The inaugural Unpiggable Pipeline Solutions Forum (UPSF) was held in March 2011. Organised by Clarion Technical Conferences and Tiratsoo Technical (a division of Great Southern Press), the event was supported by platinum sponsor Quest Integrity and gold sponsor AGR Group.

The programme, put together by an organising committee under the chairmanship Dr Keith Leewis of P-PIC (and including Mark Andrako of PECO Energy, Richard Kania of TransCanada Pipelines, Garry Matocha of Spectra Energy, Bryan Melan of Marathon Oil, Andrew Pulsifer of CenterPoint Energy, and Albert van Roodselaar of Chevron Energy Technology), brought together 17 papers of importance.

Some of the issues discussed concerned technology that was in use and proven, while other papers described new developments and solutions that were undergoing trials; there were also a number of useful and well-presented case studies. Table 1 summarises the papers and their categorisation from a commercial standpoint.

An important and well-supported aspect of the programme was the ‘workshop’ session in which the delegates were split into four groups and asked to discuss specific aspects of the unpiggable ‘problem’. Some of the outcomes of these discussions are outlined below.

Article continues below…

What word to use?

The discussion of the use of the word ‘unpiggable’ was enthusiastic among all four breakout groups, with a variety of views being eloquently expressed. In the end, however, it was voted that the word should remain as the descriptive noun, as it best describes the problem. These pipelines are not ‘un-inspectable’, and there are clearly some innovative technology solutions and new ideas that were described in the forum. It was pointed out that many difficult inspection projects can now be done, but there are operational and other constraints that make access quite difficult.

Communications

Two of the break-out groups suggested that new communication technologies such as LinkedIn also provide forums to encourage conversation and the sharing of ideas. Attendees were encouraged to see if this approach might help find a suitable solution for their difficulties.

Cleaning

The importance of cleaning prior to inspection could not be emphasised enough. Cleaning can be done at reduced pressure with depressurised wax removal, followed by a hot oil flush, for example. Black powder requires specific chemical cleaning solutions, and there are often environmental issues associated with cleaning. All agreed that inspection accuracy was dependent on cleanliness.

Future issues

Among the problem areas that required further research were:

  • Development of a more holistic approach to address risk-management;
  • Mechanism to reduce the pig velocity of pig where necessary (i.e. in elevation drops);
  • Analysis of the depth of cover during a pig run; and,
  • Use of direct magnetic response to determine wall profile through coating, etc.

The second UPSF will be held on 9 February 2012, as part of the Clarion/Tiratsoo Technical Pipeline Pigging and Integrity Management conference in Houston.

Later this year, an online unpiggable pipeline forum discussion group will be launched by Clarion and Tiratsoo Technical, in which all aspects ‘unpiggability’ can be discussed, and solutions proposed.