On the Existence of Steady States for Blended Gas Flow with Non-Constant Compressibility Factor on Networks

In this paper, we study hydrogen-natural gas mixtures transported through pipeline networks. The flow is modeled by the isothermal Euler equations with a pressure law involving a non-constant, composition-dependent compressibility factor. For a broad class of such compressibility models, we prove the existence of steady-state solutions on networks containing compressor stations. The analysis is based on an implicit representation of the pressure profiles and a continuity argument that overcomes the discontinuous dependence of the gas composition on the flow direction. Numerical examples illustrate the influence of different compressibility models on the resulting states.