[Article Sharing] Flow Assurance for Offshore Pipelines

Flow assurance solutions for offshore pipelines | Bredero Shaw

by Vlad Popovici, Marketing Manager, Bredero Shaw

Source: www.brederoshaw.com/non_html/journals/OTI_Solutions_Aug2012.pdf

The development of the huge oil and gas reserves offshore, especially in deep water, raises specific challenges to operators and contractors. These are not only technical challenges related to the depth of the hydrocarbon-bearing layers, but also related to developing the pipeline transportation infrastructure required to move the hydrocarbons from deep offshore to onshore terminals or refining centers.

Most of the world’s pipelines, including offshore risers, flow lines, and export lines are built using steel pipe. As noted by many industry experts, pipeline integrity for more than the nominal 25-35 years of service is an important aspect in any pipeline’s design, construction and operation. Pipelines should not fail during their service life because such failures could lead to human, environmental, and economic costs. In this context, flow assurance is critical for deepwater projects in order to avoid partial or total pipeline blockages.

End-to-end flow assurance 

There are many ways of approaching the flow assurance issue in offshore pipelines. One of the most commonly used is to apply specially-designed flow assurance coatings on the pipe and field joint area. Most of the industry’s flow assurance coating providers use a “one size fits all” approach by offering only certain types of flow assurance coatings regardless of the project parameters – water depth, maximum operating temperature, installation method – or only linepipe coatings, which leaves the field joint coating falling under the scope of another subcontractor. This can create long-term issues for the pipeline operator, such as suboptimal thermal performance, coating damages, as well as various adhesion issues at the linepipe/field joint coating interface.

Bredero Shaw is the only flow assurance coating provider in the industry that approaches this issue with holistic end-to-end solutions. It provides end-to-end anti-corrosion and flow assurance systems that include the factory-applied line pipe coating and a highly compatible field joint coating installed at a location selected by the customer – onshore on spoolbases or multi-jointing facilities or offshore on pipelay vessels.

An end-to-end flow assurance coating system offers valuable benefits to the offshore pipeline operators and contractors. Operators get guaranteed long-term thermal performance for the entire pipeline, an optimal thermal design that optimizes the flow assurance costs, as well as engineering and thermal design support from the early stages of the project. Pipeline installation contractors benefit from the linepipe/field joint coating compatibility as any interface issues are eliminated.

End-to-end flow assurance coating system installed by Bredero Shaw

Full range of flow assurance solutions 

Bredero Shaw is also the only company in the industry that offers a full range of flow assurance coating solutions, allowing operators to use the optimal system based on the specific project parameters, such as water depth, maximum operating temperature, and installation method. Two of the high-performance flow assurance solutions are briefly described below. 

The Thermotite® PP-based linepipe coatings have been introduced by a predecessor company of Bredero Shaw and gradually developed and improved; they are today applied in various multilayer configurations, including solid, glass syntactic and foam coating systems. The linepipe coating is complemented by the fully-compatible Thermotite® IMPP field joint coating – essentially, a three-layer systems made of an FBE layer, a copolymer adhesive layer and an injection-moulded solid polypropylene insulation layer. The Thermotite® PP-based end-to-end systems have been dramatically improved since the first commercial application in 1991 and are today applied by Bredero Shaw around the world on offshore pipelines with high operating temperatures. 

Using the well-known insulation properties of styrenic polymers the Bredero Shaw R&D team developed Thermotite® ULTRA™, an innovative multilayer coating system with excellent thermal performance, good ductility and excellent impact resistance. The Thermotite® ULTRA™ flow assurance system was launched in 2009 and has already been applied on offshore pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico and the Barents Sea. A key element of the successful launch of this novel coating was again the end-to-end coating approach through the development of an injection-moulded field joint coating that is perfectly compatible with the linepipe coating and that offers equivalent long-term thermal performance.

Portability for flow assurance coatings 

The traditional model for coating steel pipe uses a fixed, specialized coating facility often located at a steel pipe mill. This model is increasingly challenged today by the ability of innovative mobile pipeline coating technologies developed by Bredero Shaw to reduce pipe transportation costs, simplify pipeline project logistics, provide end-to-end coating systems, and increase the local content of the project. 

Brigden™ is an innovative modular portable plant concept developed by Bredero Shaw that is capable of applying a full range of anti-corrosion and flow assurance pipe coating solutions using proven, best in class process technology while delivering the same quality and output as a fixed plant. 

Brigden™ is a turnkey coating facility assembled from process modules supplied in standard size, delivered in specially-designed shipping containers that are ISO certified. The plant can be assembled on site in approximately eight weeks saving much needed time in what is usually a tight schedule. The basic layout can be customized by adding more modules to the baseline layout to expand the plant to accommodate double joints or large diameter pipe. Additional modules can also be added to facilitate the application of any flow assurance and anti-corrosion pipe coating system.  

A Brigden™ portable coating facility is operated by a dedicated team of Bredero Shaw coating and engineering experts – trained in continuous improvement practices and supported by regional operations resources for safe and timely manufacturing and delivery. The plant set-up and coating project execution are based on standard operating practices that are an integral part of the company-wide ShawCor Manufacturing System (SMS).

A Brigden™ mobile plant has the same production capability as a fixed plant. Brigden™ is capable of coating pipe with an outside diameter of 220 to 1066 mm (8-42 in), lengths of 10.4-24.4 m (34-80 ft) and weight up to 484 kg/m (325 lbs/ft). The plant comes fully equipped with integrated facilities for raw materials storage, facility maintenance, and quality control and testing.

All phases of the Brigden™ coating operation, including surface preparation, pre-heat, coating application and final inspection can be conducted in an enclosed area of 1,700 square m (18,000 square ft). A total area of 1.2 ha (2.8 acres) is needed to set-up the entire facility, excluding pipe storage requirements.

For the field joints, Bredero Shaw’s Field Joint Center of Excellence is using the most advanced technologies to develop portable and automated field joint coating equipment that can ensure the consistency and quality of the end-to-end flow assurance coating system, while enhancing operator safety and reducing the operational footprint in the field.

Our field joint coating equipment, materials and operators can be quickly mobilized to any onshore or offshore location. Bredero Shaw offers to global operators and contractors the widest range of thermal insulation field joint coatings in the industry to complement our factory-applied coatings, including the high-performance Thermotite® IMPP and Thermotite® ULTRA™ field joint systems previously discussed.

Brigden™ facility installed for a flow assurance coating project