Methodology for location of leakages and unauthorized tie-ins on oil pipelines

Abstract

Relevance. Pipeline transportation of oil and oil products is one of the most efficient and cost-effective modes of transport in the modern world. Despite this, this type of transport can also be environmentally hazardous in case of leakages caused, for example, by corrosion, violation of operating rules, unauthorized tie-ins. Non-operational localization and liquidation of leakages and unauthorized tie-ins is often not only the cause of significant financial losses, but also accidents and pollution of the area of varying severity and scale. Nowadays, the issue of determining the leakage that has occurred and its location in the shortest possible time remains open. In this regard, the development of new and improvement of existing methods for detecting leakages and tie-ins in pipelines is an urgent task today. Aim. To study the effect of the total head shift, which occurs when taking into account the change in the power of pumping units due to product leakage, on the accuracy of determining the localization of leakage or unauthorized tie-in; to improve the existing methods for determining the leakage coordinate taking into account the change in the total head developed by the oil pumping station. Methods. Modeling the occurrence of a leakage or unauthorized tie-in with a different percentage of product losses, constructing hydraulic slope lines with leakages of varying intensity in different coordinates, a comparative analysis of the results obtained from the considered existing methods and those proposed by the authors. Results. The authors have modeled the leakages in various coordinates and determined the possibility of the proposed method operation for finding the coordinates of leakages. They calculated as well the errors in determining the location of the tie-in or leakage, depending on the pump power drops when the product flows out of the oil pipeline. The paper introduces the formula for the localization of leakages or tie-ins, considering the change in the power of pumping units and, as a result, the total head.