Slurry Transportation Pipeline Design Tool for the Minerals and Mining Industry

Project description

The overall efficiency of a slurry transportation pipeline over a long distance is dependent on many complex factors. This project will investigate the influence of pipeline construction technologies and design requirements (including diameter, length, material and joining) on the overall slurry transportation efficiency, both in the new and worn states. This will be considered for a range of challenging scenarios commonly associated with dewatering pipelines and tailings management.

The research activity will use a combination of numerical modelling and experimental tests to gain an understanding of the relationships between pressure drop, surface roughness, frictional coefficient losses, wear and flow regimes, with regards to optimising slurry transportation pipeline efficiency. This PhD project is aimed to provide the fundamental knowledge required to support the development of an industry pipeline design toolkit. As the Industry sponsor is a global leader in minerals and mining technologies, this toolkit will support the design and engineering of highly efficient slurry transportation pipelines (optimizing pipeline design and reduction of scope 4 emissions) for specific customer pipeline requirements, around the World.

• Literature review across relevant pipeline efficiency topics. Identification of significant factors to be considered.
• Development of numerical and experimental test regime required for complex multiphase fluids, laminar settling flows, etc.
• Evaluation of construction techniques on key pipeline efficiency factors, constitutive equations and flow regimes.
• Identification and evaluation of wider opportunities, construction technologies and other failure mode factors.
• Knowledge transfer to Business to support development of Industry Pipeline Design Toolkit.

Outcomes

• Access to the fundamental knowledge that is essential to develop a Business pipeline design toolkit: 1. An outline of the critical parameters that drives the pipeline efficiency, and 2. an expanded correlated & validated mathematical model for slurry transportation in pipelines
• Knowledge transfer to develop the Business pipeline toolkit
• The overarching aim is to support the development of a toolkit that will reduce time associated with experimental validation, enable relatively quick design upgrades, and allow for pipeline design optimization.

Essential capabilities

A Bachelor’s/Master’s degree in Engineering/Technology in either Civil or Chemical Engineering essential.

Desireable capabilities

Experience in numerical simulations / CFD-based modelling
Prior involvement in numerical simulations / CFD-based modelling and experiments.

Expected qualifications (Course/Degrees etc.)

Master’s degree in either Civil or Chemical Engineering