents the leak size. The governing equations for calculating the leak size are derived as a system of linear equations based on the Method of Characteristics (MOC). The first transient pressure wave was analyzed to obtain the calculation parameters. Then the applicability of this method is verified on simulated pressure data. The results indicate that this model can perfectly solve two leaks problem in a single pipeline.