The ROSEN Group has introduced the world’s first four-inch in-line inspection tool, which uses high-resolution ultrasound technology for wall thickness measurement and crack inspection services. The latest state-of-the-art in-line inspection tool has successfully completed a combined inspection of a TCO (TengizChevroil) high-pressure gas pipeline in Kazakhstan. The job was performed using suitable liquid batch.
The new combined ultrasonic inspection service, named RoCombo UT-A/UT, comprises full coverage ultrasonic metal loss and wall thickness measurement, as well as ultrasonic detection of circumferential oriented cracking within a single inspection run. The unique characteristic of the four-inch inspection tool is the high grade of miniaturisation of the components, while preserving the well-known reliability of ROSEN’s inspection technologies. This unique new tool is also available for six-inch heavy wall pipeline systems, extending ROSEN’s abilities to serve customers’ needs.
The new RoCombo UT-A/UT service detects and sizes a wide range of pipeline anomalies, including metal loss, laminations, circumferential cracks and crack-like features, stress corrosion cracking (SCC) and weld cracks. It also provides accurate quantitative wall thickness measurements for the entire pipeline length.
At the same project, the first four-inch combined high-resolution caliper and mapping service was successfully performed. Thus the new service was successfully applied to identify geometrical anomalies, measure possible pipeline movement and assess any bending strain, in addition to service goals mentioned above.
Combining inspection technologies provides major benefits to customers, such as savings on pipeline preparation, less downtime during the batching operation and a full range of high-resolution inspection data on potential metal loss and cracks. The high-quality data can subsequently be used for advanced integrity assessment purposes.