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11.4MechanicalProtectionSelectionGuideRoadtoSuccessIPLOCAWIKICollaborationPlatform

11.4MechanicalProtectionSelectionGuide
CreatedbyGuyHenley,lastmodifiedbyEmmaHachfeldonFeb17,2015

Asmentionedearlier,mechanicalimpactdamage
11.4.1ConcreteCoatings
isoneofthemostcommoncausesofonshore
11.4.2SandPadding
pipelineincidents.Pipelinesthusneedmechanical
11.4.3SelectBackfill(MechanicalPadding)
protectioninordertoavoidorreducethedamage
fromimpacts.Themechanicalprotectionneedfor
11.4.5MechanicalProtectionSelectionGuidelines
eachonshorepipelineprojecthastobe
addressed,wheneverpossible,atanearlystage
inthedesignand/orconstructionofthepipelinein
ordertoensuretheintegrityofthecorrosionprotectionsystem(s)andthusthelongtermpipelineintegrity.
Allthemostcommonexternalanticorrosionandinsulationplantandfieldappliedcoatingshaveanembeddedbasic
mechanicalprotectionpotentialcomingfromtheintrinsicdamageresistanceoftherawcoatingmaterials.Multi
layerexternalcoatingshavebeendevelopedtospecificallyimprovethebasicmechanicalprotectionpotentialofthe
singlelayerexternalcoatings.However,thebasicmechanicalprotectionpotentialthatcanbeobtainedata
reasonabletotalinstalledcost,evenbyusingmultilayerexternalanticorrosioncoatingssuchasthosedetailedin
section11.1,isratherlimited,especiallyduringpotentialhighimpactactivitiessuchasbackfilling.Forexample,
fieldtrialshaveshownthatevenwiththemostimpactresistantcoatingsystems,themaximumsizeofthebackfill
materialthatcouldbeusedduringstandardbackfillingshouldbenomorethan56cmindiameter*2.
Therefore,theonshorepipelineindustryhasfocusedondevelopingsupplementarymechanicalprotection
systemsthatincreasethedamageresistanceofthepipeandpipecoatingduringthevariousstagesoftheirlife
cycle.
Inthiscontext,asmechanicalimpactsfromdifferentsourcescanhappenatanytimeduringthelifeofapipejoint,
thesupplementarymechanicalprotectionsystemscanbecategorizedbasedonthetimehorizonoftheirprotection:
Protectionduringtransportationseparationpadsetc
Protectionduringhandling(loadinginandout)andstorageprotectionpads,sandberms,woodpadsetc.
Protectionduringinstallation(loweringin,backfilling)sandpadding,concretecoatings,nonwoven
geotextilesetc.
Protectionduringpipelinesservicelifeabovegroundpipelinemarkers,coatings,concreteslabsetc
Wholepipelifecycleprotectionincludingallstagesaboveselectedplantappliedconcretecoatings
Theexistingsupplementarymechanicalprotectionmethodsandsystemscanalsobeseparatedinseveral
categoriesbasedontheirlocationrelativetothepipe:
Abovegroundsystemspipelinemarkers,callbeforeyoudignumbers,separationorprotectionpadsetc
Buriedtrenchprotectionsystemstunnels,concreteslabs,steelplatesorwiresthatprotectordeny
accesstothepipelinetrenchetc
Buriedpipeprotectionsystemscanbeeitherprotectionsystemsthatprotectjustpartofthediameteror
lengthofthepipe(suchasfoampillows,sandbagsetc)orsystemsthatprotectthewholediameterand
lengthofthepipe(suchasplantandfieldappliedcoatings,sandpadding,selectbackfill[mechanical
padding],nonwovengeotextiles,rockshieldmaterialsetc)
Supplementarymechanicalprotectionsystemscanalsobecategorizedbasedonthelocationwheretheprotection
isappliedinaspecialisedfacilityorinthefieldbyaspecialisedcontractor.
Basedonthesecategories,forthepurposeofthisdocument,wearegoingtofocusonthesystemsthatprotectthe
wholediameterandlengthofthepipetheburiedtotalpipeprotectionsystems,bothplantappliedandappliedinthe
field.
Themostwidelyusedburiedtotalmechanicalprotectionsystemsintheindustryarereviewedinthenextsub
sections.Notethatthelistofsystemsdescribedbelowisnotexhaustive,asothersystemsarealsousedin
onshorepipelineprojects,butonamorelimitedscale.
*2Forsomeexamplesofsuchfieldtrials,pleaseseeOptimizationofPipelineCoatingandBackfillSelection,
EspinerR.,ThompsonI,BarnettJ,NACE,2003andothersimilarsourceslistedinthesectionsBibliography

11.4.1ConcreteCoatings
Concretecoatingswerecreatedtooffersupplementarymechanicalprotectiontothepipeandpipecoating.When
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appliedinaspecialisedcoatingplant,concretecoatingsaretheonlymechanicalprotectionsystemsintheindustry
thatprotectthepipeduringthewholepipelineconstructionprocess(transportationtoROW,temporarystorage,
handling,stringing,loweringin,backfilling)andtheentirepipelineservicelife.
Concretecoatingscanbeplantapplied(throughsidewrap,sprayingorimpingementprocesses)orappliedinthe
fieldasformandpourormouldedconcreteandarecoveredbytheENISO218095(draft)standard.Allconcrete
coatingsarereinforcedbyeitherwiremesh,rebarcagesordifferenttypesoffibres.Whilethereinforcedconcrete
coatingcoversthepipelength,itsfieldjointareasareprotectedbyeitherfieldappliedreinforcedconcrete,wire
reinforcedpolyethyleneopencellsheetsorwoodslats.Someconcretecoatingsarewrappedinaperforated
polyethyleneoutertapethatpreventsconcretespallingandallowscuring(thePEtapecanthenberemovedatthe
customersdemand).Theminimumthicknessoftheconcretecoatingsis67mm(fibrereinforcedconcrete),while
themaximumthatcanbeappliedis150mmforthesidewrapprocessandaround200mmfortheimpingementand
formandpourprocesses.Someofthefibreandwiremeshreinforcedconcretecoatingswithathicknessofupto
25mmarebendableaccordingtotheindustryspecifications1.5perpipediameter.Someofthefibrereinforced
andhigherthicknessconcretecoatingsarenotbendable,reducingtheirabilitytofollowtheterrainconfigurationin
thefield.

Fig.20Bendableplantappliedconcretecoating
Concretecoatingsoffersomeofthehighestmechanicalprotectionamongtheexistingsystemswhilsttakingup
littlespace.A25mmwiremeshreinforcedconcretecoating,forexample,offerstheequivalentimpactprotectionof
alayerof300mmofsandpadding.Someconcretecoatingsarecapableofresistingpenetrationfromtrenchbottom
outcrops,ifspecificpointloadingparameterssuppliedbytheapplicatorsaresatisfied.
Ifavailableintheprojectsregion,concretecoatingsofferthehighestflexibilitytopipelinedesignersand
contractors,astheyhavenolimitationsofuseintermsofterrainconfiguration(theyworkverywellonsteep
slopes),trenchmaterialtype(largerocks)orclimaticconditions(verycoldclimates),asalltheothersystemshave.
Whenappliedinaplant,theconcretecoatingsdonotdelaytheconstructionofthepipelinesanddonotrequire
additionalmaterial,equipmentormanpowerontherightofway.Ontheotherhand,whilereducingotherpipeline
constructioncosts,concretecoatingsincreasetheweighttobetransportedandhandledtoandontherightofway.
Nonbendableconcretecoatingsarealsolessuseful,asthecoatedpipecannotfollowtheterrainconfiguration.
Fieldappliedconcretecoatingisslow,candelaythepipelineconstructionandusuallycannotofferthequality
guaranteeofaplantappliedcoating.

11.4.2SandPadding
Sandbeddingandpaddingisoneofthemostfrequentlyusedsupplementarymechanicalprotectionsystemduring
thelastdecades.Thissystemonlyprotectsthepipeagainstimpactsduringitsloweringin,trenchbackfillingand
duringitsservicelifeafterinstallation.
Sandpaddingisappliedinthefield.Afterthepipelinetrenchisopened,sandorfinegravelisbroughtinusingsand
trucks,usuallyfromacommercialsandpitintheregion.Thefinematerialisdumpednexttothetrench.Afirstlayer
ofsand,thesandbeddingusually2030cmthickisthenplacedonthetrenchbottomforprotectionagainstrock
orotherhardoutcrops.Thepipeisthenloweredinandanotherlayerofsandorotherfinematerialisplaced
(padded)aroundandontopofthepipeusuallyanother2030cmontopofthepipe.Thetrenchbackfillisfinished
withsomeofthematerialexcavatedfromthetrenchandthetopsoil.Finally,thesurplusspoiltheoriginaltrench
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materialdisplacedbytheimportedsand/finegravel,suchasshotrock,cobbles,bouldersisusuallyremovedfrom
therightofwayanddisposedofatacostatadifferentlocation.
Thesandpaddingprovidesadequatemechanicalprotectiontothepipeandpipecoatingand,bychangingthe
thicknessofthetopsandlayercanwithstandbackfillimpactsfromvirtuallyanysizeoftrenchmaterial.Sandalso
offersacertaindegreeofprotectionagainstpenetrationfromtrenchbottomoutcrops,aslongasthereissufficient
sandtoensureoutcropsarenotindirectcontactwiththepipe.
Sandpaddinghassomelimitationsintermsofclimaticconditionssandcanfreezeinlargechunksincold
weather,makingpaddingmoredifficultorimpossible.Itsprotectioncanalsobeimpairedbysandwashoutson
steepslopesorinotherdrainingareas.
Sandpaddingneedsadditionalmaterial(sand),equipment(sandtrucks,paddingmachines),additionalmanpower
(truckdrivers,onebeddingteamafterthetrenchingteamandonepaddingteamafterthelowerinteam),space
(sandtruckaccessandsometimestemporarysanddumpareas)ontherightofwayandaddssurplustrench
materialdisposalcosts.

11.4.3SelectBackfill(MechanicalPadding)
Theselectbackfillmethod(alsocalledmechanicalpadding)wascreatedtooffermechanicalprotectiontothe
pipelinebytakingadvantageofthelocalmaterialthatwasexcavatedattheopeningofthetrench.Thismethod
protectsthepipeonlyduringitsloweringin,trenchbackfillingandduringitsservicelifeaftertheinstallation.
Theselectbackfill(mechanicalpadding)isappliedinthefield.Thelocalmaterialexcavatedattheopeningofthe
trenchisfedintothemechanicalpaddingmachine,whereitisscreenedbasedonsize.Thefinermaterialisthen
placedunder,aroundandontopofthepipeforprotectionagainstlargebackfillmaterialsthelayerunderandon
topofthepipeareeachusually2030cmthick.Thetrenchisthenclosedbyaddingtheremaininglargersizetrench
materialandthetopsoil.

Fig.21Mechanicalpaddingmachine
Theselectbackfillmethodprovidesadequatemechanicalprotectiontothepipeandpipecoatingand,bychanging
thethicknessofthetoppaddinglayercanwithstandbackfillimpactsfromvirtuallyanysizeoftrenchmaterial.The
biggestadvantageofthissystemisthatonlytheoriginaltrenchmaterialisused,andthereisnorequirementfor
importedfinematerials(sandetc).Selectbackfillhasthebestresultswithdrygranulartrenchmaterials.
Theperformanceofthissystemisreducedinregionswithwet,siltyorclaytrenchmaterials.Therearesome
limitationsintermsofclimaticconditionsmechanicalpaddingismoredifficultwhentrenchmaterialsarefrozen.
Thissystemisalsonotverypracticalonsteepslopesorareaswithreducedornorightofwayaccessfor
equipment.
Mechanicalpaddingneedsadditionalequipment(mechanicalpaddingmachines),additionalmanpower(padding
machineoperators)ontherightofway,aswellasadditionaltimeforsettingupanddemobilizingthepadding
machines.
11.4.4RockShieldandNonWovenGeotextileSystems
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RockshieldmaterialsarepolyethyleneorPVCbasedsolidsheetsoropencellextrudedpadsnonwoven
geotextilesareneedlepunchedpolypropylenefibrebasedrolls.Thesematerialsaredesignedtoprotectthepipeand
pipecoatingagainstdamageduringpipeloweringin,trenchbackfillingandduringthepipelinesservicelifeafter
installation.
Rockshieldandnonwovengeotextilematerialsareinstalledonthepipeinthefieldoutsidethetrench,inaspiral
cigarettewrapapplicationusingtapeorVelcrotosecuretheseam.Smallerdiameterpipescanbelongitudinally
wrapped.Rockshieldmaterialsareavailableinrollsofvariousstyles,sizes,thicknesses(usualrange611mmper
layerforrockshieldand414mmperlayerfornonwovengeotextiles)andtechnicalperformanceproperties.

Fig.22Nonwovengeotextilesinstalledonpipe
Rockshieldandnonwovengeotextilematerialsoffergoodmechanicalprotectiontothepipe,especiallyin
gravel/smallcobbletrenchmaterials:accordingtothesuppliers,thestrongestmultilayernonwovengeotextilescan
withstandimpactsfrombackfillmaterialupto10cmindiameterwithoutanydamage(holidays)totheanticorrosion
coatingorthepipe.Theydonotprotectagainstpenetrationfromtrenchbottomoutcropsandhavetobecombined
withothersystems(sand)inordertocreatesomedegreeofprotection.
Rockshieldandnonwovengeotextilesystemswillnotprovideadequatemechanicalprotectioninrockytrenches
andwithlargebackfillmaterial.Arockshieldcouldproducecathodicprotectionsystemshieldingifitisnotanopen
cellmaterial,while,basedontheinformationavailablefromtheindustry,theimpactofthenonwovengeotextiles
onthecathodicprotectionsystemisunclearandneedsfurtherresearch.
Installationofrockshieldsornonwovengeotextilematerialscouldslowdownthepipelineconstructionandneeds
additionalmaterial(rockshield,geotextilesheet),manpower(fieldinstallationcrew)ontherightofway,and
sometimesothermechanicalprotectionsystems(sand,selectbackfill).Costlywastagecanalsoariseiftherock
shieldsheetwidthdoesnotmatchthepipediameter.Theprotectionefficiencywillbedependentonthequalityof
thefieldinstallationcrewswork.

11.4.5MechanicalProtectionSelectionGuidelines
Inordertomakethemostinformedchoiceforthesupplementarymechanicaldamagepreventionandprotectionof
theonshorepipelines,thepartiesinvolvedshouldusethefollowingcategoriesofselectioncriteria:
Technicalperformancecriteriasuchastimehorizonoftheprotection(e.g.isthiswholelifecycle
protectionorjustprotectionduringinstallation?)impactresistanceduringbackfill(maximumallowable
backfillsize)resistancetopenetration(fromtrenchbottometc)flexibility(impactonpipecoldbending)
impactonthecathodicprotectionsystemetc.
Pipelinedesignandconstructabilitycriteriasuchaslimitationsintermsoftrenchmaterial,terrain
configuration,harshclimaticconditionsrightofwayallowanceandaccesslimitationsincreasedcontractor
risk(additionalequipmentandmanpowerneeded,constructiondelays,potentialfutureremediationcostrisk
etc)regulatorylimitations(pipelineoperatorspecifications,government/industrystandardsandregulations)
etc.
Environmentalcriteriaminimumimpactontherightofwayandsurroundingenvironmentduringpipe
transportation,handling,installationandservicelifeimpactcanbemeasuredbyvegetationloss,increased
erosionpotential,volumeofexcavatedandlandfilledtrenchmaterial,faunaandfloradisturbanceetc.
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Economiccriteriasystemavailabilityintheregiontotalinstalledcost(includingthematerialsupplycost,
butalsoallthedirectandindirectmechanicalprotectioninstallationcosts)
PleasefindinAppendix4atablecomparingthediscussedsupplementarymechanicalprotectionsystemsbasedon
thecriterialistedabove.
Intermsofselectionmethodology,basedonthecriteriacategoriesabove,andifthebasicmechanicalprotection
providedbytheexternalanticorrosioncoatingsisnotenoughfortheneedsofapipelineproject,thestakeholders
cantakeathreestepapproachinselectingtheoptimalsupplementarymechanicalprotectionsystemor
combinationofsystems(assomeofthesystemsdiscussedabovecanbecombinedforincreasedmechanical
protection):
1. Shortlistthepreferredsupplementarymechanicalprotectionsystemsorcombinationsofsystemsbasedon
thepipelineprojectspecificsandontechnical,design,constructabilityandenvironmentimpactcriteriasee
tableinAppendix1forhelp
2. Oncethemostinterestingsystemsorcombinationsofsystemsareselected,checktheavailabilityofthose
systemsintheprojectsregionorinaregionwitheasylogisticaccesstotheprojectsregion
3. Chooseamongtheavailableshortlistedsystemsorcombinationsofsystemstheoptionwiththelowest
totalinstalledcostorthebestcost/benefitratio
Theselectionofthesupplementarymechanicalprotectionsolutionshouldbedone,astheselectionofthemainline
andfieldjointcoatings,asearlyinthepipelinedesignandconstructionaspossible,inordertoensureconsistent
andcosteffectivecorrosionandmechanicalprotectionforthepipeline.
Althoughthegeneraltechnicalperformanceofthedifferentsupplementarymechanicalprotectionsystemsiswell
understoodintheindustry,werecommendthatfurtherresearchbedonetoclarifysometechnicalperformance
aspectssuchasthecomparativeresistanceofthedifferentsystemstopenetrationfromoutcropsinthetrench
bottom,revalidatethemaximumbackfillsizethatisallowedforthedifferentsystemsandtheimpactofincreasing
pipelineoperatingtemperatureontheperformanceofthedifferentmechanicalprotectionsystems.
Continuewith11.5InternalCoating
Backto11.3BendsandFittings
Backto11.PipelineProtectionSystems

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