Metering & Measurement
Gassco Changes Make Norway Gas Flows Harder to Gauge - Analysts
Norwegian gas pipeline operator Gassco launched a revamped data website this week that switches away from live physical flows, drawing criticism from analysts who say it has reduced transparency in a key energy market.
Dresser NGS Expands Product Line with Acquisition of Flow Safe
Dresser Natural Gas Solutions has acquired Flow Safe in a move that enables the Houston-based measurement and instrumentation provider to offer over-pressure protection for its natural gas customers.
Building a Gas Utility for Future Prosperity
Nicor Gas, the largest natural gas distribution company in Illinois with 2.2 million customers, is one provider that has embraced new opportunities by launching a robust meter modernization program.
Lost and Unaccounted For: Measurement Operations Adapting to Technology
With the advent of smart, electronic metering technology, such as ultrasonic meters and online gas chromatographs, the diagnostics information available at metering facilities has increased exponentially. Likewise, advancements in networking has made collecting the diagnostics data possible.
Using Pressure Regulators for Site Distribution in Natural Gas Pipelines
The purpose of codes covering higher-pressure natural gas distribution systems is to provide a basis of design for the pipeline and all the components connected to the downstream system, including valves, control valves, regulators, meters, pressure vessels and other components connected to the piping system.
Flexible Flow Meter Sector Positioning Itself for Better Times
Even though gas flow can be a difficult measurement to make, flow meter suppliers are continually identifying novel solutions for this task.
Aligning Operating Procedures with Land Management Orders
In 2016, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published revisions to the Oil and Gas Measurement Regulations (43 CFR 3170s) for conducting oil and gas operations on federal and native American lands.
Technology Meets Mega Rule Materials Verification Challenge Head On
With the implementation of the Mega Rule, U.S. pipeline owners and operators will be required to provide traceable, verifiable and complete (TVC) records that confirm the physical and operational characteristics of the pipeline meet the new requirements.
Correct Pigs, Procedures for Hydrostatic Testing of New Pipelines
Laying a cross-country pipeline is expensive. Many hours of engineering and planning must meet certain standards and regulations and receive federal government approval before starting construction. It costs approximately $100,000 per diameter-inch-mile to build a pipeline in a reasonable lay area. This number can easily triple in marsh lands, hills, mountains and rocky terrain. In those areas it could cost about $20 million to lay 100 miles (161 km) of 20-inch pipe.
For Inspection and Pressure, How Low Can the Gathering Sector Go?
As natural gas assets are beginning to age, there is a larger need for integrity solutions in this area. The challenge with these assets is that they often operate at lower pressures, which can make running a conventional inline inspection tool difficult.
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.
Our World Is Moving – And So Are The Pipelines
Strain assessments and pipeline movement assessments allow operators to identify and mitigate threats presented by geohazards.
Separating Pipeline Integrity Management’s Wheat from Its Chaff
Natural gas and hazardous liquids pipeline operators have been accumulating mass volumes of data for several years. But what to do with all this data? This is a question many natural gas pipeline operators are asking in advance of the highly anticipated Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration’s (PHMSA) proposed gas and gathering pipeline mega-rule.
Flow Meter Provides Dual Measurements in Single Body
The Transus Instruments UIM-4F Duo natural gas custody transfer ultrasonic flow meter consists of two independent fiscal flow measurements in a single flow meter body, enabling enhanced condition-based diagnostics in a space saving, compact package.
Emerson
Emerson released the Micro Motion 4200 2-wire loop-powered Coriolis transmitter, a new design that makes it possible to replace existing two-wire flow devices with minimal effort and without incurring additional power or cabling costs. The device can accommodate the largest line size (4-inch) of any..
Sercel-GRC
Sercel-GRC (GRC) recently sold the 1000th Spy Pro gauge for downhole ESP systems. Rated for 5,000 and 10,000 psi at 150 degrees C (302 degrees F), the device can record up to 11 parameters, used to monitor the ESP production system. This includes intake and discharge pressures, intake and motor temp..
Choosing Correct AMI System for Gas Utilities
The natural gas industry continues to build upon a customer-first approach and is always looking for new and better ways to operate. There’s no doubt, advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) systems have emerged as attractive solutions for local distribution companies (LDC) seeking to improve both customer and employee operations.
Looking to Lessen Fluctuating Flow Problems in Measurement
Good measurement practices suggest flow measurements should occur without instabilities or pulsations in the flow. Even minor inaccuracies in the measurement of high value products can lead to significant financial exposure over extended periods of time.
Using Computational Fluid Dynamics When Equipment Fails
The importance of accurate measurement cannot be under-estimated. In 2012, the oil price was above $100 per barrel, but only a year later, as oil prices began to decline, the average price of a barrel of crude oil was $91, dropping to $42 by 2015.
Oil Prices and the Flowmeter Market
The worldwide flowmeter market experienced a rebound in 2018, with this particular market having followed the upward and downward fluctuations in oil prices, traditionally.
Romet
Romet Limited introduced the AdEM CLICK, a direct mount index. The smart module attaches to any type of rotary gas meter for real-time measurements for utilities. New models are available, each with tamperproof, weather-resistant design that can, depending on the design, factor in pressure, temperat..
Emerson
Emerson is offering new meters and probes: the CMF-110 and CMF-118 flexible clamp meters and the FC-110 and FC-118 flexible clamp current probes. Available in either 10-inch or 18-inch flexible coil offerings, CMF series meter is a standalone device that measures true RMS AC current, AC voltage, res..
Inspecting Pipelines Using Dual-Conventional Transducers
Today, there are millions of miles of pipeline all over the world, and many of these systems are old. Pipelines transport energy (crude oil, refined petroleum, natural gas and biofuels to name a few) and other fluids to various markets across vast distances. The integrity of the pipelines is of paramount concern to ensure the safety of people and the environment.
Measuring Crack Defects with Sub-Millimeter Accuracy
Ultrasonic crack technology, using piezoelectric transducers, is a proven and widely used solution for crack and crack-like defect detection in liquids pipelines. Over the past 20 years, only minor developments and improvements in this area were offered to pipeline operators.
Alliance
Alliance Sensors Group introduced the SS-7 series linear variable inductive transducer (LVIT), designed for subsea environments. The transducer is embedded into a hydraulic cylinder and uses the gun-drilled piston rod as a target, sensing its position without the need for a magnet. The SS-7 Series c..
Technical Toolboxes
Technical Toolboxes released Version 19.0 of its The Pipeline Toolbox. The device features a range of improved calculations and applications, along with an embedded new license manager that strengthens security and enables better visibility. With its more than 230 pipeline-specific oil and gas appli..
Advanced Analytics Can Help Boost Pipeline Performance
Leveraging existing operational data as well as new data sources available as part of a digital transformation can provide great opportunities to significantly improve performance through better asset reliability, efficiency and safety performance.
Remote, Real-Time Monitoring Prevents Potential Problems
With utilities adding more and more residential and commercial endpoints to their distribution systems, the need to prevent and detect leaks has never been more challenging – or more critical. Thankfully, advanced technologies have emerged that allow utilities to harness new capabilities such as data analytics and remote monitoring to stay on top of leaks and address them before they create significant safety issues.
EAG
The EAG VOC Plus analyzer measures total VOCs from stationary sources with real-time continuous logging and multiple measurement ranges.
Human-Centric Approach to Improving Pipeline NDE Reliability
Non-destructive evaluation is essential to assure long-term integrity of existing pipelines, and human performance is a key element of the NDE process. This article summarizes an effort to identify human performance factors that influence NDE measurements and reliability.
