Valve automation delivers centralised monitoring and control to pipeline network
Mar 29, 2011
A programme of valve motorisation is a central feature of an extensive automation project that will obtain, store and process data in real time from a network of liquid hydrocarbon product pipelines in Latin America.
The project includes the necessity to replace manual gearboxes with actuators on over one hundred mostly remotely sited valves. The actuator specification demanded a self-contained design, suitable for remote, exposed locations with only limited electric power availability. Further constraints of the specification included:
- Self-locking drive mechanism to prevent valve positional drifting.
- Permanent lubrication.
- Adjustable speed control.
- Manual operation.
- Low gas consumption.
- Operation available from stored gas energy source.
- Compact overall dimensions.
After reviewing the available technologies, Rotork’s engineering department has been able to select the best solution with a standard product from the company’s fluid power actuation portfolio.
The Twin Power is a self-contained multi-turn actuator, operated either pneumatically or hydraulically. The mechanical design is based on either a bevel gearbox for linear valves or a worm gearbox for quarter-turn valves. The actuators on this project are designed to operate from stored nitrogen tanks, sized for three valve cycles. Three operating modes are available:
- Remote control via a solenoid valve and stored nitrogen gas.
- Local control via manual pushbuttons and stored nitrogen gas.
- Local manual operation via a hand crank.
The electrical supply requirement is 12Vdc or 24Vdc, facilitating solar/wind powered renewable energy battery operation in remote locations. The actuators are supplied with an environmentally protected stainless steel control cabinet containing Local/Remote/Manual selectors, Open/Close pushbuttons, solenoid valves, manifold blocks, flow control valves, limit switches and electrical terminals.
The new Rotork actuators and those already installed on the pipeline network will provide a vital rôle in the operation of the new SCADA system, which will yield greater security in the operation of facilities and mitigate risks for personnel, local communities and the environment.
The system is designed to centralise the monitoring of all operational variables, including pressure, temperature and fluid composition, all of which are significant factors in the transport, storage and distribution of liquid hydrocarbons.
In addition to increasing the security of operations, the integration of product storage field equipment is expected to improve efficiency and reliability by optimising the management of operational data and information. The SCADA system will make it possible to obtain, store and process data from geographically dispersed areas, in real time, to ensure the timely delivery of crude oil required by refining centres and the refined products needed to meet the demands of distribution and marketing centres. This would not be possible without the ability of self-contained actuators to operate valves in remote locations and communicate their activity and status to the centralised control system.
More News and Articles
Apr 19, 2024
News
WATCH: Overnight with SAERTEX-LINER H20 in São Paulo
Available through Pipe Core, high-quality liner SAERTEX-LINER H20 performed under pressure in São Paulo, Brazil.
Apr 17, 2024
News
Immersive media provides wastewater experience in Denmark
An immersive media experience (IMX) may not be what most people want when they think about industrial wastewater, but that is exactly what visitors can expect when they visit a new installation in the city of Kalundborg, Denmark.
Apr 15, 2024
News
Spotlight on gender diversity at Pipe Core
Since founding in 2008, Pipe Core’s team has grown across all areas of the business and is now in a position where there are more females than males across the organisation. Research published in Harvard Business Review found that “countries …
Apr 12, 2024
News
New Wave of Startups Scale Innovation to Solve Global Water Challenges
Innovators from Around the World Join Xylem’s 2024 Accelerator Program to Deploy Breakthrough Innovations for Utilities and Industrial Users of Water
Apr 08, 2024
News
Integrated sustainable electricity and clean drinking water systems
Altitude Water and New Use Energy Solutions have partnered to create integrated, mobile solar-plus-water generation systems that produce sustainable electricity and clean drinking water anytime, anywhere.
Apr 05, 2024
News
How to Evaluate Hydraulic Fracture Risk in HDD Design
The design of horizontal directional drill (HDD) installations often requires an evaluation of the potential for hydraulic fracture of the soil layers through which an HDD passes. Evaluating this risk during the design process is an important planning tool to …
Apr 02, 2024
News
Historic Project Linking Rome and Vatican City Uses Advanced Technology and Local Knowledge to Keep Water Flowing
Relocation of Major Sewer Infrastructure Enables Construction of Pedestrian Link for 35 Million Visitors to the 2025 Jubilee
Mar 27, 2024
News
USU Study Looks at Water Main Break Rates in the U.S. and Canada
Report Highlights Correlation Between Material and Diameter
Mar 26, 2024
News
Update BE-21: New Material in Course and Modules on Trenchless Pipe Installation
Online training on the topic of pipeline installation in civil engineering: Trenchless technology for underground drainage construction can be a resource-efficient, environmentally friendly, time-saving, and cost-effective alternative to open cut methods. The UNITRACC e-learning course "Utility Tunnelling" has been enhanced …
Mar 25, 2024
Article
Bacteria as a new weapon in wastewater treatment
In early November, San Diego based startup Aquacycl officially opened its first European office and test center at the Water Campus in Leeuwarden. The Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency (NFIA) and the Investment and Development Agency for the Northern Netherlands (NOM) …
Mar 22, 2024
News
A superior HDD offering
Building on its relationships with leading horizontal directional drilling companies, TRACTO Australia has delivered three new rigs to operator Superior HDD.
Mar 20, 2024
News
New portable water filtration technology could improve access to clean drinking water worldwide
The University of Texas at Austin has developed an injectable water filtration system with the aim to aid the over two billion people worldwide who are without clean drinking water.