Pipeline Inspection Gauges (PIGs) are used for internal corrosion inspection of oil pipelines every 3-5 years. However, between inspection intervals, rapid corrosion may occur, potentially resulting in major accidents. The motivation behind this research project was to develop a safe distributed corrosion sensor placed inside oil pipelines continuously monitoring corrosion. The intrinsically safe nature of light provided motivation for researching fiber optic sensors as a solution. The sensing fiber's cladding features polymer plastic that is chemically sensitive to hydrocarbons within crude oil mixtures. A layer of metal, used in the oil pipeline's construction, is deposited on the polymer cladding, which upon corrosion, exposes the cladding to surrounding hydrocarbons. The hydrocarbon's interaction with the cladding locally increases the cladding's refractive index in the radial direction. Light intensity of a traveling pulse is reduced due to local reduction in the modal capacity which is interrogated by Optical Time Domain Reflectometery. Backscattered light is captured in real-time while using time delay to resolve location, allowing real-time spatial monitoring of environmental internal corrosion within pipelines spanning large distances. Step index theoretical solutions were used to calculate the power loss due changes in the intensity profile. The power loss is translated into an attenuation coefficient characterizing the expected OTDR trace which was verified against similar experimental results from the literature. A laboratory scale experiment is being developed to assess the validity of the model and the practicality of the solution.
In the oil and gas industry, pipeline integrity is a serious concern due to the consequences of pipeline failure. External corrosion was identified as one of the main causes of pipeline failures worldwide. A solution that addresses the issue of detecting and quantifying corrosivity of environment for application to existing exposed pipelines has been developed. The proposed sensor consists of an electric circuit and a sensing array connected to the circuit. The sensing array is an assembly of strips made of a metal identical to that of the pipe, having the same length and width, but different thicknesses. The sensing array is exposed to the same environment as the pipe. As corrosion propagates in the metal strips of the array, it corrodes the metal until it finally breaks the metal strip apart resulting in a discontinuity in the circuit. The sensor circuit is energized using electromagnetic field, and its function is to indicate which strips in the array are fully corroded. Visual indication is provided to the operator via LEDs. The proposed sensor can be installed on existing pipelines without altering the pipe structure or disturbing the production process. It is passive and has low maintenance requirements. Circuit design was validated through lab experiments. Results obtained from experiments were consistent with simulation results.
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