Thermoplastics
Pre-Cured Sleeves For High-Pressure Pipes
Clock Spring is one of several composite wrap approaches developed by inventor Norman C. Fawley of NCF Industries Inc. (Santa Maria, Calif., U.S.A.). The concentrically-coiled, glass fiber-reinforced polyester composite sleeve was devised with support from the Gas Technology Institute and the gas pipeline indu
Read MoreComposites Air Cans Lighten Riser Loads
Low-pressure air cans, designed to add buoyancy to a spar platform’s riser string, are good candidates for composite materials. Up to 12 ft/3.7m in diameter and from 30 to 60 ft/9.2 to 18.5m long, the hollow structures support the riser weight and take load off of the platform’s hull. Typically installed insid
Read MoreNew-Generation Composite Buoyancy Elements Key For Deep Drilling And Production
Principal suppliers of riser buoyancy products include major producer Balmoral (Aberdeen, Scotland, U.K. and Houston, Texas, U.S.A.) and CRP Group Ltd. (Skelmersdale, Lancashire, England, U.K.), which also owns Emerson & Cuming (Canton, Mass., U.S.A.). Balmoral customizes epoxy resins, which are used to cr
Read MoreComposite Drill Pipe An Available Option
Lincoln has been producing flexible composite drill pipe for short-radius, horizontal drilling since 1991. Its nominal 2.375 inch /60.3 mm (OD), 30 ft/9m long pipe shaft is filament wound with 12K carbon fiber combined with glass fibers in epoxy resin over an elastomeric liner. Standard API rotary shoulder too
Read MoreDesign Issues
Typical FRP pipe is reciprocally filament wound with a fiber angle of ±54.75° relative to the longitudinal (0°) axis. This architecture satisfies stress loads in both the circumferential (hoop) and longitudinal (axial) directions for most pipes and pressure vessels. It withstands the in-use pressure, ther
Read MoreComposite Trusses For Large Structures?
Ebert Composites Corp. (Chula Vista, Calif., U.S.A.) is marketing a composite truss concept for large structures that has potential for offshore application. Since 1992, the company has focused on the development of large, all-composite lattice-type power transmission towers to replace galvanized steel towers.
Read MoreDownhole Composites Boost Durability, Drillability
Halliburton Energy Services, Schlumberger Oilfield Services, Weatherford International, and Baker Oil Tools, all based in Houston, Texas (U.S.A.), offer composite downhole tools — made with both thermoplastics and thermoset resins — for a variety of applications. Halliburton’s FasDrill packers and plugs
Read MoreFiberglass Ideal For Dry Deluge System Applications
Around 1982, offshore platforms began using dry deluge systems, where the ring main is kept full of seawater but the downstream piping is dry. The dry piping is separated from the ring main by deluge valves, which automatically open and distribute water through the dry pipe to spray nozzles during a fire. This
Read MoreDesign Issues With Subsea And Downhole Components
For structures below the water line and in the borehole, composites add to their list of benefits the key characteristic of design flexibility, because composite materials can be tailored to meet specific challenges. For example, composites can add buoyancy to low-pressure steel air cans on a spar platform’s r
Read MoreProven Performance In A Chemical Line Installation
EDO Specialty Plastics (Baton Rouge, La., U.S.A.) filament winds composite pipe and fittings for offshore facilities platforms and rigs. Founded in 1973 as Specialty Plastics and acquired by EDO in 1998, the company manufactures industrial fiberglass piping systems for the chemical, petrochemical and pulp and
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