Investigation on the Burst Strength Capacity of Aging Subsea Gas Pipeline

Precisely evaluation of the reliability of aging structure is essential, particularly in the oil gas industry where inaccurate predictions of structural performance may have significant hazardous consequences. Related to this issue, it is important to predict the corrosion behavior of the gas pipeline structure used in the production of gas in subsea area. As corrosion is concerned, the effects of pipeline failure due to significant reduction of burst strength will make it hard for the pipeline operator to maintain the serviceability of pipelines. Therefore related to this problem, the resistance service of the pipeline is assessed by means of burst strength capacity. In this study, the critical part of the corrosion along 2.4 km pipeline is assessed using two approaches; empirical design codes formula and ANSYS numerical analysis. The future integrity of the pipeline is then assessed to predict the remaining year in service for the aging pipeline. The results and outcomes of the present study will be useful for evaluating the pipeline integrity as well as the prediction of the remaining life of in service aging pipeline structures.