Hazardous Liquid Pipelines

Leak Detection Methodologies

Pipe Tech World Summit 2013

US Pipeline Infrastructure

Pipeline Integrity Management Components

In-line Inspection (pigging)
$1,000-5,000/km
Once every 5-7 years
Not well suited for gas lines
30% of liquid pipelines unpiggable

Leak Detection (continuous)

Uses SCADA and CPM
systems
Typically leak >1% of flow
False-alarms problematic

Leak Detection (aerial)

$50 70/km for once a year
<$15/km if done with monthly
visual flights
Guaranteed pipeline coverage

Direct Assessment (digging)

>$50,000/location
Method of last resort
Applied to un-piggable
pipelines

PIM
Program

Hydrostatic Testing
>$10,000s/km
Pipeline is out of service
Water disposal issues

Aerial Patrolling
$10-30/km
Usually performed monthly
Leak Detection (ground)
Visual/photographic assessment
>$100/km
of pipeline ROW condition
Once every 1-2 years
Private land access issues,
Note: Not a complete list
low quality control

Hazardous Liquid Leak Detection Systems

Internal continuous:

Leveraging sensors used for pipeline operation

(SCADA)
Computer models sometimes used to interpret
measurements (CPM)
Mass balance, pressure, flow

External continuous or periodic:

Requires installation of new sensors

Most technologies infer a leak from a secondary
physical effect
Acoustic
HC sensing using fiber optic
Temperature sensing using fiber optic
Liquid sensing cables
Vapour sensing tubes, sensors
Optical cameras

HL Leak Detection: Continuous SCADA/CPM

SCADA systems are widely deployed and the first
line of defense at detecting large leaks and
ruptures
Contrary to expectations, <50% effective at
detecting leaks (2012 PHMSA Leak Detection Study
DTPH56-11-D)

SCADA/CPM: HL Transmission Pipelines

Average release: 29,000 gallons

Largest release: 843,000 gallons
SCADA system in place: 77% (6% not installed)
CPM system in place: 44% (39% non installed)

SCADA/CPM: HL Transmission Pipelines

Initial Identifier, All Releases

SCADA/CPM: HL Transmission Pipelines

Initial Identifier, Above Average Releases

SCADA/CPM: NG Trans/Gathering Pipelines

Largest release: 615,000 MSCF

Average release (from pipe body): 30,000 MSCF
SCADA system in place: 89% (10% not installed)
CPM not typically deployed

Initial Identifier, All Releases

SCADA/CPM: NG Trans/Gathering Pipelines

Initial Identifier, Above Average Releases

SCADA/CPM Summary

100%

90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%

Above Average, Detected

10%

All, Detected

0%

CPM

HL Transmission

SCADA

HL Gathering
NG Trans/Gathering

HL Leak Detection: Acoustic

Array of sensors (microphones)
installed onto or close to the
pipeline
Used within smart pigs or balls

Can accurately pinpoint a leak location

Relatively limited coverage area (few miles)

HL Leak Detection: Fiber Optic Hydrocarbon Sensing

Detecting change in refractive
index of fiber mounted near
pipeline
Used as handheld probes or
continuous installation

Can accurately pinpoint a leak location

Relatively limited coverage area (few miles)
Expensive to retrofit legacy systems

HL Leak Detection: Fiber Optic Temperature Sensing

Detecting change in refractive
index of fiber due to temperature
changes

Can accurately pinpoint a leak location

Relatively limited coverage area (few miles)
Expensive to retrofit legacy systems

HL Leak Detection: Liquid Sensing Cables

Electrical cables buried
underneath pipeline
Liquid leak will change impedance
between two wires

Cheaper than fiber optic cables

Deployed over shorter distances and less
accurate than fiber optic
Impacted by other liquids (water)
Limited coverage area (few miles)
Expensive to retrofit legacy systems

HL Leak Detection: Vapour Sensing Tubes

Small diameter perforated tube
buried underneath pipeline
Air gas samples are drawn from
the tube and analyzed for
hydrocarbons

Deployed over very short distances

No pinpointing ability
Expensive to retrofit legacy systems

HL Leak Detection: Optical Sensing

Remote Sensing
Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR)
Gas Filter Correlation Radiometer (GFCR)

Remote Sensing of Hydrocarbons

Remote Sensing: Measuring properties of an object from

a distance, without physically sampling the object, by
detection of the interaction(s) of the object with an
electromagnetic (EM) field

Do not have to be in the plume of the leaked gas

Can detect in inaccessible areas (over-the-fence)

Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR)

Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR)

Gas Filter Correlation Radiometry (GFCR)

May Aug 2000 CO distribution

Real-time ammonia plume

Gas Filter Correlation Radiometry (GFCR)

realSensTM Technology - Platform Instrument

Canadian Space Program derived technology
$53 million in research and development
(Synodon $15 M to date, $1.5 M annually)
remote hydrocarbon detection from 300
meters altitude

27

Gas Leak Image Controlled Leak

Leak point
30 mi/hr wind

Gas Leak Image Facility Leak

Liquid Leak C5+

Liquid Leak C5+

Remote Sensing: Hydrocarbon Interference

Evaporation Rate of Open-Air Liquid Pools

EPA has published a formula that can be used to
estimate evaporation rates of liquids:

Hydrocarbon Evaporation Wind Tunnel

Used for controlled hydrocarbon evaporation tests

Pentane Evaporation Rate Test

Naphtha Evaporation Rate Test

Controlled Flight Tests

Field Testing Results
Pentane: < 0.04 lpm
Gasoline: < 0.2 lpm
Condensate: < 0.15 lpm

realSensTM HL Leak Detection

realSensTM detection limit dependent on volatiles

concentration
For hydrocarbons with 10% light ends <0.5 lpm
For a 100,000 bpd line, this would correspond to
0.005% of the flow, or 5 bpd
A typical SCADA/CPM system would detect a 1% leak
(1000 bpd) roughly 50% of the time (PHMSA Study)
realSens can detect leaks 200 times smaller than
SCADA/CPM

HL Leak Detection: Conclusions

SCADA/CPM are line of first defense but not 100%
reliable

Best Leak Detection Solution: continual

SCADA/CPM monitoring with periodic over-line
surveys and external sensors in critical HCA

Contact
Synodon Inc.
6916 Roper Road
Edmonton, AB, T6B 3H9
Tel: 780.468.9568
www.synodon.com

Adrian Banica
adrian.banica@synodon.com
Tel: 780.468.9568