Experimental study on the ultimate axial anti-slide capacity for a partially-embedded pipeline on the sloping sandy seabed

摘要

The ultimate anti-slide capacity for a submarine pipeline on the sloping seabed is one of the main concerns in the global buckling design. A mechanical-actuator facility has been designed and constructed for physical modeling of the axial pipe-soil interaction. The phenomenon of "pipe-trembling" was observed in the process of the pipe's axial movement, which is more prone to occur for the smoother pipes. Based on dimensional analyses, a dimensionless factor is proposed to describe the anti-slide capacity of the pipeline on a sloping sandy seabed. Experimental results indicate that both the slope angle and the pipe roughness have much effect on the axial pipe-soil interaction behavior and eventually on the anti-slide capacity. Unlike the lateral pipe-soil interaction, the slope angle has slight effect on the axial soil resistance to the partially-embedded pipeline in the examined range of slope angle (-9°〜 +9°).