The battle for pipeline integrity is won or lost right here. Cleaning to the bottom of the pits to remove microbes, debris, or water is a job for pencil brushes (Figure 1). The old fashioned flat wire brushes are not flexible enough or small enough to get to the bottom of the pits. Pigs without brushes act as a spatula and spread the debris out in the pipeline and cover up the pits. If water or microbes are present in the pits, the urethane seals of the pig will cover them with debris and provide the protection they need to continue their attack on the pipe wall. A brush is needed to get to the bottom of the pits and remove the corrosion inducing substances.

We prefer to mount the brushes on a Bi-Di pig with the proper brush to pipe wall interface.
The brush length, or trim length as it is called, must be calculated to get the brush ends to the
bottom of the pits, but not too long so that the brush becomes ineffective. If the brushes are too sparse on the pig, like moving sand with ones fingers spread apart, ineffective cleaning will result. Too many brushes will not clean any better and will result in higher costs. Figure 2 shows a Bi-Di pig with the proper brush density.

The brush array for a typical Bi-Di pig is shown in Figure 3 as a close-up of a brush mounted on a Saudi Aramco pig. This arrangement is easily mounted on the Bi-Di pig, usually not requiring any modification of the pig or longer bolts. When mounted this way, the brushes add only about ¾ in. to the pig length. The pencil brushes can be mounted on most Bi-Di pigs. A few pigs with large tubes and small flanges present some difficulties. But, for the most part, pencil brushes can be easily mounted on the pigs.

The pig configuration is very important to successful cleaning. As can be seen in Figure 4, there is a correct way to mount the brushes. The front brush is mounted by removing the urethane stack and placing the brush against the forward flange of the pig. The brush will be designed to slip over the flange. The urethane stack is then placed back onto pig as before and bolted into place. The rear brush is mounted as the last item on the pig and replaces the rear flange. Thus configured, the Bi-Di pig with pencil brushes is an extremely efficient and cost effective cleaning tool.

The reasoning behind the pig configuration is a result of years of testing in the laboratory and field tests. We always recommend placing magnets on the Bi-Di pig to collect any magnetic debris that is in the pipeline, including scale and bristles from the flat wire brushes that were broken off from previous runs. While magnets are costly, they provide protection from debris in the pipeline and since the magnets will last the life of the pig, their costs compared to the overall costs of pigging over many years becomes insignificant.

The primary reason for the front pencil brushes to be mounted as indicated is that the brush will now support the weight of the pig, relieving the seals from carrying the weight of the pig. This will allow the seals to remain effective, especially on long runs, as will be seen later in the case study provided. The front brush mounted near the magnets will also stir up the debris and give the magnets the opportunity to pick up the debris and carry it out of the pipeline before it can make its way into pump vanes or
flowmeters. It seems to be inexpensive insurance against having the debris getting into valve seals.

The brush mounted on the rear of the pig has two very important tasks to accomplish. First, as with the front brush, the weight of the pig is transferred to the pencil brushes and not the seals. Secondly, the brush will uncover the pits as the pig passes. This will allow the debris to be carried out by the product flow. An added benefit to this configuration is that there is no need for a rear guide disk as the pencil brushes are sufficiently sturdy enough to act as the guide disk. This reduces the cost of pigging.

Now, a word about cup pigs. We do not recommend placing pencil brushes on a cup pig. When the brushes
are placed between the urethane cups, whatever debris is loosened by the pencil brushes will be smeared back onto the pipe wall. Little, if anything, is accomplished and money is wasted. If a cup is needed for launching purposes, we have designed a hybrid pig with a cup in front and Bi-Di seals in the rear. Two brushes can be mounted, along with magnets, to make a very effective compromise.

The results of the Bi-Di pig with pencil brushes have been quite impressive, as can be seen in the following case study.

Case study: gas line with black powder

The problem line in question was a 42 in. dry gas line, which was 125 km long. It had not been successfully cleaned since 2002. In attempting to clean this line, the pigs were retrieved severely damaged. Most of the urethane was worn off of the pig and it was in metal-to-metal contact with the pipe wall (Figure 5). The line was being cleaned prior to MFL inspection. The first attempt at an inspection resulted in a damaged tool.

The solution was to use a simple Bi-Di pig with pencil brush flanges mounted just behind the front seals. Very powerful rare earth magnets were placed on the body to help carry the black powder out. Brushes were also placed at the rear of the pig.

The result was that the pig launched smoothly, ran at system pressure (40 bar), moved at the predicted pressure differential (0.25 bar) and successfully cleaned the pipeline. There was no vibration during the run and the pig passed each signaler as expected and arrived at the trap at the predicted time. Figure 6 shows the pig as it arrived. The seals were worn evenly all around the pig. There was no damage to the brushes and after cleaning the pig could have been launched again without replacing the seals.

While in Canada we received word that one of the largest pipeline operators in North America has decided to switch to our pencil brushes. Our Canadian distributor told me that they have been notified to be prepared for the switch. Another exiting opportunity and a great win for the Galaxy team.

We have a booth at the Pigging Conference so stop by to see the new Galaxy Pencil Brush product line we are introducing and say hello!

We’re excited about the potential for this significant Middle Eastern relationship and sharing this success with other ADNOC subsidiaries.

I concluded the trip with a stop in Saudi Arabia where I was invited to make two Pencil Brush presentations to Saudi Aramco.

A great trip all the way around.

I was fortunate to have my daughter join me for the Cairo trip – a 5 day whirlwind that began with stops in Amsterdam and Germany for meetings. Cairo will always be a great memory for us – we visited the Pyramids, walked along the Nile, spent time at the Cairo Museum and simply enjoyed the sights, sounds and people of this wonderful city.

My travels also included formal speaking opportunities at various Pipeline conferences. I spoke in Bahrain, Houston, Pittsburgh and Monaco.

The Galaxy team is really excited about 2010. We start the year with members of our leadership team going in different directions for a series of important planning meetings in both the Middle East and Canada. We will get back together for discussions with our investors and advisory board before hitting the road again for my presentation at DOT 2010 February 3rd in Houston. We have also been invited to present this year in Saudi Arabia, Libya, France and the UK.

Our New Year’s resolution (one of them anyways) is to keep you more informed of all the Galaxy goings on through our blog. Stop back and visit.

All the best for the coming year. Doug

While in Bahrain, I had the opportunity to travel out into the desert to visit a gas plant to discuss how we can help solve some problems. The best part was to see an area where people were living in tents. While that may seem primitive to us, it is a cultural custom to live in the tents during the winter time. I saw luxury cars and satellite dishes outside of the tents. One tent I saw was open on one side and there was a family sitting on the ground on beautiful rugs. It matched almost perfectly a painting I have hanging in my home that I bought on a previous trip to Bahrain. It was very cool to see that in person.

Back in Dubai, I spent the weekend (Friday and Saturday) at the home of Shyam, our agent in the region, and Poonam, his very gracious wife. They do the same things we do; hang out, take a nap, talk, work some and eat. The food, Indian, was great. Shyam and Poonam were great hosts. Poonam said I was like a father to her. I asked to be downgraded to just big brother……

On the working side of things, we drove to Abu Dhabi on most days for meetings. One trip was to the Emirate of Sharjah for a meeting at Crystal Plaza, one of the most beautiful building complexes I have seen anywhere. It’s worth a look using Google.

My trip home was made even better by my stop in Rotterdam. It didn’t get light there until well after 8am. Love the train system over there. It’s so easy, once you figure it out. My meeting went well there in Rotterdam and before long, I was headed home.

Since I got back, a large oil company in Abu Dhabi liked the paper I presented in Bahrain and asked permission to publish it in their internal magazine. Hmmm, I think I need to return soon!

Doug did a presentation in October in Prague. After that presentation he was asked to give the same presentation at the Houston show this year. What a great opportunity for us to give a presentation on pipeline brushes at a show attended by most of the North American pipeline pigging people and many of the pipeline owners as well as people from all over the world.

I love attending this show but this year I am more exited than ever. The word is spreading about our pencil brushes and the successes our customers are having with them. This success is making us more and more popular at these shows. We already have many meetings set up and most of them are at our customer’s request.

There was a time we sat by ourselves trying to get someone to talk to us but not anymore. It’s a great time for us right now.

-Lee

The next few weeks will be very exciting for me. I’m leaving for my 5th Middle Eastern trip on January 16. I’ll arrive in Dubai on the 17th where I will stay at the home of our agent and his wife, a wonderful Indian couple. On the 19th, I’ll fly to the Kingdom of Bahrain to present a paper I authored entitled “Pipeline Brushes: Critical Components of Infrastructure Maintenance” at the Oil & Gas Maintenance Technology Conference. With an estimated 1500 delegates in attendance, it is an excellent opportunity to showcase Galaxy’s brushes to an audience from more than 50 countries.

It will also be a time of renewing acquaintances and furthering friendships. I find the Middle East an amazing place. The people of that area are warm and cordial and I enjoy myself immensely visiting the entire area. After three days in Bahrain, I’ll return to Dubai for a week of meetings there and in Abu Dhabi. Dubai is like New York City on steroids. A drive up Sheik Zayed Road, lined on both sides with skyscrapers through what is called The Canyon; you will see no two buildings alike, each one as beautiful as it is unique.

On the way home from Dubai, a planned 6-1/2 hour layover in Amsterdam allows me to jump on a train in the lower level of Schiphol Airport for a 25 minute ride through the beautiful Dutch countryside to Rotterdam for a quick meeting and lunch with a friend and customer. (I have a pretty cool job).

–Doug