Trenchless rehabilitation: Which choice for gas distribution pipe replacement?
- Jason Consultants International, Washington, DC (United States)
- Gas Research Inst., Chicago, IL (United States)
Replacement or rehabilitation of deteriorating gas piping currently relies largely on open-cut excavation or pipe insertion. Open-cut replacement is satisfactory for communities where adverse environmental impact can be tolerated and road closures and traffic delays are kept to a minimum. However, most of the systems in need of replacement/rehabilitation are in urban areas where environmental impact, traffic delays, and site restoration costs are costly. With these parameters in mind, the Gas Research Institute (GRI); and its member organizations designed a research program to test and evaluate promising trenchless technologies for potential use in gas distribution rehabilitation projects. The programs`s goals were to identify product strengths, weaknesses, cost, applications, and recognition of areas which needed modification or further development. During this research a significant amount of data were gathered. All rehabilitation systems maximize pipe capacity while minimizing surface disruptions. Cost savings realized by some of the participating utilities was significant. This is even more impressive when one considers that this was the first gas installation for some of the methods. A summary of advantages, disadvantages, and lessons learned from each process is shown on Tables 2--6. Comments listed are for field trials conducted and may not be accurate or applicable to other projects. A common limitation of all rehabilitation methods is lack of a complete system with appropriate tees, fittings, transition materials, and other connection devices.
- OSTI ID:
- 49301
- Journal Information:
- Pipeline and Gas Journal, Vol. 222, Issue 1; Other Information: PBD: Jan 1995
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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