Study of Pipeline Transportation of Dense Fly Ash-Water Slurry

Abstract

This paper proposes a long distance pipeline transportation system with an additive feeding system suitable for restarting after more than a 24-hour shut down. The aim of the investigation is to find suitable stabilizing additives for fly ash-water slurry to prevent sedimentation during an interrupted period of pipelining. Rheological characteristics and sedimentation stability of the slurry with the addition of four kinds of stabilizing additives were measured. Additives used in this study were rhamsan gums, carboxymethyl cellulose, and xanthan gum. The stable slurry was fed in the pipeline, instead of the normal slurry, before the pipeline was shut down. From the predicted viscosity, using Usui's thixotropy model, the relationship between flow rate and pressure drop has been estimated for the transportation of the slurry. A feasibility study for the new transport system was also performed.