THE APPLICATION OF A CONTINUOUS LEAK DETECTION SYSTEM

T O PIPELINES A N D ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT

Copyright Materail I EEE
Paper No. PCIC-88-45

Chet Sandberg PE, Jim Holmes, Ken McCoy, Heinrich Koppitsch

Raychem Corporation
300 Constitution Dr. Menlo Park CA 94025

Abstract
In recent years the problem of leak detection in pipelines,
tanks, and process vessels has been the focus of many manhours of effort. This paper will look some examples of leaks
occurring in pipelines, give a overview of classical leak detection systems and give the engineering basis of a new type of
detector system. This system is a flexible hydrocarbon sensing cable that can be installed along pipelines, in double containment tanks and piping or in trenches to detect and locate
leaks of common industrial hydrocarbonsolvents or fuels while
ignoring the presence of water. The simple electrical circuit is
also described that locates and detects a leak anywhere along
the length of the sensor.

Introduction
Leaks of hazardqus fluids such as crude oil, gasoline, or
chlorinated solvents can result in very serious environmental
pollution if the leak is not quickly detected and repaired. Even
domestic drinking water may become contaminatedwith toxic
chemicals if the groundwater supplying aquifers and wells become contaminated with leaking Hydrocarbons. The U. S.Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed
regulationsdesigned to prevent contamination of groundwater
from the estimated 1.4 million underground storage tanks in
service. This focus on leak detection is just as serious in the
area of transmission pipelines. In one instance approximately 30,000barrels of No. 2 fuel oil was lost as a result of a leak
in a buried pipeline in suburban New Castle County, Delaware.
When the leak was investigated, it was found to be less than 1
gallon per minute. The fuel oil seeped into the water table and
threatened a downgradient stream and irrigation pond. Even
though recovery wells were drilled, only about 10% of the fuel
oil was recoveredand significanteconomic resources were expended(1). Continuous leak detection of small leaks has been
difficult in the past, but a new technology is available to continuously monitor pipeline transmission of hydrocarbons.
Types of leaks in pipelines and piping systems
Various types of leaks can occur in pipelines and piping systems and there are various types of leak detectors to analyze
each. The "rupture"leak is least common, but very dangerous.
Catastrophic failure can cause significant damage to the environment, especially in under sea and remote land application. These leaks are, however, the easiest to detect since they
are accompanied by easily measured pressure drops or
volume discrepancies.

A more difficult and equally dangerous leak is the small, hard

to detect leak. Corrosion, erosion, weld or joint failure and
fatigue can all lead to small leaks. Leaks as small as 1 gallon
per hour can build up large lost volumes before they are
noticed. Up to now, these types of leaks have been almost impossible to detect with conventional means described below
in the section "Current Leak Detection Methods." The
hydrocarbon sensor described later in this paper is the first
economically feasible distributed system available to monitor
pipelines for small or large leaks.

Current Leak Detection Methods

Leak detection systems are classified into two main categories,
static and dynamic. Dynamic systems are preferred since they
can be used while the pipeline is operating. Static leak detection methods are useful after a leak has been detected in order
to find its location. Continuous monitoring of pipelines gives
rise to a number of leak detection techniques. Meter variance
or compensated volume balance is the predominate method.
This method is limited by the accuracy of the volume measurement and the variations associated with it. Pressure monitoring and rate of flow can detect large leaks and over-and-short
calculations can detect smaller leaks. Differential-pressure
transmitters across sectionalizing valves can continuously
monitor for a negative pressure which indicates a large leak.
Another method was attempted by wrapping an oil soluble
tubing around certain critical sections of pipeline. The internal
pressure of this tubing was then monitored for loss of pressure. However, this system was a complete failure and abandoned (2).
Compensated Volume Balance
The current major method of leak detection is the compensated volume balance method. This method essentially
measures the "volume in" and subtracts the "volume out".
There are meters which are guaranteed repeatable to within
.05%. In a typical system such as one in operation in Alaska
from the Tesoro Nikiski refinery on the Kenai Peninsula to
Anchorage (3),an alarm will sound when there is a significant
difference in volume. The pump station management will
determine if the difference in the two measured volumes is the
result of an operational change or if the pipe is leaking. Operational changes can result from a change in product grade,
change of pumps or pumping pressure, or a change in
temperature because of storage tank changes.
If there has not been a change in operational criteria, the
pipeline will be shut down and sections blocked with valves to
isolate the possible leak. If before shutting down the pipeline,
the discrepant volume should increase by a factor of 2 the
pumping stations will automatically be shut down. Should a

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88CH2661-7/88/0000-0241$01.00 0 1988 IEEE

rupture of the pipeline occur a negative surge will travel back

to a pumping station and will be detected by a suction- pressure switch and the pipeline will be shut down. Vibratory sensors are located at the pumping stations and will detect an
earthquake of 3.0 on the Richter scale and shut down the
pipeline.
The problem in the compensated volume method is there
usually needs to be a large volume before conclusive leak
detection can be made. Leaks of 2% for liquids and 10% for
gasses are needed for detection, according to some
authorities. Smaller leaks can be can be detected with a nonlinear adaptive state basis on pressure and flow measurements at the inlet and outlet. (4) However, based on flows of
IO00 bb/hr., the leaks can be significant before they are
detected.

signal

.sensor
..,---

cbnductive

polymer layer

Halar'
braid

Figure 1
Acoustic Traveling Pig
A novel leak detector is the "Texaco pig" which detects a leak

by sensing the acoustic energy generated by escaping fluid.

The location is recorded by an on-board odometer and this
data correlated to the ultrasonic data thereby detecting the
leak. The leak detector instrument is articulated in four sections: two for rechargeable batteries, one for a printer, and
one for the hydrophone and circuit cards. The articulated Pig
is used on pipe sizes from 6 in to 10 in. Twelve inch pipe is
checked by a model having all components in a single section.
(5) Leaks were successfully detected and located by the pig
in field pipelines in Canada and Texas.
Thermal and electro-optical methods
An airborne remote sensor can detect leaks from natural gas
pipelines by monitoring the methane and ethane gas in the atmosphere above the pipeline. The sensor is a passive electrooptical system, operating in a downward-looking mode. It is
designed to detect low levels of methane and ethane by looking at their infra-red spectral signatures using a non-dispersive
gas filter correlation technique. This system is experimental
and the results of the field trials are unknown to the authors.
(6)
A similar airborne system using thermal infrared images has
been tested on water distribution systems in South Dakota. A
typical system has from 640 to 2400 KM of pipeline and the
normal line water loss is 10 to 15 per cent. Major leaks,
generally from 10 to 200 cubic meters per day, are easy to
identify because they usually pond. Minor leaks, called
"seeper leaks," which generally range from 2 to 10 cubic
meters per day are more common and are difficult to detect
using conventional ground surveys. Fifteen possible leaks
were identified from thermal images. Five of these sites were
eventually confirmed as leaks. (7)

Hydrocarbondistributed sensor cable

The hydrocarbon sensor system (8) consist of an alarm
module and sensing cable. This sensing cable provides distributed coverage by detectingleaks of most fuels and solvents
at any point along its length. The cable can be used in lengths
of up to 2 Kilometers with a resolution of approximately 1% of
the length for leak detection. The core of the cable, Figure 1,
is constructed of an alarm signal wire, a continuity wire and
two sensor wires. It is encased in a conductive-polymer layer
- 242

that swells during exposure to most hydrocarbon-basedsolvents and fuels. This material is surrounded with a Halar (9)
braid that restrains outward swelling. When a solvent or fuel
contacts the cable, the conductive-polymer swells inward and
makes electrical contact with the two sensor wires. The cable
must be replaced once it has contacted a solvent or fuel.
This sensor has combined unique radiation chemistry and conductive polymer technologies to develop an industrial system.
The conductive polymer formulation is key to the success of
the device. The formulationmust swell rapidly and remain conductive if the sensor is to detect the fluid of interest. Additionally, the polymer must develop sufficient swelling pressure to
force the conductive formulation through the apertures of the
braided sensing cable to contact the sensor wires. If the
polymer is not crosslinked it will not swell, but simply dissolve.
Therefore, the formulation is crosslinked using radiation
chemistry to form a solvent-swellable, three dimensional
polymer network. The expansion pressure generated by this
network is a function of the crosslink density and interaction
between the polymer and solvent. (10 and 11)
Two formulations were developed to cover the range of common industrial solvents and fuels. One formulation was
developed to swell rapidly in non-polar hydrocarbons such as
diesel fuel and gasoline and was used to prepare a fuel sensing cable. Another formulation was used to fabricate a solvent
sensing cable for the detection of polar fluids such as
chlorinated solvents.
Although the time taken for the sensing cables to respond in
a given fluid is a key property of the sensor, other factors must
also be considered. The cable must be rugged, yet flexible,
so that it can be easily pulled through double containment
enclosures. The formulations must not be so soft that any accidental loading will cause the conductive polymer formulation
to contact the sensor wires and trigger the circuit. Finally the
conductive polymer layer must be continuous and act as a
water barrier to prevent the sensor from triggering.
Testing was conducted on several thousand feet of sensor
cable with a nominal outside diameter of 0.3 inches. The conductive polymer layer was cross-linked using a high energy
electron beam. The cable was cut into convenient lengths. An
initial resistance of greater than 30 megohm was measured
and specified to be equivalent to a sensor in its non-triggered
state. Five cm. of the cable was completely immersed in a fluid
and the time taken for the resistanceto fall below 20 kilo-ohms
was measured. This time represents the "response time" of

the sensor since the alarm and locator module register the
presence of a fluid at this resistance value. Response time
after water immersion, bend diameter and pressure triggering
were also measured. The tests showed the resistance between sensor wires remained greater than 30 megohms after
water immersion, a bend radius of less than 5 cm was needed
to trigger the cable and a minimum trigger load of 20 pounds
per linear inch was needed to trigger the alarm.

The high impedancevoltmeter is now usedto measure the voltage drop, V, between the leak location and the instrument.
Since the current is known (i. e. a constant current source) and
the voltage is measured, the resistance of the cable between
the leak and the instrument can be calculated using Ohms
(R =V/I). Finally, if the resistance per meter of cable is known
(this is controlled by accurate manufacturing tolerances) then
the location in terms of distance is a simple scale conversion.

Fuel sensing cable response times are dependent on the

molecular weight of the target hydrocarbon. Gasoline takes
15 minutes, while diesel #2 and Toluene take 60 minutes.
Automatic transmission fluid takes 4 to 6 hours. This response
time is based on 2 inches of cable length immersed in the liquid whose temperature is 20 deg C. Response times are affected by operating temperature.

Long Pipeline Telemetry

Electrical Circuitry for Leak Detection

The hydrocarbon sensor makes use of a four wire circuit
shown schematically in Figure 2. The "sensing"electrodes are
represented by the zigzag lines, while the insulated telemetry
pair are indicated by the solid lines on the top and bottom of
the circuit. The key elements of the leak locating circuitry are

High lmpedence Voltmeter

onstant Current Source

Hydrocarbon Sensor Electrical Schematic

Figure 2
the constant current source and the high impedance volt
meter. Also note that the four conductors are joined to form
two loops at the far end of the monitored section.
If the cable has not been swollen by a hydrocarbon leak, there
is no path between the two electrodes and no current flows
from the constant current source. As shown in Figure 3, a leak
that swells the polymer between the two electrodes completes
the loop and the current source can now generate a current
flow in the closed circuit.

Since the effective range of the hydrocarbon sensor is about

2 KM, continuous surveillance of a long pipeline needs some
sort of telemetry to relay leak detection informationto a central
location. The type of telemetry equipment chosen is commonly used in the telephone industry to monitor pressure
transducers attached to pressurized telephone cable. The
variations in air pressure are converted to a variable resistance
by the pressure transducer. The variation in resistance is in
turn used to modulate a signal on the two wire telemetry circuit so that the equipment located at the end of the line is able
to determine the air pressure at each of the transducer locations. The transducers are each assigned an individual identity at the time of installation. The multiplexingscheme is based
on a "time splice" technique so that only one of the many transmitters on a given line is transmitting its measuredvalue at any
given time. The master unit at the head of the line starts the
reporting sequence by a voltage step monitored by all units.
For detection of a hydrocarbon leak, the pressure transducer
is replaced by a loop formed from the sensor pair in the
hydrocarbon sensor cable and an end of line resistor. If the
cable is in a non-triggered state, then the transducer circuit
sees a predicted resistance value and the signal returned to
the monitoring equipment is within the "normal" range. If the
cable has been soaked by a hydrocarbon,the resistanceseen
by the transducer on the monitoring equipment is shifted
downward in frequency and the monitor recognizes the "leak"
occurrence. If the sensing loop is broken, the transducer sees
a sudden rise in resistance. The signal returned to the monitor
is shifted up in frequency and the monitor recognizesan "open"
in the sensor.
When a leak is detected, maintance personnel must go to the
monitor location and hook up a Portable Test Box (PTB) to
determinethe exact location in the 2 KM section of leak detection cable. Three different situations can occur to trigger an
alarm. There can be a continuity fault, a single contamination
site on the sensing cable or multiple contaminationsites on the
sensing cable. The PTB can be used to determine which of
the three possibilities are present.

Conclusion

Hydrocarbon Sensor Electrical Schematic

Figure 3

The hydrocarbon sensor has shown itself to be a significant

advancement in the technology available for leak detection.
Distributed systems have in the past not been economically
feasible for pipelines and other large systems, leaving volume
balancesystems to determine leaks. As discussed,the volume
systems have limitations on low leak rates, which the sensor
cable system does not have. The hydrocarbon sensor can be
used for tank farms, ponds, and double containment piping
systems(l2). The same electronic systems can be used for
water sensor cables and acid and base sensor cables.
243

References:

18. Fukuda, T., et al, Leak Detection and Localization in a

Pipeline System Based on Time Series Analysis Techniques, Journal of Fluid Control VI
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from Groundwater Beneath a Densely Populated Housing
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Pipeline Engineering Symposium - 1987 Dallas Texas ASME
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Chet Sandberg, PE, received his BS degree from MIT in 1967 and his MS
from Stanford University in 1972. In 1972 he joined the Raychem Corporation in the Chemelex Heating Systems Division. He has held various positions at Raychem including Technical Strategy Manager, Electrical
Engineering Manager of the Chemelex Division and Consumer Products
Division Manager. He has managed and participated in research and
development of fiber optic sensors, conductive polymer heating elements
and process instrumentation systems. Chet is a Professional Electrical Engineer in the State of California, hdds 5 patents and has published Over I5
technical papers on fiber optics, sensor technology, and electric heat tracing. Chet is a member of IEEE, ASME and ISA. and is chairman of the IEEE
622 Working Group on Heat Tracing. He is a founder of several small startup companies in the Palo Alto area where he l i e s with his wife and
daughter. When not inventing, he loves to ski, sail and keep his 80286 PC
humming.

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Leak Detector, Journal of Canadian Petroleum Technology
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Airborne Use, Internationat Conference on Pipeline Inspection. Edmonton, Alberta, Can June 1983 p 555-565
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Jim Holmes is the Technical Director of Raychems TraceTek Products

Group. He started with Raychem in 1977 and has worked in development
and technical positions with Raychems telecommunications products and
pipeline corrosion protectionproducts prior to his current position. He has
a B. S. in Product Designfrom Stanford Universityand an M. S. in Engineering Management from Stanford University.

8. Raychem Corporation, TraceTek Fuel and Solvent Sensing Cables, Literature Number H52858 August 1987

Halar is a registered trademark of Allied Corporation

Ken McCoyreceivedhis BSEEdegreefrom NorthwesternUniversityin 1971

and an MBA from the University of Santa Clara in 1976. After serving with
the United States Navy and a period of consulting work with SRI International, he joined Raychem in 1977. Ken held various positions with the
PetrdeumTechndogy Divisionand was involvedwitha number of corrosion
control products used as pipeline coatings and for cathodic protection. In
1984, Ken was part of a small start-up group that formed the TraceTek
Division. He is now the operations managerfor TraceTek and combines his
manufacturing responsibilities with sales support and marketing in the
Pacific Rim countries. Ken spends his free time on the ski slopes or sailing
on San Francisco Bay.

10. Treloar, L. R. G., The Physics of Rubber Elasticity, Oxford University Press, London, p 123, 1985

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632, 1967
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v 21 n l 1982 p 45-54

Heinrich KoppRsch received his Dipl. Ing. degree from Technical University, Graz, Austria in 1974. He then worked at Waagner- Biro in technical
sales of turnkey power plants. Heinrich received his MBA at h e a d , France
in 1980. He joined Raychemin 1980and has held various sales and marketing positions with the Chemelex Division in Germany, Franceand the United
States. He is currently Marketing Manager for the TraceTek Products
Group.

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