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PIPENET Technical Document Force

FORCE CALCULATION APPLICATIONS IN PIPENET

1. Introduction:

This document discusses two typical applications of force calculation in PIPENET: (1) pipe
stress analysis and (2) reaction force on pipe support. In the stress analysis, we need to know the
hydraulic force to strain pipe wall. In the reaction force calculation, the net hydraulic force
passing along the pipeline and loading on the pipe support (anchor) is analysed and discussed.
Finally several examples are presented to illuminate the use of elastic and rigid joints.

2. Modelling Equations:

Simple force:

F   tags  Fs i   tag f  F f  j
n m

(1)
i 1 j 1
Complex force

 
F( X ,Y ,Z )   tag s ( X ,Y ,Z )  Fs i   tag f ( X ,Y ,Z )  F f  j  Fb X ,Y ,Z 
n m
(2)
i 1 j 1
Where
F total hydraulic force
Fb body force, such as pipe and fluid weight.
Fs hydraulic force created at control surface by fluid pressure and flow momentum.
Ff hydraulic force created in control volume by flow resistance.
n number of control surfaces.
m number of control volumes, which can contain several components in PIPENET.
tags tag of boundary condition, 0 for elastic joint and 1 for rigid joint.
tagf tag of flow direction, tags= +/-1.

At a middle point of a straight pipe, there is no direction change of flow momentum and the
projective area of pressure on the pipe wall is zero. The hydraulic force created at the control
surface is zero. The boundary condition should be set as “Elastic”, i.e. tags = 0. On the contrary,
at an elbow, the flow momentum changes direction and the projective area is equal to the pipe
cross section area. The elbow should be set as “Rigid” to consider the hydraulic force due to
fluid pressure and flow momentum, i.e. tags = 1.

3. Pipe Stress Analysis

This section focuses on the stress in pipe wall due to hydraulic static and dynamic force. Figure
1 depicts a simple network with a straight pipe and two elbows. Some assumptions are made to
simplify the problem, including

(1) The length and volume of the elbows are negligible so that the inlet and outlet have equal
flow parameters.
(2) The study focuses on the stress caused by hydraulic force, does not consider body force, pre-
tightening and thermal distortion.

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In order to illuminate the problem clearly, the pipe is divided into two parts to study the stress at
the middle point of the pipe, i.e. control surface 1 in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Force and Moment in the Control Volume and Control Surfaces

Fs1  Fs 2  pA  mu (3)
Fi1  Fj 2  Ff 1  Fs1  Ma1 (4a)
Fi 2  Fj1  Fs 2  Ma2 (4b)
T1  T2  I (5)
F
 i (6)
A'
F
 j (7)
A'
T
 (8)
W
Where
a linear acceleration
A cross section area of pipe
A’ cross section area of pipe wall
Ff flow friction on pipe wall
Fi tensile force at control surface
Fj shear force at control surface
Fs hydraulic force at elbow
I total inertial moment of fluid and pipe body
p fluid pressure at elbow
m mass flow rate at elbow
M total mass of fluid and pipe body
T moment at control surface
u flow velocity at elbow
W section modulus, W = Ix/y
y perpendicular distance to the neutral axis
 angular acceleration with the rotation axis of elbow cross point
 tensile stress at control surface
 shear stress at control surface
 bending stress at control surface

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Subscript
1 at control surface 1 or along its normal vector
2 at control surface 2 or along its normal vector

At steady sate, the linear acceleration and angular acceleration are zero. Here we assume
the shear force Fj and moment T are negligible. The stresses at the control surface 1 can be
given by Equation 4a, 6, 7 and 8, i.e.
Fi1 F  Fs1
   f1
A' A'
F
  j 0
A'
T
 0
W
The tensile force Fi can be calculated by PIPENET. The boundary conditions at the straight
pipe and elbow are elastic and rigid respectively. The figure below presents such a network.

Figure 2: A Simple Example

If we would like to calculate the tensile stress at the middle point of pipe 3, the force Fi can
be defined as:

Figure 3: Force Definition in PIPENET

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In this example, the force Fi at initial steady state is 5804.7N, see the figure below. The
pipe (Dn 200, AnsiB3610_40) has 202.692 mm internal diameter and 219.202 mm external
diameter. The cross section area of the pipe wall is 0.00547 m2. The strain stress in the pipe wall
due to hydraulic force can be calculated as:
5804.7
  10.62 105 Pa
0.00547

Figure 4: Hydraulic Force in the Downstream Section of Pipe 3

The force calculation at transient state becomes so complex that it is impossible to give
accurate or even conservative results by hand calculation. For example,

(1) The linear acceleration a is unknown.

(2) The angular acceleration  is unknown.
(3) The shear force Fj is unknown.
(4) The moment T is unknown.

The above variables (a,, Fj and T) strongly depend on the pipeline elasticity and anchor
position. It is difficult to calculate them by hand but it is not a problem for stress analysis
software. The hydraulic force calculated by PIPENET can be included in the stress analysis. The
hydraulic model must coordinate with the stress analysis model. The following settings should
be cross-checked to insure calculation accuracy.

(1) The stress analysis program may consider body weight, which requires zero body
weight in the PIPENET model.
(2) The hydraulic model has considered the hydraulic force produced by fluid pressure. If
the stress model also calculates the tensile stress caused by fluid pressure, the input
pressure in the stress model should be 0 barg to avoid duplicate calculation.
(3) The boundary condition should be “Elastic” in PIPENET to obtain the strain force at the
pipe section.

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4. Selection of Elastic Joint and Rigid Joint

 Pipe stress analysis

If we would like to calculate strain stress in a straight pipe, caused by hydraulic force F. The
boundary condition should be set as “Elastic”, see Figure 8.

Figure 8. Stress Analysis in a Straight Pipe

The force Fi presented in Figure 9 is used to calculate strain stress at the middle point of pipe
3, which is set as an elastic joint. The pipe outlet is an elbow so it is a rigid joint.

Figure 9: Force Definition in PIPENET

 Hydraulic force at elbow

An elbow changes flow direction and the projective area of pressure on pipe wall is equal to
the pipe area. Therefore, it is a rigid joint in force calculation, see Figure 8 and 9. Similarly an
angle valve is a rigid joint as well.

 Reaction force on anchor

We discuss the force calculation in Section 4. In theory, an anchor is a break point for force
transfer, which requires defining two forces for the upstream pipe and the downstream pipe
respectively. The anchor is set as “Elastic” in both the forces, see Figure 10 and 11.

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Figure 10. Force Analysis on a Straight Pipe with an Anchor

Figure 11. Force Definition when the Anchor is an End Point

The forces F3a and F3b can combine into a force F3 if other anchors are far away, see Figure
12 and 13. This simplification unlikely produces calculation error for the reaction force on the
anchor.

Figure 12. Force Analysis with Several Anchors

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Figure 13. Force Definition when the Anchor is a Middle Point

 Hydraulic force at elastic joint

An elastic joint is a break point for force transfer. We must define two forces to calculate the
hydraulic forces in the upstream pipe and the downstream pipe respectively because they can’t
cancel each other at any situations. An elastic joint can be considered as a piece of straight
pipe in hydraulic analysis which does not change flow direction and the projective area is zero.
Therefore, it is an elastic joint in force calculation. A hose is a kind of elastic joint so it must
be set as “Elastic” as well.

Figure 14. Stress Analysis on a Straight Pipe with an Elastic Joint

Figure 15. Force Definition on a Straight Pipe with an Elastic Joint

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 Hydraulic force at jet exit

A jet exit does not change flow direction and the local pressure is 0 barg. Therefore, the fluid
does not produce hydraulic force at the outlet section. The exit should be set as “Elastic”. In
PIPENET, the nozzle and valve models are set as elastic joints by default. You can use them to
model a jet exit to calculate reaction force, see Figure 16.

2 1
1

Figure 16. Modelling of Jet Exit by a Nozzle

Alternatively, you can use a valve together with a pipe to model the jet exit. In this case, the
pipe outlet should be set as “Elastic”, see Figure 17.

2 1 3
1

Figure 17. Modelling of Jet Exit by a Valve and a Pipe

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 Hydraulic force at tank entrance/exit

A tank/reservoir generally changes flow direction, e.g. from horizontal to vertical, and the
projective area of pressure on the tank wall is equal to the pipe area. Therefore, the
tank/reservoir should be set as “Rigid”. In PIPENET, the tank models (accumulator, surge tank
and receiving vessel) are “Rigid” by default in force calculation. You can use them to model a
tank type entrance/exit directly, see Figure 18.

2 1
1

Figure 18. Modelling of a Tank Entrance/Exit by a Tank

If the entrance/exit is simplified as a constant pressure specification, the local boundary

condition should be set as “Rigid”, see Figure 19.

Reservoir
2
1

Figure 19. Modelling of a Tank Entrance/Exit by a Pressure Specification

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5. Conclusion:

(1) The tensile stress caused by hydraulic force can be estimated by hand calculation at steady
state. However, it is recommended to carry out the analysis by programs at transient state.
(2) PIPENET hydraulic model must coordinate with stress analysis model to avoid duplicate
calculation on body force and fluid pressure.
(3) An anchor is a breaker point for force transfer. It should be set as an elastic joint in PIPENET
force calculation. If the anchor bears all loads in the control volume because other anchors are
far away, the anchor can be included within the control volume or set as a rigid joint. This
simplification unlikely produces calculation error on the reaction force of the anchor.
(4) The typical boundary conditions are summarized in the table below.

Table 2: Typical End Points in Force Calculation

Interruption End Point
Control surface for stress analysis Elastic
Anchor (Axis restriction), Elastic joint (Hose) Elastic
Jet Exit (nozzle, monitor, valve etc.) Elastic
Elbow (Angle valve) Rigid
Dead end, Tank Entrance/Exit (tank, reservoir, pressure vessel etc.) Rigid

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