Tracerco brings subsea pipeline innovation to Australasia

PERTH, Australia -- Tracerco has brought its technology to the Australasia region, permanently basing their equipment at their Western Australia facility in Perth.

OTC Spotlight on New Technology 2015 winner Discovery and its complimentary technology, Explorer, are now available in the region.

Discovery gives a detailed high resolution CT scan of subsea pipelines, distinguishing between wax, hydrate, asphaltene or scale deposition at density differences of 0.05g/cc. Explorer can fast screen pipelines (100 m per hr) to locate restrictions. Together they provide a complete package for operators looking to plan effective remediation to bring a flowline back to full capacity.

Both devices work without the need to remove the pipe coating material. Once Explorer has located the area of the suspected blockage, Discovery can be deployed to accurately characterize its precise nature.

Basing the equipment in Perth means the technology can be mobilized within a week, reacting quickly to customers’ needs in the region.

Both technologies can operate at depths of up to 3,000 m (10,000 ft). They have the ability to screen a variety of different piping systems: standard rigid pipe (coated or uncoated), pipe-in-pipe, bundle systems and flexibles.

Explorer detects the location of deposit build-ups by measuring the density profile of the pipeline and then analyzing any detected anomalies. An abnormal density, in relation to the material flowing in the line, indicates a build-up of deposit. The tool provides a detailed profile showing mean densities of pipeline contents and amounts of deposit based on assumed densities. It has already been used on several subsea flowlines including a project in the North Sea, as well as a campaign in the Gulf of Mexico.

Discovery can also detect any integrity issues within a pipe including corrosion, wall thinning and pitting. Discovery has completed hundreds of scans for several of Tracerco’s customers, and has successfully characterized deposits, as well as identified integrity issues within a range of flowline designs.