(151c) Improvement of Piping Integrity Management with Advanced Technology

Asset Integrity takes precedence over anything as the plant ages and deteriorates. IDEMITSU KOSAN　Co., is employing advanced technology aiming at Asset Integrity. In this presentation, we introduce two examples of facility management that bases advanced technology.

1.Entire-length inspection of a pipeline between complexes using “Intelligent pig”

The long-distance pipeline of products and raw materials laid between the plants of the petrochemical complex is over 40 years old after its start of operation. Especially, the management of a long-distance buried pipeline outside complex is concerned.

Regular maintenance and management of the buried pipeline involves periodic inspection from the ground, excavation inspection, and anti-corrosion potential control, etc. These are methods for indirectly investigating the corrosion from the wall thickness of the representative section and the state of Cathodic Protection (CP).

For pipeline that have been used for a long time, Entire-length inspection is also desired to identify the location of thickness reduction more accurately. Therefore, we conducted Entire-length inspection of the buried pipeline using “Intelligent pig” and verified it.

The verification was carried out by comparing with the results of excavation inspection. As a result, with inspection ｂｙ “Intelligent pig”, it became able to identify the thinning spot.

From this result, it became possible to promote Asset management based on quantitative remaining life evaluation by capturing the maximum thinning location of pipeline by “Intelligent pig” inspection

２．Ultrasonic wall thickness continuous monitoring system

Although IDEMITSU KOSAN Co., are conducting periodic inspection and maintenance, there finds a remarkable thinning location where we can‘t identify according to thinning mechanism. Identify these thinning mechanisms has been a problem for many years. If it can be identified, we can take effective countermeasures and lead to an improvement in the maintenance capability of the plant.

Therefore, we set up "Ultrasonic Wall Thickness Continuous Monitoring System" on piping which shows a remarkable thinning tendency, and began continuous monitoring of the wall thickness. By checking the influence of various operating parameters on the corrosion rate obtained from the change in the wall thickness, it is becoming possible to identify the thinning mechanism.