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Bonded Fiberglass Reinforced Pipe Application and Market


TCP is manufactured in continuous lengths of at least 3,000 meters. The maximum supplied length per spool depends on allowable drum size, but even on standard road transportable drums TCP can be supplied in lengths of at least 600 meters. General RTP pipe manufactured by composite pipe machine has pressure limit especially for gas service . TCP does not require this and can handle all services, including sweet, sour, crude, full wellstream and gas. RTP typically can be supplied in lengths of 300 meters per spool;

In current market, bonded structure of fiberglass RTP pipe diameter generally up to DN160, and apply to oil&gas industry, which requires higher pressure. However, the larger diameter ( up to DN 630) of bonded TCP also introduced to the market by Banline Machinery. Now bonded fiberglass TCP can serve water application field, which is the great opportunity to increase universality.


Why TCP is an ideal material for offshore pipeline applications?


Because of basically three things: it provides the strength required (1) for structural purposes (either in tension or bending), (2) for flow assurance purposes (increase the flow rate and/or transport fluids with high content of corrodents like CO2, H2S and O2), and (3) for fatigue purposes (for risers subjected to hydrodynamic conditions). TCP is optimal to replace steel and/or flexible risers by reducing its hang-off weight and being able to take high axial tension loads while hanging on the hull floating structure. In addition, TCP risers can be then spooled in modules and placed on light construction vessels for installation using the reeling method with an overboard gutter (no need of a vertical laying system -VLS).


What is the offshore market for TCP?


Reinforced thermoplastic composite pipe is an alternative to carbon steel and flexible pipe material, and even though TCP is more expensive, the installation costs can be much lower especially for short sections of pipe. Specific offshore pipeline applications for TCP include short pipelines in vertical configurations (risers) including:

  1. Offshore downhole intervention lines competing with coiled lined pipe (CLP). Typical sizes are up to 3-inch ID and can handle up to 30,000 bpd flowrate.

  2. Deepwater risers and short flowlines, where it competes with flexible and rigid pipe. Typical sizes are up to 6-inch ID and HP/HT conditions (up to 15Ksi and 200C).

What is the offshore riser market for TPC?


Based on what we have indicated, the TCP offshore market is oriented to obtain a niche with the flexible pipe riser market, and eventually, manufacturing processes will be upgraded to obtain longer lengths the flowline market (both steel and flexible) can be approached. Today, the key competitor for TCP risers is not rigid steel pipe, but flexible pipe.




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