BELZONA UK COMPLETE COMPLEX PIPE WRAP PROJECT FOR A WATER AUTHORITY
Belzona UK recently completed a vital pipe wrapping application on a sewage pipe for a water authority in Scotland. The project was for the repair and protection of a 26-metre pipeline which was leaking sewage into a farmer’s field causing environmental pollution.
Corrosion is a real threat to the integrity of piping systems and failure can have detrimental consequences. Often, the replacement of corroded pipework incurs significant costs and is not always a viable option. Belzona composite repair solutions will restore strength to corroded, weakened and holed pipes, offering a long-term alternative to replacement without the costs and downtime.
The 900mm diameter pipe is the main sewage line for a town in south Lanarkshire and if the issue was not
rectified, there would be huge cost for the asset owner. Pipe replacement was not an option due to complications in isolating this section of the pipe.
The only other alternative would have taken months to undertake, caused significant disruption for local residents and would cost significantly more than the Belzona offered alternative.
Senior Field Sales Engineer, Clive Leadbitter through discussions with a ‘preferred contractor’ for the Water Authority in Scotland identified this particular opportunity. Clive had an established relationship, having discussed, although not on this scale, similar solutions in the past.
Senior Field Sales Engineer
Clive attended the site and upon inspection of the pipe, found it was leaking sewage in several locations, contaminating the land on the farmer’s field. The pipe had been patch repaired in the past with another material, however, judging by the state of the pipe and the extreme corrosion in some areas, these repairs were unsuccessful. The appointed contractor was keen to work with Belzona on this complex project due to the professionalism of Clive during initial site survey and because of their confidence in the Belzona team and its reputation for high-quality repair materials.
Clive took the opportunity to discuss pipe wrapping solutions which could be completed in-situ to totally encapsulate this deteriorating pipe. The solution ticked all the boxes for both the contractor and the end Client.
Alternative Solutions
The alternative solution considered was to patch repair each leak with a Belzona composite repair material. Initially, this method would have cost a fraction of the price, however the pipe was in such a dire condition that patching one leak would inevitably lead to another leak at another location. This would result in continual areas requiring attention and could eventually lead to major failure.
Although a significantly higher price, a Belzona SuperWrap II pipe wrap offered a far superior solution in this situation which would prove the test of time and provide the Client with assurance that the pipe would remain in service for the long-term.
Overcoming Potential Obstacles
While on site, the Client requested a ballpark figure for how much this would cost. Clive was reluctant to provide a figure on the spot as this can often lead to the dissatisfaction of the Client when this is not achieved.
Clive was quick to manage the expectations of the Client and provided a budget quotation the next day to give the Client a realistic cost for the repair which he was confident Belzona could achieve. A cost for the full repair service, including Belzona products and the application by Belzona UK was provided.
When asked for an idea of how long the repair would last, Clive was able to convince the Client that each situation is different, each pipe is in a different condition, each application is different, so it would be a very difficult Belzona repair to put a life span on. The Client was happy to go ahead based on the confidence they had in Clive and in the reputation of the Belzona pipe wrap solution.
The Cient was impressed by the promptness of receipt of the quotation and within a few weeks of the initial contact, the Water Authority had accepted the proposal and the application team were mobilised to go to site and complete the repair.
Application Procedure
Firstly, the area was cleaned, and the pipe surface was grit blasted to the required standard. The live leaks where sealed using Belzona cold bonding solutions which involved bonding 100 mm x 100 mm plates fabricated from Belzona SuperWrap II, over the leaking areas with Belzona 1121 (Super XL-Metal).
Next, to provide complete protection for the heavily corroded pipes, three layers of Belzona Superwrap II where mixed and applied to the external surface of the pipe. Once the pipe wraps had been applied, Belzona 9382 release film was applied around the Belzona SuperWrap II system and allowed to cure overnight.
Issues That Arose During the Repair Application
An area of pipe at the pier support was very weak and required some reinstatement. The area had a very thin wall and grit blasting in this area was not possible, due to the inevitability of blasting through the pipe wall and causing catastrophic failure and a major environmental leak.
Belzona UK were able to come up with an innovative solution to this unusual situation which involved the
fabrication of a box using Belzona SuperWrap II to encapsulate the entire area including the pier support.
This would then collect the leaking material from the pipe and when full, it would be strong enough to hold the material inside the box allowing the sewage to continue to run through the pipe with no further leakage into the environment.
Due to the condition of the pipe, this was a high-risk operation, however Belzona UK rose to the challenge
and where able to successfully complete the repair.
Going Forward
Surveys of the Water Authority’s network have identified over 4000 of these pipes. Based on this information, and the relationship that has been built with not only the preferred contractor
but also the water authority, there will be a mass of opportunities for Belzona to provide pipe repair
solutions in the coming years.
What is the Solution?
Belzona SuperWrap II provides an alternative, cost-effective and long–lasting option compared to conventional alternatives. The Belzona SuperWrap II system has many application benefits, ensuring an simple and safe application, plus many in-service performance benefits, for example outstanding mechanical properties and chemical resistance. Belzona SuperWrap II is suitable for a variety of repairs including internal and external corrosion including through wall defects.
This type of solution can be used on a variety of types of equipment including:
• Piping systems including bends, straights and tees
• Structures, roofs and decks
• Tank and vessel walls
• Splash zones and other subsea areas
• Pipelines
Interested in purchasing Belzona’s repair composites and protective coatings?
Rhiannon has been working for Belzona for over 16 years and has recently joined the Marketing Team in a Supervisory role. Her expertise lies in lead generation, social media strategy, content marketing and email campaigns.
