New Findings in Leak Detection on Multi-Phase Pipelines

Abstract With the increasing pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emission and protect the environment, effective leak detection in all pipelines has become more critical in recent years. This applies to multi-phase pipelines too. Little progress has been made in multi-phase pipeline leak detection in the last decades. Some of the main challenges in detecting leaks in multi-phase pipelines include: • Complex and variable hydraulic conditions with flow regime changes when the fluid composition and flow-rate vary in a pipeline • High cost and poor performance of flow meter instrumentation • Feasibility of retrofitting leak detection hardware or equipment on operational pipelines. Over the past few years significant research and field tests have been carried out to develop possible solutions to address the above challenges. This paper describes some of the technologies tested on a few multi-phase pipelines. It addresses both the hardware and software used to detect leaks, the fluid withdrawal tests carried out and performance achieved. Potential applications and further development are outlined at the end.