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A study of accelerometer signal decay in small pipelines

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Abstract

Accelerometers are a powerful tool when it comes to leak detection, especially in small pipelines. The increase in accelerometer research related to leak pinpointing and detection has identified that vibration signals dissipate in an inconstant fashion based on the type and size of a pressurized water pipeline. This article presents a sensor system-specific approach to measure the loss in vibration signal from the source over the length of a given pipeline. The experimental work in this article spans one-inch and two-inch PVC pipelines as well as two-inch ductile iron pipelines. Experiments were carried out under controlled conditions to gather data. The collected signal data are analyzed and applied to a signal decay assessment model. Signal decay was significantly higher in ductile iron pipelines than in PVC pipelines. Additionally, two-inch pipelines possessed a higher decay per meter rating than one-inch pipelines, which indicates that diameter size affects signal decay as well. Finally, the results of the signal decay are then used in an example to propose a sensor distribution method based on the given medium where the sensor and the pipeline are placed.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge the support and aid provided by Mr. Fadi Mosleh for aiding in conducting the experiments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Engineering Management, University of Balamand, Tripoli, Lebanon

    Samer El-Zahab

  2. Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Lebanese University, Branch 1, Tripoli, Lebanon

    Ibrahim Jazzar

  3. Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, ZN716 Block Z Phase 8 Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong

    Tarek Zayed

Authors
  1. Samer El-Zahab
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  2. Ibrahim Jazzar
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  3. Tarek Zayed
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Correspondence to Samer El-Zahab.

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El-Zahab, S., Jazzar, I. & Zayed, T. A study of accelerometer signal decay in small pipelines. SIViP 16, 835–840 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11760-021-02025-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11760-021-02025-x

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