Multiple various pipeline networks have become an essential and rather influential part of economic infrastructure in the world, including Russia where production areas are far from locations of energy resource consumption. It is difficult to underestimate the role of pipelines in the national economy. Of late one may see the increasing scope of pipeline construction made from various materials. In view of this there is the growing interest towards technical status and safety aspects in these pipeline networks as well as to designing new universal service maintenance procedures for the integrity rehabilitation at pipeline transportation facilities.
Transportation facility may use simultaneously the pipelines manufactured from various materials, like metals, fiber-glass plastic, polyethylene, flexible reinforced pipe. Maintaining the state of pipeline serviceability and safety presents another complicated technical and economic objective that is resolved depending on the features, operating conditions and pipeline materials in each specific case, and the complexity in resolving these problems for the provided further example is increasing over and over again. One of the conditions to maintain pipeline networks in a safe and serviceable status is achieved through the performance of timely and high-quality measures in repairing the pipelines made of various materials. The performance of pipeline service operations is an important step in ensuring the oil-field pipeline safe operation. These service maintenance operations should be conducted in the most effective ways. There are many ways in pipeline maintenance depending upon the situation, resolved objective and pipeline materials.
The article presents the pipeline maintenance procedure tested at Samaraneftegas JSC. This procedure is applicable for rehabilitation of pipelines made of various materials. The basic difference from other procedures lies in the installation of a service structure not coinciding with pipeline material, the use of flanged connections and service maintenance devices with rubber seals, i.e. sealants. The integrity effect in service maintenance jobs is achieved by the force that presses the rubber seal to the walls of the pipeline while tightening the flanged connection.вЃ
