NUMERICALLY INVESTIGATING EROSION AND STRENGTH OF STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS OF GAS PIPELINES
A methodology for numerical simulation of erosion phenomena in the piping system flows in gas mixtures, and solids particles and fluid film on the pipe walls is presented in this paper. Simulation of erosion damage is a hot topic for the oil and gas, nuclear industry, as well as of great scientific interest as complex problems for assessing the strength of pipelines. Solutions are built on the basis STAR-CCM + and Abaqus codes. Use built-in STAR-CCM + physical model Lagrangian particles, liquid films and erosive wear. It is shown the dependence of the rate of erosion damage on the size and concentration of solid particles from the thickness of liquid films in high-risk areas of pipelines - on bends, turns and in places of location of fittings. The results of numerical studies are in good agreement with the position and shape of erosive caverns observed in the operation of real objects.