Live Pipe Leak Seal & Composite Wrap

The challenge

A process line developed a weeping leak after corrosion thinned the pipe wall over a run of the pipe. Lost wall thickness reduces the integrity of the section and the leak puts product and people at risk. Welding a clamp or replacing the spool means hot work and, in most cases, a shutdown, both of which the plant wanted to avoid. The line needed to stay in service while the repair was made.

The Belzona approach

The active leak is sealed on the live line, then the corroded run is prepared and an engineered composite wrap is built over it. The wrap is designed to recognized composite-repair standards, ISO 24817 and ASME PCC-2, so the repaired section is reinforced to a defined case. The work uses no welding, and in many cases it is completed while the line stays in service.

1. Assess and designThe leak and the run of lost wall thickness are inspected, and the composite wrap is designed to ISO 24817 / ASME PCC-2 for the line conditions.
2. Seal the live leakThe active weep on the line is stopped so the surface can be prepared and the wrap can cure.
3. Surface preparationThe pipe is cleaned and roughened over the degraded section to give the composite a sound surface to bond to.
4. Install the composite wrapEngineered SuperWrap II layers build up over the prepared run to reinforce the thinned section, with no welding required.
5. Cure and return to serviceThe wrap cures and the finished repair is inspected, keeping the line in service through the work where conditions allow.