TRANSIENT ANALYSIS OF GAS-PIPELINE NETWORK

Traditionally, the governing equations for transient analysis of gas p ipeline network involve two partial differential equations, which are normally solved by complex numerical methods. Following the success of its application in the steady analysis of pipeline networks, the elec tric analogy method is extended by combining resistance and capacitanc e, which leads to a first order ordinary differential equation and an alternative route to solving the transient problem. Solving the propos ed first order ordinary differential equation has been shown to be muc h simpler than having to solve the set of partial differential equatio ns normally encountered in other transient models. It is found that th e results obtained are comparable to those obtained from the tradition al methods published in the literature. The proposed method is computa tionally efficient and is readily applicable as a method for design an d control of network systems. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science S.A.