se 439 research proposal - Home Pages of All Faculty at KFUPM

Department of Systems Engineering

SE 439

SPECIAL TOPICS IN UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

In-pipe Leak Detection Based on Pressure Gradient

(اكرشاف انرسشب داخم الااتة تاسرخذاو يؼذل ذغش انضغط)

Faculty Supervisor 1 Dr. Atia Khalifa

Department Mechanical Engineering

Faculty Supervisor 2 Dr. Rached Ben-Mansour

Department Mechanical Engineering

Team Leader Mohanad Alhisamawi, ID:200684240

Department Systems Engineering

Team Member 1 Mahmoud ElFeky, ID:200684040

Department Systems Engineering

Date: 2011-05-16

King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals Systems Engineering Department SE 439 SPECIAL TOPICS IN UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH

SE 439, Research Proposal

PROJECT INFORMATION

Project Title Leak Detection in Pipes using Pressure Gradient

Proposed Budget 3000 Saudi Riyals

Estimated Duration 4 Months

Proposed Starting Date

Feb / 2011 Ending Date May / 2011

Project Personnel

Research Team

No. Name ID Department Role

1 Dr. Atia Khalifa Mechanical

Engg. Faculty Supervisor

2 Dr. Rached Ben-Mansour Mechanical

Engg. Faculty Supervisor

3 Mohanad Alhismawi 200684240 Systems Engg.

Team Leader

4 Mahmoud ElFeky 200684040 Systems Engg.

Team Member 2

Keywords (max. 4) 1.Leak Detection 2.Pipe networks

3.Pressure Gradient 4.In pipe sensing



SUMMARY

Leak detection and localization in underground distribution networks for gases and liquids is a

challenging research topic. Current techniques have serious limitations in locating leaks particularly with

plastic pipes. The amount of treated water loss in a country like Saudi Arabia is estimated above 1 billion

Saudi Riyals every year. Oil and gas industries are suffering from leak problems as well. Hence,

developing new ideas for leak detection and localization will be in the favor of Saudi Arabia and the

whole world.

The project involves the design and construction of a simple, yet effective leak detection system based on

sensing the high pressure gradient in the vicinity of the leak. The system is to be deployed inside a gas or

liquid pipeline and should include a smart sensor to detect and record a leak and issue an alarm to the

master pipe network supervisory system.



: الملخص

جغ انطشق انرفشج نا انكثش ي , حانا. ؼذ اكرشاف انرسشب ذحذذ يلؼ ف شثكاخ انغاص انسائم يضع تحث صؼة

ف انهكح انؼشتح انسؼدح ذمذس انخسائش انادح سا تحان يهاس سال . انؼب ذحذذا ػذيا رؼهك الأيش تالأاتة انثلاسركح

إ ذطش أفكاس جذذج نرحذذ يالغ . رجح نرسشب انا ي شثكاخ انرصغ كا ذؼا ششكاخ انغاص انضد ي ز انشكه أضا

. انرسشب سف ؼد تانفائذج ػهى انهكح انؼشتح انسؼدح انكثش ي دل انؼانى أضا

زا انششع ذف إنى تحث دساسح ذصى تسط فؼال لاكرشاف انرسشب تاء ػهى يثذأ اخرلاف انضغط تانمشب ي يصذس

ضغ انجاص تذاخم شثكاخ مم انغاص انسائم سف حري ػهى جاص ذحسس رك لاكرشاف ذسجم يكا انرسشب .انرسشب

.تالإضاف إنى إسسال ذث إنى ظاو انشالث انشئس نهشثكح



TABLE OF CONTENTS Section/Details Page

PROJECT INFORMATION ..................................................................................................... 2

ENGLISH SUMMARY .............................................................................................................. 3

ARABIC SUMMARY ................................................................................................................. 4

TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................... 5

1.0 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 6

2.0 PROJECT OBJECTIVES ................................................................................. 7

3.0 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................. 7

4.0 DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED WORK ............................................. 8

4.1 Approach, Tasks and Phases ........................................................................................... 8

4.2 Research Methodology .................................................................................................... 9

4.3 Management Plan......................................................................................................... 11

4.4 Project Deliverables ...................................................................................................... 11

5.0 Proposed Budget ............................................................................................. 11

6.0 REFERENCES ............................................................................................... 12

7.0 RESUMES ....................................................................................................... 13

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: APPROACH UTILIZED FOR ACHIEVING OBJECTIVES ............................................................... 8 Table 2: MAPPING OF PHASES AND TASKS TO ACHIEVE OBJECTIVES ................................................. 8 Table 3: ROLE AND INVOLVEMENT DURATION OF RESEARCH TEAM .............................................. 11 Table 4: PROJECT WORK PLAN ................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.11 Table 5: PROPOSED BUDGET ..................................................................................................................... 11

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: PRESSURE VARIATION ALONG THE PIPE .................................................................................. 9 Figure 2: EXPERIMENTAL SETUP............................................................................................................... 10 Figure 3: MEHCANICAL SENSOR DESIGN ................................................................................................ 10



1.0 INTRODUCTION

The unintentional release of fluid from pipelines is characterized as leak. Pipeline leak may result, for

example, from bad workmanship or from any destructive cause, due to sudden changes of pressure,

corrosive action, cracks, defects in pipes or lack of maintenance. In most cases, the deleterious effects

associated with the occurrence of leaks may present serious problems and, therefore, leaks must be

quickly detected, located and repaired. The problem of leak even becomes more serious when it is

concerned with the vital supply of fresh water to the community. In addition to waste of resources,

contaminants may infiltrate into the water supply. The possibility of environmental health disasters due

to delay in detection of water pipeline leaks have spurred research into the development of methods for

pipeline leak and contamination detection.

Public water pipeline networks extend for thousands of kilometres, consisting of many pipe segments

connected by joints. These pipelines are subjected to traffic and other surface loads which overstress

the pipes and joints. Leakage of water occurs from mains and service connections at joints and fittings,

from break due to excessive imposed loads and holes caused by corrosion. In early years, since the

value of unaccounted-for product was thought to be insignificant and the cost of the energy was quite

low, leakage in water distribution systems was largely ignored. This view of leakage management has

been gradually changing since the mid-1980s, for both economical and environmental reasons.

Consequently, in the past decades research in water resources has been primarily directed toward

groundwater and transport related topics. On the other hand, the water shortage along with the

significantly higher cost of energy for water distribution and treatment, have sparked a fast-growing

interest in leakage control problems. On the national ground, major cities across the Kingdom of Saudi

Arabia (Riyadh, Jeddah and Medina) depend on desalination for more than 90% of their water needs .

The water is desalinated in large plants and then distributed to cities and towns. This distribution

needed the construction of a large network of pipelines. The problem of water leakage from these

pipelines causes clean water loss, energy loss and a major increase in water contamination with

hazardous chemicals and metals. It is reported that 30% of the water transported across KSA is lost

through leakage. This is considered a very high quantity given that the present desalination capacity is

estimated at six million cubic meters per day, and is expected to rise to more than ten million cubic

meters per day over the next five years. Assuming an average cost of 0.75 USD per cubic meter, it is

estimated that the desalination cost losses amount to 820 million USD per year. This amount does not

include transportation distribution and other losses. Furthermore, the problem of leakage implies

penetration of hazardous contaminants into the water distribution system.



2.0 PROJECT OBJECTIVES

The project objective is to design and construct a sensor that is able to detect leaks in pipes. The

sensor is based on the idea of pressure drop producing a suction force in the vicinity of the leak. Upon

the detection of the leak, the sensor generates an alarm which can be sent to the master alarm system

for a pipe network. More precisely, our project aims to:

1. Building a sensor to measure the pressure drop due to the leak with alarm circuitry.

2. Proof of concept and verifying the conditions (pressure, leak size, flow rate.. etc) for which the

sensor can work.

3.0 LITERATURE REVIEW

For the past few decades, leak detection has been an area that drawn the attention of many researchers.

The rapid evolution of technology has allowed researchers to develop and test many techniques in

attempts to find effective methodologies to detect leaks. Most of these techniques were based on

acoustic analysis, flow direction indicators, tracer gases, subsurface radar, earth sensitivity change,

infrared spectroscopy and odorant and radioactive tracers.

The results of acoustic leak detection measurements depend on a variety of factors such as the size,

type and depth of the pipe; soil type, water table level, leak type and size, pressure inside the pipe and

many other factors. The presence of all these variables makes acoustic leak detection experiments very

difficult to control and implement. Moreover, the economic viability of some acoustic leak detection

methods, such as noise loggers, is not reliable and cannot be used for pinpointing leaks.

Noise signals, however, have always been a research subject in leak detection area. Mergelas and

Henrich (2005) indicated that methods of leak noise correlators, although suitable for small pipes, are

not reliable for the case of large diameter pipes. Mergelas and Henrich (2005) developed methods that

depend on passing acoustic sensor along inside the pipe and detect the point above the leak noise signal

was greatest. Moreover, an experimental study by Greyvenstein, B., Van Zyl, J.E. (2007), concerned

the pressure leakage with failed pipes and found that the highest leakage exponent occurred in steel

pipes which could be because of corrosion factor.

Other correlation methods were reported by different researchers. Hunaidi et al. (2004) introduced a

new system that can locate pipe leaks based on cross-correlation. The new system is meant to improve

the accuracy of measurements by an enhanced correlation method. In addition, the system used low

frequency vibration sensors instead of hydrophones. Finally, the researchers demonstrated the

effectiveness of the new sensor even under low pressures.

Khalifa et al. (2010) studied the characteristics generated by the leak noise. They found that it generally

spans a wide range of frequencies with attenuation of high frequencies due to flow. Hence the low

frequencies are dominant in the leak noise signature. They also investigated different scenarios relating

flow and sensor location to sound sensor measurements.



Recently, Chatzigeorgou et al. (2010) have studied the acoustic emissions created by the leak in

attempts to improve in-pipe listening techniques. In the study, signals were collected for different leak

sizes, surrounding mediums and hydrophone locations with respect to the leak. The study showed that

leak size and flow rate affect the frequency and the power of the collected signals. Moreover, it also

showed that it is most effective to place the audio sensor closest to the leak since the signal power in

maximum in this region.

Other methods based on ground-penetrating radar were introduced, Hunaidi and Giamou(1998). This

method could detect leaks in buried pipes by detecting underground voids due to water leakage. In

addition, using this method, leaks can also be detected by sensing variation in the depth of the pipe as

the radar propagation velocity varies due to soil saturation with leaking water. The study however, did

not define a conclusion regarding the potential of ground-penetrating radar for leak detection.

A method for detecting leakage in pipe networks based on pressure values by support vector machines

was introduced by Mashford et al. (2009). In this method, support vector machines are trained and then

tested using data obtained from EPANET hydraulic modelling software. The results of their

experiments showed that the technique could predict the location and size of the leaks with reasonable

accuracy. The accuracy of this method, however, was dependant on the sensitivity of the pressure

sensors to small variations in pressure as well as the accuracy of the software modelling.

4.0 DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED WORK

4.1 Approach, Tasks and Phases

Table 1: APPROACH UTILIZED FOR ACHIEVING OBJECTIVES

Objective Approach of achieving the objective

1 Design of sensor

Construction sensor

2 Design and construction of experimental setup

Conducting experiment and collecting data

Table 2: MAPPING OF PHASES AND TASKS TO ACHIEVE OBJECTIVES

Objectives Phases Tasks

1

Design of Sensor 1-Study the problem. 2- Come up with different designs 3-Trade-off of designs. 4-Select the best one

Construction of sensor 1-Order necessary parts. 2-Construct the sensor

2

Construction of setup 1-Study problem parameters. 2-Design Setup 3-Construct the setup

Experimenting and collecting data

1-Test the sensor for different parameters. 2- Collect and summarize data



4.2 Research Methodology

The Proposed idea takes advantage of the high pressure gradient in the vicinity of the leak position to

develop an in-pipe leak detection device. Studies showed that the large pressure drop inside the pipe

due to leak is localized around the leak hole. This drop in pressure is limited to a small region close to

the leak and can’t be detected easily at the pipe centerline, particularly for small leaks. Based on this

fact, one can place a sensor very close to the pipe wall to detect leaks based on the local pressure

gradient. Figure 1 shows a typical study where the pressure distribution along the pipe centerline shows

that it is difficult to detect the pressure drop at leak section. On the other hand, the pressure distribution

at a line 1mm from pipe wall shows a sudden drop in pressure at leak section; followed by a slight

increase before it again matches that of the rest of the pipe. Results shown in Figure 1b inspired the

idea to find ways of detecting the obvious jump in pressure distribution at leak location.

(a) (b)

Figure 1 Pressure variation along the pipe: leak size 1x1 mm, P=1 bar, V=1m/s

(a) at pipe centerline (y=0 and x=0); (b) at 1mm from pipe wall (y=49 mm and x=0),

Different ways can be used to detect the high pressure gradient at the leak location. In the present

innovation, the sensing elements are placed very close to the inner pipe wall circumferentially. The

suction force created by the leak due to high pressure gradient is used to signal the leak existence.

Position in z-direction (m) Position in z-direction (m)



A setup has been prepared in the laboratory to conduct the experiment, as shown in figure 2. The setup

was designed in a way that can simulate different conditions of leak size, pressure, flow rate, and other

variables that can affect the sensor ability to detect the leak.

Figure 2: Experimental Setup

Two sensing systems were proposed to approach this problem. The first idea takes a direct advantage of

the suction force close to the leak. A circuit breaker is attached to a spring with known stiffness

constant and to a plate from the other side as shown in figure 3. The system is to be moved inside the

pipe by attaching it to a magnet from outside. Once there is a leak, the pressure force will suck the plate

in causing the circuit to close and the alarm to go off.

Figure 3: Mechanical Sensor Design

The spring is chosen such that it will allow enough distance x to be covered to close the circuit once the

force exceeds some threshold according to the equation:

F = k. x

Where: F is the force generated by the leak, k is the spring constant and x is the spring displacement

This threshold can be determined from the pressure force relation described by:

F = P.A.

Where: A is the area of the hole and P is the pressure difference between the pipe and the surrounding.

Hence, knowing the leak size and the pressure difference, one can choose the proper k that will allow

the circuit to close indicating a leak existence



The second system is based on measuring the pressure gradient caused by the leak by distributing

multiple piezoelectric pressure sensors inside of the pipe. The sensors are distributed in ring shape to

ensure that they cover a complete cross-section of the pipe. This system is moved inside the pipe using

the same concept above. The system is connected to a microcontroller circuit that takes reading while

it's moving and gives a signal once the pressure measured by any of the sensors exceeds some

threshold.

4.3 Management Plan

Table 3: ROLE AND INVOLVEMENT DURATION OF RESEARCH TEAM

Team Members Role Duration (months)

Mohanad Alhismawi

Involved in all phases 4

Mahmoud ElFeky

Involved in all phases 4

4.4 Project Deliverables

Table 4: PROJECT WORK PLAN

INVOLVEMENT DURATION(Months)

PHASES & TASKS

04 03 02 01 Setup design and construction PHASE I

Setup design Task 1.1:

Setup construction Task 1.2:

04 03 02 01 Sensor design and construction PHASE I

Sensor design Task 2.1

Sensor construction Task 2.2:

04 03 02 01 Conduction experiments and data connection

PHASE 3

Conduction experiment Task 3.1

Data Collection and summarization Task 3.2

5.0 Proposed Budget

Table 7: PROPOSED BUDGET

Item Budget (Saudi Riyals)

Sensor 2000

Experimental setup 1000

Software Available

Total Cost 3000



6.0 REFERENCES

[1] Mergelas B, Henrich G., 2005, “Leak Locating Method for Pre-Commissioned Transmission Pipelines:

North American Case Studies”, Conference Proceedings on Leakage, 2005.

[2] Greyvenstein B and van Zyl JE., 2006, “An Experimental Investigation Into The Pressure Leakage

Relationship Of Some Failed Water Pipes”,

[3] Hunaidi, A; Wang, A; Bracken, M; Gambino, T; Fricke, C, 2004, “Acoustic Methods for Locating

Leaks in Municipal Water Pipe Networks”, International Water Demand Management Conference, NRCC.

[4] Khalifa,, A; Chatzigeorgiou, D; Youcef-Toumi, K; Khulief, Y; Ben-Mansour, R; 2010, “Quantifying

Acoustic And Pressure Sensing For In-Pipe Leak Detection”, ASME International Mechanical Engineering

Congress & Exposition, IMECE..

[5] Chatzigeogiou, D; Kumar, S; Khalifa, A; Deshhpande, A; Youcef-Toumi, K; Sarma, S; Ben-Mansour,

R;., 2010, “In-pipe Acoustic Characterization of Leak Signals in Plastic Water-filled Pipes”, AWWA Annual

Conference and Exposition, ACE..

[6] Hunaidi, O; Giamou, P., 1998, “Ground-Penetrating Radar for Detecting of Leaks In Buried Plastic

Water Distribution Pipes ”, Seventh International Conference on Ground-Penetrating Radar, NRCC.

[7] Mashford, J., De-Silva, D., Marney, D., and Burn, S., 2009, “An approach to leak detection in pipe

networks using analysis of monitored pressure values by support vector machine”, Proceedings of the 3rd

International Conference on Network and System Security, IEEE.



7.0 RESUMES

Resumes

Mr. Mohanad Alhismawi, (TL), 200684240, (CISE)

Date of Birth: 21st June 1988

Correspondence Address Department (SE), College CCSE King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM),

Contact Information: Mobile: +966 594320663 E-Mail: [email protected] Second E-Mail Address: [email protected]

Career Objectives Having a successful academic career in research and teaching

Academic Qualifications

GPA 3.7

Academic Activities List of Contributions to Research Projects Project on Water Desalination (Senior Project), a joint project at Systems and Mechanical departments at

KFUPM List of Summer Training Summer Training At Geneal Electric (GE), Optimization and Control, 2010 Courses Contributed Into Through: Labs Worked as a lab instructor in physics department for one semester (2009). Grading CISE 316 Grader, 2011

_________________________________________________________________________________

Para-Scholar Activities Officer at ISA KFUPM Student Section Member in Systems Engineering Club Community Services Member at Community Club at KFUPM

_________________________________________________________________________________

mailto:[email protected]



7.0 RESUMES

Resumes

Mr. Mahmoud Elfeky, (TM1), 200684040, (CISE)

Date of Birth: 1st Jan 1989

Correspondence Address Department (SE), College CCSE King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM),

Contact Information: Mobile: +966 598451139 E-Mail: [email protected] Second E-Mail Address: [email protected]

Career Objectives Having a successful academic career in research and teaching

Academic Qualifications

GPA 3.7

Academic Activities List of Contributions to Research Projects Project on Water Desalination (Senior Project), a joint project at Systems and Mechanical departments at

KFUPM List of Summer Training Summer Training At Electra Control, Building Management Systems, 2010 Courses Contributed Into Through: Labs Worked as a lab instructor in physics department for one semester (2009). Grading Phys 102, CISE 414 Grader, 2011

_________________________________________________________________________________

Para-Scholar Activities Vice-President of ISA KFUPM Student Section Member in Systems Engineering Club Community Services Member at Community Club at KFUPM

mailto:[email protected]

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