Internal Mobile Sensor to Detect Water and Corrosion in Pipelines (NDE-1-5)

This final report aims to describe the test and validation of a mobile water sensor technology as a new integrity management tool that can supplement current expensive technologies for assessing the threat of internal corrosion to both piggable and unpiggable gas pipelines and to provide improved data sets for internal direct assessment determinations.The overall objective of the technology is to provide pipeline operators with a fully validated, low cost integrity management tool for accurate spatial detection of water holdups in piggable and unpiggable gas pipelines subjected to a wide range of pressures under various gas flow velocities and pipe geometries. Development of this new integrity management tool is also intended to directly improve reliability and safety of gas pipelines by assessing potential accelerated corrosion locations, so that mitigating actions can be implemented.

Key Results

Test results included in this report indicate that water can be detected under conditions that are anticipated to exist in actual gas pipelines. Additional field testing in gas pipelines is planned during subsequent phases that will be conducted outside of PRCI. The final report is under review for members only.