Pipeline Inspection and Monitoring System

The MsS system can be used to inspect and monitor following pipeline structures:

• Piping systems in oil, gas, and petrochemical facilities
• Offshore piping systems/risers
• Power generation piping systems
• Road crossings/levee penetrations
• Elevated or complex piping systems with limited clearance
• Buried pipelines

As an example of pipeline inspection, a cased pipeline outside diameter of 10-3/4 inch and 0.843 inch wall under a highway was tested as shown in the photograph. The pipeline was bent (via a 15° miter joint) and then crossed another road in a casing. The lengths of cased section under the highway and the other road were about 253 and 53 feet, respectively. The MsS probes were set up 10.2 feet from the closer end of the highway casing pipe, and the line was inspected using 32-kHz, torsional guided wave.

The test data was analyzed and reported using MsS data analysis and reporting software. The software calculates the wave velocity, attenuation, and the equivalent percentage reflection to find detected signals and indicate their location and severity. The percentage reflections of defects and geometric features are roughly proportional to their cross-sectional area relative to the pipe wall. The table summarized the geometric features and defects found from the data. No defect bigger than 2% cross-sectional area was found in this test, and the pipeline was determined to be in good condition.