Fluid transients in viscoelastic pipes via an internal variable constitutive theory

Abstract

This work presents a fluid transient model capable of handling the viscoelastic behavior of the pipe. A previously developed quasi-2D flow model is employed as a base, and the viscoelastic behavior of the pipe is incorporated by considering constitutive equations formulated in a thermodynamically consistent framework of an internal variable theory. Such an approach straightforwardly provides expressions for computing the rates of energy dissipation in the fluid and pipe accurately and separately. This novel feature discerns the local and overall impacts of the energy dissipation on the pressure oscillations caused by each medium. The governing equations of the model form a hyperbolic system of partial differential equations whose approximated solutions are obtained by the method of characteristics. Taking as reference pressure signals obtained by a classic reservoir-pipe-valve experiment found in the literature, it is shown that the model predictions are fully consistent. A comparison between the pressure responses of viscoelastic and elastic pipes reveals that in addition to delaying the pressure oscillations, the viscoelastic behavior causes a faster attenuation of them. The rates of energy dissipation in the viscoelastic pipe attain significant magnitudes during the first moments of the fluid transient and alters the hydrodynamical behavior of the flow. Such interference is exposed by comparing the responses of the same experimental setup when two different viscoelastic pipe materials are considered. It is also shown that the knowledge of the parcels of energy dissipated in the fluid and pipe individually can improve the comprehension of the phenomenon and be utilized for theoretical and applied research in the field.