EconomicPolicyJournal.com: No More Spills? New Technology Could Transform the Pipeline Sector.
There is new technology floating around out there—but it’s new and relatively untested in the marketplace.
RealSens remote-sensing pipeline detection technology aims to pick up where SCADA and the pigs leave off, detecting leaks over an entire pipeline network.
According to Banica, Synodon’s CEO, realSens can actually save companies money by detecting the leaks sooner and faster and thus reducing the amount of spilled product and the environmental damage. But it’s a new technology that was only introduced into the market 12 months ago.
Still, some of the big operators remain skeptical of new pipeline leak detection systems, as their cost-saving applications are as yet unproven.
“The first hurdle is that operators might not be aware that it exists and what the capabilities are. The second hurdle is that they have a hard time believing it works and have to see proof through customer field tests, which are currently ongoing,” Banica told Oilprice.com.
But the issue of pipeline leak detection will increasingly be on everyone’s radar following the Quebec train disaster that killed at least 38 people, and counting. No pipeline failure has ever come close to this level of human carnage. This will help shape the transport debate.
What the Quebec tragedy demonstrates, says Banica, is that pipelines are a far better option than rail. “Whereas pipelines do not kill as many people as rail (or even truck transport, as more drivers die due to accidents), they do pose a bigger environmental risk than rail due to larger potential leaks and releases.”
A Conservative Edge 