Safety Monitoring of Buried Pipeline with Socket Joints Subjected to Ground Deformation Using MEMS Inclinometers

Abstract

Ground deformation, which is a common consequence of surface loads, construction activities, excavation work, subterranean cavitation, soil subsidence, and so on, poses a serious threat to nearby pipelines. This work proposes a structural health monitoring (SHM) system to evaluate the safety of buried pipelines with socket joints subjected to ground deformation. Using the developed wireless microelectromechanical system (MEMS)-based inclination sensors, this system has many advantages over the traditional leveling method, including real-time monitoring, high precision, low power consumption, and economic and labor efficiency. Field tests of a 12-m buried pipe with three socket joints were carried out to observe the pipe responses under surface loading. A simplified model for finite-element (FE) analysis was then proposed to simulate the mechanical behavior of the socket joint under axial force and bending moment, which has been verified to be effective to represent the rotation responses of the joint. Using this model, numerical case studies were conducted of the buried pipeline subjected to uneven ground deformation in the general form, based on which a safety monitoring strategy was presented to achieve the three targets of detection, localization of the interference, and evaluation of its effect on pipelines.