Temperature Testing System for Buried Gas Pipes

High-density polyethylene, or HDPE, pipes are typically installed 18–36 inches below ground, where summer temperatures can exceed 110 degrees Fahrenheit in some areas. Southwest Gas is interested in quantifying the cooling effects of air moving through small-diameter HDPE pipes, and the goal of this project is to design and build a prototype system for testing 1-inch and 2-inch HDPE pipes. The test system varies the surrounding air temperature and the flow rate of the air moving through the pipe to user-defined values. Data is collected on volumetric flow rate, surrounding air temperature, and internal pipe pressure and combined with fundamental heat-transfer and pipe-flow knowledge to derive a temperature gradient denoting the cooling effect across the wall of the pipe.