Construction Of Natural Gas Pipeline Research Articles

An integrated EDIB model for probabilistic risk analysis of natural gas pipeline leakage accidents

Natural gas pipeline construction is developing rapidly worldwide to meet the needs of international and domestic energy transportation. Meanwhile, leakage accidents occur to natural gas pipelines frequently due to mechanical failure, personal operation errors, etc., and induce huge economic property loss, environmental damages, and even casualties. However, few models have been developed to describe the evolution process of natural gas pipeline leakage accidents (NGPLA) and assess their corresponding consequences and influencing factors quantitatively. Therefore, this study aims to propose a comprehensive risk analysis model, named EDIB (ET-DEMATEL-ISM-BN) model, which can be employed to analyze the accident evolution process of NGPLA and conduct probabilistic risk assessments of NGPLA with the consideration of multiple influencing factors. In the proposed integrated model, event tree analysis (ET) is employed to analyze the evolution process of NGPLA before the influencing factors of accident evolution can be identified with the help of accident reports. Then, the combination of DEMATEL (Decision-making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory) and ISM (Interpretative Structural Modeling) is used to determine the relationship among accident evolution events of NGPLA and obtain a hierarchical network, which can be employed to support the construction of a Bayesian network (BN) model. The prior conditional probabilities of the BN model were determined based on the data analysis of 773 accident reports or expert judgment with the help of the Dempster-Shafer evidence theory. Finally, the developed BN model was used to conduct accident evolution scenario analysis and influencing factor sensitivity analysis with respect to secondary accidents (fire, vapor cloud explosion, and asphyxia or poisoning). The results show that ignition is the most critical influencing factor leading to secondary accidents. The occurrence time and occurrence location of NGPLA mainly affect the efficiency of emergency response and further influence the accident consequence. Meanwhile, the weight ranking of economic loss, environmental influence, and casualties on social influence is determined with respect to NGPLAs.

A complex spherical fuzzy CRADIS method based Fine-Kinney framework for occupational risk evaluation in natural gas pipeline construction

Occupational risk evaluation is one of the most indispensable issues in the risk prevention and control process for the natural gas pipeline construction (NGPC) project. The Fine-Kinney model, recognized as an effective occupational risk evaluation technique, has limited capability to handle the occupational risk analysis problem under the complex spherical fuzzy (CSF) environment. Accordingly, a synthetical Fine-Kinney framework based on the compromise ranking of alternatives from distance to ideal solution (CRADIS) method is developed to overcome these downsides of occupation risk analysis in the NGPC project within the CSF context. A prioritized weighted average (PWA) operator for complex spherical fuzzy numbers (CSFNs) is incorporated into the group risk evaluation matrix generation process, which can take the priority degrees of experts into account. Then, the extended CRADIS method-based Fine-Kinney framework is generated, in which the Choquet integral for CSFNs is incorporated to reflect the impact of interactive risk factors. Next, the detailed solution procedures of the framework for handling the occupational risk evaluation problem are presented. Finally, the described framework is employed as an empirical example of occupational risk analysis for the NGPC project to demonstrate its feasibility in practice. After that, a sensitivity analysis of the parameter is investigated to testify to the stability and rationality of the reported synthetical Fine-Kinney framework. Subsequently, to further display the advantages of the developed Fine-Kinney framework, a comparative study is implemented to discuss the evaluation result of occupational risk derived from the proposed framework and those of the existing similar Fine-Kinney frameworks. The analysis results indicate that the occupational risk (attack by human or animal) with the maximum risk priority value (1.000) using the framework is identified as the most serious risk for the NGPC project.

Management and Safety Control of Long-distance Natural Gas Pipeline Construction Project

Management and Safety Control of Long-distance Natural Gas Pipeline Construction Project

Management and Protection Technology of Natural Gas Pipeline Construction

Management and Protection Technology of Natural Gas Pipeline Construction

AFESSD: Object Detector for Natural Gas Pipeline Construction Scene

Object detection is a challenging task in computer vision, which aims to classify and locate objects. SSD (Single Shot MultiBox Detector) is one of the classical algorithms in the current object detection field, which uses multiple feature maps with different scales to detect all objects in an image. Based on SSD, in this paper, we propose an improved AFESSD for object detection in natural gas pipeline construction scene: Firstly, the attention mechanism module is introduced; Secondly, Feature Fusion Block and Feature Enhancement Block are designed to achieve high-to-low level feature information fusion and enhancement. Finally, we verify AFESSD on two object detection datasets of natural gas pipeline construction scene. Experimental results on the first dataset demonstrate that SSD and AFESSD achieve 81.35% and 83.13% mean average precision (mAP) respectively. On the second dataset, SSD and AFESSD achieve 50.55% and 50.99% mAP respectively. Therefore, AFESSD improves SSD’s object detection accuracy in natural gas pipeline construction scene.

A New Approach for Occupational Risk Evaluation of Natural Gas Pipeline Construction with Extended Cumulative Prospect Theory

The natural gas pipeline construction project possesses different kinds of highly risky occupational hazards because of its complex and dynamic surrounding environments. Occupational risk evaluation is one of the most effective techniques to reduce and manage these risks and hazards. There are various kinds of techniques to address the problem of occupational risk evaluation, however, most of these techniques overlook the decision-makers’ different risk perceptions under the different probability of risk occurrence. In addition, current occupational risk evaluation approaches are unable to cope with the risk analysis problem including correlated risk parameters within the random and fuzzy context. Aiming to compensate for these limitations, we present an extended occupational risk evaluation method for a natural gas pipeline construction project by integrating the cloud model, cumulative prospect theory, and Bonferroni mean operator. In this framework, four risk parameters in the safety and critical effect analysis (SCEA) are introduced to rate the risk of each occupational hazard. Then, the normal cloud model is utilized to transform the linguistic risk evaluation information into quantitative data, which can model the uncertainty of randomness and fuzziness in the risk evaluation process. Next, the extended cumulative prospect theory based on Bonferroni mean operator is constructed to derive the risk magnitude of each hazard considering the decision maker’s different risk perception and interactions among risk parameters. Finally, the proposed extended occupational risk evaluation method is tested by the risk evaluation of the concrete coating procedure. The sensitivity and comparison analyses are led to validate the rationality and reliability of the proposed occupational risk evaluation method.

Elemental dynamics in porewater of an acid sulfate paddy soil as affected by sodium bentonite and dolomite amendments: insights from field study

Rice productivity in acid sulfate soils are frequently limited due primarily to strong acidity, low phosphorus (P) availability and metal toxicity. A recent study has documented that the use of sodium bentonite (NaB), non-hazardous material uses in natural gas pipeline construction, could be a promising soil amendment for mitigating major concerns experiencing in acid sulfate soils. Here we examined the effects of NaB and dolomite (DL) on dynamics in dissolved contents of both nutrient and associated elements in an acid sulfate soil and rice yield from paddy field in natural gas pipeline Rights-of-Way. The results demonstrated that the NaB and DL utilization significantly alleviated soil acidity and metal (Al, Fe, and Mn) toxicity (α = 0.05). Both soil amendments also significantly improved readily available P. Nonetheless, the soil NaB incorporation did elevate soluble sodium and did plummet soluble K, Ca, and Mg. Therefore, appropriate ratios and amounts of the K, Ca, and Mg along with N fertilizers are indisputable needed to maintain the nutrient balance when applying NaB as a soil amendment. Our finding implies that combined use of NaB and DL are suggested to soil amendment and could alleviate nutrient imbalance as compared to the sole NaB utilization.

A decision-support system based on Pythagorean fuzzy VIKOR for occupational risk assessment of a natural gas pipeline construction

Natural gas pipeline construction projects are major projects between countries that include onshore and offshore sections. Aim of these projects is to supply the natural gas from one place to another. Safety of workplace, environment and employers is also another important argument. In this respect, it is essential to conduct an occupational risk assessment (ORA) study to eliminate the risks that may arise around the pipeline. Application of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) methods for the ORA has shown great increase recently. Also, developing a decision support system (DSS) which is easy to use and capable of extracting results enables decision makers to assess health and safety risks. Therefore, (i) A DSS based on Pythagorean fuzzy VIKOR (PFVIKOR) in ORA literature is developed for the first time; (ii) A case study is employed to risk assessment for trenchless crossings installation by auger boring process of the pipeline project; (iii) A sensitivity analysis is performed in the results of PFVIKOR-based DSS; and (iv) Two additional risk parameters called sensitivity to PPE non-utilization and undetectability are considered in ORA process apart from the classical risk assessment parameters of severity and probability. Developing such a DSS and applying it for risk assessment in a natural gas pipeline construction will contribute stakeholders in the energy industry.

Shale gas transmission and housing prices

In this study, we exploit residential property sales data in New York to value the external environmental costs of the proposed Constitution Pipeline, a high-capacity transmission pipeline designed to transport hydraulically-fractured natural gas in Pennsylvania to large northeastern markets. Results from difference-in-differences models suggest post-announcement price declines of 9% (∼$12,000) for those properties located within three kilometers of the pipeline. These results are strongly robust to different specifications and subsets of the data, as well as falsification testing. Additionally, we find some evidence of attenuation in our treatment effect over time, which is indicative of either declining salience or expectations of the pipeline over time. Our results suggest that homebuyer expectations of the environmental externalities of natural gas pipeline construction and operations are large and negative.

Effectiveness of soil and water conservation associated with a natural gas pipeline construction project inChina

AbstractA natural gas pipeline extends over a distance of 310 km in the Hebei Province of China and passes through various zones of natural vegetation, mostly wooded. Construction required a working width of about 40 m and a 1.4‐m‐wide trench to be dug to a depth of 2.4 m to enable the installation of a pipe with a diameter of 1,016 mm. The construction process had to manage an irregular configuration of terrain with steep slopes, varying degrees of instability, and a propensity for erosion and land degradation. To prevent potentially massive soil erosion and further deterioration of the affected environment, a comprehensive soil and water conservation plan was designed and implemented. A 3.25‐km‐long study area was selected in rugged hilly country and was divided into seven topographic zones, with slopes ranging from <10° to over 50°. Different soil and water conservation measures were adopted in each zone, including engineering measures, revegetation measures, and maintenance measures. One year after installation, trees planted in individual holes grew well in each zone and the vegetation cover on the slopes treated by hydroseeding exceeded 90%. In addition, run‐off and sediment yield on slopes were significantly reduced. These conservation measures were conducive to environmentally sustainable development and may serve as a scientific reference for ecological restoration and vegetation reconstruction in future pipeline construction projects in similar terrain. Furthermore, these measures also helped to ensure the safe operation of the pipeline and provided protection for people living and working along the pipeline route.

Assessing occupational risks in pipeline construction using FMEA-based AHP-MOORA integrated approach under Pythagorean fuzzy environment

The aim of natural gas pipeline projects is generally to make it possible to transfer the natural gas produced from one place to another. There are various safety risks for these broad construction systems. Therefore, to reduce the negative effects of emerged risks, a new risk assessment approach for occupational health and safety (OHS) is needed. In this paper, FMEA-based AHP-MOORA integrated approach under Pythagorean fuzzy sets is proposed for assessing occupational risks in a natural gas pipeline construction project. A case study for concrete coating process of natural gas pipeline project is employed to show the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed integrated approach. A comparative study, correlation analysis, and sensitivity analysis are also presented to approve the novel risk assessment approach. In conclusion, the integrated approach gives more reasonable results for evaluating the occupational risks in project of pipeline construction using the advantage of Pythagorean fuzzy sets that reflects uncertainty in more suitable way.

Natural Gas Security in China: A Simulation of Evolutionary Trajectory and Obstacle Degree Analysis

Studying the security status of China’s natural gas supply and proposing a feasible coping strategy for enhancing that security is of great significance. We use a pressure-state-response (PSR) analysis framework and the exponential weighting method to make a systematic evaluation of China’s natural gas security, predict the evolution of natural gas security combined with the GM(1,1) model, and use the obstacle degree model to diagnose the obstacles standing in the way of China’s optimum natural gas security. China’s natural gas comprehensive security index from 2006 to 2015 was between 0.627 and 0.740, and it is predicted to land between 0.669 and 0.759 from 2016 to 2025. The barriers affecting China’s natural gas security moving forward will be focused on urban development pressure, natural gas consumption growth pressure, supply-demand ratio, storage-production ratio, import price volatility for liquefied natural gas, and import dependence. We predict China’s natural gas security will be characterized by a wave of advancement, and has certain periodicity. The main internal factors affecting China’s natural gas security will shift from the rudimentary natural gas pipeline construction and gas storage facilities construction to the low availability of natural gas and urbanization, which will increase the pressure on natural gas supply and demand.

Study on Vibration Characteristics of Natural Gas Pipeline Explosion Based on Improved MP‐WVD Algorithm

In order to meet the requirement of precise analysis of nature gas pipeline explosion, authors combined MP algorithm and WVD distribution to improve the time‐frequency resolution and to solve the problem of cross‐terms interference. The HHT algorithm was applied to the data preprocessing of MP algorithm to reduce the computational complexity of the MP algorithm. It improved the computing efficiency and laid the foundation for big data analysis. In this paper, authors carried out a full‐size pipeline explosion experiment at the CNPC pipeline fracture control State Key Laboratory. Advantages of the improved MP‐WVD algorithm were taken to obtain the time‐frequency distribution characteristics of the pipeline explosion vibration. The research provided a new algorithm for the time‐frequency distribution of nonstationary random vibration, and the result provided a reference for the safe operation and construction of natural gas pipeline.

Primate response to natural gas pipeline construction in the Peruvian Amazon

AbstractWhile natural resource exploration and extraction activity is expanding in the Neotropics, our understanding of wildlife response to such activity is almost non‐existent. Primates, which fulfill important ecological roles and face numerous anthropogenic threats, are of particular concern. We studied primate group distribution before, during, and after natural gas pipeline construction in the Peruvian Amazon to investigate whether primates spatially avoid areas of disturbance. We monitored primates on eight transects 20 times per annual sampling period in three consecutive years and analyzed changes in group observations relative to the pipeline right‐of‐way in a multi‐season occupancy modeling framework. Overall primate group encounter rates were low (<half) compared to a nearby protected area. Contrary to expectations, we did not see clear evidence of spatial avoidance of the pipeline area. Although higher overall encounter rates before construction suggested lower primate use of the area during and following construction, this pattern could not be confirmed statistically, and probability of colonization and extinction of transect sections in the occupancy analysis could not be differentiated from zero. These results are probably attributable to a combination of low numbers of primate encounters and high spatial variability in primate use of different transects. This study provides valuable preliminary data and a methodological framework for understanding the response of an ecologically important group of mammals to anthropogenic activity. We encourage other researchers to continue exploring the impacts of natural resource exploration‐ and extraction‐related activities in the tropics, as such activities are likely to have a growing effect on ecosystems.

Halting decisions for gas pipeline construction projects using AHP: a case study

This paper considers a decision making problem encountered by a natural gas pipeline construction company having a set of ongoing projects and facing unpredictable risks that can result in large deviations from planned schedules. This situation forces the company to consider the decision of halting one or more projects to avoid future losses and to allow for possible reallocation of some of their resources to other ongoing projects. This decision making problem involves different factors and criteria that need to be combined in an organized structure that exploits assessments of experts managing such projects. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is found to be suitable for guiding decisions in this problem. A case study for a major natural gas pipeline construction company in Egypt is presented, where three ongoing projects are considered. The proposed AHP structure, along with collected pairwise comparison scores and calculated priorities, suggests halting one project. Sensitivity analysis is conducted to investigate the effect of changes in the pairwise comparison scores assigned to the main criteria on the final decision. The results and analysis provide some insights regarding the application of the AHP and the relative importance of the factors affecting decisions.

中国天然气消费结构的模糊地域聚类

出于提高天然气政策效率、优化天然气消费预测以及改善天然气管网规划等目的，运用基于模糊等价关系闭包的聚类方法对大陆30个省份(不含西藏) 2013年天然气消费结构进行了聚类研究。结果为，这些省份：1) 在0.9的精度水平上，共有22类，其中河北与黑龙江组成1类，山西与湖北组成1类，江西、广东、贵州、云南与陕西组成1类，其余省份各独为1类；2) 在0.8的精度水平上，共有12类，其中北京、天津、内蒙古、上海、福建、河南、海南、重庆、青海及新疆各独为1类，江苏与山东组成一类，其余省份组成1类；3) 在0.7的精度水平上，共有4类，其中重庆独为1类，北京与上海组成1类，福建、河南组成1类；4) 在0.6的精度水平上，共有2类，其中重庆独为1类，其余所有省份组成1类；5) 在0.5的精度水平上，仅有1类。据研究结果，得三个主要结论：1) 地域特征并非中国天然气消费结构差异的唯一因素；2) 重庆、北京、上海、福建以及河南在天然气消费结构方面难以与其它省份聚为1类；湖北与山西以及江西、广东、贵州、云南与陕西在这方面很大程度上又各同属一类；3) 重庆表现出了最明显的独特性。这些现象的深层原因值得进一步研究。 In order to enhance the efficiency of natural gas policy, optimize the forecast of natural gas con-sumption and improve the plan of natural gas pipeline construction, an fuzzy clustering based on the fuzzy equivalence relation’s transitive closure is applied to the natural gas consumption structures of 30 provinces (excluding Tibet) of Mainland China in 2013. The results show that, among those provinces: 1) at the accuracy level of 0.9, there are 22 clusters, with Hebei and Hei-longjiang being one cluster, Shanxi and Hubei being another, Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guizhou and Shannxi being a third and each of the rest along being a single cluster; 2) at the accuracy level of 0.8, there are 12 clusters, with Beijing, Tianjin, Inner Mongolia, Shanghai, Fujian, Henan, Hainan, Chongqing, Qinghai and Xinjiang each being a single cluster, Jiangsu and Shandong being one, and all others being another; 3) at the accuracy level of 0.7, there are 4 clusters, with Chongqing along being a single, Beijing and Shanghai being one, Fujian and Henan being another, and all others be-ing the fourth; 4) at the accuracy level of 0.6, there are 2 clusters, with Chongqing along being a single, and all others being the other; and 5) at the accuracy level of 0.5, there is only 1 cluster. Three points can be concluded from the results. First, no evidence of regional characteristic has been found associated with the structures of natural gas consumption in those provinces. Second, it turns out to be rather difficult for Chongqing, Beijing, Shanghai, Fujian as well as Henan to be classified in one cluster, while Hubei & Shanxi and Jiangxi & Guangdong & Guizhou & Yunnan & Shannxi belong to one cluster rather significantly. And third, Chongqing appears the most unique. The in depth logics of those phenomena are worth further investigation.

Transnational Political Cosmology: A Central Mediterranean Example

AbstractThis paper examines the workings of kinship and marriage idioms in transnational political imaginary in the central Mediterranean to challenge current academic reliance on the notion of fraternity as the symbolic building block of both national and global political relations. Since the 1960s, the Sicilian town of Mazara del Vallo and its fishing fleet have become entwined in intensifying interactions with Tunisia and the wider Maghreb. These interactions—specifically the Tunisian-Italian “Fish War” and construction of a trans-Mediterranean natural gas pipeline between North Africa and Europe—rejuvenated the old geopolitical imagination of the Mediterranean and helped produce the central Mediterranean as a spatio-temporal field of political action. Italians and Tunisians perceived each other as related, and staged the trans-Mediterranean infrastructural project as a sort of European-African (cross-cousin) marriage. I begin by examining the tensions between two central kinship idioms—fraternity and cousinage—in current understandings of transnational relations. I then discuss the growing prevalence of a transnational political cosmology of affinity across difference over that of shared descent and sameness that characterize national alignments. I conclude by examining how Tunisians and Sicilians in Mazara today cast each other in roles deriving from segmentary schemes they share, but on the content of which they disagree. By applying concepts associated with kinship and marriage studies to recent Mediterranean history, I show how segmentation, a concept anthropologists abandoned when they crossed the Mediterranean on their way into Europe, can help us understand transnational politics.

A procedure to design the mainline system in natural gas networks

With the start up of West–East Natural Gas Transmission Project, the construction of natural gas-pipeline will enter on a new era in China. The development tendency will be towards large-diameter, high-pressure and long-distance for natural gas-pipelines. Correspondingly, the life cycle cost of natural gas-pipeline networks is increasing gradually. The mainline system is a vital part of natural gas network systems. The investment required for the mainline system is enormous, usually accounting for 80% of the total investment for this system. In general, the investment required for a gas-pipeline depends on its operating parameters. Therefore, based on the characteristics of gas networks, optimization for investment becomes indispensable to gas networks design. A comprehensive and optimal mathematic model of a gas networks system is established in this paper which considers all the factors influencing the total investment of a gas networks system (e.g. pipe diameter, thickness, pressure, length, compression ratio, etc). From the standpoint of the characteristics of a model comprising both continuous and discrete variables, a new methodology, rank-optimization, is presented. On the basis of this model, a simple and visual high-pressure networks optimization program has been compiled. Furthermore, the developed optimization program has been applied to a practical project and the effects of operating parameters on the total investment have been analyzed. The simulation model in this paper is shown to be an effective method to solve optimization on mainline system in high-pressure gas networks.

CMEA's International Investment Bank and the Crisis of Developed Socialism

In 1971 the Soviet bloc's Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) created the International Investment Bank (IIB). The IIB was part of a broader effort to adopt market-based reforms in all the East-bloc economies. The bank was designed to promote competition for loans and rigorous vetting of projects, ostensibly resulting in greater CMEA integration and production that met world standards of quality. But this scenario ultimately did not pan out. Instead, the IIB became a mere conduit for Western finance, focusing not on high technology but on natural resource extraction, particularly the construction of the Soyuz natural gas pipeline. More fundamentally, the IIB could not function properly without market-determined prices and convertible currencies. Although economic authorities in the Soviet bloc fully recognized the constraints on the IIB, they were unwilling to abandon fundamental principles of the Soviet economic system.

Economic Development and Environmental Sustainability: A Study of Peru's Camisea Natural Gas Project

There has been a substantial amount written about the interplay between economic development and the environment. Some have determined that the relationship between the two results in a bell-shaped curve that is now popularly known as the Environmental Kuznets Curve. Such seems to be the case with Peru when data for gross real domestic income and carbon dioxide are examined. However, this was before the construction of the major natural gas pipeline, the Camisea pipeline also known as the Camisea project. The resistance against its construction from the local population with the backing of various environmental groups is a sign of its potential for damaging the environment. This can invariably be avoided if the Peruvian government, from the outset, adopts a policy mix of regulatory enforcement, 'greener' technology adoption and performance monitoring.