Beyond the pipeline

A logical path

The venture into nonmetallics is a logical step for our Company as an integrated energy and chemicals company. Our role in the global industry, plus the scale and scope of our own pipeline and facilities network, calls for research and innovation to ensure that this major component of our business more than stands up to severe and erosive conditions.

Pipelines are built to be safe, but corrosion is a natural consequence of metal use, and must be monitored and managed. Called “the invisible enemy” for a reason, corrosion costs industries around the world billions of dollars each year in prevention, maintenance, and repair expenses. Some sources put corrosion costs for the oil and gas industry alone at more than $60 billion. Fighting the gradual return of metal to its natural state is especially important for our sector, as component failure can mean not just costly interruption of business, but environmental consequences.

The decision to develop a suite of advanced polymeric solutions for the petroleum industry, and beyond, meshes with Aramco's strategic aims to derive the maximum value from our hydrocarbons, to include new, alternative applications. And of course, it aligns with our signature technology and innovation focus.

Innovating technical excellence

To develop field-applied solutions that meet strict temperature and pressure tolerance for nonmetallic materials, we have established a Non-metallic Innovation Centre (NIC) in Cambridge, England, in collaboration with The Welding Institute and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. The NIC brings together partners from academia, oil and gas companies, composite material manufacturers, and other research entities to fast-track product development, testing, and commercialization.

The industry's need for nonmetallic materials is growing, but our studies revealed that the technical limitations of currently available materials were responsible for their slow penetration. Clearly, the right noncorrosive alternatives could address temperature/pressure and chemical compatibility issues to enhance the safety and environmental performance of oil and gas production. As a center of technological excellence, the NIC can test and catalyze products with the right advanced properties and characteristics – and, moreover, work with customers on their own technical priorities.

Aramco's own application of nonmetallics is not new. We use nonmetallic pipe in the majority of our oil and gas facilities; it is also standard for most utility applications in our plants.

But it was our first mass deployment of reinforced thermoplastic pipe (RTP) in a newly developed oilfield increment of our Khurais megaproject that brought our use of the material to a new level. Following intensive lab and field testing to ensure alignment with Aramco's rigorous standards, 400 kilometers of nonmetallic flowlines were installed, versus standard carbon steel pipelines.

Life-cycle costs of RTP were determined to be a third of carbon-steel pipe, thanks to the elimination of corrosion monitoring costs. Installation time also revealed a stunning contrast, with the Khurais RTP flowline construction coming in at less than two days, compared to the typical 70 days for laying carbon steel.

Our tests also endorsed RTP's safety advantages, including the pipe's lighter weight that made it easier to transport and install, and the elimination of some tasks including welding.