Integrity
New Methodologies, Technologies Help Protect Pipelines
Good practice in reducing risks to pipeline integrity, and taking quick and effective action when potential threats develop, have long been part of sound pipeline operation. However, new technology trends, including social media, are amplifying public concern around how pipeline operators manage environmental, social and economic impacts.
Protecting Pipelines From Catastrophic Effects of Earthquakes
On Dec. 26 a gas pipeline blast followed by a mild earthquake struck Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi, which will host the 2014 Winter Olympics. No one was hurt and there was no apparent damage to the city's infrastructure after a 5.2 magnitude earthquake was reported at 0242 local time. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, there are 14,000 earthquakes worldwide each year that have a magnitude of 4 or greater—700 of which occur in the U.S. and Alaska.
Lightning, The Costliest Threat to Oil Tankers and Refineries
Why is lightning so often overlooked when talking about protecting the oil and gas industry? Its effects on a refinery, storage tank or compressor station can be catastrophic.
NAPCA Convention Discusses Economy, Safety; Inducts Two Into Hall Of Fame
The 49th annual NAPCA convention met in Indian Wells, CA from April 24-27, featuring the highest attendance level since 2008 and honoring an unprecedented two new entrants into its Hall of Fame.
Risky Business: Safety compliance rules are changing. How will you respond?
Every energy company CEO has safety and compliance (or the lack of it) in the back of his mind as he goes through the day.
Hurricane Outlook Calls For Another Busy Season On Gulf Coast
Tropical storms and hurricanes are among the largest and most destructive weather phenomena on earth. In the continental United States alone, it’s estimated that tropical cyclones have caused an average annual damage of $10 billion since 1900, according to a study in the Natural Hazards Review. And lying in the paths of these monsters are thousands of offshore drilling platforms and thousands of miles of oil and gas pipelines.
Sounding The Cybersecurity Alarm
Cybersecurity. Executives now take it much more seriously than even a couple of years ago, as hackers continue wreaking devastating impact worldwide, with 40% of all attacks directed at oil and gas companies. Being victimized by exponentially more attacks aimed not only at just compromising systems, but also causing severe disruptions, stealing proprietary information and for financial gain, the time to take action was literally “yesterday.”
As NACE grows, new president focuses on education, global outreach
Benjamin Franklin once wrote that in this world the only certainties in life are death and taxes. Had the often prophetic statesman been born decades later and found himself working in the pipeline business, he most assuredly would have added a third area of guaranteed distress – corrosion.
Best Practices Project Management, Construction Of Gas Pipeline Project From Sichuan To Shanghai
The Sichuan-Shanghai Natural Gas Transmission Pipeline Project is the most significant gas pipeline built in China since the West East Pipeline was completed in 2005. The Sichuan-Shanghai pipeline is somewhat shorter than the West East Pipeline; however, its degree of difficulty in both design and construction makes it equivalent in stature.
Letter To The Editor: Thermal Spraying For Corrosion Control
A reader elaborates on another method of applying zinc coatings for corrosion control.
CGA Study: 48% Of Homeowners Forgo Calling 811
A survey by the Common Ground Alliance (CGA) found 48% of homeowners who plan to dig this year for projects that include landscaping, installing a fence or mailbox or building a deck, pond or patio, will put themselves and communities at risk by not calling 811 to learn the approximate location of underground utilities.
TransCanada Exec: Oil Lines Safer Than Rail
A TransCanada executive said opponents of the Alberta-to-Texas Keystone XL pipeline should consider one consequence of delays in building the oil pipeline - an increase in dirtier and more dangerous rail transport. Alex Pourbaix, president of energy and oil pipelines at the Calgary-based pipeline company, said although rail has an important role to play in moving oil sands crude to market, there are downsides to consider.
Editor's Notebook: No Winners
API’s annual liquids pipeline conference last month in sunny San Diego was instead a scene of uneasiness for many of those in attendance. Chided by federal regulators for a recent uptick in pipeline incidents, the conference really culminated with the terse announcement that there were no winners among large operators for API’s prestigious Pipeline Distinguished Safety and Environmental Performance Award.
Automation Software Finds A Home In Pipelines
It isn’t hard to find companies that traditionally would not be involved in pipelines taking an active role in the industry. When an executive who is arms-deep in software technologies finds a special liking for the energy business, and is located about as far away from pipelines as one can be in the United States, he, too, must be a special individual.
Managing Corrosion Of Pipelines That Transport Crude Oils: Part 2
With the intense controversy surrounding the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline construction, unprecedented attention is being placed on the transportation of unconventional crude oil products, in this case diluted bitumen originating in the vast tar sands of Western Canada.
Pipeline Remote Operations: The Human Factor
This article presents a primary justification for an Emergency Operations Center (EOC), the Human Element. Human Factors is a critical component in all safety programs, particularly PHMSA CFR 49 Parts 190-194, Pipeline Safety. It is a relatively new, but mature science and an increasingly mature engineering discipline in the process industries. It is also an area that is often overlooked and not well understood.
PG&Es Pipeline System: From Hell And Back
In less than three years, the San Francisco-based combination utility Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) has had to reconstitute its vast natural gas transmission and distribution system on a scale that is unprecedented for the U.S. pipeline sector.
Not If But When: CERAWeek On Cybersecurity
Oil and gas companies need to change their perspective on cybersecurity initiatives from one of incident-based response to a holistic approach more analogous to counterintelligence to prevent espionage, said experts attending IHS CERAWeek 2013, March 4-8. A two-part strategy to decrease exposure and mitigate possible consequences was recommended for a realm where the consensus was that some degree of infiltration is nearly inevitable.
Hot-Dip Galvanizing Vs. Zinc Electroplating
This article describes the two different process applications and quality-control aspects of zinc for corrosion control. A question often faced by engineers and material procurement personnel concerns making a choice between hot-dip galvanized material and zinc-electroplated options. The process, properties and quality-control issues of the two are discussed here in simple terms. This article also references typical applicable ASTM specifications.
Elements Of An Engineering-Based Integrity Management Program
Establishing pipeline integrity requires identifying specific threats, understanding their relationship to the condition of the pipeline, and establishing what mitigative measures are appropriate to assure integrity. The pipeline industry has relied on many years of research and experience to develop a set of tools to perform qualitative analyses of pipeline integrity. With the implementation of the Integrity Management Program (IMP) by the Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration (PHMSA), the analysis methods and results must be defendable and documented.
Battelle Acts On Corrosion Detection And Prevention
Corrosion is a widespread problem across many industries. Corrosion-related costs to the pipeline industry are estimated anywhere from $5.4 billion to $8.6 billion annually in a report by NACE and CC Technologies. These costs include failures, capital, and operations and maintenance.
Enhancing Internal Corrosion Direct Assessment Programs For Wet Gas/Dry Gas Pipelines
It’s been well documented that internal corrosion in gas, liquid and multiphase transmission pipelines is a significant problem that has caused extensive damage to pipelines and operating facilities.
Report Says Chevron Should Have Replaced Leaky Pipe
Government investigators found that a decades-old pipe that leaked and caused a fire at a Chevron refinery in California was corroded, and the company knew it should have been replaced.
Greg Harper Ready To Tackle Pipeline Issues
Every year it seems that change is the one constant we can be sure of in the natural gas business. As we continue forward with the Shale Gas Revolution, we are continuing to see opportunities develop that were little more than dreams just a few years ago.
Pipeline Integrity: Its Not Just Hardware
The integrity of pipelines is a matter of serious concern for those within the oil and gas industry, and for those watching from the outside as well. All the attention is, of course, fully justified.
California General Plans: What They Mean For Legacy Pipeline Management
Comprehensive land use planning gives local residents and interested stakeholders a chance to influence the management of future, anticipated community growth. But for pipeline owners, this planning process can carry other benefits and risks.
NiSource Outlines Long-Term Infrastructure Investment Plans
Following FERC approval of a customer settlement, NiSource’s Columbia Gas Transmission outlined plans for a five-year comprehensive pipeline infrastructure investment plan.
Managing Corrosion Of Pipelines That Transport Crude Oils
Oil and gas pipelines play a critical role in delivering the energy resources needed to power communities around the world. In the United States alone, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), more than 2.5 million miles of pipelines — enough pipeline to circle the earth approximately 100 times — deliver oil and gas to homes and businesses.
PHMSA Pressured to Turn on Pipeline Valves Rulemaking
A Columbia Gas & Transmission Corp. pipeline leak in West Virginia in December has reignited the debate over installation of automatic shutoff valves (ASVs) and remote control valves (RCVs) as a means of quickly limiting the potentially disastrous effects of a pipeline explosion and subsequent fire. The fire in Sissonville destroyed three homes and closed a section of a major highway for 14 hours.
A Pig Tale in Two Parts
People usually laugh when I tell them I chase pigs for a living. But the truth is that it’s very serious business - one which I have been perfecting for more than 25 years. I’ve tracked pigs in all kinds of pipelines, all over the world, and over the years I have seen all kinds of crazy things happen with pigs in pipelines. Probably the most important thing I’ve learned would be to expect the unexpected.
- Kinder Morgan Proposes 290-Mile Gas Pipeline Expansion Spanning Three States
- Three Killed, Two Injured in Accident at LNG Construction Site in Texas
- Tallgrass to Build New Permian-to-Rockies Pipeline, Targets 2028 Startup with 2.4 Bcf Capacity
- TC Energy Approves $900 Million Northwoods Pipeline Expansion for U.S. Midwest
- U.S. Moves to Block Enterprise Products’ Exports to China Over Security Risk
- U.S. Pipeline Expansion to Add 99 Bcf/d, Mostly for LNG Export, Report Finds
- Enbridge Adds Turboexpanders at Pipeline Sites to Power Data Centers in Canada, Pennsylvania
- Great Basin Gas Expansion Draws Strong Shipper Demand in Northern Nevada
- Cheniere Seeks FERC Approval to Expand Sabine Pass LNG Facility
- Heath Consultants Exits Locate Business to Expand Methane Leak Detection Portfolio
