L52244 Advanced Welding Repair and Remediation Methods for In-Service Pipelines

This project developed a prototype multi-axis automatic welding system with adaptive control and tracking for use on in-service welding repairs on liquid and gas transmission pipelines. The system is capable of deploying either gas metal arc welding (GMAW) or flux cored arc welding (FCAW) to weld pressure-containing sleeves (Type B), to weld reinforcement sleeves (Type A), or to directly deposit a layer of weld over an area to replace metal loss due to corrosion. The welding system was field tested at TransCanada in North Bay, Ontario and was demonstrated during a workshop at Edison Welding Institute in Columbus, Ohio. In addition, preliminary in-service welding trials with GMAW and FCAW were performed on high strength pipeline steels (X80, X100 and X120) to determine the susceptibility of hydrogen cracking, under simulated in-service welding conditions.