06-02-2013

Leak monitoring of supercritical products and multi-product transport in pipelines

KROHNE is offering a series of lectures to provide an overview of the official guidelines, technical requirements and technologies behind modern leak monitoring systems for pipelines as part of the nationwide seminar series entitled "System and process solutions in the oil and gas industry” which starts on March 5. KROHNE will also present an overview at a lecture and workshop at the 8th Pipeline Technology Conference PTC from 18-20 March in Hanover.
 
Transporting materials via pipeline is a growing market all around the world. To take maximum advantage of these transport routes, there is growing interest in using pipelines to transport several products successively ("multi-product"). The transport of supercritical fluids such as ethylene, hydrogen and carbon dioxide is also on the rise: supercritical fluids feature high fluidity and are thus particularly suitable for transport through pipelines. As the volume of substances transported increases, so too does the significance of leak monitoring. Selecting a leak monitoring system is a very detailed process dependent on each individual case.
 
The PipePatrol leak monitoring system can be used for pipelines containing supercritical products and multi-product pipelines. With supercritical products, it is particularly important to include the thermodynamic equation in the leak monitoring system. KROHNE is currently the only supplier that can monitor supercritical products based on a model.
 
PipePatrol is a leading E-RTTM-based system for continuous internal leak monitoring of pipelines. RTTM stands for "Real-Time Transient Model“, a mathematical model that compares the measurements taken during the actual operation of a pipeline in real time with a computer simulation of the pipeline. KROHNE has been an established system supplier to the oil and gas industry for over 30 years and has expanded its range to include E-RTTM (Extended-RTTM) systems, which also feature leak signature analysis using leak pattern detection.
 
An E-RTTM leak monitoring systems creates a virtual image of a pipeline based on real measured data. Measurement values from flow, temperature and pressure sensors installed at the inlet and outlet of the pipeline and along the pipeline in places such as pump and valve stations are crucial. The flow, pressure, temperature and density at each point along the virtual pipeline are calculated from the measured pressure and temperature values. The model compares the calculated flow values to the real ones from the flow meters. If the model detects a flow discrepancy, the leak signature analysis module then determines whether it was caused by an instrument error, a gradual leak or a sudden leak. PipePatrol can process the dynamic values extremely quick and can therefore model transient operating conditions in the pipeline as well as steady state.