Visit the NSK UK web site

Composite technology prevents expensive shutdown

A Furmanite International product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Nov 14, 2007

The repairs can be designed to accommodate continuing erosion over their design life, even to the extent of total loss of the original substrate, while still retaining full integrity.

Composite repair technology from Furmanite allowed a North Sea platform to avoid shutting down to replace a copper nickel water line suffering internal erosion.

Carbon fibre and epoxy resin composite repairs were used to undertake the necessary remedial work to nearly 7m overall length, on-line, with no disruption to production, to restore full structural strength and pressure integrity to the line for the two year period required until the next shutdown, when the line was to be replaced.

These repairs are ten times the strength of steel and twice as stiff, but less than a quarter the density, providing considerable strength with very little added weight.

The repairs can be designed to accommodate continuing erosion over their design life, even to the extent of total loss of the original substrate, while still retaining full integrity.

Furmanite's composite repairs are able to accommodate complex geometries including elbows and tees as well as tanks and vessels.

Furmanite undertook repairs to 8, 10, 12 and 16in diameter sections, incorporating straights, tees, elbows and reducers.

Just 6mm repair thickness was sufficient to restore pressure integrity and structural strength.

"A further consideration on this project was the copper nickel, being softer than carbon steel, which had to be accounted for in, for example, the surface preparation methods used", Furmanite's composites business manager Paul Smith comments.

The repairs were designed to cater for pressures of 13.8barg and temperatures from -12 to +38C - well within the capabilities of Furmanite's composite repair technology which can provide permanent repairs accommodating pressures of over 200bar and temperatures of 200C.

Not what you're looking for? Search the site.

Back to top Back to top

Google Ads

 

Contact Furmanite International

Related Stories

Contact Furmanite International
Newsletter sign up

Request your free weekly copy of the Engineeringtalk email newsletter ...

Visit the NSK UK web site

Articles by product category

All suppliers A - Z

A Pro-talk Publication

A Pro-talk publication