Abstract

Fluid-structure interaction (FSI) affects the water-hammer shape, damping and timing in above-ground or non-buried pipelines, not only in water distribution systems but also in hydropower conduits, long oil and gas pipes, cooling systems of nuclear, thermal plants or any fluid distribution system in industrial compounds. In FSI analyses all the potential pipe vibration modes that may affect the water-hammer wave propagation are considered and the two-way coupling between fluid dynamics and structural mechanics is described. It is a reasonable assumption to consider that, in complex hydraulic systems, up to eight degrees-of-freedom or pipe vibration modes may be excited under unsteady flow conditions. If the pipe system lays on one only plane the problem may be reduced to four degrees-of-freedom. For single pipe elements axial vibrations may outweigh other eventual vibration modes, hence two degrees-of-freedom may be enough to describe the system behaviour. During this seminar experimental and numerical results are presented aiming at providing a critical overview when tackling FSI phenomena.

Biography

BSc degree in Civil Engineering, MSc in Hydroinformatics and Water Management and PhD in the field of Hydraulic Transients, Dr Ferras currently holds a Lecturer-Researcher position in the department of Environmental Engineering and Water Technology, IHE-Delft, in the field of Water Transport and Distribution. Dr Ferras PhD research made a significant contribution towards the improvement of one-dimensional (1D) water-hammer modelling in the time-domain by means of the well-known method of characteristics. He identified, described and quantified, experimentally and numerically, the principal mechanic-hydraulic relationships during hydraulic transients in pressurized pipe flows in view of better design criteria and, consequently, reducing risk of failure. He especially focuses on the 1D Fluid-Structure Interaction models, for which he continues challenged by the development of advanced tools for the modelling of hydraulic transients in water systems. Dr Ferras is an active member of the International Association for Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research (IAHR), where he contributes as editor of the digital monthly publication Newsflash World and he is the vice-chair of the Education and Professional Development committee. On 2015 he was awarded by the same association with the John F. Kennedy award issued during the 36th IAHR World Congress, The Hague.

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