Advancements in Acoustic Monitoring of Prestressed Concrete Cylinder Pipe: Getting More from Existing Condition Assessment Techniques

Pipelines owners have used acoustic wire break (WB) detection to avoid catastrophic failures and understand deterioration rates of their prestressed concrete cylinder pipe (PCCP) for more than 25 years. Recent development has made it possible to get additional insight from acoustic monitoring of pipelines in three ways: first, acoustic fiber optic leak detection, second, distributed wire break monitoring, and third, the locating of events of interest. Field trials were undertaken to evaluate the performance of each technique. For any acoustic sensing technology, it is difficult to quantify detection thresholds in a dynamic operating environment. Factors affecting ambient noise such as diameter, flow, bends, features, proximity to pump station, etc. all have an impact on sensitivity. This paper will discuss the application of each technique, present findings from trials, and planned next steps.