Inspection

Integrated Corrosion Management of Oil, Gas Installations

Corrosion monitoring of oil and gas installation usually peaks during the operations/production stage, but each stage of the project is (design, construction, commissioning, operations, maintenance/shutdown time) is equally important for these facilities. The activities carried out during the design..

Orifice Meter Inspection - An Important but Forgotten Part of Measurement

You attended standards meetings and various measurement schools around the globe and met with your engineering peers to design the most cost-effective meter runs or meter stations. You believe everything is designed as best as it could be. The product is inspected prior to release and acceptance at ..

Automating Hydraulic Simulations of Large Number of Scenarios

As PG&E and other utilities perform unparalleled levels of safety-related work on gas transmission systems, frequent and complex pipeline system outages occur throughout the year. This safety work also carries the potential of pressure reductions due to previously undetected system anomalies in the ..

Safest Way to Perform Integrity Assessments

Pipeline operators and integrity engineers are facing increasing pressure from regulatory authorities and environmental groups to guarantee pipeline network integrity. This is why it is so important to understand the condition of their assets and perform the necessary inspections to correct potentia..

PECO Inspects 308 Miles of Natural Gas Main

PECO said it completed nearly 600 projects to enhance natural gas and electric service for customers during the first quarter of 2016. That work included inspection of 308 miles of natural gas main, completion of more than 1,700 valve inspections and replacement of  nearly two miles of natural gas m..

SoCalGas Finds Efficiencies in Large Pipeline Safety Project

In the current phase of the Pipeline Safety Enhancement Plan (PSEP), Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) and San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E) are testing and replacing about 175 miles of pipe and upgrading/installing over 450 shutoff valves throughout the system. There are nearly 200..

Intertek to Provide Inspection Services to the Jemena Northern Gas Pipeline Development

Intertek has been selected to provide third party inspection services to support the procurement of Jemena’s Northern Gas Pipeline (NGP) Project. The 623 km planned pipeline will connect Northern Australia’s vast gas fields to the east coast gas market, running from Tennant Creek in the Northern Te..

QS Energy's AOT Crude Oil Friction Reduction Hardware in Review

QS Energy, Inc. today announced its AOT (Applied Oil Technology) system will be benchmarked on a variety of super-light and ultra-light crude oil due to its ongoing positive evaluation on a major crude and condensate pipeline serving the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas. Designed to be installed adj..

NEB Says Mackenzie Gas Project Still in Public Interest

The National Energy Board (NEB) will move the sunset clauses for the Mackenzie Gas Project’s Mackenzie Valley Pipeline and Mackenzie Gathering System to Dec. 31, 2022. The extension to the sunset clause for the pipeline does not come into effect until it is approved by the federal government. In a ..

European Leak Detection Market Expected to Grow

Increased pipeline infrastructural investments coupled with high exploration and production activities in the oil and gas sector and high consumer demand for energy will propel growth in the European oil and gas pipeline leak detection market, according to a report issued by Research and Markets. T..

US Report: Rail Safety Violations Should Be Prosecuted

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. regulators are failing to refer serious safety violations involving freight rail shipments of crude oil and other hazardous cargo for criminal prosecution, and are going lightly on civil fines, according to a report released Friday by a government investigator. The Federal Ra..

Heat Exchangers Certified for Pipeline Components Cooling

Owners and operators of fuel and other energy pipelines are well aware of the changed regulatory environment in the wake of the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. As the public’s fears escalated because of the environmental damage and loss of life that followed the rig blowo..

Mobile Inspection Forms Cut Time, Maximize Accuracy of Audits

Recordkeeping increasingly is the linchpin for the safe, reliable construction and operation of energy pipeline systems. In both the aftermath of natural gas pipeline incidents and in the attempts to develop a more sophisticated safety culture that employs technology advances to expand preventive ma..

Automated Pigging Systems Prove Proficient in Savings, Energy Efficiencies

Pigging systems are installed on pipeline systems for the purpose of inserting a pipeline pig into the pipe without interruption of the pipeline flow. Pipeline pigs are typically sized to the nominal pipeline diameter and configured of different designs and materials to serve the purpose of cleaning..

Canada to Step Up Climate Scrutiny on Oil Pipelines

The Canadian government is set to impose stricter criteria for evaluating major energy infrastructure projects like oil and gas pipelines or liquefied natural gas export terminals. The federal government is reportedly planning on adding a “climate test” for proposed projects, an extra hurdle for la..

Industry Becoming More Comfortable with Excess Flow Valves

When I first joined the natural gas industry in 1981, excess flow valves (EFVs) were the most controversial issue in distribution pipeline safety. EFVs are simple devices installed in gas-service lines at the connection to the main that remain open under normal flows but close if a surge in flow exc..

Improving Pipeline Inspection Options for Inspectors, Contractors

One of the biggest obstructions to completing major pipeline construction projects on time and on budget, and with high quality, has been a shortage of experienced and qualified pipeline construction inspectors. Assurance of inspector qualifications, along with the application of a strong construct..

Mastering Inspection of Challenging Pipelines

Any inspection device used internally must be introduced into the pipeline to be investigated. This implies that the line is accessible. “Piggable” lines need suitable launchers and receivers and are generally inspected in a unidirectional mode. If tool traps are not available or suitable, access has to be achieved via other means. Accessibility can be achieved through technical and/or procedural means.