OTC 18895

Internal Flow Induced Pulsation of Flexible Risers

R. Swindell, Bureau Veritas, and S. Belfroid, TNO TPD

Copyright 2007, Offshore Technology Conference

to small-bore connections on both topside and subsea piping.
This paper was prepared for presentation at the 2007 Offshore Technology Conference held in The problem has been seen to occur for gas flow velocities as
Houston, Texas, U.S.A., 30 April 3 May 2007.
low as 1.5 m/s, which is potentially a severe limiting factor to
This paper was selected for presentation by an OTC Program Committee following review of
information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s). Contents of the paper, as
an installations production capabilities.
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Abstract

A Joint Industry Project, involving a number of operating

companies and allied organisations (including ExxonMobil,
BP, Statoil, the UK Health & Safety Executive, TNO and
Bureau Veritas), is currently addressing the technical issues
associated with high amplitude pressure pulsations generated
by gas flow through flexible risers. Combining actual offshore
measurement data; part and full scale test results at low,
medium and high pressures; and both theoretical acoustic and
flow simulations, a good understanding of the phenomenon
has been achieved. Guidelines for existing and planned
developments have been developed, based on precautionary
measures, i.e. how to minimise the risk of this phenomenon
occurring at the design stage, and practical assessment and
mitigation measures for existing assets. This paper will
describe the history of the concern and actual offshore
experiences, review the work undertaken by the JIP and
provide initial guidelines to address the issue.
Introduction
Fig 1 Typical flexible riser showing corrugated carcass
As an example, one installation experienced severe noise and
high frequency pipework vibration on the topsides gas export
system once gas export commenced. A comprehensive
measurement programme was undertaken which identified the
cause as vortex shedding from the internal corrugated carcass
of the riser locking on to discrete acoustic resonances of the
gas within the export system pipework. The noise, vibration
and dynamic pressure within the gas displayed clear tonal
characteristics with the fundamental frequency varying with
gas velocity (figure 2). The fundamental frequency varied
from 84Hz to 208Hz over the range of gas velocities
encountered; harmonics of the fundamental frequency were
also seen.

In the last 5 years, a number of offshore installations that

utilise flexible risers for single phase gas service have
experienced high levels of piping noise and vibration. This
has resulted in at least two piping failures. The immediate
means of minimising the risk of additional failures was to
significantly reduce the gas export rate. The problem has been
attributed to flow induced pressure pulsations from the
flexible risers.

The pressure pulsations are generated due to vortex shedding

on corrugations of the innermost layer of the flexible riser
carcass. These pressure pulsations can be sufficiently extreme Fig 2 Step change in pressure pulsation frequency with flow
to cause vibration induced piping fatigue failures, for example velocity increase
2 OTC 18895

Dynamic pressures measured in the topsides piping system

were of the order of 1 bar (0-pk), and dynamic stresses were
also unacceptable particularly in small bore piping
attachments when judged against a class F2 weld as per
BS7608 (1). Structural modifications were designed and
installed to reduce the dynamic stress levels on the topsides
pipework, and restrictions were also imposed on gas export
flowrate to reduce the level of excitation.

To date, at least seven assets worldwide, including gas export,
gas injection, gas lift transfer and low pressure gas flare have
all experienced this phenomenon and it is considered likely
that as the demand for gas export from deepwater fields
increases, this number will increase.
The Flexible Riser as a Source of Excitation
As dry gas passes through a flexible riser, an unstable shear
layer is generated off each of the internal corrugations which
make up the internal carcass see schematic illustration in
figure 3 below.
Fig 4 Typical sidebranches which act as acoustic resonators
Joint Industry Project
Although the full mechanism is not yet fully understood,
considerable progress has been made through an ongoing Joint
Industry Project (JIP) co-sponsored by BP, ExxonMobil,
Statoil and the Health and Safety Executive to determine the
Strouhal number and gain an understanding of the positive
feedback mechanism which results in the high dynamic
pressure pulsations experienced.
As part of the JIP, a significant amount of scale and actual
carcass testing has taken place over a range of gas pressures
and flow rates, and with different gases, with the objective of
identifying the key parameters that govern:

the Strouhal number and the characteristic dimension;

the gas velocity at which onset occur;
the maximum pulsation amplitude and frequency.

Test work has been undertaken at both the National

Engineering Laboratory (NEL) in the UK (figure 5), and at
Fig 3 Vortex shedding from carcass corrugations (velocity (top) TNO in Holland (figure 6). A large number of different
and vorticity distribution (bottom)). The flow is from left to right.
(fabricated) geometries have been tested, alongside three
sections of 6 actual carcasses provided by three riser
Following established vortex shedding theory, the
manufacturers. In addition, considerable detailed analysis has
perturbations have a characteristic frequency (f), given by
been undertaken of actual offshore data from two installations
f=SrV/d., with Sr the Strouhal number which is corrugation
where the flexible risers are known to exhibit the problem.
geometry dependent [-], V the gas velocity [m/s] and d a
characteristic length scale [m].

Lock-on can occur when the shedding frequency is close to an

acoustic natural frequency of the gas system; the most
common acoustic resonators have been found to be the axial
modes in the riser but also dead leg branches off the main
pipework at the top and the bottom of the flexible riser. With
increasing flowrates the pulsation frequency increases often in
steps (see figure 2) as the excitation frequency locks in with
the system resonance frequencies.
Typical examples of such dead-leg branches are shown in
figure 4. In addition to giving rise to high external noise levels
the pulsations generate significant shaking forces which lead
to piping vibration and potential fatigue damage, particularly
in welded connections to the main pipework. As the generated Fig 5 High pressure test rig at NEL (UK)
pulsations travel both upstream and downstream, piping
systems at both ends of the flexible are prone to these
vibrations (see Every et al (2)).
OTC 18895
Fig 6 Experimental setup and schematic of TNO test rig
Typical results are shown in figures 7 and 8, which have then
been used to determine a possible range of Strouhal numbers
and the most appropriate characteristic dimension.
Fig 7 Demonstration of vortex shedding frequency for various
fabricated geometries
3
Fig 8 Demonstration of vortex shedding frequency with flow rate
for 10m test section of an actual 6 riser carcass
Due to the large number of corrugations in a typical riser, the
perturbations generated by subsequent corrugations can
interact and build up to generate significant pressure pulsation
levels at the characteristic forcing frequency. Test work
undertaken as part of the JIP shows that these pressure
pulsations then interact with the pipework at either end of the
carcass, to a degree determined by the acoustic characteristics
(principally the reflection coefficient) of the subsea and
topsides pipework. Under appropriate acoustic conditions, this
results in a resonant condition, i.e.:
(i) the pressure pulsations generated along the riser
lock on to a single forcing frequency, which in turn
(ii) leads to a further increase in the dynamic pressure
pulsation levels.
This feedback mechanism is considered sufficient to generate
the levels of measured pressure pulsation. It should be noted
that excitation of an acoustic resonance (e.g. in a dead leg side
branch) can lead to very high, localised pressure pulsation
amplitudes.
The feedback mechanism is a predominantly internal flow
mechanism. From comparison of the ring modes (natural
frequencies) of the carcass and the offshore measured data, it
is concluded that although there may be a degree of interaction
between the pulsations and the carcass vibration, resonant
carcass vibration is not the primary excitation mechanism. It
is proposed, however, that for some flowrates, it may play a
part in determining which acoustic modes are excited to give
the high amplitude pressure pulsations, (generally only a
proportion of the total acoustic modes available are actually
excited, i.e. mode selection takes place).
In order for a system to be subject to flow induced pulsations,
it must meet the following criteria:
it uses a flexible riser with a corrugated internal carcass.
the riser has single phase gas flow, (it is proposed that a
high moisture content will tend to damp down the vortex
shedding within the riser the exact level of moisture is
currently unknown).
4 OTC 18895
The potential for a system to experience the flow induced
pulsation problem is increased if the system has any of the
following attributes:
piping arrangements both upstream and downstream of
the riser which generate a significant degree of acoustic
reflection this includes piping manifolds, tie-ins, dead-
leg sidebranches etc;
the riser gas velocity is greater than 1.5 m/s.
From analysis of both offshore and laboratory test data, it is
clear that a minimum flow velocity is required to excite the
problem, and that this velocity is dependent on both the riser
characteristics (profile, dimensions etc), and the process
conditions (mainly pressure). Once this velocity is exceeded,
the system will start to operate in the flow induced pulsation
regime, while in contrast, at lower flowrates there are unlikely
to be any signs of the problem. The onset velocity depends on
a number of parameters, although the reflection coefficients at
the end of the riser appear to have an important influence as
shown in figure 9.
Fig 9 Change in onset velocity for a given carcass geometry due
to variation in reflection coefficients at the ends of the carcass
Examining this effect of the boundary conditions on the onset
of the whistling behaviour will be one of the objectives in the
currently underway Phase 3 of the JIP. The main objectives of
the phase are:
Completing High Pressure (60 bar) testing of actual 6
carcass sections and evaluating the effect of the
introduction of liquids into a singing riser;
Extending the High Pressure testing to include
representative prefabricated test sections that have been
previously tested at low and medium pressures;
At low and medium pressures, obtaining quantitative test
data for the assessment of the influence of the boundary
reflection coefficients.
Extending the Low and Medium pressure tests to include
larger diameter corrugated pipe to examine the effect tube
diameter, and longer pipe lengths;
Producing Source strength and Pressure Drop models, to
then enable a executable Evaluation tool to be developed
for submission to the JIP participants, i.e. which with
carcass geometry and process conditions as input data, it
will predict the static pressure drop, the onset velocity,
and the frequency and maximum amplitude of the
pressured pulsations
Guidelines for Flow Induced Pulsations in Flexible
Risers
The following sections give advice in terms of hazard
identification, associated risks and immediate mitigation
measures. Current members of the existing JIP have access to
more detailed technical information to allow a more
quantitative assessment to be undertaken. It is hoped that key
elements will subsequently be put into the public domain once
the information is confirmed to be robust.
Hazard Identification
It is possible to identify a system exhibiting flow induced
pulsations by the following characteristics:
Excessive tonal pipework noise and/or vibration.
Experience has shown that an initial fundamental
pulsation frequency as low as 80 Hz may be generated,
with a significant contribution from the first two or three
harmonics. Figure 10 shows a typical dynamic pressure
pulsation spectrum, which clearly demonstrates the tonal /
harmonic nature of the noise.
Stepped changes in audible frequency with changes in
flow velocity.
Increased flow velocity generates higher pitched tones.
An audible hunting/beating effect as the system moves
from one frequency range to another.
There is a minimum flow rate required to generate the
pipework noise/vibration; below this no noise is apparent.
100
90
325Hz
650Hz
967.5Hz
80
SPL, dB(lin) re 20Pa
70
60
50
40
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000
Frequency, Hz
Fig 10 Typical pulsation spectrum
Should a system exhibit one or more of the characteristics
outlined above, there is a high chance that flow induced
pulsation is occurring.
OTC 18895
Associated Risks
A system that is subject to flow induced pulsation is at
significant risk from the following:
Significant main line vibration levels.
Failure of small bore connections on topside pipework.
Failure of intrusive fittings e.g. thermowells, gas sample
probes etc.
Failure of small bore connections on subsea pipework.
Experience to date suggests that the failure times of small bore
connections subjected to this problem on topside pipework can
be as low as a few hours, as the vibration and dynamic stress
is high frequency.
Mitigation Measures
If flow induced pulsation is suspected then flow velocities
through the system should first be reduced to a level at which
the tonal noise and pipework vibration can no longer be
discerned.
Specialist advice should then be sought and a vibration and
dynamic strain survey undertaken to determine the potential
for both topsides and subsea pipework failures to occur. For
reference, small bore connection vibration measurement
procedures and assessment criteria are given in Appendix D of
the MTD Guidelines (3). Depending on the results of such a
survey, it is likely that the following actions would be required
as a minimum:
Brace all small bore connections topside: since the
vibration is relatively high frequency (greater than 80
Hz), the usual welded two plane braces are deemed
insufficient. Instead more substantial welded gusset
plates of the form shown in figure 11 below should be
installed.
Remove all non-essential intrusive fittings, e.g.
thermowells and replace with surface mounted sensors
where appropriate.
Fig 11 Typical bracing detail
5
Analysis of all remaining essential intrusive fittings to
determine failure potential.
Analysis / measurement (via ROV deployed transducers)
of subsea pipework to determine failure potential.
Brace all subsea small bore connections deemed to be at
risk of fatigue failure.
Conclusions
Flexibles can generate high frequency high amplitude
pulsations. These pulsations are generated due to vortex
shedding and shear layer instabilities on the internal
corrugations.
The pressure fluctuations can induce high stress levels
and fatigue failure in associated pipe-work. Therefore
measures to mitigate potential fatigue failures are
recommended especially for small bore side branches or
instrument lines.
The highest stresses are most likely to be generated when
there is a coincidence of the vortex shedding frequency,
an acoustic frequency of the pipework and a structural
natural frequency.
The susceptibility of a flexible tube to start singing in
an installation can be evaluated before operations start.
The dependence of the frequency and amplitude of the
generated pulsations on the details of the carcass
dimensions and the way the carcass is installed are
currently being examined in the existing JIP.
Acknowledgements
The work described was funded by BP, ExxonMobil, Statoil,
the Health & Safety Executive and Bureau Veritas.
Nomenclature
d= Characteristic dimension (in this case related to
corrugation profile), [m]
f = Riser internal vortex shedding frequency, [Hz]
S= Strouhal number [-]
V= Flow velocity, [m/s]
References
1 Code of Practice for Fatigue Design and Assessment of Steel
Structures
BS7608, 1993
2 Every M, Goyder G, Jee T, Swindell R and Billingham L.
Full-Scale Testing of Flexible Riser System Subjected to
Internal Flow-Induced Vibration
OTC Paper OTC17787PP 2006
3 Guidelines for the Avoidance of Vibration Induced Fatigue in
Process Pipework
MTD Publication 99/100, ISBN 1 870553 37 3.