High temperature thermal insulation for deepwater pipelines

Termisk isolasjon av undervannsrørledninger er kritisk for å sikre flyten av olje og gass fra mange felt på den Norske kontinentalsokkelen. Isolasjonen forhindrer redusert flyt ved å holde høy temperatur på fluidet. Høy temperatur forhindrer utfelling av partikler som kan feste seg til rørveggen og redusere eller i verste fall blokkere røret. Dagens isolasjonsløsninger har en temperaturbestandighet på 150 °C. For nye felt i Norge og internasjonalt er det en økende trend mot dypere vann og høyere temperaturer. For å muliggjøre utnytting av disse ressursene trengs termisk isolasjon som tåler høyere temperatur. Shawcor Norway AS er den ledende leverandøren av isolasjon til undervannsrørledninger for olje og gass. I prosjektet "High temperature thermal insulation for deepwater pipelines" har vi i samarbeid med Norner Research utviklet en ny rørisolasjon, XT180, som kan møte fremtidens utfordringer med enda høyere temperaturer og store havdyp. Dette hadde ikke vært mulig uten støtte fra Norges Forskningsråds program Petromaks 2.

The XT180 project funded by Petromaks 2 succesfully developed a new, robust thermal insulation system for subsea oil and gas pipelines which can be used up to 180 degC operating temperature and down to 3000 m water depth. The research conducted in the project found several new methods for evaluating the performance of insulation properties under harsh environmental exposures. As a consequence, the new insulation materials have been thouroughly characterised and understood, and they can be employed for service lifes of 30 years or more with high confidence. The product which was developed will allow Shawcor Norway AS and Shawcor globally to bid on pipeline projects which require operating temperatures up to 180 degC. The solution has since been developed further commercially in full scale prototype development projects and recieved a positive reception in the market. The XT180 pipe insulation will most likely be utilised for the first time on a commercial project in 2022.

Thermal insulation of subsea oil and gas pipelines is critical in assuring flow in pipeline fluid transport on many fields on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Insulations prevent flow reduction by keeping the temperature of the fluid high, to avoid solids precipitation and clogging the pipe during production shut downs and towards terminations. The maximum temperature rating for insulations on deepwater flowlines is currently 150 °C. There is an increasing trend towards deeper waters and higher temperatures for new fields in Norway and internationally. To make these resources more feasible, higher temperature insulation is required. Shawcor Norway is the primary supplier of wet thermal insulation to the Norwegian continental shelf. The wet insulation used on the highest temperature flowline ever was produced by Shawcor Norway and we see the need to develop even higher temperature resistant insulation to meet the coming challenges.