Pipeline Engineering

Dept. elective course (7th sem)

Dr. Siddhant Kumar Prasad

Assistant Professor

Dept. of Petroleum Engineering and Geoengineering,

Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology,
Jais, Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, India
Course contents (Pipeline Engineering)

• Unit 1: (Pipeline Laying, Installation and Design)

 Introduction, scope, history of pipeline transportation, major oil and gas
pipelines.
 Comparison with other modes of transportation (Advantages and limitations)
 Pipeline types and components.
 Pipeline design and factors
 Flow through pipeline (friction factor, pressure loss, compression/power
requirements), basic correlation for steady state flow in simple pipeline systems
 Economic pipe diameter, economics and cost structure of pipelines
 Various stages in pipeline commissioning

• Unit 2: (Pipeline construction and analysis)

 Pipeline construction and technical standards
 Materials and equipment specifications (pipes, valves, and fittings)
 Stress and Loads on pipelines
9/19/2023 2
• Unit 3: (Offshore pipeline/tubular design)
 Structural design and hydrostatic, hydrodynamic analysis
 Wave hydrodynamics (wave loads on offshore tubulars)

• Unit 4: (Pipeline maintenance and monitoring)

 Pigging and SCADA techniques (Pipeline Intelligent gauge)
 Corrosion control and protection
 Hydrates, wax and scale (formation and prevention)
• Unit 5: (Underground storage and conveying systems)
 Underground storage
 Pneumatic conveying systems
 Safety considerations
• Unit 6: (City gas distribution)
 CGD value chain
 CNG and PNG infrastructure
 Technical, financial, regulatory, and HSE aspects

9/19/2023 3
Materials
• Class notes

• Textbooks

1) Petroleum Engineering Drilling & Well Completions:- Carl Gatlin

2) Liquid Pipeline Hydraulics by E.Shashi Menon SYSTEK Technologies, Inc. Lake
Havasu City, Arizona, U.S.A

• Reference books

1) Henry Liu, Pipeline Engineering, 2003 CRC Press.

2) Kennedy, J. L. (1984). Oil and gas pipeline fundamentals.
3) Menon, E. S. (1978). Pipeline planning and construction field manual. Gulf
Professional Publishing.
4) Thomas O. Miesner and William L. Leffler (2006). Oil & Gas Pipelines in
Nontechnical Language. Penwell publishing
5) Guo, B., Song, S., & Ghalambor, A. (2013). Offshore pipelines: design, installation,
and maintenance. Gulf Professional Publishing.
6) Alkazraji, D. (2008). A quick guide to pipeline Engineering. Elsevier.
7) Kumar, S. (1987). Gas production engineering: Volume 4.
9/19/2023 4
Classes, evaluation and attendance rules

Assignments + quizzes 10 marks (avg of 4)

Mid Sem 30 marks
End Sem 60 marks
Total 100 marks

• Relative grading system (UG ordinance, RGIPT)

• ATTENDANCE SHALL NOT BE LESS THAN 75% !!

9/19/2023 5
Introduction to Pipeline Engineering

Pipe is a closed conduit with a circular cross section and a pipeline consists of connected
pipe segments, pumps, valves, control devices and fittings/equipments required for
transportation of goods (solids, fluids).

9/19/2023 6
Introduction to Pipeline Engineering

Scope of pipeline transportation: Intends to transport fluids (gas and liquids), solids
(fluid-solid mixtures) or capsules. In oil and gas industry, pipelines are involved in
transportation of crude oil, natural gas, and refined petroleum products from wells to
point of sale, over short and long distances (up to 100s of kms).

Gathering stations Point of sale -

Wells and processing Refinery Markets and
facilities consumers

For ensuring uninterrupted supply of energy, pipeline design is of great importance.

• Major types are gathering lines, transmission lines, and distribution lines (Piped Natural
Gas or PNG – City Gas Distribution)

9/19/2023 7
Introduction to Pipeline Engineering

Types of pipeline transportation: with respect to goods being transported there are 3
types of pipeline transportation

1. Conventional pipelines (liquids and gas)  Oil and gas

2. Slurry pipelines (solids + liquids)  Coal, Iron ore, mining waste
3. Capsule pipelines (solids in capsules suspended in fluids)  Grains, corrosive
materials.

Oil and gas pipeline Slurry pipeline Capsule pipeline

9/19/2023 8
History of Oil and Gas pipelines

• Pennsylvania (6” 109 mi)

1879 • Steel

• 8” 109 mi (Kane – Buffalo, NY)

• High strength steel
1888

• Electric arc welding – leak proof, high pressure, large

diameter pipelines
1920 • Seamless steel pipe

• Ductile iron
• Pigging, batching
1950 • Cathodic protection

• Trenchless construction (directional drilling)

1970 • Pipeline integrity monitoring

9/19/2023 9
Major pipelines

Trans-Alaska pipeline • 48” 800 miles

• 1.7 million bopd
(1977) • $9 billion

Comecon oil pipeline • 17 – 40” 4000 kms

• Russia to Eastern Europe
(post 1940)
• 1.2 – 1.4 million bopd

Trans Arabian oil pipeline • Saudi Arabia to Sidon port

(1950) • 30 – 31” 754 miles
• 0.5 million bopd
Hazira-Vijaipur- • Natural gas from Hazira to Jagdishpur
Jagdishpur (HBJ) gas • 36” 3474 kms
pipeline • 1180 million ft3/d

Naharkatia-Nunmati- • Crude oil

Barauni pipeline • 1167 kms

Mumbai High-Mumbai • Crude oil and natural gas

section of Ankleshwar- • 210 kms (double pipeline)
Koyali Pipeline
9/19/2023 10
Comparison with other transportation means

Tankers /
Modes Pipelines Barge Rail Truck
vessels

Advantages of pipelines over other means

1. Although high initial investment, transporting petroleum products is far cheaper by

pipeline and tankers/vessels in long run
2. Ideal for unidirectional transportation (does not require return of empties to starting
point).
3. Can be laid through difficult terrain as well as under water, minimizing surface footprint.
4. One of the lowest energy consumption of all modes.
5. Minimizes shipment losses and delays due to steady throughput:
6. Safer and more environment friendly than other modes.
7. High degree of automation and reliability.
9/19/2023 11
Comparison with other transportation means

Disadvantages of pipelines

1. Not flexible: It can be used only at few fixed points.

2. Large capital investment for infrastructure setup.
3. Throughput cannot be increased beyond design limits in the same pipeline once it has
been laid.
9/19/2023 Henry Liu, Pipeline Engineering, 2003 CRC Press. 12
 Pipeline vs piping
Pipelines differ from piping in following respect

Details

Pipeline Piping

Usually smaller (size vary according to

Mostly large diameter and transport
Diameter plant specification) connecting one
oil and gas to long distances
equipment to another within plant boundary
Limited use of fitting, long with
Equipment
very few fittings mostly at pumping Wide range of fittings for different purpose
use
and valve stations.
Underground, aboveground, and Mostly above ground with very few
Location
underwater such as subsea pipeline underground services.
Long straight with large bend More complex than pipeline in terms of
Design and
radius. ASME B31.4 (oil pipeline), specifications, construction and testing.
construction
ASME B31.8 (gas pipeline) ASME B31.3 (process piping)
9/19/2023 13
 Line pipes vs drill pipes
Line pipes  Steel pipes for oil and gas transportation.

Details Line pipe Drill pipe

Longitudinal seams for small line

pipes
1. Seams

Seamless (up to 6.6”)

Spiral seams for large pipes and
high stress tolerance
9/19/2023 14
Line pipes vs drill pipes

Details Line pipe Drill pipe

2. Connection

Branched end and welded Threaded (Female-male thread)

3.Construction API-5L-X (longitudinal seam)

API-5DP
specifications API-5L-S (Spiral seam)

9/19/2023 15
Pipeline infrastructure and components

9/19/2023 16
Pipeline infrastructure and components

Oil and Gas gathering systems: They consist of multiple pipelines laid out in one area
that to “gather” the product that is produced from multiple wells to a central point.
Crude oil through flowlines
or gathering line
Well manifold

To gas
Bath heater Test seperator
transmission
pipeline

Group separator

Heater Treater

Oil storage To oil

transmission
To effluent pipeline
Effluent storage
treatment
9/19/2023 17
 Pipeline infrastructure and components
Types of oil and gas pipelines
1. Trunk pipeline
2. Gathering pipeline or flowline
3. Transmission pipeline and
4. Distribution pipeline
5. Feeder line

1. Trunk pipeline: They move the crude oil from large central storage facility to
refineries and further, via a large diameter long distance pipeline. Pump are required at
the beginning and spaced along the pipeline to maintain pipeline pressure at the level
required to overcome friction, change in the elevation and other losses. They operate at
a higher pressure than gathering lines. These lines are almost always buried and coated
externally to protect against corrosion.

9/19/2023 18
 Pipeline infrastructure and components
2. Gathering pipeline or flow line (2” – 6”): They move the crude oil from wells to a
central processing facility or natural gas form production facility to transmission or a
distribution pipeline. They operate at a lower pressure than trunk lines.
3. Transmission pipeline (10” – 60”): Mainly long pipes with large diameters moving
products (oil, gas, refined products) between cities, countries and even continents. These
transportation networks include several compressor stations in gas lines or pump stations
for crude and multi-products pipelines. Operating pressures up to 1500 psi.
4. Distribution pipeline (2” – 24”): Also known as gas mains, it is composed of pipelines
with smaller diameter than transmission lines, operating at around ~200 psi and connecting
former to service line, used to take the products to the final consumer. Service lines (0.5” –
2”) distribute gas to homes and businesses downstream at around < 10 psi.
5. Feeder lines (6” – 12”): used to move the product from processing facilities and storage
tanks to the long-distance transmission pipelines.
9/19/2023 19
 Major pipeline components
• Design and material of construction
• Coating protection against external
elements.
• Accurate measurement Pipe, coating
of throughput

Meters Fittings,
and Flanges, • Pipeline geometry
provers valves • Connections to valves
• Flow control
• Operation of pumps, Pipeline
compressors for
desired throughput Prime
movers, Pigging and
Variable SCADA
speed infrastructure
devices Actuators,
pumps, • Pipeline inspection and
compressors cleaning
• Valve operation • Flow parameters telemetry
• For enabling oil and gas flow

9/19/2023 20
 END
Next class: Pipeline design

9/19/2023 21
Additional info
Top 3 Largest oil pipeline networks in the world.

1. Colonial Pipeline – 2 transmission lines – 40”, 36” / 8850 kms / 3 million bopd for
gasoline and jet fuel
Houston Texas  South and Eastern United States.

2. Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean Oil Pipeline – 48” / 4857 kms / 1.6 million bopd
Taishet (Russia)  Kozimo (China)

3. Druzhba pipeline or Comecon pipeline – 17 – 40” / 4000 kms / 1.2-1.4 million bopd
Russia  Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Austria and
Germany

Top 5 countries with longest oil and gas pipelines

1. USA
2. Russia
3. Canada
4. China
5. Australia
9/19/2023 22