subject: Keeping Things Flowing Safely with Pipeline Rehabilitation [print this page] Keeping Things Flowing Safely with Pipeline Rehabilitation
A pipeline serves as the lifeblood for a lot of different things. Oil companies pump billions of gallons of fuel from faraway places and use huge pipelines to transport oil to refineries for processing. Pipelines provide people access to clean water used for washing and drinking. Pipelines have also been used as main transportation in some places. In Germany, a giant beer tank distributes beer throughout several football stadiums through a pipeline over five kilometers long.
However, there are various factors that can damage these important transport systems. Harsh weather can cause damage such as rusting. Even underground pipelines that are protected from harsh surface weather are prone to rusting caused by groundwater and to structural damage caused by earthquakes. Time also takes its toll on pipelines, weakening them over the years. Leaks occur, spilling out precious oil or water that could have been used for a lot of purposes.
What's more, oil leaks can cause environmental disasters by poisoning the ground, while water leaks can cause the soil to soften, potentially causing structural damage in urban areas. People have died in pipeline explosions around the world. In 1998, a huge pipeline explosion killed over a thousand people in Nigeria.
To avoid such tragedies, pipeline rehabilitation experts are hired by companies to perform maintenance on old and new pipelines. The entire system is checked for signs of corrosion and structural damage. Upon detection, a crew is sent to the damaged area, where they can perform a variety of methods to repair pipeline.
Some maintenance crews use frp reinforced concrete to protect the pipe from leaking as well outside factors such as moisture. Reinforcing the pipe by wrapping it with FRP makes a pipeline more resistant to the effects of weather and outside moisture. FRP reinforced concrete also helps reduce the amount of leakage that comes from a damaged pipeline.
If a pipeline is too old to be repaired, pipeline rehabilitation companies can replace the old parts with newer, more durable pipes. The flow of substance is stopped either at the main valve or at a local control valve, depending on the location of the pipeline. The rehabilitation crew then dismantles rusty and damaged pipes before applying a sealant such as foam or resin. Before the sealant dries, replacement pipes are installed. Flow can be returned immediately, although in some cases, it takes some time before the sealant dries.
