Hydrocarbon Pipelines Introduction

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Introduction

Transportation of liquids by pipelines has been used for thousands of years. The first
major exploitation and commercialization using pipelines started 150 years ago, and the
building of long distance, large diameter pipelines was pioneered in the 1940’s (Hopkins,
2007). Today’s pipeline industry has originated from the oil business that brought
considerable amount of profit to the energy producers and pipeline operators. In
addition to be one of the most environment-friendly and the safest means for oil and
natural gas transportation, pipelines have integrated in the components of national
security.

Pipelines are lifelines of the global oil/gas industry, providing most convenient, eco-
friendly, efficient and economical mode of transportation for oil and natural gas from
upstream production to downstream refineries, power station, industries, domestic
consumers and markets, crossing nations, oceans and continents. Pipelines are
underground highways which may involve higher cost initially but in the longer run
pipelines provide the most economic, safe and reliable means to transport products
from one place to another place compared to rail, road and marine transportations.

Pipelines can be broadly bifurcated into two types based on location of installation i.e.:

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 Onshore Pipelines

It covers all inland cross country pipelines which are not in offshore areas.
It includes the main pipelines, spur lines and feeder lines, crossings/other
features en route, associated despatch terminals, sectionalizing valve
station, compressor stations, pump stations, intermediate terminals and
receiving terminal facilities. The upstream and downstream handling
storage and process facilities are excluded from the scope of onshore
pipeline systems.

Offshore (Submarine) Pipeline

It covers all pipelines in offshore areas beyond the line of ordinary high
water, along that portion of the coast that is in direct contact with the open
seas and beyond the line marking the seaward limit of inland coastal waters.
It includes trunk lines, inter-field/ inter platform lines, lines from offshore
terminal to Land Fall Point, crossings/ other features en-route, associated
risers, subsea PLEMs, subsea isolation valves (SSIV)/ laterals and termination
at land fall point as applicable. The upstream and downstream facilities at
terminal ends are excluded from the scope of offshore pipelines.

This article introduces the key topics contained in the lifecycle of pipeline, such as pipeline
design, procurement, installation & testing and a fundamental basic understanding of
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pipelines.

Any pipeline system involves following different stages:

The design & engineering stage of the pipeline can be fragmented broadly into four
major phases i.e.:

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 Fig. Phases of Engineering and Design

[1] CONCEPTUALIZATION

1. Establishment of preliminary requirements

2. Identification of inlet location (Despatch Station) and outlet location
(Receiving Station)
3. Evaluation of alternatives
4. Finalization of the concept

[2] FEASIBILITY STUDY

1. Desktop study and preliminary selection of pipeline route

2. Development of schematic based on Pipeline facilities, Intermediate Station
3. Route Engineering and Route Reconnaissance by walking along the pipeline
route
4. Study of alternate routes
5. Development of Equipment Layout
6. Preliminary Wall thickness for pipeline
7. Stress Analysis
8. Hydraulic Studies & Optimization
9. Establishment of tentative Project Cost
10. Project Implementation Scheme
11. Environmental Impact Assessment & Risk Analysis, if required
12. Complete MTO of Pipeline System including stations

[3] BASIC ENGINEERING

1. Route Finalization - Surveys & Investigations

2. Process Design & Pipeline Sizing
3. Optimization Studies
4. Preparation of Basic Engineering Design Basis
5. Preliminary Selection of Pipes Parameters, such as Wall Thickness, Material
& Grade, corrosion protection and type of coating requirement etc.
6. Preparation of Route Maps, Layouts, Location Plan, Indicative Scope
Drawings etc.
7. Development of Implementation Schedule
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[4] DETAILED ENGINEERING

1. Preparation of Engineering Design Basis

2. Route Engineering
3. Engineering Analyses and Report
4. For Onshore Pipelines

– Wall Thickness Analysis

– Elastic Bend Radius Analysis

– Stability Analysis for Water Bodies/ Marshy Areas

– Horizontal directional drilling design

– Railroad/ Highway Crossing Analysis

– Casing Pipe Analysis for Crossings

– Seismic Design

For Offshore (Submarine) Pipelines

– Wall Thickness Analysis

– On-bottom Stability

– Free Span Analysis

– Global Buckling Analysis – Lateral and Upheaval

– Pipeline Expansion Analysis

– Pipeline Crossing Analysis

5. Preparation of Job Specifications & Job Standards

6. Engineering for Procurement for long lead items such as:
7. – Line pipes & coatings
– Scraper traps

– Valves

– Insulating joints

– Long radius bends

– Flow tees etc.

– Assorted Pipes

– Flanges and Fittings

8. Preparation of Installation Tender

9. Preparation of Drawings for Construction such as:
10. For Onshore Pipelines
– Alignment Sheets

– Equipment Layouts

– Crossing Drawings (such as rivers, highways, railroads, existing pipelines etc.)

– GADs (general arrangement drawings) for Terminals etc.

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 – GADs (general arrangement drawings) for Terminals etc.

– Station Approach Drawings

For Offshore (Submarine) Pipelines

– Alignment Sheets

– Overall Field Layout

– Riser Location Drawings

– Riser General Arrangement Drawings

– Clamps Drawings

– Pipeline Crossing Drawings

– PLEM/ Subsea lateral/ Tie-in Spool detail drawings

– Platform Approach Drawings

11. Review of Installation Engineering and Procedures

Following activities are required to be carried out for construction of onshore pipelines:

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Topographical survey & soil
investigation
Pegging
Bench Marking
Pipeline Centerline marking
Profile
Crossing identification such as
water bodies, railway lines, roads
etc.

RoU Clearing and Grading

Staking
Monument Fencing
Identification of position of
detours
Grading of access roads by dozer

Trenching
Trenching by excavator
Separation of arable soil in fertile
land
Trenching by blasting / rock
breaker in rocky area
Protection of underground
facilities

Stringing
Pipe Handling and
Transportation on trailors at site
Pipe placement on sand bags/
wooden blocks

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Cold Field Bending
Classification of location for
bend installation
Bend Radius (R), equals to
– 40D (For pipe dia. 18” & above)

– 30D ( For pipe dia. less than 18”)

Allow Pigs to pass through un-

impeded

Field Welding
Weld procedure qualification
Welder qualification
Fit-up & pre-heating
Root pass
Hot pass
Filling passes
Capping

Non Destructive Testing

Visual inspection
100 % NDT by following
– X-Ray

– Automatic Ultrasonic Testing (AUT)

Field Joint Coating

Procedure qualification
Sand Blasting
Pre-heating
Application of primer
Application of heat shrink
sleeves
Post-heating

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Lowering
Trench inspection
Pre-padding
Holiday testing
Lowering
Cover check

Backfilling
OFC installation
Post-padding
Installation of warning mat
Backfilling
Crowning

Hydrostatic Testing
Air cleaning
Gauging and Pigging
Water-filling
Thermal stabilization
Pressure holding
Acceptance

Pre-commissioning &
Commissioning
De-watering
Swabbing
Drying
Nitrogen/ Inert gas purging
Fluid charging

Following activities are required to be carried out for construction of offshore pipelines:

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Pre-construction Survey
Verification of pre-engineering
survey data
Firming-up of seabed
preparation and intervention
methodologies
Identification of as laid position
of any stub-ends and their
extremities
Equipemnts: Sub-bottom profiler, echo sounder, side scan SONAR, magnetometer

Pipe Handling and Transportation

Inspection of pipes and its
coatings
Repair of pipe/ coatings, if
required
Transportation of pipes to port
area
Loading and transportation of
pipes on cargo barges
Unloading of pipes on pipelay barge

Anchor Handling & Barge Positioning

Barge positioning (considering
minimum draft requirement)
Firming up of barge positions/
anchor locations such that no
existing pipelines/ cables etc. are
damaged due to anchor dropping
and anchor dragging
Anchor handling tugs

Trenching/ Dredging
Mechanical amphibian dredger
for shore approach
Trenching sledge/ jetting
dredger for post trenching in
deeper waters
Rock blasting in rocky seabed

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Welding
Weld procedure qualification
Welder qualification
Pipe end preparation, fit-up &
pre-heating
Root pass/ Hot pass
Filling passes
Capping

Non-destructive testing
Visual inspection
100 % NDT by Automatic
Ultrasonic Testing

Field joint coating

Procedure qualification, sand
blasting, pre-heating, application
of Primer, application of Heat
Shrink Sleeves and post-heating
Holiday testing of coated portion
at pipe ends
Filling up of HDPU foam to
uniform the pipe diameter at pipe
ends

Pipelaying
Conventional pipelay methods are:
S-Lay (for shallow waters) – rigid
pipes
J-Lay (for ultra deep waters) -
rigid pipes
Reel-Lay (for rigid/flexible
pipelines)

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Shore Pull
Length of shore pull based on
minimum barge draft
requirements
Firming up the requirement of
number of buoyancy unit and
pulling force
Preparation of winch foundation
and Anchor block
Preparation of pipe string on barge

Installation of Tie-in spool

Metrology of as laid position of
pipeline lay down head and
corresponding riser end/ PLEM
end
Fabrication of tie-in spool on
barge
Installation of tie-in spool by
derricks

Pipeline Crossing
Analysis for acceptable pipeline
configuration above existing
pipeline
Placement of pipe supports at
designated locations
Laying of new pipeline on the pipe
supports

Back-filling of trench
Engineered backfilling or
backfilling the excavated
material in shore approach area
Backfilling is performed using
Split Hopper Barge

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Post-construction survey
As-laid survey
Free span survey (extent of
unsupported span)
Checking of depth of cover
Identification of pipeline
alignment; Diving survey

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