Leveraging Smart Pigging Technologies as a Cost-Effective Method to Both Clean and Evaluate the Integrity of Pressurized Pipelines

There is a demand for technologies to assess pressurized pipelines while they are in-service, particularly larger water supply infrastructure. As these systems age, these types of technologies are more-and-more needed. Combined with other external assessments, smart pigging is growing in interest in use and application by cities, municipalities, and water utilities. This presentation is intended to present an overview of smart pig technology and address the main topics of 'what', 'how', and 'how much' so that the owners of these highly critical infrastructure systems can move forward when they're ready. Why then do we look to the use of smart pigging for pressurized pipeline? The major advantages of smart pigging that will be presented include: (a) improvements of operational efficiency and hydraulic capacity, (b) results are used to extend their respective service life, a reduction of future system 'downtime', (d) improving and management customer expectations and satisfaction, (e) management of residual solids removal, and (f) segue into longer-term PMP. We will explore the range of pre-pigging preparation including jelly pigs, foam pigs, firm pigs and hard pigs and how they are used before a smart pig is introduced. Smart pig systems essentially combine pigging and on-board condition assessment technologies to do all of this at one launch site. It allows for one final pipe scrubbing and scouring and during that deployment it measures pipe diameter, provide X-Y-Z location of pipeline from A to B, collect pipeline condition and anomalies that impact its operation and condition, and finally locate and evaluate pipe joints and other features and such as connection points of hydrants, valves, and tees. The internal technologies of smart pigs allow it to capture XYZ (sub-foot accuracy), has on-board IMU technology, allows for free swimming navigation (even around and through pipe restrictions and fittings), and is for all pipeline material. They can be customized with additional internal technologies to measure and record the following during their deployment through a pipeline, making them super-smart (some would say 'brainy' to measure active leaks, pipe wall thickness, flow 'conditions', and other internal irregularities. They can also help water utilities who are doing asset management to transform internal information into critical data to manage pipeline repairs, replacement, rehabilitation, and preventative maintenance in the following three areas (a) prioritization of future work, improved fire flow, and ease of future access to the system. As part of the presentation, we will walk through an example of a real success story for the City of De Soto, KS where a 1940's DIP 11-mile-long water supply main (including a major river crossing) was successfully cleaned and hydraulic delivery improved by 300%, It also located five isolated sections that required point repairs.