Feds Fund No-Dig Pipeline Leak Repair Tech

Pipeline damage can be very dangerous, causing significant harm to communities when an incident occurs. The Pacific Gas & Electric Pipeline Rupture in San Bruno, Calif., devastated the community and resulted in the death of 8 people, 51 hospitalizations, and the destruction of 38 homes.

For every large-scale tragedy like this one, there are many more pipeline leaks and punctures every year, which put lives at risk and cause serious environmental damage. Between 2019 and 2023, nearly 9.7 billion cubic feet of natural gas was released into the atmosphere from pipeline leaks, according to a Reuters analysis of PHMSA data. These human and environmental harms illustrate the pressing need for innovation in pipeline design and maintenance to improve safety and prevent similar incidents.

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Pipeline operators conduct thousands of repairs each year on pipeline damage, typically requiring costly and disruptive excavation of the pipeline to repair the damage from the outside. Particularly problematic are repairs on hard-to-reach areas such as river and highway crossings.

QuakeWrap, a small business focusing on infrastructure repairs, developed a technology for no-dig point repairs of pipelines through DOT’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program’s Phase I and Phase II awards funded by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

“Our solution can best be described as an industrial stent,” says QuakeWrap President and CEO, Mo Ehsani. QuakeWrap uses a technology consisting of sheets of strong and lightweight carbon fiber fabrics soaked in epoxy resin, to repair pipe leak points from the inside. These sheets are wrapped around a packer, which is then attached to an Automated Guide Vehicle (AGV) on a tether.

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The AGV and packer are sent into the pipeline from a launch pad, and travel through the inside of the pipe to the point of repair. The packer then inflates and presses the sheets against the sides of the pipe. Once in place, a heating mechanism is activated to cure the laminate. When the curing is complete, the packer and AGV are extracted from the pipe, and the repair sleeve remains in place inside the pipe, much like a medical stent.

QuakeWrap’s repair solution can be deployed from existing tool launchers and travel through bends and slopes in the pipeline, so the technology eliminates the need to dig trenches for spot repairs. This makes it much less disruptive and destructive to surrounding communities and much less costly for pipeline operators to make this type of repair.

For oil and gas transmission pipelines, it is essential that the repair material be able to withstand high pressure and resist chemical damage it will face transmitting these substances. Testing this system for these properties critical for oil and gas transmission has been a focus of QuakeWrap’s SBIR research.

QuakeWrap’s Ehsani said the SBIR award “has played a significant role by providing the financial means for a small company like us to develop this technology; without this support, we would not have pursued this endeavor.” He also noted that participation in the DOT SBIR program helps give small companies more legitimacy as they introduce novel technologies to established industries.

Looking forward, QuakeWrap CEO Ehsani says the company intends to extend the reach of their tethered AGV deployment technology, which currently has a reach of 500 feet from the deployment site. Ehsani says the company is currently making minor improvements before commercializing the technology and has been contacted by a major pipeline owner to discuss potential sites where they could perform pilot field installations.