Stefan problem around a refrigerated buried cylinder: identification of principal parameters and development of a simple prediction method
Abstract The aim of this paper is to study the principal parameters influencing the thermal behaviour of the ground around refrigerated shallow buried pipes. Thermal behaviour is obtained using a numerical model of the two-dimensional Stefan problem. A finite-element enthalpy numerical method is used to solve the Stefan problem for different thermal boundary conditions, thermophysical properties and geometry. Thus the principle parameters influencing the thermal behaviour of the ground around the pipes are identified. A practical method is proposed. This method, applied to a specific refrigerated gas pipe, shows how the behaviour of the freezing/thawing interface during a period of time can be determined with precision.