The traditional method of guiding remotely operated vehicles (ROV) inspection/repair to leaking targets would be inadequate for breaks on pipelines installed in underwater poor visibility condition. This work presents a system for remotely tracking a ‘controlled’ plume exiting from broken underwater containment structures such as pipelines. Our earlier work on a related subject has demonstrated a system of close-visual inspection of pipelines in muddy/unclear water using human divers. In this paper we report on an extension of the work to devise a ‘diverless’ system of following exiting plumes to track leaking points on marine pipelines/structures installed in unclear/muddy water conditions. A leaking pipeline is flushed with water or gas at minimal low internal containment pressure to generate a plume that is observable at the surface of muddy water. The plume signature is then traced using a novel tool attached to an observation/inspection remotely operated equipment from the top of the ‘muddy’ water surface to the plume bottom, thus, tracking the leaking target. The tool performance is validated in a muddy water tank and in all trials, the tool is found sitting at the leak location. The adequate understanding of the visible conditions of damaged structures such as leaking underwater pipelines would enable proper selection of repair system. The approach permits the use of a remotely operated system for close visual inspections and repairs in unclear/muddy water conditions.
展开▼
