Rapid Filling Analysis of Pipelines with Undulating Profiles by the Method of Characteristics

Abstract

On the premise of water hammer theory, a numerical model is proposed for simulating the filling process in an initially empty water conveyance pipeline with an undulating profile. Assuming that the pipeline remains full and ignoring air and water interactions in the already filled pipeline, the ongoing filling is simulated using the method of characteristics on an adaptive computational grid. The performance of the model is verified using previously published experimental and rigid column data. The model nicely replicates published experimental data. The model shows that the movement of the filling front into the system can be assumed as a rigid column as long as the flow away from the filling front is undisturbed elsewhere. Furthermore, applying the model to a hypothetical pipe system with an inline-partially open valve shows that the proposed model is robust enough to capture the transient events initiated within the moving column, a vital capability that the existing rigid water column models lack.