by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s Emerging
Renewables Program, the project converts wave energy into
zero emission electricity and desalinated water. Steel reinforced
spoolable pipe was chosen due to its durability and corrosion
resistance, and because the steel reinforcement provides the
weight for increased on-bottom stability.
FlexSteel was also the subject of a paper presented at the 2014
International NACE conference in San Antonio, Texas.
6
The paper
documents test research conducted by a Venezuelan oil company
to evaluate FlexSteel materials and operational performance
during service of multiphase oil, water and gas flowlines in the
Lake Maracaibo oilfields. Due to the novelty of offshore flexible
steel pipe systems in South America, the customer mandated that
the pipe be evaluated both in the lab and during real offshore
operation conditions. The test programme was developed per
API 17J and API 17B requirements to assure the mechanical integrity
of the flexible pipes. Every three months, testing was conducted
on both new and aged samples extracted from the field. These
tests included mechanical properties tests, hydrostatic pressure
tests, gas-venting tests, ageing tests and gauge tests. The pipeline
was also subjected to continuous inspection and monitoring
of the gas venting system during service. After three years of
service, no failure or damage
was detected in any of the nine
experimental flowlines.
The report findings are
consistent with the feedback
that the company has received
from its other customers. The
product has proven to maintain
integrity and is not de-rated
as often occurs with corroded
welded pipelines, thus reducing
operational cost expenditures.
Highly corrosion resistant
and more durable than other
pipeline products, FlexSteel
combines the best features
of all currently available pipe
options to deliver superior
lifecycle performance and value.
As a result, FlexSteel’s sales
more than tripled between 2010
and 2012, and the company
continues to expand globally,
installing over 8000 km of pipe
in 30 different countries.
References
1. LIU, H.,“Pipeline (Technology)”, http://
topic/461356/pipeline/64238/History,
published by Encyclopaedia Britannica.
2. HOWELL, D., “A Brief History of Steel
Pipe”,
.
com/A-Brief-History-of-Steel-Pipe.php],
August 2010.
3. PEES, S., “Oil History: 1865, The Van
Syckel Pipeline”. Petroleum History
Institute,
org/OilHistory/pages/Pipelines/
van_syckel.html]
4. “PLUTO, Secret Pipelines of WWII”,
American Oil and Gas Historical
Society, Washington, DC, http://
aoghs.org/petroleum-in-war/secret-
pipelines/#more-780
5. DAWANS, F., JARRIN, J., LEFEVRE T. and
PELISSON, M., “Improved Thermoplastic
Materials for Offshore Flexible Pipes”,
Paper presented at the 1986 Offshore
Technology Conference, Houston, Texas,
OTC-5231-MS.
6. FERNANDEZ, C., and LOPEZ, C., (March
2014). “Use of Flexible Flowlines for
Offshore Conditions in the Lake
Maracaibo Oil/Gas Fields”, Paper
presented at NACE Corrosion 2014
Conference, San Antonio, Texas.
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