Research on the simulation method of dynamic characteristics of hydraulic pipelines under water hammer impact

Water hammer is a common hydraulic phenomenon in industrial systems, particularly in aerospace and automotive applications. It occurs when fluid pressure inside a pipeline increases dramatically over a very short period, potentially causing loud banging noises, vibrations, and system damage. This paper first conducts an experimental study on the water hammer effect in a hydraulic pipeline of an aircraft, analyzing the characteristics of water hammer pressure and pipeline strain. A finite element model of the water hammer effect is then established for the experimental system, allowing for numerical simulations using AMEsim. Finally, the finite element model of the pipeline is created in ANSYS, and the strain responses are analyzed using the fluid-structure interaction (FSI) method, with the numerical simulation results from AMEsim as input conditions. The findings show that the numerical simulation results for water hammer pressure are in good agreement with experimental data, with most errors within 2% and a maximum error of 4.88%. The strain simulation results also demonstrate good consistency with the experimental data, with most errors within 4% and a maximum error of 7.56%. Finally, the fatigue damage and fatigue life of the pipeline under the conditions of water hammer fluctuations were analyzed.