Transient Simulation During Gas Pipeline Design Saves On Later Costs

By Sidney P. Santos, Petrobras Gas & Energy, and Saeid Mokhatab, Tehran Raymand Consulting Engineers ransient analysis during design of the Bolivia-to-Brazil gas transmission pipeline helped save money. The transient analysis was performed with heat exchanging between pipeline and soil and keeping the set point of the compressor station after cooler discharge gas temperature at 125 degrees F. Transient analysis is a requirement. Steady-state-only analysis, on the other hand, may introduce risk to the project development and prompt unplanned additional investment, causing negative effects on profitability. The load factor normally adopted by pipeline designers varies from 0.8 to 0.95, which corresponds to an increase of the nominal flow from 5 (0.95) to 25% (0.8). The main problem with this approach is that we cannot guarantee an economical and reliable design under future contractual operation conditions. This case study shows an example for a small portion of the main section and for the southern section of the Bolivia-Brazil Gas Transmission Project (Figure 1) based on: 1. steady-state with load factor and 2. transient-state. The results are compared to emphasize transient analysis as a better choice for the pipeline designer. (a) Load Factor of 100%: (b) Load Factor of 90%: (c) Load Factor of 80%: Item (a) Item (b) Item (c) 869 MMcf/d 966 MMcf/d 1,086 MMcf/d (24.99 MMcm/d) (27.77 MMcm/d) (31.24 MMcm/d). above assumes a load factor of 100% which means constant flow at the end point (steadystate). Market demand is constant at 24.99 MMcm/d; is item (a) divided by 0.9. Steady-state flow is 27.77 MMcm/d and the average flow delivered to the market is 24.99 under a flow profile; is item (a) divided by 0.8. Steady-state flow is 31.24 MMcm/d and the average flow delivered to the market is 24.99 under a flow profile. pressures lower than the minimum required. These exercises prove how important it is to run transient analysis whenever flow profile will be observed during the operation of a gas pipeline. This case study was focused on a small pipeline section and assumed that all

Transient simulation was run with market demand of 24.99 MMcm/d for two different flow profiles: flow profiles type 1 and 2 (Figure 2). The resulting pressure profiles were checked against minimum delivery pressure. The minimum values observed from pressure trends,

Figure 2: Typical Delivery Profiles To Local Distribution Companies.

taken at the pipeline points of interest, and for each simulation case are compared with the allowed minimum delivery pressure accepted for the project under analysis. Figure 3 shows the results for flow profile type 1.
Figure 1: Bolivia-Brazil Gas Transmission System.

The main section of the pipeline was designed to deliver 30 MMcm/d at Campinas with a load factor of 100%. The purpose of this design condition was to define the quantity of compressor stations and their location along the pipeline. The delivery pressure for this section is 71.06 kgf/cm2g with 31.24 MMcm/d. To allow a comparison between steady-state and transient design the following approach was adopted:

Flow profile type 1 presented acceptable values but the more demanding flow profile type 2 presented

market demand was taken at the end of this section with a flow profile. The objective was to emphasize the transient phenomenon. In a pipeline network, delivery points will normally be spread geographically and the transient effect will be damped in some degree. It is not practical and not recommended to predict transient behavior without running the scenarios and assuming that the steady-state-only approach with a load factor of certain magnitude will provide the necessary operational allowance. Two things would happen: 1. A larger diameter pipeline would be designed resulting in higher capital investment and therefore affecting the economics of the project or 2. A smaller diameter pipeline will be designed that will require unpredictable future investment thereby negatively affecting the economic sustainability of the project.

Transient analysis will enhance the project quality and will guarantee that the demand profiles and demand ramp up will be handled by the pipeline since those conditions were simulated in detail in the design phase of the project.

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Figure 3: Main Section - Delivery Profile Type 1.

Figure 4: Transient Design Southern Section Profile Type 2.

Transient analysis will enhance the project quality and will guarantee that the demand profiles and demand ramp up will be handled by the pipeline since those conditions were simulated in detail in the design phase of the project. Delivery profile impacts gas pipeline design. This effect may require larger pipeline diameter or shorter compressor station spacing. Although the steady state result for items (b) and (c) shows pressures above 995.6 psig, the transient run for item (b) alone gives pressures around 853 and 427 psig for the two delivery profiles. That would require future and unforeseen capital investments to meet contract obligations. By considering the entire gas pipeline system operating in transient mode, taking advantage of the line packing, the influence of other supplies and deliveries spread geographically along the pipeline network and also the dynamic behavior of the compressor stations

it is possible to optimize the pipeline design. For the southern section, from Station No. 16 (Iguau) to Porto Alleger, is presented another example of the savings and reliability we gain by using transient analysis in the design phase of a project. Figure 4 shows the southern section of the Bolivia-Brazil as designed based on transient simulation showing that end pressure trend profile is always above the minimum delivery pressure of 35 kgf/cm2g. Figure 5 shows the results from steadystate-only design with load factor of 90% with smaller diameters than the ones selected with transient simulation. When applying transient simulation for this steady-state design the pressure profile goes below the minimum required. Transient analysis was of critical importance in preventing improper selection of pipeline diameter.

Compressor Station Design

Parallel arrangement with smaller and

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Figure 5: Load Factor Design (90%) - Southern Section - Profile Type 2.

higher numbers of compressor units presents advantages such as more operation flexibility, lower installation cost for standby units and better assembly schedule to cope with the pipeline capacity ramp up curve. Larger and fewer compressor units in a series arrangement provide advantages such as lower power cost per unit and lower operation and maintenance cost. Transient analysis for each operation year followed by failure analysis is of fundamental importance to compare the arrangements and

Table 1: Transient Failure Analysis Results.

collect the necessary data to support the economic evaluation that will help define which arrangement gives the best result for the project. Analysis showed that the parallel arrangement was a better selection, since, in case of a failure of one unit in a station without a standby unit, the decrease in flow capacity was not as critical as in the series arrangement. The analysis is very helpful in supporting ship-orpay contacts. The parallel arrangement proved to be more reliable, flexible and also economically more attractive (Santos, 2004). Table 1 shows the simulation results for the main section of the Bolivia-Brazil Pipeline for stations Nos. 1, 7 and 14. One unit is considered to fail at one compressor station. Failure starting time is 0:00 hour and remains 48 hours. Maximum flows from Rio Grande after 48 hours are in favor of the parallel arrangement. The parellel arrangement proved to be better than the series arrangement. Higher capacity under failure means less exposure to loss of revenue and to contractual penalties. These results provide input to an economical eva l u a tion to support the decision on which arrangement to adopt. Gas pipeline designers should address all related aspects associated with standby installation and arrangement of compressor units, whether series or parallel.

Conclusion
Transient analysis has proved to be of critical importance for the Bolivia-Brazil gas pipeline design. This articles main purpose is to stress the advantages of using transient simulation in the design phase of a gas pipeline including failure analysis. Ad-ditional uses of transient analysis are related to the operation of the pipeline in gas control rooms, training operation personnel and commercial planning. If a project has to be economic, flexible and reliable, a transient simulator must be one of the most important tools to be used. P&GJ Authors Note: This is an updated version of the paper Transient Analysis A Must in Gas Pipeline Design? presented at the 29th Annual PSIG meeting in Tucson, AZ (Oct. 15-17, 1997). Authors: Sidney P. Santos is senior consultant, Petrobras Gas & Energy, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Saeid Mokhatab is lead process engineer for Tehran Raymand Consulting Engineers, Tehran, Iran, and a Contributing Editor to P&GJ.
REFERENCES Santos, ESP., Transient Analysis A Must in Gas Pipeline Design, paper presented at the Annual PSIG Meeting, Tucson, AZ, (Oct. 15-17, 1997). Santos, ESP., Series or Parallel Arrangement for a Compressor Station? - A Recurring Question that needs a Convincing Answer, paper presented at the Annual PSIG Meeting, Palm Springs, CA, (Oct. 20-22, 2004).

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