Assessment of Steady and Unsteady Friction Models in the Draining Processes of Hydraulic Installations

The study of draining processes without admitting air has been conducted using only steady friction formulations in the implementation of governing equations. However, this hydraulic event involves transitions from laminar to turbulent flow, and vice versa, because of the changes in water velocity. In this sense, this research improves the current mathematical model considering unsteady friction models. An experimental facility composed by a 4.36 m long methacrylate pipe was configured, and measurements of air pocket pressure oscillations were recorded. The mathematical model was performed using steady and unsteady friction models. Comparisons between measured and computed air pocket pressure patterns indicated that unsteady friction models slightly improve the results compared to steady friction models.