UAS Pipeline Inspection - Infrared Cameras

Introduction: 

UAS has overtaken many inspection operations done by teams of people. The transition from human inspection to UAS inspection allows companies to maintain and repair their pipes safely and more efficiently. Since leaking oil/gas pipes can be very dangerous, UAS are able to photograph and inspect those pipes without putting an individual in harms way. One tool that companies use to gain information on damaged or corroded pipes is an infrared camera. These cameras allow the operator to visually see where the gas or oil is leaking from at a distance as to pinpoint its' location so a team can go in and repair it in a time efficient manner.

Method:

For AT 219, as a group, we were tasked with writing a paper about a specific topic in the UAS industry. For this we chose to do pipeline inspections since it is an emerging field that is still in its' early stages. After extensive research on the broad topic of pipeline inspections with UAS, I found that infrared cameras are more useful to these operations than I initially thought. Their uses are far more complex than simply monitoring the heat of the pipes. From this, I did more research into specific cameras and specific operations in which infrared cameras are used and found a multitude of different scenarios. 

Discussion:

Infrared cameras monitor the heat differences of the target it wants to analyze. The more heat emitting from the object the brighter it is in terms of the color scale. In this sense, the object that contains more heat will be a bright red or orange color. The less heat an object contains the darker it will be and in this case it is blue or purple. There is a spectrum of colors in between that objects will be depending on the amount of heat the object has. This can translate very well into pipeline inspections. Gas or oil leaks will naturally emit more heat than its surroundings. This allows the teams to quickly identify the areas of the pipe that is damaged and will allow them to repair it efficiently instead of walking and trying to visually identify the cracks. This helps tremendously especially in a place where pipeline inspection by UAS is crucial. Alaska is such a place that holds over 800 miles of piping from North to South. In such a cold environment, the heat signatures from the oil or gas leaks will be exceptionally visible to its surrounding areas not emitting as much heat. Underground piping also benefits from infrared cameras. When a pipe is leaking or damaged, the oil or gas will heat up the water underneath the surface of the earth and this will visually show above ground. (Figure.1) To do such tasks and make operations run smoothly. Many companies have created drones and different cameras that help tasks like the ones mentioned above. One such company is FLIR which makes a camera known as the Zenmuse XT Premium Aerial Thermal Imaging camera that is designed specifically for industrial uses. (Figure.2)

(Figure.1 Heat Signatures from underground pipes)

(Figure.2 Zenmuse XT Premium Aerial Thermal Imaging Camera)

Conclusion:

Overall, thermal/infrared imaging can help tremendously to identify possible damaged pipes. In a job where time and safety is crucial, these cameras will help teams quickly find problems and fix them with out worrying about finding the exact location. There are numerous different cameras that can be used and some that will also allow the user to zoom in and look at heat signatures up close. All together, these cameras are the future of inspections, not only for pipelines but for other industries.