Articles

With this issue you are holding a redesigned Pipeline Technology Journal in your hands. We have been developing this design for some time, so that the presentation of the journal conveys its content more effectively. As in all aspects of our business, the founder of the EITEP Institute and publisher of ptj, Dr. Klaus Ritter, was involved in every…

The phased array technique allows for a flexible adaption of the ultrasonic inspection techniques for a large range of applications. By using it in the area of pipeline inspection various inspection modes can be performed simultaneously. That was the reason for Baker Hughes (previously PII Pipeline Solutions) to develop an inspection tool based on…

Post in-line inspection (ILI) digs are essential tools in the integrity arsenal to validate and verify ILI tool performance and provide data for use in post-ILI integrity assessments. In addition, dig verification can be utilized to validate material properties, increase confidence in feature characterization or even replace previously lost…

For some years now, TRAPIL has been operating its XTRASONIC-NEO ILI tool which embeds phased array probes and enables the detection, location, identification and sizing of dents, metal loss and cracks anomalies in liquid product pipelines in a single run. This Phased Array UT tool is an emerging technology and makes possible a wide range of…

In-line inspection (ILI) is a pipeline assessment method used by operators to receive a comprehensive integrity assessment of their pipeline. However, ILI may become unfeasible due to factors such as insufficient flow/pressure parameters for propulsion, pipeline features such as valves, back-toback elbows and unbarred tees, as well as the lack of…

Seawater Injection is a well-known technique which helps in supporting oil recovery cost effectively by injecting treated seawater at high pressure in the reservoir. This injected water is delivered through water injection wells placed along the periphery of the entire oilfield reservoir. The water is transported to the wells by a vast high…

In recent years, the global pipeline community has made a lot of progress in detecting and locating theft activities. Technologies have been developed and applied to several pipelines worldwide. While these technologies are contributing significantly to the early detection and location of illegal tapping points, the key challenges vary from one…

What is your vision for the future? Does our world have to become even safer? Surely! There are an unbelievable number of opportunities to make our plants even safer. However, we have to redefine safety and dare to cut off old “braids”. Safety technology must become intelligent and adaptable to processes, and we must stop discharging hazardous…

Steel pipelines are capital-intensive, so their service life is critical. DENSO Group Germany impressively demonstrates the vital role that superior production technology plays in the operating life of a pipeline with the exceptionally long life of its three-ply corrosion protection tapes: even after 40 years in the field, the coating with a…

How the BIL-portal delivers significant value to an infrastructure-network carrier in efficiently processing planning and construction enquiries from third parties. A portal connection and communication process without media discontinuity leads to lower enquiry volume with simultaneously increasing number of relevant enquiries and allows digital…

For the past decades, helicopter surveys have been the state-of-the-art solution for right-of-way (ROW) monitoring to protect pipelines from third-party-interferences (TPI’s). When TPI activities damage a pipeline, it can lead to disastrous events. Therefore, aerial inspection early-warning systems are used to mitigate these risks. Recent…

Documentation and data on existing brownfield plants/pipelines are often outdated, inconsistent, and widespread across multiple sources and applications. Whether it be engineering documentation such as process flow diagrams (PFD), piping and instrumentation diagram (P&ID), piping isometrics, circuit diagrams, loop diagrams, or operation and…

Atmos International (Atmos) is continuously working with the pipeline industry to develop solutions to overcome operational challenges. Atmos Simulation (SIM) Suite is an op erational tool that users can trust to help operators run their pipelines safely, efficiently and with clarity and visibility. Atmos SIM Online, working in real-time,…

Today, still reeling from the effects of the pandemic, which we hope will soon be overcome, the focus is fortunately once again on the future. And to ensure that this one future does not just happen, we in the pipeline industry must do everything we can, to make the future as sustainable as possible. Together, we are challenged, each of us in our…

Depending on the local site conditions (i.e. bathymetry, geomorphology, geology), an offshore geohazard may have a detrimental impact on an offshore high-pressure gas pipeline during its lifetime. This fact is more pronounced in areas characterized by seismicity and the associated earthquake-related geohazards. Therefore, the design of an offshore…

In the Oil & Gas industry, pipelines often handle fluids which may be hazardous, flammable and/or toxic. Any interruption to operations for unplanned maintenance or operation activities is considered a risk of release of harmful energy or materials into the work area. Proper isolation of equipment is selected considering the nature of work…

Safety and compliance are priorities for the design and operation of pipeline pig launchers and receivers, also known as traps. During design, different codes and standards can be applied depending on the product that will be transported and where the equipment will be located. Because of code interpretation, an operator or equipment provider may…

In recent years, the issues of the environmental protection and nature conservation - and thus the question of regenerative energy sources - have become particularly important. STREICHER also holds the objective to reduce CO2 emissions in the future in order to reduce the ecological footprint. Therefore, the group has made it a primary objective…

The TANAP route runs 92 km through one of the world´s largest gypsum karst terrains, covering an area of 2140km² (Günay 2002; Doğan & Yeşilyurt 2019) located in the Turkish Province of Sivas. A fantastic place for the geologist but a big challenge for the routing and construction of a pipeline. Based on the morphology a karst classification,…

For the gas supply in Europe, a reliable pipeline network has the highest priority. Besides the construction of the main supply routes, the fast and safe installation of the regional country-specific distribution networks play a key role. Different points of view of all involved parties have to be considered when it comes to the planning of…

When people from other industries ask us about the most important activities in pipelines, we usually mention three areas. The first is Operational Risk Management, the second is Pipeline Integrity, and the third is Instrumentation and Process Control. The first is justified by being the one that tells us whether we can operate a pipeline or not;…

Pipelines are an important part of the Oil and Gas Industry, as they are the most economical method to transport different products through long distances to various consumers. These pipelines are cleaned an d inspected — without interrupting their operations — using utility scrapers and smart instrument scrapers, respectively. To track the…

In PETRONAS, there are on-going initiatives at petrochemical plants, gas processing plants, Upstream’s well engineering and retail business in pursuing the digitilisation in line with the Industrial Revolution (IR) 4. The aim of the initiatives is basically to improve the efficiency of critica l processes thus at the end will reduce overall cost…

The Oil & Gas pipeline industry is facing a very serious challenge in assuring spill and accident-free operations of pipeline infrastructure, which is distributed across many thousands of miles in both remote and populated areas. In recent years, however, the occurrences of high-profile spil ls and incidents have spiked, further escalating the…

The vibroacoustic system (e-vpms®) was designed by Eni S.p.A to detect and accurately localize spillages/leakages in crude oil and finite product pipelines, although has shown over the years the capability of detecting a wide class of Third Party Interferences phenomena. The reason of this high sensitivity is ascribable to the physical-acoustic…