To keep the oil pumping, an oil well in Argentina needed a versatile repair method to seal ruptures caused by corrosion and restore the surface profile of a 900mm steel pipe suffering from pitting and heavy damage around a welded joint and tee.

Case Study Overview

Site Oil well
Location Argentina
Pipe Type 900mm steel water pipe
Repair Type Leak repair and surface restoration
Products Superfast Copper Epoxy Putty, Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape, SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage

Pipe Defect

The 900mm steel pipe pumped water into the well, filling it and pushing oil towards the top from where the oil was extracted.

Corrosion to the pipe had caused heavy pitting and ruptures to appear, which in turn had begun impacting on the efficiency of oil extraction.

Two previous repair attempts had been made using pipe repair clamps. Both had failed because the leak area was located near a tee and welded joint.

For the well to return to full working order, a versatile leak repair and surface restoration application was required.

SylWrap Solution

For the first stage of repair, Superfast Copper Epoxy Putty was used to seal ruptures and to smooth off the pitting, restoring the surface profile of the pipe.

Superfast Copper was mixed by hand and applied over the corroded areas. Within 5-10 minutes, it had begun to harden, filling all imperfections and holes with a repair pressure resistant up to 30 bar.

Because the exterior of the pipe was extremely oily, the oil well decided to reinforce the leak areas covered by Superfast Copper with Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape.

Wrap & Seal is made from self-amalgamating silicone and stretches by 300 percent, fusing to form a solid rubber band over leak areas. Combing Wrap & Seal and Superfast Copper increased the chemical and pressure resistance of the repair.

Multiple SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandages were then applied over the entire repair area. SylWrap is a composite repair wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock hard in minutes, providing an impact resistant layer of the protection from future corrosion and chemical attack.

The flexibility of SylWrap HD meant that it could be easily applied around both the tee and the welded joint, strengthening the pipeline.

Outcome

Despite the challenges posed by the 900mm diameter of the pipe, the tee and the welded joint, the repair was a complete success.

Within two hours, water was again filling the well. Oil extraction resumed at a fraction of the cost of replacing the corroded section of pipe, and without any of the downtime waiting for new fittings to be fabricated and installed.

Follow Up

To speed up the process in case future pipe repairs were required by the oil well, Sylmasta recommended the well take stock of a SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case.

Each Case contains enough products to make up to six live leak repairs as soon as emergency strikes and without the need for any formal training.

The Case is easy to store on site, enabling the oil well to return systems to full operation much more quickly than is possible with any other repair method in the even of future leaks or damage.

Products Used

Superfast Copper
Fast working epoxy putty used to repair holes and cracks and restore surface profile

Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Self-fusing silicone repair tape which seals leaks and offers excellent chemical resistance

SylWrap HD Bandage
Water-activated wrap sets rock hard to reinforce, protect and strengthen pipework

Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Easy-to-store case with everything needed to make up to six emergency pipe repairs

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