Hydro Excavation Mud – Pipeline Integrity Test

चुनौती

Pipeline integrity testing often requires hydro excavation to expose a segment of pipe for inspection. The resulting hydro excavation muds are often a regulated, challenging to dispose of and in some cases, contaminated. In 2015, MetaFLO licensee KBL was contracted by a major Canadian pipeline operator in Alberta to provide the solidification and disposal of 200 m3 of this waste.

समाधान

KBL provided two shale bins placed in parallel at the job site. The hydro excavation trucks offloaded into one of these tanks. With the heavier solids settling at the bottom of the tank, the surface water was pumped to the second tank. The heavier mud was mixed with MetaFLO’s MF006 solidification reagent at a dose appropriate for the whole load. The surface water was then returned to the first tank to finish mixing.

परिणाम

As seen in the photos below, as a result of the MF006 treatment, the hydro excavation material on the left was transformed to the dry, earth like finish in the right photo. This solution required no in-ground sumps, provided optimal efficiency for expensive hydro excavation trucks and low cost disposal options for solid material. Also, the 1% doseage required for solidification with MetaFLO’s reagent, results in a much smaller quantity than would be produced by sawdust or wood chip bulking methods. The client also reduces activities that generate a carbon footprint and mitigates safety  and environmental risks associated with shipping large quantities of liquid waste.