From 1964 through 2015, a total of 514 offshore pipeline–related oil spills were recorded, 20 of which incurred spill volumes of over 1,000 barrels, according to the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
The timely inspection of subsea infrastructure is key to preventing such disasters, but current inspection techniques often require a well-trained human diver and substantial time and money. The challenges are exacerbated if the inspection target is deep underwater.
The SmartTouch technology now in development at UH consists of Remote Operated Vehicles (ROVs) equipped with multiple stress wave-based smart touch sensors, video cameras and scanning sonars that can swim along a subsea pipeline to inspect flange bolts.
According to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), bolted connections have accelerated the rate of pipeline accidents that result in leakage.
The BSEE is funding the project with a $960,493 grant to UH researchers Zheng Chen, Bill D. Cook Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Gangbing Song, John and Rebecca Moores Professor of Mechanical Engineering, who are working in collaboration with Oceaneering International and Chevron.
“By automating the inspection process with this…robotic technology, we can dramatically reduce the cost and risk of these important subsea inspections which will lead to safer operations of offshore oil and gas pipelines as less intervention from human divers will be needed,” said Chen.
A prototype of the ROV has been tested in Chen’s lab and in Galveston Bay, demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed approach for inspecting the looseness of subsea bolted connections. Preliminary studies were funded by UH’s Subsea Systems Institute.
Oil and gas pipelines fail for a variety of reasons including equipment malfunctions, corrosion, weather and other natural causes, or vessel-related accidents which account for most large leaks. Toxic and corrosive fluids leaked from a damaged pipe can lead to devastating environmental pollution.
“Corrosion is responsible for most small leaks, but the impacts can still be devastating to the environment. Therefore, our technology will be highly accurate in monitoring corrosion and will also help mitigate the chances of pipeline failure from other factors,” said co-principal investigator Gangbing Song, who has conducted research in piezoelectric-based structural health monitoring.
The UH researchers are collaborating with Oceaneering International, a subsea engineering and applied technology company. Chevron will evaluate the technology’s future commercialisation.
According to the researchers, the SmartTouch sensing solution will open the doors for inspection of other kinds of subsea structures by forming a design template for future robotic technologies.
“Ultimately, the project will push the boundaries of what can be accomplished by integrating robotics and structural health monitoring technologies. With proper implementation, the rate of subsea pipeline failure and related accidents will decrease, and subsea operations will be free to expand at faster rate than before,” said Chen.
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