Abstract
Natural gas continues to be one of the basic energy sources used as fuel in the power sector, in industries and in households. The potential and attractiveness of this fuel is gaining special significance in the current energy transitions from coal-based power engineering to power generation based on renewable energy sources. Natural gas is supplied to consumers mainly through a network of pipelines, which ensures a relatively high reliability of the supply. Still, failures occur due to the corrosion of pipeline walls, material defects or human errors, which can result in uncontrolled release of gas. The released gas can trigger dangerous phenomena, such as fires and explosions. This paper presents an analysis of the causes and effects of damage to a medium-pressure pipeline caused by earthworks carried out within an area where a pipeline is located. Holes in the pipeline due to the impact of an excavator bucket are analysed. The impact of the excavator bucket may cause a rupture equal to 50% of the pipeline’s cross-sectional area. Hazard zones related to fires and explosions due to the released natural gas are presented. For the analysed pipeline with a diameter of 0.5 m and a gas pressure of 5 MPa, the range of hazard zones arising due to pipeline damage caused by an excavator bucket can reach about 200 m.
Highlights
Natural gas continues to be one of the basic energy sources used as fuel in the power sector, in industries and in households
The largest consumer of natural gas in the world is the United States, which consumed about 817 billion cubic metres of gas in 2018
On 4 December 2019, a gas explosion occurred in Szczyrk, when the gas pipeline was damaged during construction work performed near a single-family building
Summary
Natural gas continues to be one of the basic energy sources used as fuel in the power sector, in industries and in households. These occur primarily as a result of irregularities during the pipeline construction and repair This group of damage includes corrosion damage—a phenomenon that may occur both on the inner and outer surfaces of the pipe wall in steel pipelines. On 27 June 2014, a fire occurred in southern India in the state of Andhra Pradesh due to an underground gas pipeline explosion; 18 people were killed and 40 were injured. The explosion occurred underground when gas from the damaged pipes leaked into the city’s sewer system; 27 people were killed and 286 were taken to hospitals. On 4 December 2019, a gas explosion occurred in Szczyrk, when the gas pipeline was damaged during construction work performed near a single-family building.
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