Pipe-in-Pipe by Rapid, Continuous, Smart Alloy Coating

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Program:
REPAIR
Award:
$1,000,000
Location:
College Park, Maryland
Status:
ALUMNI
Project Term:
12/07/2020 - 03/06/2022
Website:

Technology Description:

The team led by University of Maryland (UMD) will employ its patented high-temperature sintering process to rapidly sinter a steel coating layer in pipe-in-pipe configurations. This approach, which uses high temperature (1500-2000 ℃) Joule heating, includes the ability to rapidly sinter alloy powders in ~10 seconds, resulting in a material with high mechanical strength (~400-600 MPa), self-healing ability, and a long lifetime (50 years). If successful, UMD’s alloy coating approach will generate new steel pipe to replace the old steel pipe at a low cost for gas service and much improved mechanical strength, corrosion resistance, and longevity. UMD also expects that the rapid sintering process can be scaled to meet commercial market demands.

Potential Impact:

REPAIR seeks to eliminate the highest pipe rehabilitation cost components, excavation and restoration, by repairing pipes without their removal.

Security:

REPAIR projects should improve the sustainability of domestic natural gas distribution by economically rehabilitating legacy pipes.

Environment:

REPAIR will produce 3D maps and data management/visualization tools that integrate geospatial data for leak testing, integrity/inspection data, coating deposition data, and locations of pipes and adjacent underground infrastructure.

Economy:

REPAIR program innovations will accelerate legacy pipeline replacement while reducing cost to utilities and gas customers.

Contact

ARPA-E Program Director:
Dr. Jack Lewnard
Project Contact:
Prof. Liangbing Hu
Press and General Inquiries Email:
ARPA-E-Comms@hq.doe.gov
Project Contact Email:
binghu@umd.edu

Partners

Diakont Advanced Technologies,Inc.
University of Pittsburgh

Related Projects

• Autonomic Materials - Autonomous Rehabilitation and Maintenance of Natural Gas Pipes
• Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) - Confined Space Mapping Module for In-Pipe Repair Robots
• General Electric (GE) Global Research - PipeLine Underground Trenchless Overhaul (PLUTO)
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) - Structural Materials-aided Advanced Renewal Technology for REPAIR (SMART REPAIR)
• ULC Technologies - Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing for New Pipeline Fabrication in Live, Natural Gas Distribution Mains
• University of Colorado, Boulder (CU-Boulder) - Testing and Analysis of Pipeline Encapsulation Technologies
• University of Delaware (UD) - TuFF Internal Wrap for Rapid Pipeline Repair (TuFF iWRAP)
• University of Maryland (UMD) - Pipe-in-Pipe by Rapid, Continuous, Smart Alloy Coating
• University of Pittsburgh - Innervated Pipelines: A New Technology Platform for In-Situ Repair and Embedded Intelligence
• White River Technologies - New and Innovative 3D Mapping Technology to Enable Rehabilitation of Natural Gas Pipe Infrastructure

Release Date:
02/18/2020