The multi-sized slurry flows in horizontal pipes: Innovated models and verification

Abstract

In designing pipeline systems for commercial slurries, it is essential to accurately determine the hydraulic gradient at transport velocities. It is crucial to note that the slurries are conveyed as a mixture of multi-sized solids and water. Although many researchers have proposed correlations for the prediction of hydraulic gradient, most have been developed for slurries with uniform sized particles of solids. By considering two different transport conditions of a mixed-sized slurry, innovated models were proposed and then verified with experimental data. The data was also analysed with the Wasp method and the conventional method by Condolios-Chapus. Measurements of hydraulic gradient, solids concentration, and flow velocity in a 1-inch pipeline were made in this study. Predictions with the innovated models could be correlated with the data including experimental results from large scale pipelines, in spite of discrepancies at unstable flow regimes.