Vous êtes sur la page 1sur 19

Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 10 (1982) 1--19

Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, Amsterdam -- Printed in The Netherlands

DISPERSION OF VAPOR FROM LIQUID NATURAL GAS SPILLS -E V A L U A T I O N O F S I M U L A T I O N IN A M E T E O R O L O G I C A L W I N D TUNNEL: FIVE-CUBIC-METER CHINA LAKE SPILL SERIES

R.N. MERONEY and D.E. NEFF

Fluid Mechanics and Wind Engineering, Civil Engineering Department, Colorado State University, CO (U.S.A.)
(Received June 1, 1981 ; accepted in revised form September 7, 1981)

Summary A series of six-cubic-meter liquid natural gas (LNG) spills were performed in 1978 at the China Lake Naval Weapons Center, CA. A parallel set of modeled spills were simulated in meteorological wind-tunnel facilities to provide field-test planning information, to extend the value of the limited set of field measurements carried out, and to evaluate the concept of physical modeling of LNG plume dispersion as a predictive hazard analysis tool

Nomenclature M mass ratio, psQ/pa UaL2 m o m e n t u m ratio, psQ2/pa UaL4 v o l u m e flux ratio, Q/Ua L2 d e n s i m e t r i c F r o u d e n u m b e r , Ua2/g[(p s--Pa)/Pa ] L flux F r o u d e n u m b e r , Ua3L/g[(ps--Pa)/Pa] Q specific gravity, ps/Pa R e y n o l d s n u m b e r , Q/vL 2

MR R Fr Frf SG Re

Introduction R e c e n t e f f o r t s to e x p a n d the w o r l d ' s n a t u r a l gas s u p p l y include t h e transp o r t o f n a t u r a l gas in a liquid state f r o m d i s t a n t gas fields. U n f o r t u n a t e l y , storage a n d t r a n s p o r t o f liquid n a t u r a l gas m a y involve a relatively large env i r o n m e n t a l risk. T o t r a n s p o r t liquid n a t u r a l gas ( L N G ) , it is m a i n t a i n e d in t h e liquid state at - - 1 6 2 C . A t this t e m p e r a t u r e , if a storage t a n k on a ship or on land were to r u p t u r e and the c o n t e n t s spill o u t o n t o t h e e a r t h ' s surface, rapid boiling o f t h e L N G w o u l d ensue, and t h e l i b e r a t i o n o f a p o t e n t i a l l y f l a m m a b l e v a p o r w o u l d result. Past studies have d e m o n s t r a t e d t h a t a c o l d L N G v a p o r p l u m e r e m a i n s negatively b u o y a n t f o r m o s t o f its l i f e t i m e [1, 2]. A h a z a r d o u s m i x t u r e will t h e r e f o r e e x t e n d d o w n w i n d at g r o u n d level until t h e a t m o s p h e r e has d i l u t e d t h e L N G v a p o r b e l o w t h e l o w e r f l a m m a b i l i t y

0304-3908/82/0000-0000/$02.75

1982 Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company

limit (a local concentration of methane less than 5% by volume}. Liquid natural gas was spilled in small amounts onto a pond at the China Lake Naval Weapons Center, CA, during 1978, to examine the physics of LNG plume dispersion behavior. A parallel wind-tunnel model program was performed in the meteorological wind tunnel of Colorado State University to provide field-test planning information, to extend the value of the limited set of field measurements, and to evaluate the concept of physical modeling of LNG plume dispersion as a predictive hazard analysis tool. The measurement results described herein provided a foundation for the interpretation of terrain effects in the field experiments and an explanation for concentration vagaries noticed in the field data during wind direction variation. Wind-tunnel laboratory measurements permit a degree of control of safety and of meteorological, source and site variables not often feasible or economic at full scale. Nonetheless, satisfactory simulation of the behavior of dense plumes is not straightforward; a discussion of some of the problems associated with this approach follows. Laboratory simulation o f dense plumes resulting from cryogenic spills Physical modeling in wind tunnels requires consideration of the physics of the atmospheric surface layer as well as t h e dynamics of plume motion. Reliable criteria for simulating the pertinent physical properties of the atmospheric boundary layer have been demonstrated by several investigators [3, 4]. Frequently, partial simulation suffices when the test domain is limited in time and space. Specific problems associated with the dispersion of cold natural gas plumes have been previously discussed b y Meroney et al. [ 5, 6].

Prior experience: dense gas-plume simulation A number of controlled laboratory experiments have been conducted previously to evaluate the significance of density for dispersion o f gaseous plumes. Sakagami and Kato [ 7] measured diffusion and vapor rise from a small (5 10 cm) LNG well in the floor of a wind tunnel of cross-section 50 50 cm and length 200 cm. They confirmed a tendency for the gas to remain concentrated at ground level. Boyle and Kneebone [8] released LNG on water, pre-cooled methane, and propane in a specially built asbestos-wall wind tunnel of cross-section 1.5 1.2 m and length 5 m. No a t t e m p t was made to scale the atmospheric surface-layer velocity profile or turbulence. It was concluded that release of propane at r o o m temperature simulated an LNG spill quite well, b u t t h e pre-cooled methane releases lofted, suggesting to the authors incorrect release temperature or exaggerated heat transfer from the ground surface. H o o t and Meroney [9] and Hall e t a l . [10] considered ground-level, point-source releases o f heavy gases in wind tunnels. H o o t and Meroney found that releasing gases with specific gravities as grea~ as 3.0 only slightly shifted the decay o f m a x i m u m concentration with distance, despite significantly different plume cross-sections. Hall et al. considered

transient and continuous releases on a rough surface (plume height as a function of roughness height) and on uphill and downhill slopes. Hall reported shallow, wide plumes whose shapes were considerably altered by 1 in 12 ground-slopes. Tests were conducted by Neff et al. [11] in wind-tunnel facilities to evaluate the rate of dispersion and the extent of downwind hazards associated with the rupture of typical, large LNG storage tanks. Concentration and temperature measurements, and photographic records, were obtained for different wind speeds, wind directions and constant boil-off rates, under both neutral and stable atmospheric stratifications. Subsequent measurements by Meroney et al. [ 12 ] examined transient releases in similar configurations as well as dense plumes on uphill slopes, and b u o y a n t plume lift-off situations. Different model release gases were used to simulate the behavior of the cold methane plume -- heavy isothermal gas mixtures (CO2, Freon-12 and air, or argon) or light cold mixtures (He and N2). These latter measurements suggested thdt heat transfer effects may be small over the significant time scales; hence, gas density should be adequately simulated by using isothermal high-molecular-weight gas mixtures, during moderate winds. Visualization of similar tests for the range of model scales used {1 : 130 to 1 : 666) indicated similar plume geometries. The concentration results for the different model scales agreed to within the experimental accuracy of -+20%. Similarly, repeated identical tests also showed good agreement; hence, the Reynolds number must play a minor part in the dense-gas dispersion situations considered. The major practical limitations to accurate wind-tunnel simulation of LNG dispersion are operational constraints, particularly the inability to obtain a steady wind profile or to simulate accurately atmospheric turbulence at the lowest wind speeds of interest, and Reynolds number constraints (as yet somewhat ill-defined) associated with the proper scaling of near-field turbulence. When combined with estimates of the restraint of plume expansion by the tunnel side-walls, these considerations permit the development of a performance envelope for a particular wind-tunnel facility; examples of such envelopes have been given by Meroney et al. [ 5]. Partial simulation criteria: dense gas plumes Considering the dynamics of gaseous plume behavior, exact similitude requires the simultaneous equivalence of mass, m o m e n t u m flux and volume flux ratios, densimetric Froude number, Reynolds number, and specific gravity (see Nomenclature). Consideration of variable-property, non-ideal gases and the thermal behavior of the plume mixture introduces additional constraints on variations in the specific heat capacity [ 13]. For a plume whose temperature, molecular weight, and specific heat are all different from that of the ambient air, which is the case for a cold natural gas plume, the constraint of equivalence in the variation of the specific gravity upon mixing must be relaxed slightly if a gas different from that of

the p r o t o t y p e is to be used for modeling. Calculations for equivalent cold or isothermal dense plumes using a single-box model, such as those used by Fay [14] and Meroney and co-workers [15], reveal only small perturbations in the predicted concentrations. A reasonably complete simulation may be obtained in some situations even when a modified initial specific gas ratio is stipulated. By increasing the specific gravity of the model gas compared to the p r o t o t y p e gas, the reference velocity over the model is increased. It is difficult to generate a flow similar to that of the atmospheric boundary layer in a wind tunnel operated at very low wind speeds. Thus the effect of modifying the model's specific gravity extends the range of flow situations which can be modeled accurately. Meroney et al. [16] and Isyumov and Tanaka [17] found that F r o u d e number and volume flux equality provided conservative ground-level concentrations for b u o y a n t plumes. Skinner and Ludwig [18] obtained similar, elevated plume trajectories when flux Froude number and m o m e n t u m ratio equivalences were required. Scaling of the effects of heat transfer by conduction, convection, radiation, or latent heat release from entrained water vapor cannot be reproduced when the model source gas and environment are isothermal. Fortunately, for LNG plumes dispersing in a noncalm environment, the effects of heat transfer by conduction, convection, and radiation from the surroundings are sufficiently small that the plume b u o y a n c y remains essentially unchanged [12]. The influence of latent heat release b y moisture u p o n the plume's b u o y a n c y is a function of the quantity of water vapor present in the plume and of the humidity of the ambient atmosphere. Such phase-change effects on plume b u o y a n c y can be very pronounced in some p r o t o t y p e situations where large amounts of water vapor are entrained. Fortunately the China Lake site has very low humidity. The modeling of the plume Reynolds number is relaxed in all physical model studies. This parameter is thought to be of small importance, since the plume's character wilt be dominated b y background atmospheric turbulence soon after its emission. But, if one were interested in plume behavior near the source, then steps would have be taken to insure that the model's plume was fully turbulent.

Simulation o f the China Lake LNG spill plume The b u o y a n c y of a plume from a n L N G spill is a function of both the mole fraction of methane and temperature. If the plume entrains air adiabatically, then it will remain negatively b u o y a n t for its entire lifetime. A release of an isothermal high.molecular-weight gas will behave in a similar m a n n e r to a cold plume entraining air adiabatically, within small variations due t o differ. ences between the specific heat capacities of the source gas and air (see:discussion in preceding section). Hence, to simplify laboratory procedures, the equality o f model and p r o t o t y p e specific gravities was relaxed so that pure argon could be used as the source gas. Other high.molecular-weight gas mix-

tures are possible; h o w e v e r , a r g o n p r o d u c e s a favorable signal-to-noise ratio for the c o n c e n t r a t i o n p r o b e s used (see below). T h e equivalence o f m o m e n t u m flux ratios is n o t p h y s i c a l l y significant for a g r o u n d source released at low flow rates over a large area (as was the case f o r LNG released o n the China Lake test p o n d ) ; hence, m o d e l c o n d i t i o n s were stipulated o n the basis o f equivalence b e t w e e n d e n s i m e t r i c F r o u d e n u m b e r s and v o l u m e flux ratios. U n d i s t o r t e d scaling o f the velocity c o m p o n e n t s was m a i n t a i n e d , w h i c h implies u n d i s t o r t e d scaling o f source strength. Since the t h e r m a l l y variable p r o t o t y p e gas was simulated b y an isothermal s i m u l a t i o n gas, the c o n c e n t r a t i o n m e a s u r e m e n t s o b t a i n e d in the m o d e l m u s t be adjusted to the equivalent c o n c e n t r a t i o n s t h a t w o u l d be m e a s u r e d in the field. This scaling is necessary because the n u m b e r o f m o l e s released in a cold m e t h a n e p l u m e is larger t h a n the n u m b e r o f moles released in an isothermal p l u m e o f equivalent v o l u m e s o u r c e strength. Ideal-gas law b e h a v i o r leads to the relationship w h i c h is derived in [13] : Xp = Xm/[Xm (1 --Xm)Ts/Ta] w h e r e Xm is the v o l u m e (or m o l e fraction) m e a s u r e d d u r i n g the m o d e l tests, T s is the t e m p e r a t u r e o f the L N G source u n d e r field c o n d i t i o n s , and T a is the a m b i e n t air t e m p e r a t u r e u n d e r field c o n d i t i o n s . The full-scale source boil-off rate per u n i t area over the time d u r a t i o n o f a spill o f L N G o n w a t e r is highly u n p r e d i c t a b l e . As there were no data o n the variable areas and v o l u m e s used in the d i f f e r e n t L N G tests c o n d u c t e d at TABLE 1 Prototype conditions a Characteristic Test No. 18 Release diameter, D (m) Total release volume, VLNG(m 3) VLN G (at boil-off temperature) (m 3) Spill duration, At (s) Boil-off rates, ~ (kg s -~) Q (at boil:off temperature) (m ~ s -~) Wind speed, U, at a height of 2 m (m s-1) Wind direction Stability (Pasquill--Gifford category) Humidity (%) Reynolds number, U D/v, at a height of 2 m Froude number, U2/g(Ap/p)D, at a height of 2 m
= =

19 20 5.2 1184.5 59 37.4 20.1 5.1 260 C--D 29

20 20 4.5 1025 77 24.8 13.3 12.4 256 C 15

21 20 4.2 956.7 53 33.6 18.0 4.9 224 C 21

20 4.39 1000 67 27.7 14.9 6.7 214 C 16

8.8X 104 6.7X 106 1.6X 107 6.4)< 106 0.42 0.24 1.42 0.22

aTb.o. 111.63 K; PLNG 422.63 kg m-3; PNG (at boil-off temperature) = 1.86 kg m-~; Va= 1.526 X 10-s m2s-l;pa= 1.186 k g m 3.

China Lake, the source conditions were approximated by assuming asteady boil-offrate for the duration of the Spillovera constant area:Prototype and model conditions are specifiedin Tables I and 2.
TABLE 2 Model conditions a Characteristic Test No. 18 Release diameter, D(cm) Total release volume, V (cm s) Boil-off duration, a t (s) Boil-off rate, Q (cm ~ s-') Specific gravity Wind speed, U, at a height of 1.3 cm (cm s-') Wind direction Stability (Pasquill--Gifford category ) Reynolds number, -UD/v, at a height of 2.4 cm Froude number, U:/g(Ap/p )D, at a height of 2.4 cm 23.5 1625 8.7 186 1.38 60 214 D 9,400 0.42 19 23.5 1929 7.7 251 1.38 46 260 D 7,100 0~24 20 23.5 1669 10,8 166 1.38 112 256 D 17,200 1.43 21 23.5 1558 6.9 225 1.38 44
224

D 6,900 0.23
- 1 ) ] W ( l l L S ) 1/2 1)] v' ( 1 ] L S ) ~/~

apAr = 1.65 kg m-~; length scale ratio (LS) = 85; (Ua) m = [(SGra - 1 ) / ( S G p (Ua)p; t m = [ ( S G p - 1 ) ] ( S G m - 1)] w ( 1 / L S ) ~/" t p ; q m = [(SGm ~- 1 ) / ( S V p
Qp ; L m = ( 1 / L S ) L p .

Laboratory methodology S i m u l a t i o n m e t h o d s r e q u i r e d to p r o d u c e a m o d e l a t m o s p h e r i c b o u n d a r y l a y e r h a v e b e e n d e s c r i b e d in s o m e detail b y C e r m a k [ 3 ] . Special p r o c e d u r e s a n d e q u i p m e n t r e q u i r e d f o r m e a s u r e m e n t s o f d e n s e p l u m e s are d e s c r i b e d in M e r o n e y et al. [5, 6 ] .


Wind-tunnel facility

T h e e n v i r o n m e n t a l w i n d t u n n e l (EWT) at C o l o r a d o S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y was used f o r t h e LNG-spill t e s t series. T h i s w i n d t u n n e l , d e s i g n e d especially t o s t u d y a t m o s p h e r i c f l o w p h e n o m e n a , i n c o r p o r a t e s speeial f e a t u r e s s u c h as an a d j u s t a b l e ceiling, r o t a t i n g t u r n t a b l e s , t r a n s p a r e n t b o u n d a r y walls, a n d a l o n g t e s t - s e c t i o n (3.6 m w i d e 2.1 m tall 1 7 . 4 m long) t o p e r m i t r e p r o d u c t i o n o f m i c r o m e t e o r o l o g i c a l b e h a v i o r a t larger scales. M e a n w i n d s p e e d s o f 0 . 1 5 - - 1 2 m s-' can be o b t a i n e d in t h e EWT. B o u n d a r y - l a y e r d e p t h s 1 m t h i c k o v e r t h e d o w n s t r e a m 6 m can be o b t a i n e d b y using v o r t e x g e n e r a t o r s at t h e t e s t - s e c t i o n e n t r a n c e a n d surface r o u g h n e s s o n t h e floor. T h e f l e x i b l e tests e c t i o n r o o f o f t h e EWT is a d j u s t a b l e in h e i g h t t o p e r m i t t h e l o n g i t u d i n a l

pressure gradient t o be set at zero. F o r t h e p r e s e n t tests, the v o r t e x generators at t h e t u n n e l ' s e n t r a n c e were f o l l o w e d b y 10 m o f s m o o t h floor, and a 3 m a p p r o a c h r a m p t o a m o d e l o f the t o p o g r a p h y at t h e China Lake site. Models 1 : 85 and 1 : 170 scale models o f the China Lake t o p o g r a p h y were cons t r u c t e d for use in the EWT. T h e t o p o g r a p h i c relief o f the China Lake site is s h o w n in Fig. 1. A cylindrical p l e n u m m a n u f a c t u r e d with a p e r f o r a t e d u p p e r plate was c e n t e r e d in the m i d d l e o f the test-site p o n d . T h e source gas, argon, stored in a high-pressure cylinder, was directed t h r o u g h a solenoid valve, a f l o w m e t e r , and o n t o t h e circular-area s o u r c e m o u n t e d in t h e m o d e l p o n d . A l l source release c o n d i t i o n s were step f u n c t i o n s ; thus, their profiles can be r e c r e a t e d f r o m the d a t a in Table 1.

",

~o'.,

~,

7;

o,

,, (i/..,., ,
i

/-~

X8

'/

'

-'" ~

,/"

NWC r

"

"

~ ~

./

/ '

,, I'

L Test locations

~'~

.....

-,,
'~

w,

reference

~o,evotion : 2 m~

~ / ,

(225 )

SW

Scale

20 ~

3ore J

F i g . 1. T o p o g r a p h y

of China

Lake

test site.

Wind profiles and turbulence measurernents Velocity profile measurements and reference wind speed conditions were obtained using a Thermo-Systems Inc. (TSI) Model 1050 anemometer and a TSI Model 1210 hot-film probe. Turbulence measurements were made with this sytem for the longitudinal velocity c o m p o n e n t and with a TSI split-film probe connected to t w o TSI 1050 anemometers for both longitudinal and vertical c o m p o n e n t measurements. Since the voltage responses of thesc anemometers are nonlinear with respect to velocity, a multipoint calibration of system-response versus velocity was utilized for data reduction. Concentration measurements The concentrations of methane produced during an LNG spill are inherently time dependent. It is necessary to have a frequency response to concentration fluctuations of at least 50 Hz to isolate peaks of methane concentration greater than 5% by volume (the lower flammability limit (LFL) of methane in air); hence, an aspirating hot.film probe was used for this study (see Fig. 2)
Oetad A

o--_
1 2

~vacuurr~ co:necbor~..

TWO a l u m i n a

( 50

coaIe~ ~rn

not ala

fllrP

sensors

zT

tuJ
--

0.46

cm

Dla

~,

,4

4 6 C rF~

j_

i~

--

14 c m . . . .

~1

x Uetal~ A

Fig. 2. Hot-film aspirating concentration-probe. The basic principles governing the behavior of such a probe have been discussed by Blackshear and Fingerson [ 1 9 ] , Brown and Rebollo [20] Kuretsky [21], and Jones and Wilson [22]. A vacuum source sufficient to choke the flow through the small orifice just d o w n w i n d of the sensing elements was applied. Only one of the two films in this special p r o b e was an active element for the measurements o f concentration in the present study.

This film was operated in constant-temperature mode at a temperature above that of the ambient air. A feedback amplifier maintained a constantoverheat resistance through adjustment of the heating current. A change in o u t p u t voltage from this sensor circuit corresponds to a change in heat transfer between the hot wire and the sampling environment. The heat transfer rate from a hot cylindrical film to a gas flowing over it depends primarily upon the film diameter, the temperature difference between the film and the gas, the thermal conductivity and viscosity of the gas, and the gas velocity [22]. For a film in an aspirated probe with a sonic throat, the gas velocity can be expressed as a function of the ratio of the probe crosssectional a~ea at the film position to the area at the throat, the specific heat ratio, and the speed of sound in the gas. The latter two parameters, as well as the thermal conductivity and viscosity of the gas, mentioned earlier, are determined by the gas composition and temperature. Hence, for a fixed probe geometry and film temperature, the heat transfer rate, or the related voltage drop across the film, is a function only of the gas composition and temperature. Since all tests performed in this study were for an isothermal flow situation, the film's response was a function only of gas composition. For probe calibration, argon--air mixtures of known compositions were passed through a heat exchanger to condition the gas to the tunnel temperature. These known compositions were produced from bottles of pure argon and pure air passed through a Matheson gas proportioner, or were drawn from a bottle of prepared gas composition provided by Matheson Laboratories. For an overheat ratio (temperature of film/ambient temperature) of 1.75, the voltage drop varies monotonically with argon concentration. Higher overheat ratios led to failure. The effective sampling area of the probe inlet is a function of the probe aspiration rate and of the distribution of approach velocities of the gases to be sampled. A calculation of the effective sampling area during all tests suggested that this area was always less than the area of the probe inlet, 1.88 cm:. Thus the resolution of the concentration measurements as applied to the China Lake site is ~ 1.6 m 2. The travel time from the sensor to the sonic choke limits the upper frequency response of the probe. At high frequencies the correlation between concentration fluctuations and velocity fluctuations (velocity fluctuations are a result of the changes of sonic velocity with concentration) at the sensor begins to decline. Wilson and Netterville [24] examined the operating characteristics of similar, small, aspirated concentration-sensors. They calibrated their sensors dynamically and found a flat response to ~ 200 Hz. The CSU aspirated probe was expected to have an electronic upper frequency response of 1000 Hz, but, to improve signal-to-noise characteristics, the signal was filtered at 200 Hz. This is well above the expected frequencies of concentration fluctuations. The errors caused by the assumption of piecewise linearity between calibration points in the reduction of the concentration data are approximately the

10 c o m p o n e n t value ( per c e nt argon) + 75%. T he errors caused b y calibration changes d u e t o t e m p e r a t u r e drift are ~ 0 . 1 % o f t h e c o m p o n e n t value per degree centigrade. Since t he t unnel t e m p e r a t u r e varies at most b y + 5C during a given t e s t period, the m a x i m u m error due t o t e m p e r a t u r e drift w o u l d be 0.5% o f the c o m p o n e n t value. Final accumulated errors result in a confi dence level o f + 0,8% m e t h a n e at measured levels near 2.5%. Test program results Summaries o f t he p r o t o t y p e and model test conditions for the LNG spill tests 18, 19, 20 and 21 p e r f o r m e d during the fall o f 1978 at the China Lake Naval Weapons Center are presented in Tables 1 and 2, respectively. All dimensions r e p o r t e d for the wind-tunnel results are in the equivalent full scale values. Th e co o r di nat e origin f or all figures is the LNG spill p o i n t (see Fig. 1). T h e positive x-axis is in the direction o f the prevailing wind.

Characteristics o f the modeled boundary layer Measurements of the approach-flow characteristics were obtained for the m o d el flow over the China Lake scale t opography. These characteristic length and velocity scales should be comparable with those e x p e c t e d t o occur over t h e China Lake site. Counihan [25] has summarized t h e values o f a e r o d y n a m i c roughness z0, longitudinal-velocity integral length scale Ax, and t he power-law index 1/n th at m a y be e x p e c t e d to oc c ur in the atmosphere. Table 3 compares values o f these quantities as cited by Counihan and values scaled up f r o m the model tests. Figures 3 and 4 show t he profiles of mean velocity and local tu r b u len ce intensity, respectively. Profile measurements were not available f o r the field measurements.

TABLE 3 Summary of approach-flow characteristics Parameter z 0 (m) Field dataa 0.01 -0.15 0.143-0.167 12.0 --30.0 1 --2 Model values 0.017 0.18 14.5 5.1

1/n Ax (m) at a height of 2 m Az (m) at a height of 2 rn


aSee ref. 25.

Test series results T h e China Lake boil-off rate, boil-off duration, and wind speed for the LNG tests 18 and 19 were simulated in t h e ~ using:a s m o o t h floor~ T h e same tests were t h e n r e p e a t e d , b u t this time the t o p o g r a p h y o f t he China

11

16

u( z )

o.1,

12lO
8
N N

LNG-18 U(Zref)=6 7 m/s LNG-19 O(Zret,)= 51 m/s L NG-20 Q(Zref)=124rn/s

e~

LNG-21 U (Zref)= 49 m/s

/ e !

6 4
2

"# " ~"l * '' ]i


"
e

0.5

1.0

1.5

U(z)/0 (z,,,,)
Fig. 3. V e l o c i t y profiles.

16 14
12 10

Zref = 2 meters

"~7~- 6
N

I I ~ ~ 00 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20 0.25 0.30 0.35 a,,(Z)/O (Z)


_

Fig. 4. Local l o n g i t u d i n a l t u r b u l e n c e i n t e n s i t y profile.

L a k e site was i n c l u d e d * . T h o r o u g h c o n c e n t r a t i o n m e a s u r e m e n t s d o w n w i n d w e r e o b t a i n e d f o r t h e s e f o u r tests. A s u m m a r y o f t h e test c o n d i t i o n s f o r t h e f o u r tests is p r e s e n t e d in T a b l e 2. C o m p a r i s o n s b e t w e e n t h e similar tests, o n e


* U n f o r t u n a t e l y , t h e w i n d d i r e c t i o n s p r o v i d e d b y t h e field investigators w e r e in error. T h e s e t w o t e s t s were re-run in a final t e s t series.

12

performed with the model topography a n d one performed using a smooth floor, revealed that the dispersion :at the China Lake site is greater than would be experienced if the spill occurred in a very smooth and flat area. Finally, concentration measurements d o w n w i n d were obtained for the simulated LNG field tests 18, 19, 20, and 21. A summary of the field conditions simulated is presented in Table 1. A summary of the model conditions for these tests is presented in Table 2. Ground-level peak concentration contours for each test are shown in Fig. 5--8. These contour lines were produced
T e s t - r u n No. LNG-18 ( N o of grid points=18) circled numbers ar e LLL field values

"\ :o%,os ;
\'\ ,

,
\'

I]))
, ,

6-

10 '-2'o

.30 . . . . . .4Q . . . . . . . .5Q . . . . . . .6.0. . . . . .70 ......8 . .0.


China lake scale (m)

90

100

110

120

130

140

Fig. 5. Model test 18: ground contour plot of peak concentration.


Test-run No. LNG-19 (No of grid points =12 ) circled numbers ape LLL field values

lo
i

20
i

3b

4O

'

;o

do

do

90

'

l&

~lb

1~o

A_

130

140

China lake scale (m)

Fig. 6. Model test 19: ground contour plot of peak concentration.

13
Test run NO. LNG-2Q (No of grid points= 47) circled numbers are LLL field vdlues

~ 1

1~

~o

do

40 '

4o

do

40

~o

~o

100

1110

120

130

140

China lake scale (m)

Fig. 7. Model test 20: ground contour plot of peak concentration.


Test run No LNG-21 (No. of grid points =91 ) circled numbers are LLL ~ / ~ ~ Test \ \. ! I I I 1 ~

field

values

Ot~

10

210

40

60 70 80 China lake scale (m)

510

90

100

110

120

130

140

Fig. 8. Model test 21 : ground contour plot of peak concentration. by hand interpolation between 18 to 91 grid points over the model. The grid spacing was varied from experiment to experiment to reflect expected plume behavior. A summary o f the times of arrival, peak concentrations and passage of the plume, and the maximum peak concentrations observed is tabulated in ref. 13. Comparison with field data As part o f the China Lake field-test series, field concentration measure-

14 ments were obtained over two independent measurement grids. The Naval Weapons Test Center established a grid of ten different concentration-measurement stations, and the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory (LLL) provided eight towers with a variety of concentration sampling equipment [25]. The primary purpose of the L L L grid was sensor evaluation. Both these grids are indicated in Fig. 1. The degree to which data modeled physically correlate with values obtained in the field is dependent upon the approximations assumed in the formulation of the model and upon the inherent randomness of atmospheric diffusion processes. The assumptions employed in the construction of the physical model of LNG vapor dispersion at the Naval Weapons Test Center were discussed above. The randomness of wind directions and velocities in the atmosphere is such that a single time-realization for a fixed point in space is insufficient to describe the complete probability distribution of peak concentrations that may be observed at t h a t point. Without ensemble-averaging of similar tests in the field, the values f o u n d during a single realization may range over a limited portion of an u n k n o w n probability distribution. Pasquill [ 27] noted that in m a n y circumstances of practical interest the uncertainty found between continuous releases of gaseous plumes may be at best 10-50% in the average and a factor of two or more for individual data [26]. In addition to the small-scale effects of local randomness, the atmosphere has large-scale variations which lead to meandering of the mean plume motion. These large-scale meanderings are not modeled in wind tunnels, and lead to the primary source of discrepancy between model and field concentration measurements. The Naval Weapons Test Center grid consisted of ten different concentration sensors. These instruments were all of the catalytic combustion type. The principle of operation of these instruments is that a hot catalytic filam e n t causes methane passing over it to oxidize, and the rise in temperature due to the reaction changes the electrical resistance of the filament. These detectors are accurate only for low (below 7%), slowly varying methane concentrations. Table 4 compares peak concentrations observed in the field at the Naval Weapons test grid points with those obtained for the wind-tunnel model. This comparison is in general quite poor. There are several factors which may account for this scatter in comparable data over several orders of magnitude. They are: (1} the mean wind direction specified for each wind-tunnel test m a y have been in error, owing to the large shifts in wind direction during the field experiments; (2) the fluctuations in direction t h a t occurred during the + o field tests were as large as - 5 0 (physical modeling of large wind-direction fluctuations is not possible in a wind tunnel); (3) the wind speed observed in the field changed by as much as -+1.8 m s-1 during the tests (this a m o u n t of fluctuation can account for variation by ~ 50% in measured, concentration values); (4) the peak concentration fluctuations in the field tests were too rapid for the catalytic sensors t o r e s p o n d ; (5) the field concentrations were

15

TABLE 4 S u m m a r y o f p e a k c o n c e n t r a t i o n d a t a at t e s t - p o i n t l o c a t i o n s f o r m o d e l a n d field e x p e r i ments Location T e s t N o . 18 Field Model T e s t N o . 19 Field Model T e s t N o . 20 Field Model T e s t No. 21 Field Model

China L a k e Naval Weapons Grid


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 >5% >5% >5% >5% 0.7 0 4.0 0 0 0.3 5.9 5.3 4.1 4.0 3.6 1.7 7.6 6.4 0 0 >5% >5% 0.75 >5% 0 0 0 0 >5% >5% 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 20.8 0 1.6% 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.4% 1.8% 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8.8 2.5 1.6% 1.6% 0.7 1.6% 0.6 0.3 2.1 0 0 0 19 24.7 10.6 17.7 12.3 6.1 4.3 10.8 4.0 1.5

Lawrence Livermore Lab. Grid


1 2 3 4
5

42.5 41.0 23.0 38.0


--

>40.0 a >40.0 -32.0 - 7.0

46.0 33.0 26.0 21.0


--

>50.0 a -50.0 -10.0 -15.0


0

22.0 35.0 -11.0


--

>20.0 a -19.0 - 0 - 2.5


0

64.0 36.0 33.0 34.0


28.0

>50.0 a >50.0 -35.0 -25.0


-27.0

6 7 8
a

----

16.4 0.0 8.1

~ -

8 0 0

12.75 0.6 1.9

~ -

0.8 0 0

10.5 5.3 --

-10.0 ~12.0 - 5.0

A p p r o x i m a t e v a l u e s o n l y ; m o d e l d a t a w e r e n o t o b t a i n e d at t h e e q u i v a l e n t L a w r e n c e Liverm o r e grid sites.

t o o large for the catalytic sensors to respond; and (6) the approximations used in simulating the LNG field-test series were t o o weak to achieve proper simulation. The Lawrence Livermore L a b o r a t o r y obtained concent rat i on time histories at a variety o f different heights on their eight towers equipped with concentration sensors [ 2 6 ] . Several different types of sensors were employed. Each o f these d e t e c t o r responses was verified by simultaneous grab-bag sampling of the gases flowing over the sensor. This technique provides an accurate m e t h o d of verifying that the different sensors' responses were correct. The peak field concentrations obtained from the lowest sensor elevation at each of the eight towers are summarized together with approxi m at e model values in Table 4. Since the response times of the various instruments utilized by Lawrence Livermore L a b o r a t o r y (grab samplers, thermocoupling aspirated

16 batherometers, infrared analyzers, etc.) were only several seconds, concentrations were essentially measured instantaneously. A peak concentration is defined as the m a x i m u m value detected during the nonstationary variation o f the plume concentration as it passes a given sampler. Nonstationary wind conditions made any analysis of arrival time, departure time, or mean concentration meaningless. Multiple plume-release replications over the China Lake model revealed that peak concentrations were reproducible to within a small range (+5%}; hence this property was chosen for the model/field comparisons despite the uncertainties outlined early in this section [27]. Since flammability depends upon instantaneous stochiometric composition, peak concentrations were also o f m a x i m u m interest to the sponsor. As concentrations over the model were n o t obtained at the Lawrence Livermore grid sites, the values noted for model equivalents are only approximate. These values were obtained by interpolation of the hand-drawn ground-level peak concentration contours in Figs. 5 8. On these figures the circled numbers are the peak concentrations observed in the field on the Lawrence Livermore grid. The correlation between the Lawrence Livermore data and the model data is generally superior to t h a t between the Naval Weapons Test Center data and the model data. There remain, however, a number o f sampling points where poor agreement exists. Considering each model test point individually for case 18, reasonably comparable results, i.e. within 50% of the field values, are found for the near-field grid points 1, 2, and 3, and poor comparison for grid point four. The reason for these discontinuities in field/model comparisons may be any combination of the factors mentioned previously. In this case the differences appear to be caused by the small number of measurem e n t locations in both field and model tests, and the variability o f wind direc tion in the field. For case 19 the quality of the comparison between the model and field data is n o t as good. The decays of concentration with distance from the source appear to agree, but the directions of the plume appear to be different. This result suggests a difference between the wind direction in the field data and t h a t modeled. Here again, as in case 18, an insufficient number of model or field measurement locations were used to define the concentration field properly. In case 20 the comparison between the field and model results again appears poor. The laboratory model predicts that at the higher wind speed (12.4 m s-1 at 2 m) for this case, the LNG plume has very little lateral spread, whereas the field measurements showed significant concentrations at large distances from the plume's mean axis. This suggests large variation in the wind direction or an error in the mean wind direction. For this test and test 21 a sufficient n u m b e r of measurement locations were used to define the model ground-level contours properly, i,e. 47 and 91 points, respectively. Of the four tests modeled, test 21 shows the greatest comparability between the model and field results. All measurement locations can be considered to give

17 a c c e p t a b l e c o m p a r a b i l i t y considering t h e v a r i a t i o n o f w i n d d i r e c t i o n and v e l o c i t y in t h e field and t h e i n s u f f i c i e n t n u m b e r o f field d a t a points. Conclusions A series o f s i x - c u b i c - m e t e r liquid n a t u r a l gas ( L N G ) spills w e r e p e r f o r m e d in 1 9 7 8 at the C h i n a L a k e Naval W e a p o n s Center, CA. A parallel set o f m o d e l e d spills were s i m u l a t e d in m e t e o r o l o g i c a l w i n d - t u n n e l facilities to p r o v i d e field-test p l a n n i n g i n f o r m a t i o n , to e x t e n d t h e value o f t h e limited set o f field m e a s u r e m e n t s , a n d t o evaluate t h e c o n c e p t o f physical m o d e l i n g o f L N G p l u m e dispersion as a p r e d i c t i v e h a z a r d analysis tool. C o m p a r i s o n o f m e a s u r e m e n t s o v e r 1 : 170 and 1 : 85 scale m o d e l s o f t h e China L a k e site w i t h field m e a s u r e m e n t s revealed t h a t : (a) w h e n t h e wind field c o n d i t i o n s w e r e nearly s t a t i o n a r y , t h e r e s u l t a n t p l u m e s t r u c t u r e was r e p r o d u c e d b y t h e m o d e l p l u m e w i t h i n field i n s t r u m e n t r e s o l u t i o n ; (b) m e a s u r e m e n t s m a d e o v e r 1 : 170 a n d 1 : 85 scale m o d e l s p r o d u c e d similar c o n c e n t r a t i o n v a r i a t i o n s w h e n scaled b y t h e d e n s i m e t r i c F r o u d e n u m b e r ; and (c) t o p o g r a p h y e f f e c t s are significant. M o d e s t hill slopes o f 1 : 10 can d e t a i n dense p l u m e s a n d r e d u c e t h e l o n g i t u d i n a l distances c o v e r e d b e f o r e d i l u t i o n to t h e l o w e r flamm a b i l i t y limit o f f l a m m a b l e gases. Shallow valleys a n d gorges c h a n n e l the p l u m e a n d sustain high c o n c e n t r a t i o n s . Acknowledgments T h e a u t h o r s wish to a c k n o w l e d g e t h e financial s u p p o r t o f t h e U.S. C o a s t Guard, Department of Transportation Contract DOT-CG-75279-A. References 1 R.N. Meroney and D.E. Neff, Behavior of negatively buoyant gas plumes emitted from an LNG spill, Proc. 6th Australas. Hydraul. Fluid Mech. Conf., Adelaide, Australia, December 5--9, 1977, pp. 472--475. 2 American Gas Association, LNG Safety Program, Interim Report on Phase II Work, Report on American Gas Association Project IS-3-1, Battelle Columbus Laboratories, OH, 1974. 3 J.E. Cermak, Applications of fluid mechanics to wind engineering, a Freeman Scholar lecture, J. Fluid Eng., Ser. 1, 97 (1975) 9--38. 4 J.E. Cermak, Application of wind tunnels to investigation of wind engineering problems, Am. Inst. Aeronaut. Astronaut. J., 10 (1979) 679--690. 5 R.N. Meroney, D.E. Neff and J.E. Cermak, Wind tunnel simulation of LNG spills, Proc. Am. Gas Assoc. Transmission Conf., Montreal, Canada, May 8--10, 1978, pp. T217--T223. 6 R.N. Meroney, Physical modeling of atmospheric dispersion of heavy gases released at the ground or from short stacks, Proc. 10th Int. Tech. Meet.-on Air Pollution Modeling and Its Application, Rome, October 23--26, 1979, pp. 689--699. 7 J. Sakagami and M. Kato, Diffusion and vapour rise of methane vapour from a real source in air stream, Nat. Sci. Rep. Ochanomizu University, Japan, 19 (2) (1968) 59---66.

18 8 G.J. Boyle and A. Kneebone, Laboratory Investigation into the Characteristics of LNG Spills on Water, Evaporation, Spreading and Vapor Dispersion, Shell Research Ltd., Report to American Petroleum Institute, March 1 9 7 3 9 T.G. Hoot and R.N. Meroney, The behavior of negatively buoyant stack gases, 67th Ann. Meet. Air Pollution Control Association, Denver, CO, June 9 13, 1973, Pap. No. 74-210. 10 D.J. Hall, C.F. Barrett and M.O. Ralph, Experiments on a Model of an Escape of Heavy Gas, Warren Spring Laboratory Rep. LR217 (AP), Department of Trade and Industry (U.K.). 11 D.E. Neff, R.N. Meroney and J.E. Cermak, Wind Tunnel Study of the Negatively Buoyant Plume Due to an LNG Spill, Fluid Mech. Wind Eng. Rep. CER76-77DEN~ RNM-JEC22, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO. Also P.T. Harsha, LNG Safety Program Topical Report: Wind Tunnel Tests of Vapor Dispersion from Land Facilities, R & D Associates, CA, RDA-TR-1100-002, for Am. Gas Assoc. Project, IS-128-1, August 1976 (available from Natl. Tech. Inf. Serv., Springfield, VAk 12 R.N. Meroney, D.E. Neff, J.E. Cermak and M. Megahed, Dispersion of Vapor from LNG Spills -- Simulation in a Meteorological Wind Tunnel, Report prepared for R & D Associates, CA, Fluid Mech. Wind Eng. Rep. CER76-77RNM-JEC-MM57, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO. Also Liquified Natural Gas Wind-Tunnel Simulation and Instrumentation Assessments, U.S. Dept. of Energy Rep. SAN/W136401, Contract No. EE-77-C-03-1364, April 1978 (available from Natl Tech. Inf. Serv., Springfield, VA ). 13 D.E. Neff and R.N. Meroney, Dispersion of Vapor from LNG Spills -- Simulation in a Meteorological Wind Tunnel of Spills at China Lake Naval Weapons Center, CA. Fluid Mech. Wind Eng. Rep. CER78-79DEN-RNM41, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO; U.S. Coast Guard, Dept. of Transportation. Contract DOT CG-75279-A (available from Natl. Tech. Inf. Serv., Springfield, VA). 14 J.A. Fay, Gravitational spread and dilution of heavy vapor clouds, 2nd Int. Syrup. on Stratified Flows, Trondheim, Norway, June 24--27, 1980, pp. 421 494. 15 A. Lohmeyer, R.N. Meroney and E.J. Plate, Model investigations of the spreading of heavy gases released from an instantaneous volume source at the ground, Proc. 1 l t h NATO/CCMS Int. Tech. Meet. on Air Pollution Modeling and Its Applications. Amsterdam, The Netherlands, November 25--28, 1 9 8 0 pp. 303--320. 16 R.N. Meroney, J.E. Cermak and B.T. Yang, Modeling of atmospheric transporl and fumigation at sharefines, Boundary Layer Meteorol., 9 (1975) 69--90. 17 N. Isyumov and H. Tanaka, Wind tunnel modelling of stack gas dispersion - - Difficulties and approximations, in J.E. Cermak (Ed.), Proc. 5th Int. Conf. on Wind Engineering, Fort Collins, CO, U.S.A., July 9--14, 1979, Pergamon, Oxford. 18 G.T. Skinner and G.R. Ludwig, Physical Modeling of Dispersion in the Atmospheric Boundary Layer, Calspan Advanced Technology Center, Calspan Rep. No. 201, May 1978. 19 P.L. Blackshear, Jr. and L. Fingerson, Rapid response heat flux probe for high temperature gases, Am. Rocket Soc. J., 32 (1962) 1709--1715. 20 G.L. Brown and M.R. Rebollo, A small, fast response probe to measure composition of a binary gas mixture, Am. Inst. Aeronaut. Astronaut. J., 10 (1972) 649--752. 21 W.H. Kuretsky, O n the Use of an Aspirating Hot-Film A n e m o m e t e r for the Instantane. ous Measurement of Temperature, Thesis, M. Mech. Eng., University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. 22 B.G. Jones and R.J. Wilson, Gas concentration measurements with a temperature compensated aspirating probe, Proc. 6th Bienn. Syrup. on Turbulence, University of Missouri, Rolla, October 1977, pp. 205--210. 23 J. McQuaid and W. Wright, The response of a hot wire anemometer in flows of gas mixtures, Int. J. Heat and Mass Transfer, 16 (1973) 819--828. 24 D.J. Wilson and D.D.J. Netterville, A fast-response, heated-element concentration detector for wind tunnel applications, J. Wind Eng. Ind. Aerodyn., 7 (1981) 55--64.

19 25 J. Counihan, Adiabatic atmospheric boundary layers: a review and analysis of data from the period 1880--1972, Atmos. Environ., 9 (1975) 871--905. 26 R.P. Koopman, B.R. Bowman and D.L. Ermak, Data and Calculations of Dispersion on 5 m 3 LNG Spill Tests, Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, University of California, Livermore, CA, Rep. UCRL-52876 (available from Natl. Tech. Inf. Serv., Springfield, VA). 27 F. Pasquill, Atmospheric Diffusion, Van Nostrand, London. 28 R.N. Meroney, D.E. Neff and K.M. Kothari, Behavior of LNG Vapor Clouds: Tests to Define the Size, Shape and Structure of LNG Vapor Clouds, Ann. Rep. 1 9 7 9 1980, Gas Research Institute, Chicago, IL; Rep. No. GRI 7910073, Contract No. 5014-352-0203 (available from Natl. Tech. Inf. Serv., Springfield, VA).

Vous aimerez peut-être aussi