Numerical Validation and Multiphysics Characterization of Progressive Degradation in Oil Pipelines Using a Simulation-Driven Virtual Twin

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@article{1722691,
      author = {Nwanukposi Nonso Emmanuel, Udeh Kingsley Chetachuwku, Edhebe Oghenero James},
      title = {Numerical Validation and Multiphysics Characterization of Progressive Degradation in Oil Pipelines Using a Simulation-Driven Virtual Twin},
      journal = {Iconic Research And Engineering Journals},
      year = {2026},
      volume = {10},
      number = {2},
      pages = {3665-3676},
      issn = {2456-8880},
      url = {https://www.irejournals.com/formatedpaper/1722691.pdf},
      abstract = {Pipeline integrity assessment requires reliable representation of the interacting hydraulic, thermal, mechanical, and corrosion processes associated with progressive degradation. In environments where extensive real-time sensing is limited, physics-based simulation provides an alternative means of generating virtual measurements; however, the reliability of such information depends on the numerical stability and physical consistency of the underlying model. This study evaluates a COMSOL Multiphysics-based virtual pipeline under normal operation, partial blockage, corrosion hotspot, and leak-induced pressure-drop conditions. A one-meter carbon-steel pipeline section was modelled using a two-dimensional axisymmetric representation. Parametric and transient simulations generated 2,000 operating cases containing inlet pressure, outlet pressure, flow rate, temperature, wall shear stress, and corrosion rate. Numerical reliability was evaluated through solver convergence, mesh refinement, parameter-bound verification, and physical-consistency checks. All retained simulation cases met the specified solver tolerance, while peak wall shear stress and maximum temperature varied by less than 0.9% between the two finest mesh configurations, indicating practical mesh independence for the selected observables. Correlation analysis showed strong associations between corrosion rate and inlet pressure (r=0.84), wall shear stress (r=0.72), and temperature (r=0.72). Mutual-information analysis ranked corrosion rate highest at 0.46, followed by temperature at 0.41, inlet pressure at 0.37, outlet pressure at 0.35, wall shear stress at 0.28, and flow rate at 0.22. The findings demonstrate that the developed simulation environment provides numerically stable and physically interpretable operating states suitable for virtual sensing and simulation-driven pipeline-integrity assessment.},
      keywords = {Virtual Twin, COMSOL Multiphysics, Pipeline Integrity, Numerical Validation, Corrosion, Wall Shear Stress, Virtual Sensing.},
      month = {August},
      doi = {https://doi.org/10.64388/IREV10I2-1722691}
  }