Technology/R&D

Tips for Safe, Successful Horizontal Directional Drilling

Over the last 25 years, I have been involved with designing and inspecting horizontal directional drills (HDD) for pipeline construction, attending numerous seminars, purchasing many texts and reading countless white papers related to the subject. Of much more educational value (and fun) is the many hours spent on drilling sites, asking questions and listening intently to the folks running the drill.

John Deere

John Deere updated its line of rotary cutter attachments with the new RX72 and RX84, designed for heavy-duty vegetation management applications, including property maintenance and right-of-way clearing.

What's New

Sensaphone Sensaphone introduced a combination temperature, humidity and carbon dioxide (CO2) sensor that measures and provides real-time values to monitoring devices that accept a 4-20-mA or MODBUS signal. When the sensor registers that a monitored conditi..

Gas Pipe Upgrade Made Easy with Shur Stop

Spire Energy is a public utility serving more than 1.7 million customers in Alabama, Mississippi and Missouri, making it the fifth-largest publicly traded natural gas company in the United States.

Drones Become Additional Inspection Tool in Permian Basin

Data collection, inspections and safety within the basin have become increasingly important among oil and gas enterprises in the Permian Basin, and drone technology has emerged as a front runner to transform operations.

Buried Pipe Failures Dependent on Soil Stiffness, Too

Performance limits and potential failures must be identified for buried pipe design. Chief among those are excessive deformations of the pipe, wall buckling and collapse.

Control Centers at the Heart of Innovation, Advancement

Just as technology advances helped drive U.S. oil and gas producers to new heights, operators of the energy highways – the pipelines and their sophisticated control centers – are increasingly harnessing innovation to gain efficiency.

What's New

Juniper Systems Juniper Systems released the Mesa 3 Rugged Tablet. Built on the success of the Mesa 2, it grants users access to the Google Play Store, providing the data collecting, mapping and productivity applications needed. Mesa 3 operates on an octa-c..

Vacuum Lifting More Common Among Pipehandlers

Commonly, pipes are stacked several meters high in the shape of a pyramid, meaning that in order to attach lifting equipment, someone must climb the stack. This can be a dangerous situation; however, lifting by vacuum offers a solution.

Weldcote

Weldcote introduced its high-quality Slitter INOX-Prime grinder wheels, which offers excellent cutting speeds per cut with minimal burr and a smooth finish. The wheels are available in 4-1/2-inch and 6-inch sizes, with a standard 7/8-inch arbor hole. Designed for precise and quick cutting on high-qu..

Single Phase Power Solutions

Single Phase Power Solutions introduces the 50 HP 1-to-3 Microgrid Power Source, featuring a patented BELLE Motor with Written-Pole® technology to deliver three-phase power from single-phase utility service. The 50 HP 1-to-3 can be used to operate a 25-HP motor three-phase motor, and multiple other ..

Alliance Sensors

Alliance Sensors expanded its in-cylinder position sensor product line to include the MHP-7 series linear inductive sensors. These compact inductive linear sensors were designed to be installed into the rear endcap of hydraulic cylinders for operation at pressures up to 5,000 psig. Their 1-inch hex ..

ControlAir

ControlAir expanded its Type 2000 Electro-Pneumatic Valve Positioner Series to include worldwide safety approvals for use with natural gas when paired with the Type 950 Explosion-proof I/P Transducer. Mounted with ControlAir’s Type 950 Explosion-proof I/P Transducer, the equipment is CSA-, FM- and A..

Fluoramics

Fluoramics introduced an application tip for its 100-gram tube of Formula-8 thread sealant. The packaging makes it easier for users who require one-handed application. The extended tip also makes it easy to access hard-to-reach areas. Formula-8 is a shear-sensitive paste that sheets out into polytet..

Garlock

Garlock Pipeline Technologies (GPT) unveiled Evolution, an isolation gasket that features easier installation, tight sealing, high-temperature operation, no permeation, hydrotesting isolation, fire safety and chemical resistance. With a thinner, 1/8-inch design, Evolution minimizes the difficulties ..

Bionomic Industries

Bionomic Industries has released its Series 8500 High-Efficiency Venturi Scrubbers, designed to withstand the rigorous demands of mineral processing. The device features a spin separator specifically designed to take on and remove high particulate concentrations. Available in the proprietary ScrubPa..

All-Polymer Connector Delivered to 3 Operators

Subsea pipelines polymer-lining specialist Swagelining installed its LinerBridge connector technology for the first time within pipeline bundles at one of Equinor’s developments in the Norwegian North Sea.

Hot Tapping, Flow Stopping for Odd-Sized Pipes

Mainline Control Systems (MCS), in conjunction with Kleiss & Co., is offering utilities the technology and tooling to tap and stop flow on vintage piping materials and nonstandard-inch sized pipes.

Coarse Filtration Serving as First Line of Defense

For the oil and gas industry, coarse filtration of various fluids is critical to ensure reliable production, extend the life of midstream equipment and increase the intervals between backwashing or necessary maintenance.

Evolution of Ultrasonic Inline Inspection

Inline inspection (ILI) by means of intelligent pigging has become a standard application to ensure the safe operation of pipelines worldwide. Ultrasonic inspection tools have proven successful for crack and metal loss inspections of liquid pipelines.

Embedding Operating Procedures in Pipeline SCADA

The pipeline supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) operator has one of the most critical jobs in the pipeline industry and should be given all the help available to keep pipelines safe and liquid flowing. To this end, more than 25 years ago, a major oil company determined that SCADA-embedded operating procedures and safety features were needed to improve safety.

New Approach to SCADA for Modern Pipeline Operations

The oil and gas supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) market is expected to grow over the next five years because of increased demand for the remote management of pipelines and growing pipeline networks. The question is: What approach should your operation take when setting up your SCADA system?

Smart Pipeline Technologies Boost Safety, Regulatory Compliance

The application of smart pipeline technologies such as automation are bringing major operational and cost benefits to the oil and gas pipeline sector. These smart technologies are helping to maintain integrity of ageing assets, long-distance pipeline assets, unexpected cyber threats and an ageing workforce.

Why Industry Needs to Keep Its Pipe Dreams Flexible

Flexible pipes were initially applied offshore as “kill and choke” lines, but today are found in every major production basin worldwide and used in a variety of applications to keep production flowing efficiently.

NDT Announces Acquisition by Eddyfi

NDT Global has announced that it has been acquired by Eddyfi and will be rebranded to Eddify/NDT.

Transneft Diascan Inspected Over 55,000 Kilometers of Trunk Pipelines in 2019

Russian owned Transneft Diascan performed inspections of 55,400 kilometers (34,400 miles) of Transneft trunk pipelines in 2019.

Dräger

Dräger released its X-pid 8500 portable gas measurement device to the U.S. market. The gas chromatography-photoionization detector (GC-PID) allows selective measurement analysis of pre-determined compounds, such as benzene and butadiene, providing results in as little as 30 seconds. The device allow..

TT Technologies

TT Technologies offers the Grundoburst static pipe bursting system, which uses a specially designed bladed cutter head to make bursting ductile iron and steel pipe possible.  The systems range in size from 45 tons to 287 tons of pullback force and can be used to burst pipe from 4 to 48 inches. Grund..

Olympus

Olympus’ OmniScan instruments offer portable phased array ultrasonic testing (PAUT). The new OmniScan X3 flaw detector improves inspection workflow, setting up for a job faster and more efficiently.  Total focusing method (TFM) images are collected through full matrix capture (FMC), giving users mor..

Pure Safety Group

Pure Safety Group (PSG) unveiled its Guardian Fall Protection S1 safety harness, which is the first in a series of innovative new harnesses designed with three levels of features for various work scenarios. All harnesses meet OSHA standards, while exceeding ANSI standards. The S1 features steel hard..