PR-430-153706-R01 Hydrostatic Test Guidelines for Integrity Management

This work develops a comprehensive guidance for the pipeline industry on the use of hydrostatic testing as an integrity management tool with carbon steel mainline piping as the focus of this work. Selected hydrostatic testing principles considered herein may also be applicable to other forms of transmission and facility piping. At the time of this guideline development, several parallel pipeline industry initiatives with focus on hydrostatic testing have been recently completed, or are currently on-going. Such initiatives include work performed by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), the American Petroleum Institute (API), the Association of Oil Pipe Lines (AOPL), and the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA). While this completed or on-going work is of considerable value to the pipeline industry, lacking within these industry initiatives is a focus on the specific application of hydrostatic testing as a pipeline assessment tool to support integrity management plan (IMP) requirements and objectives. The scope of this work is the development of a document which will provide the necessary guid-ance to pipeline operators on the appropriate use of hydrostatic testing within the integrity and risk management process. Consideration is given to the essentials of known or assumed pipe material properties, threat type and defect populations, operating and failure history, potential risks, unintended or detrimental effects and the importance of a clear understanding of objectives, as key elements within a hydrostatic test program design process. This document does not attempt to provide practical guidance for the on-site implementation of a hydrostatic testing program. The focus of this study has instead been on hydrostatic test program decision processes and development; the selection of hydrostatic testing as an appropriate pipe-line assessment tool, the subsequent technical design of a hydrostatic test program and the necessary considerations in order to achieve IMP requirements and objectives. This report has a related webinar.