Stability study and modelling of a pressure regulating station

With the increase of gas consumption and the expansion of the associated distribution network, Gaz de France set up a research program to develop a methodology and a library of models to study the stability of any type of pressure regulator. The pressure level is controlled by pressure regulating stations. The objective of this study is to point out the working conditions that lead to instabilities. Some experiments and numerical simulations have been carried out to identify the relative influence of several parameters on the amplitude of oscillations. The definition of tests and their interpretation have been achieved using the experimental design approach. It turned out from measurements and simulations that the amplitudes of the downstream pressure are especially sensitive to the upstream pressure and to the size of the downstream volume. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.