Experimental Investigation of the Effects of a Pulsating Internal Flow on the Dynamics of a Submersed U-Shaped Flexible Pipe

In the past of the offshore petroleum production, each riser had conveyed the hydrocarbon production from a single vertical well; the riser’s internal flow rate was relatively low and only the internal fluid pressure was taking into account for the riser analysis. Other internal flow effects, such as internal fluid’s linear moment, and Coriollis effects, were neglected. However, the paradigm for petroleum production in ultra-deepwater is shifting nowadays. New technologies, such as horizontal wells, have increased the production rate from a single well. In addition, a subsea booster system can increase both pressure and flow rate of the riser’s conveyed fluid. Further, the Offshore Mining is rising as a new industry and will demand riser systems to convey, at high flow rates, the mineral ore’s slurry from the seafloor up to the production support vessel. In a previous experiment, the effects of the internal flow on a vertical riser were investigated. In the current experiment, the main objective is to investigate the effect of the internal flow on the dynamic response of a pipe in “jumper configuration”. The experiment was carried out at the Deep Sea Basin of the National Maritime Research Institute using a 10 m long flexible pipe. The actual “jumper” is a piece of flexible riser, in U-shaped configuration, that connects the main structure of “Self-Standing Hybrid Riser” to the production vessel. During the experiment, fresh water was pumped into the model by positive displacement pump; and an oscillator applies a harmonic vibration on one pipe’s end. Then the pipe’s dynamic response is measured by the Deep Sea Basin’s 3D Visual Measurement System. Results for different internal flows and oscillations are compared.