PRESSURE DROP IN GAS PIPELINES

Jón Steinar Guðmundsson

TPG4140 Natural Gas
November 10, 2011

– Importance of pressure drop and different pipes

– Pressure drop in pipelines (depends on d5)
– Equations for liquid and gas flow
– North Sea gas pipelines
– Friction factor and roughness
– R&D on friction (roughness) and pressure drop
– Summary
A: Wells, B: Flowlines, C: Risers, D: Process pipes, E: Off-Loading, F: Pipelines
 Importance of pressure drop
• Transport capacity, we want to be able to push as much gas as
possible through existing pipelines to customers. Norwegian export
pipelines >100 BCM annually.
• Expensive gas compression (power and emissions) needed to give
sufficient inlet pressure to overcome pressure drop. Gas turbines
drive large centrifugal compressors offshore. Largest consumption
of power offshore. Gas turbines and electrical motors on land.
• Export pipelines have epoxy coating to make wall smoother to
reduce wall friction and hence greater flow capacity.
• Production capacity (subsea-to-beach), we want to maintain
wellhead pressure as low as possible to sustain large production
rate from gas fields with time. Eventually we need subsea
compression.
• Large diameter pipelines used to avoid compression platforms along
export gas pipelines. On land, compressor stations along pipeline.
Natural Gas Pipeline
Temperature in Pipelines
 Temperature in Pipelines
T1  T2
TLMTD 
q  UATLMTD T1  T
ln
T2  T
q  m C p (T1  T2 ) (T1  T2 )
m C p (T1  T2 )  Ud ( L)
T T
(T1  T )  (T2  T ) ln 1
T2  T
TLMTD 
T1  T
ln
T2  T
  Ud 
T = Constant = Sea Temperature T2  T  (T1  T ) exp  L
 mC p 
A  d (L)
Temperature and Distance
 Temperature in Pipelines

 Ud 
T2  T  (T1 T ) exp L
 mCp 

Insulated pipeline on seafloor: 1 < U (W/m2.K) < 2

Non-insulated pipeline on seafloor: 15 < U (W/m2.K) < 25
Pressure and Temperature With Distance
Åsgard Transport (69.4 vs. 76.9 MSm³/d)

Pressure Booster_press Temperature Booster_temp

210 50
200 45
190 40

Temperature (°C)
Pressure (barg)

180 35
170 30
160 25
150 20
140 15
130 10
120 5
110 0
0 200 400 600 800
Distance KP (km)

Booster compressor duty: 15.5 MW (most likely roughness)

Aamodt (2006)
Effect of Roughness on Hydraulic Capacity and
Outlet Pressure and Temperature

Aamodt (2006)
 Pressure Drop in Pipelines
The total pressure drop in pipelines and wells consists of three terms

p  p g   p a  p f
where g (gravitation), a and f stand for hydrostatic, acceleration and
friction, respectively. The three terms can be expressed as

p g  g sin L
pa  uu
f 1 2
p f  u L
2d
The angel α is measured from horizontal and the lenght is the pipe
lenght, not height over/under the surface. The pressure drop due to
friction is the Darcy-Weisbach equation.
Darcy-Weisbach Equation
 Darcy-Weisbach Equation
Liquid Flow and When Gas Average Density Used

r p 1
pr  2rL
2
 f u 2

2 L 8
r p

2 L f L 2
1
p  u
  f u 2 2 d
8
 Darcy-Weisbach Equation
Force balance, steady-state pipe flow

dpr 2  2rdL w

r dp
w 
2 dL

1
w  fu 2
8
f L 2
p f  u r dp 1
2d  f u 2
2 dL 8
 North Sea Pipelines

Sletfjerding, E. (1999): Friction Factor in Smooth and Rough Gas Pipelines, Dr.Ing.,
Petroleum, NTNU.
 North Sea Pipelines

Sletfjerding, E. (1999): Friction Factor in Smooth and Rough Gas Pipelines, Dr.Ing.,
Petroleum, NTNU.
 North Sea Pipelines

Sletfjerding, E. (1999): Friction Factor in Smooth and Rough Gas Pipelines, Dr.Ing.,
Petroleum, NTNU.
 Composition of Processed Gas

Molecule Troll (1) Sleipner (2) Draugen (3) Groningen (4)

Norway Norway Norway Netherlands

Methane 93.070 83.465 44.659 81.29

Ethane 3.720 8.653 13.64 2.87
Propane 0.582 3.004 22.825 0.38
Iso-Butane 0.346 0.250 4.875 0,15
N-Butane 0.083 0.327 9.466 0.04
C5++ 0.203 0.105 3.078 0.06
Nitrogen 1.657 0.745 0.738 14.32
Carbon-dioxide 0.319 3.429 0.720 0.89

100 100 100 100

(1) After processing at Kollsnes (on-shore processing plant), average for November 2000.
(2) After off-shore processing into off-shore pipelines, combination of Sleipner East and West, average November 2000.
(3) After off-shore processing into pipeline Åsgard Transport to Kårstø (on–shore processing plant) for further processing, average for December 2000.
(4) Into onshore grid in The Netherlands.

Kilde: K. Jakobsen, A/S Norske Shell

North Sea Pipelines: Pressure Gradient
p1 p2 L (p1-p2)/L m

bar bar km bar/100 km kg/s

A 108,42 85,59 812,4 2,81 205,50

B 166,26 145,59 303,5 6,81 383,50

C 107,97 94,16 619,0 2,23 185,40

D 65,22 63,64 48,5 3,26 185,40

E 129,85 86,8 619,0 6,95 334,10

F 72,03 67,45 48,5 9,44 334,10

G 136,3 112,1 227,0 10,66 167,60

H 146,7 95,5 812,8 6,30 348,40

6,06

Sletfjerding, E. (1999): Friction Factor in Smooth and Rough Gas Pipelines, Dr.Ing.,
Petroleum, NTNU.
Pressure Gradient in Gas Pipelines

Gradient (bar/100 km)

North Sea, Sletfjerding 6 (average 8 pipelines)

(1999)

Canada, Hughes (1993)* 15-25

* Mokhatab o.a. (2006, s. 419)

 Maximum Gas Velocity*

Sletfjerdings (1999) North Sea Pipelines A-H, uaverage (m/s), only 10-20 % av NORSOK umaximum

*NORSOK P-001 (1999)

Pressure Drop Horizontal Gas Pipeline

d p 
 
2 2
dA M
2
p 2
2  p1
2
 ln 

2
2

 L0
fm zRT f p 
1
 Variable and Units
• d = Diameter [m]
• A = Cross sectional area [m2]
• M = Molecular weight [kg/kmol]
• f = Friction factor [-]
• m = Mass flow rate [kg/s]
• z = Compressibility factor [-]
• R = Universal gas constant = 8314 [J/kmol.K]
• T = Temperature [K]
• p1 = Inlet pressure [Pa]
• p2 = Outlet pressure [Pa]
• L = Pipeline length [m]
 Frictional Pressure Drop Gas Pipeline
Horizontal Pipeline, Inclined Well

f L 2 d  p 22 
p f  u d A2 M
2
 
p 2  p1  ln 2   L  0
2 2

2d f m z RT f  p1 

p 22  p12 exp 2ag sin L  

b
1  exp2ag sin L 
a g sin 
2

M fm 2
a b
zRT 2 A2 d
Friction Factor in Pipelines
Nikuradse’s Sand-Grain Data
 Moody Chart

Add reference to fluid mechanics text book.

 Blasius’ Equation
Hydraulically Smooth Pipes

0.316
f  0.25
Re

Re < 100,000
 Haaland’s Equation

1,8  6,9   k  
n 1,11n
1
  log     
f n  Re   3,75d  

n  3 for gass
n  1 for væske
 Wall Roughness in Pipes

Material Average Average

Absolut Absolut
Roughness Roughness
(inch) (µm)
Internally plastic coated pipeline 0.200×10-3 5.1
Honed bare carbon steel 0.492×10-3 12.5
Electropolished bare 13Cr 1.18×10-3 30.0
Cement lining 1.30×10-3 33.0
Bare carbon steel 1.38×10-3 35.1
Fiberglass lining 1.50×10-3 38.1
Bare 13Cr 2.10×10-3 53.3

Farshad og Rieke, JPT, oktober 2005, side 82-86.

 Blasius, Colebrook-White and Haaland

0,316 1  2,51 k 
f  0, 25  2 log  
Re f  Re f 3,7 d 
 

1  1,8   6,9   k  
n 1,11n

 log     
f n  Re   3,75d  
Haaland n=1 for liquids, same as Coolebrook-White
Haaland n=3 for gases, same as AGA data
 Haaland Friction Factor
Gases, n=3, Hydraulically smooth and k/d=0.001

0,03500

0,03000

0,02500
Frictionfaktor

0,02000

0,01500

0,01000

0,00500

0,00000
0 200000 400000 600000 800000 1000000 1200000
Reynolds-tall

Haaland for gas based on AGA data, lower than for liquids, transition different
 Haaland Friction Factor
Liquid n=1 and gas n=3, k/d=0.001

0,03500

0,03000

0,02500
Friksjonsfaktor

0,02000

0,01500

0,01000

0,00500

0,00000
0 200000 400000 600000 800000 1000000 1200000
Reynolds-tall

Gas 3.8 % lower than liquid at Re=106

Nikuradse’s Sand Grain and Real Roughness
 Sletfjerding

Ra = Arithmetic mean roughness

Rq = Root-mean-square roughness
Rz = Mean peak-to-valley roughness
 Pipes Used by Sletfjerding (Amsterdam 2001)

Sand-grain roughness ks, Measured roughness Rq , Hurste exponent H

4.5 < (ks/Rq) < 5.8
Sand-grain roughness estimate based on Nikuradse’s friction factor equation
 Summary
– Equation for pressure drop in horizontal gas pipelines; the
natural logarithm term can often be neglected (because
gentle decrease in pressure in long pipelines)
– Blasius’s equation used for smooth pipes and when Re<105
while Haaland’s equation is general and includes the effect of
roughness (recommended).
– Pressure drop in gas pipelines lower than in liquid pipelines.
Indicates that semi-empirical correlations are not perfect.
– Friction factor equations conservative, give 5-10 % higher
friction factor and greater pressure drop than measured.
– Friction correlations have come into focus after EOS (gas
density) and gas viscosity correlations have improved.
– Pressure drop in gas export pipelines (up to 1 m in diameter
and 400-1200 km long) is of great economic importance for
Norway as natural gas exporter.