(56e) Simulation and Experimental Studies of Jamming for Model Two-Dimensional Particles Under Flow

Jamming and plugging of flowlines with gas hydrates is the most critical issue in the flow assurance of oil and gas production lines. Because solid hydrate particles are often suspended in a fluid, the pipeline jamming and flow constriction formed by hydrates depend not only on particle/wall properties, such as friction, binding forces and mechanical characteristics, but also on the concentration of particles upstream of the restriction, flow velocity, fluid viscosity, and forces between the particles. Therefore, to gain insight into the jamming phenomena, both experiments and computer simulations on two-dimensional model systems have been carried out to characterize the flow of particles in a channel, with the eventual goal of applying that knowledge to gas hydrates jamming. Using the simulation software PFC2d®, we studied the effect of restriction geometry and flow velocity on the jamming process of particles. Results from the simulations were compared to experimental measurements on polyethylene discs floating on water flowing in an open channel.