Plastic Pipeline Deficiency Inspection for Pipeline Integrity Management
Institute of Gas Technology dba GTI Energy
Recipient
Davis, CA
Recipient Location
$53,881
Amount Spent
Active
Project Status
Project Update
As of September 2025 the project team has completed draft reports describing their approach for accelerated lifetime testing and their assessment on the correlation between infrastructure defects and their effect on system performance.
Additionally, a public outreach workshop is planned for Q4 2025 in which the project team will solicit input on how to present project results in way that will be most useful for a wide range of decision-making processes.
The Issue
Non-destructive evaluation (NDE) methods for polyethylene piping are not as well developed as they are for steel piping systems; however, there are promising candidate NDE methods that need to be further developed into reliable tools for assessing the structural integrity of plastic piping systems. There is currently no coherent framework for translating NDE indications of potential defects in plastic pipeline systems to actual predictions of the impact potential of these defects on the expected system lifetime.
Project Innovation
The project will test a relatively mature Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing (PAUT) tool capable of identifying cracks in the wall of pipes and defects in fusion joints. The fieldwork will be supported by extensive laboratory testing aimed at verification of inspection results and accelerated lifetime testing of the pipe assemblies where indications of defects were found. The primary objective is to demonstrate the probability of detection of different categories of anomalies in plastic pipe assemblies when using PAUT tools. The secondary objective is to develop a correlation of indications found to the expected residual lifetime of the asset given the indication of defect. The tertiary objective is to integrate the information provided by the NDE inspections into risk assessment models. These risk assessment models will fuse multiple sources of information pertaining to the integrity of the pipeline system being evaluated. This approach will allow the development of comparative metrics to compare risk profiles developed without NDE information to those developed with NDE information. The risk assessment information will be incorporated into a holistic integrity management decision support framework culminating in RSE and for benefits to stakeholder metrics. These metrics will allow comparison of impact to integrity management and stakeholder objectives with, and without NDE information.
Project Goals
Project Benefits
The ability of the PAUT NDE tools to identify invisible defects in pipes and joints is expected to improve infrastructure safety, infrastructure reliability, and methane leak reduction through improved mitigation of segments of the pipe infrastructure where critical defects are identified.
Safety
A significant number of catastrophic events in California and other states have been attributed to cracks and joint failures and there are concerns that these failure modes will become more significant as the infrastructure ages. This project will contribute to developing baseline data on the proportion of pipes with detectable defects.
Environmental Sustainability
The project will contribute to enhanced inspection and maintenance of plastic piping distribution infrastructure and identify areas prone to leaks allowing them to be proactively addressed, thereby reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Affordability
The tools to be developed under this project will provide earlier visibility to segments of the plastic piping infrastructure that are likely to develop leaks in the short-term. The tools will enable a more proactive approach to leak prevention, which can in turn lower mitigation costs.
Key Project Members
Ernest Lever
Subrecipients
Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas)
The Regents of the University of California on behalf of the Los Angeles Campus
Lumina Decision Systems, Inc.
Match Partners
The Regents of the University of California on behalf of the Los Angeles Campus
Operations Technology Development
