Freezing of water pipes in operation
Freezing of water pipes in operation
(OP)
Dear all,
I am trying to determine whether a water pipe in a cold climate can freeze even if the line is in operation continuously.
I understand that the water in a pipe not in operation (no movement) gets frozen quicker than the water in a pipe in operation (it's circulating) but I can't find some kind of relationship or equation to determine it. Any suggestion or idea?
Thanks in advance.
I am trying to determine whether a water pipe in a cold climate can freeze even if the line is in operation continuously.
I understand that the water in a pipe not in operation (no movement) gets frozen quicker than the water in a pipe in operation (it's circulating) but I can't find some kind of relationship or equation to determine it. Any suggestion or idea?
Thanks in advance.





RE: Freezing of water pipes in operation
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By the way, still water in your pipeline will not freeze quickly when under 0C- it takes a considerable undercool maybe -40C depending on the materials of pipe and their surface roughness and any solid contaminants in the water to seed freezing and then as it propagates the temperature quickly rises to 0C. That's why they use cloud seeders much lower undercool to freeze.
RE: Freezing of water pipes in operation
RE: Freezing of water pipes in operation
For stationary liquids I usually estimate the time for freezing a certain % of the water mass using ISO 12241, and was trying to find a reference or rule of thumb to know the impact of the liquid flow in the freezing time calculations.
RE: Freezing of water pipes in operation
David
RE: Freezing of water pipes in operation
Under some circumstances, water may not turn to ice even when the temperature is as low as 28 to 29F (around -2C) but as stated by others, this condition cannot be predicted.
Please note that water containing only ice particles may cause serious trouble because it can block a valve. So the problem is not a full freeze but even before reaching to this point. So it is recommended to keep the water few degrees above 0C to be on the safe side.
RE: Freezing of water pipes in operation