Large-scale physical model test on the influence of landslide hazards on oil and gas pipeline bending

Abstract Due to its wide distribution, the long-distance oil and gas pipeline will inevitably pass through the landslide risk area. And pipeline landslide disaster has become one of the biggest threats to pipeline safety because of its multiple. The field monitoring method is time-consuming and expensive, and the probability of monitoring the whole process of landslide pipeline disaster is extremely low, and these problems can be effectively solved by physical models. A large physical simulation platform of oil and gas pipelines influenced by landslide geological disasters was designed and established. Under different dip angles of landslides was conducted, and the changes of stress and strain pipeline, and soil displacement during the test process were monitored and analysed. The experimental results show: (1) the bending process of the pipeline can be divided into slow-bending stage, constant-speed bending stage, and accelerated-bending stage. (2) The tensile strain is produced back to the impact direction of landslide; the compressive strain is produced facing the direction of landslide. (3) When the pipeline is in the accelerated-bending stage, the pipeline stress presents a linear and rapid increasing state, and rebounds occurs after reaching the maximum. (4) At the centre of the pipeline, the strain difference between back and facing the direction of landslide increases continuously. These experimental results have obtained the pipeline deformation law in the whole process of pipeline landslide disaster, which can provide great help for the monitoring and early warning of pipeline landslide disasters on site.