Propagation and Attenuation of Pressure Waves in Dispersed Two-Phase Flows

The propagation and attenuation of pressure waves in highly dispersed gas-liquid flows are investigated in this work, and an indirect measurement method is proposed to assess the attenuation coefficient in short pipelines. Additionally, a mechanistic acoustic energy dissipation model is derived from the oscillatory solutions of one-dimensional (1D) nondimensionalized mass and momentum equations to facilitate the interpretation of the results. Tests were performed on a 1500m long, 50mm internal diameter pipeline in which pressure disturbances were induced by suddenly opening leak valves. The results are consistent and in good agreement with the proposed attenuation model (+/- 10% for 10(3) < Re< 10(4)), therefore validating the proposed model and indirect measurement method.