Comprehensive Review of Research on Buried Gas Pipeline Leakage

This article comprehensively reviews research on leakage in underground buried (shorted as buried) gas pipelines. Studies in the literature related to numerical simulation, model research, and experimental studies are assessed by highlighting their achievements and identifying existing problems. Furthermore, this work emphasizes that most numerical simulation studies use commercial software for calculations without considering the actual fluid mechanics conditions of buried gas pipeline leakage. We point out a commonly observed theoretical misconception in the fluid mechanics representation of buried pipeline leakage. The characteristics of the pipeline’s environment and essential concepts related to gas seepage in the subsurface are elucidated. Our results suggest a return to research approaches based on Darcy’s law as a foundation. We outline a recommendation for promoting experimental research to gain a comprehensive understanding of underground leakage processes, in experimental research. Existing theories such as the flow model can be used to guide the work rather than to verify the experimental results.