Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 17, 2026

Mechanical Expansion of Steel Tubing as a Solution to Leaky Wellbores
Published on: November 20, 2014
The Effect of Heterogeneous Backfill Soil on Leakage Behavior of Hydrogen-Blended Natural Gas Pipelines
Jiuqing Ban1,2, Xin Wang3, Li Zhou1,2
1Natural Gas Research Institute, PetroChina Southwest Oil and Gas Field Company, Chengdu 610213, China.
Abstract:
Soil characteristics have a decisive influence on the leakage behavior of hydrogen-blended natural gas pipelines, the gas migration and diffusion laws, and the hazard range. However, existing studies are mostly limited to idealized and homogeneous soil conditions, failing to truly reflect the key restrictive role of the complex heterogeneity of backfill soil on the leakage and diffusion process. At the same time, there is a significant deviation between the diffusion mode of the leaked gas and the simulation results under normal homogeneous soil conditions. To obtain the physical property parameters of soil heterogeneity, this study adopted soil ring knife tests combined with the kernel density estimation (KDE) method for actual measurements, and used the heterogeneous soil parameters to modify the leakage model of buried hydrogenated natural gas (HBNG). The research results show that the heterogeneity of soil significantly affects the diffusion of leaked gas. The horizontal diffusion range of gas in backfill soil is 0.44 m higher than that in typical loam soil and 0.28 m higher than that in typical sandy soil; with the increase of hydrogen blend ratio (HBR), the mass flow rate of gas in backfill soil shows a downward trend; the average relative error between the gas mass flow rate prediction model established based on soil heterogeneity characteristics and the simulation results is 1.24%. The results of this study can provide numerical reference basis for the optimization of actual engineering schemes.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Major Losses in Pipes
Fluid flow can be classified as laminar or turbulent, primarily based on the Reynolds number. This dimensionless number reflects the relative influence of inertial to viscous...
Behavior of Gas Molecules: Molecular Diffusion, Mean Free Path, and Effusion
Permeability of Concrete
Minor Losses in Pipes
Valves play a significant role in generating minor losses by obstructing or redirecting the fluid flow. When a valve is closed or partially closed, it restricts the flow...
General Characteristics of Pipe Flow II
The distance to reach a fully developed flow is called the entrance length and depends on the...
Design Example: Flow of Oil Through Circular Pipes

