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98367 Field Experiences Using FLIR Technology for Inspection of Pipelines in an Arctic Oilfield

Picture for 98367 Field Experiences Using FLIR Technology
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Product Number: 51300-98367-SG
ISBN: 98367 1998 CP
Author: Daniel E. Powell, Walt Remele, George Johnston
Industry: Oil and Gas Production
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Kuparuk, the second largest oilfield in North America, is located on the North Slope of Alaska. The piping and facilities are above ground, and are all insulated to minimize heat loss in the arctic environment. Although technically a desert, the pipelines are subject to external corrosion due to water within the insulation, caused by wind driven snow impacting the pipelines at the seams of the insulation (weld packs). The water accumulates until the pipeline is wetted. Weld packs have previously been inspected by a radiographic technique, with follow up removal of the insulation for visual inspections, if warranted. With over 60,000 weld packs at Kuparuk, a new method was sought to identify locations most likely to have external corrosion. Accordingly, Kuparuk has been field testing an aircraft-based FLIR (Forward Looking Infrared) camera as one method for rapidly seaming pipelines to identify excessive heat loss, which is an indication of wet insulation and possibly corrosion. Results to date have shown FLIR indeed offers rapid screening of weld packs, and can identify locations for follow up inspections by other techniques. Future work is planned to further determine the usefulness of FLIR as part of a comprehensive inspection program. Keywords: Arctic, external corrosion, wet insulation, polyurethane insulation, weld packs, infrared, FLIR, aircraft, pipelines
Kuparuk, the second largest oilfield in North America, is located on the North Slope of Alaska. The piping and facilities are above ground, and are all insulated to minimize heat loss in the arctic environment. Although technically a desert, the pipelines are subject to external corrosion due to water within the insulation, caused by wind driven snow impacting the pipelines at the seams of the insulation (weld packs). The water accumulates until the pipeline is wetted. Weld packs have previously been inspected by a radiographic technique, with follow up removal of the insulation for visual inspections, if warranted. With over 60,000 weld packs at Kuparuk, a new method was sought to identify locations most likely to have external corrosion. Accordingly, Kuparuk has been field testing an aircraft-based FLIR (Forward Looking Infrared) camera as one method for rapidly seaming pipelines to identify excessive heat loss, which is an indication of wet insulation and possibly corrosion. Results to date have shown FLIR indeed offers rapid screening of weld packs, and can identify locations for follow up inspections by other techniques. Future work is planned to further determine the usefulness of FLIR as part of a comprehensive inspection program. Keywords: Arctic, external corrosion, wet insulation, polyurethane insulation, weld packs, infrared, FLIR, aircraft, pipelines
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