testing | Round up


Corrosion expansion at SCM


Strategic Corrosion Management (SCM), has expanded its operations in the north east of England. The company has


Bredero Shaw’s SSV ups limits for simulation


Coatings and field joint systems provider Bredero Shaw claims its new Simulated Service Vessel (SSV) for flow assurance coatings, installed at its Subsea Test Facility facility at Toronto in Canada, is the most sophisticated of its type worldwide, providing the ability to simulate water depths of up to 3,000m and internal temperatures of up to 180˚C. The company developed the


SSV to enable it to support customers in the prequalifica- tion of factory applied line-pipe insulation coatings and field joint systems. The SSV testing system can accommodate samples up to 6m long and up to 910mm diameter. It is designed to allow end-to-end system testing, including both the field joints and custom fittings required for a project. The new SSV is a consider-


able step-up from the company’s previous testing vessel. Located at its Calgary facility in Canada, the previous simulation vessel was limited to handling samples up to


1.83m long and 356mm diameter. The new SSV is essentially a


large autoclave within which one or more linepipe samples are enclosed. The sample is then connected to a series of sensors, which measure the change in diameter, tempera- ture and heat flux. The water surrounding the


sample can be pressurised up to 300bar, while chillers maintain the temperature within a range of 4-6˚C throughout the test process. Pressures can be ramped in specific increments to deter- mine the effect on the insulat- ing performance of the coating at different simulated depths. An internal heating system


is used to simulate the internal temperature of the pipeline. This comprises seven sepa- rately controlled zones, allowing determination of multiple U-values along the length of the sample. Up to three different pipeline coatings can be assessed at one time, speeding up the assessment of


42 PIPELINE COATING | November 2012


alternative solutions. According to Bredero Shaw,


the SSV allows the coating and field joint system to be tested for cool-down time so accurate creep measurements can be made to determine the long term reliability of the system. U-value, variation and confi- dence intervals are determined at 15 points on the sample (three points on each of the five centre test zones). The use of 15 zones means that the final U-value calculation and the 95% confidence interval can be determined to a combined standard error of less than 3%. The SSV completed its first


thermally-insulated subsea pipe tests last year. Heat flux, temperature gradient and compressive creep of the insulating material was measured over a 28-day conditioning cycle and used to determine the steady-state U-value. The test results were used to verify the system design and to demonstrate compliance with the contracted U-values. ❙ www.brederoshaw.com


relocated its development, support and training facility at Blyth – only opened at the beginning of this year – to a new and larger building at Cramlington. The Blyth facility was


originally established to provide UK and interna- tional clients with access to the company’s specialist suite of corrosion mitigation and control services. The new location will enable SCM to expand this to include training engineers and technicians from around the world. “Since opening our base


in the region earlier this year, we have been experiencing a steady and increasing demand for our services,” says SCM manag- ing director Ian Cordingley. “The North East has excellent supply chain links with Aberdeen, which is a key location for our clients, including Shell, Centrica, Conoco, BP, Maersk and Total, and the oil, gas and chemical industry supply chains out of the region are crucially important to our operations.” SCM has provided


services, software, systems and products for corrosion management for more than 30 years. ❙ www.stratcorrman.com


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