Assessment of Freeze–Thaw Hazards and Water Features along the China–Russia Crude Oil Pipeline in Permafrost Regions

The China–Russia crude oil pipeline (CRCOP) traverses rivers, forests, and mountains over permafrost regions in northeastern China. Water accumulates beside the pipe embankment, which disturbs the hydrothermal balance of permafrost underlying the pipeline. Ground surface flows along the pipeline erode the pipe embankment, which threatens the CRCOP’s operational safety. Additionally, frost heave and thaw settlement can induce differential deformation of the pipes. Therefore, it is necessary to acquire the spatial distribution of water features along the CRCOP, and analyze the various hazard probabilities and their controlling factors. In this paper, information regarding the permafrost type, buried depth of the pipe, soil type, landforms, and vegetation were collected along the CRCOP every 2 km. Ponding and erosive damage caused by surface flows were measured via field investigations and remote sensing images. Two hundred and sixty-four pond sites were extracted from Landsat 8 images, in which the areas of 46.8% of the ponds were larger than 500 m2. Several influential factors related to freeze–thaw hazards and erosive damage were selected and put into a logistic regression model to determine their corresponding risk probabilities. The results reflected the distributions, and forecasted the occurrences, of freeze–thaw hazards and erosive damage. The sections of pipe with the highest risks of freeze–thaw and erosive damage accounted for 2.4% and 6.7%, respectively, of the pipeline. Permafrost type and the position where runoff encounters the pipeline were the dominant influences on the freeze–thaw hazards, while the runoff–pipe position, buried depth of the pipe, and landform types played a dominant role in erosive damage along the CRCOP. Combined with the geographic information system (GIS), field surveys, image interpretation and model calculations are effective methods for assessing the various hazards along the CRCOP in permafrost regions.

Download Full-text

Investigation of the freeze–thaw states of foundation soils in permafrost areas along the China–Russia Crude Oil Pipeline (CRCOP) route using ground-penetrating radar (GPR)

Cold Regions Science and Technology ◽

10.1016/j.coldregions.2016.02.013 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 126 ◽

pp. 10-21 ◽

Cited By ~ 28

Author(s):

Yongping Wang ◽

Huijun Jin ◽

Guoyu Li

Keyword(s):

Crude Oil ◽

Ground Penetrating Radar ◽

Oil Pipeline ◽

Freeze Thaw ◽

Ground Penetrating

Download Full-text

Response, Remediation and Risk Management of a Crude Oil Pipeline Spill

Volume 2: Design and Construction; Pipeline Automation and Measurement; Environmental Issues; Rotating Equipment Technology ◽

10.1115/ipc1998-2117 ◽

1998 ◽

Author(s):

J. T. Doupe ◽

W. R. Livingstone

Keyword(s):

Crude Oil ◽

Action Plan ◽

Human Health Risk ◽

Ground Surface ◽

Flood Plain ◽

Ecological Impacts ◽

Monitoring Wells ◽

Oil Pipeline ◽

Subgrade Soils ◽

Major River

In December 1995, an oil spill was discovered along a section of pipeline located near the bank of a major river, less than 1 km upstream of the water supply intake of a southern Alberta community. The spill, which involved light crude oil, was observed at ground surface over an area of approximately 3 000 m2 at the top of the river slope and had also migrated downslope through the subgrade soils and along the groundwater table toward the river. The initial emergency response activities consisted of removing and disposing of oil-stained vegetation and snow, and the containment and recovery of free oil pooled on ground surface. Subsequent subsurface assessments involved the drilling of test holes and boreholes, and installation of groundwater monitoring/recovery wells. Based on the results of these assessments, a remedial action plan was developed. As part of this plan, some of the impacted soils were excavated and placed in lined treatment cells for bioremediation. The limits of the excavation were based on field screening measurements and on soil clean-up criteria developed through an assessment of the human health risk and ecological impacts. Investigations conducted at the site also indicated that phase-separated crude oil had migrated further downslope and had accumulated at the water table within the flood plain sediments adjacent to the river. Therefore, remediation systems were installed to recover the oil, recover and treat the impacted groundwater, and prevent further migration of the impacted groundwater and oil toward the river. Impacted groundwater recovered from the flood plain deposits was treated onsite and was then injected back into the flood plain deposits via an infiltration gallery. The performance of the pumping and remediation systems was monitored regularly and water samples were recovered from the treatment system, selected monitoring wells and the river. Based on the results of these analyses, the quality of local groundwater steadily improved and the zone of impacted water was effectively contained.

Download Full-text

Stochastic analysis of uncertain thermal characteristic of foundation soils surrounding the crude oil pipeline in permafrost regions

Applied Thermal Engineering ◽

10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2016.01.099 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 99 ◽

pp. 591-598 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Tao Wang ◽

Guoqing Zhou ◽

Jianzhou Wang ◽

Xiaodong Zhao

Keyword(s):

Crude Oil ◽

Stochastic Analysis ◽

Thermal Characteristic ◽

Oil Pipeline ◽

Permafrost Regions

Download Full-text

Estimates on thermal effects of the China–Russia crude oil pipeline in permafrost regions

Cold Regions Science and Technology ◽

10.1016/j.coldregions.2009.10.001 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 64 (3) ◽

pp. 243-247 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Jianming Zhang ◽

Guangzhou Qu ◽

Huijun Jin

Keyword(s):

Crude Oil ◽

Thermal Effects ◽

Oil Pipeline ◽

Permafrost Regions

Download Full-text

Ground surface temperatures indicate the presence of permafrost in North Africa (Djebel Toubkal, High Atlas, Morocco)

10.5194/tc-2016-234 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Gonçalo Vieira ◽

Carla Mora ◽

Ali Faleh

Keyword(s):

Snow Cover ◽

North Africa ◽

Thermal Regime ◽

Ground Surface ◽

Cold Season ◽

Snow Accumulation ◽

Landsat 8 ◽

High Atlas ◽

Freeze Thaw ◽

Air Temperatures

Abstract. Relict and present-day periglacial activity have been reported in the literature for the upper reaches of the High Atlas mountains, the highest range in North Africa (Djebel Toubkal – 4,167 m a.s.l.). Lobate features in the Irhzer Ikbi South at 3,800 m a.s.l. have been previously interpreted as an active rock glacier, but no measurements of ground or air temperatures are known to exist for the area. In order to assess on the possible presence of permafrost, analyse data from June 2015 to June 2016 from two air temperature sites at 2,370 and 3,200 m a.s.l., and from four ground surface temperature (GST) sites at 3,200, 3,815, 3,980 and 4,160 m a.s.l. allowing to characterize conditions along an altitudinal gradient along the Oued Ihghyghaye valley to the summit of the Djebel Toubkal. GST were collected at 1-hour intervals and the presence of snow cover at the monitoring sites was validated using Landsat-8 and Sentinel-2 imagery. Two field visits allowed for logger installation and collection and for assessing the geomorphological features in the area. The results show that snow plays a major role on the thermal regime of the shallow ground, inducing important spatial variability. The lowest site at 3,210 m showed a regime characterized by frequent freeze-thaw cycles during the cold season but with a small number of days of snow. When snow sets, the ground remains isothermal at 0 °C and the thermal regime indicates the absence of permafrost. The highest sites at 3,980 and 4,160 m a.s.l. showed very frequent freeze-thaw cycles and a small influence of the snow cover on GST, reflecting the lack of snow accumulation due to the their wind-exposed settings in a ridge and in the summit plateau. The site located at 3,815 m in the Irhzer Ikbi South valley showed a stable thermal regime from December to March with GST varying from −4.5 to −6 °C, under a continuous snow cover. The site's location in a concave setting favours snow accumulation and lower incoming solar radiation due to the effect of a southwards ridge, favouring the maintenance of a thick snow pack. The stable and low GST are interpreted as a strong indicator of the probable presence of permafrost at this site, an interpretation which is supported by the presence of lobate and arcuate forms in the talus deposits. These results are still a first approach and observations through geophysics and boreholes are foreseen. This is the first time that probable permafrost is reported from temperature observations in the mountains of North Africa.

Download Full-text

New observations indicate the possible presence of permafrost in North Africa (Djebel Toubkal, High Atlas, Morocco)

The Cryosphere ◽

10.5194/tc-11-1691-2017 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 1691-1705 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Gonçalo Vieira ◽

Carla Mora ◽

Ali Faleh

Keyword(s):

Snow Cover ◽

North Africa ◽

Thermal Regime ◽

Ground Surface ◽

Cold Season ◽

Snow Accumulation ◽

Landsat 8 ◽

High Atlas ◽

Freeze Thaw ◽

Air Temperatures

Abstract. Relict and present-day periglacial features have been reported in the literature for the upper reaches of the High Atlas mountains, which is the highest range in North Africa (Djebel Toubkal – 4167 m a.s.l.). A lobate feature in the Irhzer Ikhibi south at 3800 m a.s.l. has been previously interpreted as an active rock glacier, but no measurements of ground or air temperatures are known to exist for the area. In order to assess the possible presence of permafrost, we analyse data from June 2015 to June 2016 from two air temperature measurement sites at 2370 and 3210 m a.s.l. and from four ground surface temperature (GST) sites at 3220, 3815, 3980 and 4160 m a.s.l. to characterize conditions along an altitudinal gradient along the Oued Ihghyghaye valley to the summit of the Djebel Toubkal. GSTs were collected at 1 h intervals, and the presence of snow cover at the monitoring sites was validated using Landsat 8 and Sentinel-2 imagery. Two field visits allowed for logger installation and collection and for assessing the geomorphological features in the area. The results show that snow plays a major role on the thermal regime of the shallow ground, inducing important spatial variability. The lowest site at 3220 m had a thermal regime characterized by frequent freeze–thaw cycles during the cold season but with few days of snow. When snow settled, the ground surface remained isothermal at 0 °C , indicating the absence of permafrost. The highest sites at 3980 and 4160 m a.s.l. showed very frequent freeze–thaw cycles and a small influence of the snow cover on GST, reflecting the lack of snow accumulation due to the wind-exposed settings on a ridge and on the summit plateau. The site located at 3815 m in the Irhzer Ikhibi south valley had a cold, stable thermal regime with GST varying from −4.5 to −6 °C from December to March, under a continuous snow cover. The site's location in a concave setting favours wind-driven snow accumulation and lower incoming solar radiation due to the shading effect of a ridge, inducing the conservation of a thick snow pack. The stable and low GSTs are interpreted as a strong indicator of the probable presence of permafrost at this site, which is an interpretation supported by the presence of lobate and arcuate features in the talus deposits. We present first results and further observations using geophysics, and borehole measurements are foreseen. This is the first time that probable permafrost has been reported from temperature observations in the mountains of North Africa.

Download Full-text

Geophysical investigations for stability and safety mitigation of regional crude-oil pipeline near abandoned coal mines

Journal of Geophysics and Engineering ◽

10.1093/jge/gxab003 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 145-162

Author(s):

B Butchibabu ◽

Prosanta Kumar Khan ◽

P C Jha

Keyword(s):

High Resolution ◽

Crude Oil ◽

Seismic Refraction ◽

High Resolution Imaging ◽

Weak Zone ◽

Near Surface ◽

Oil Pipeline ◽

Refraction Tomography ◽

Geophysical Investigations ◽

Resolution Imaging

Abstract This study aims for the protection of a crude-oil pipeline, buried at a shallow depth, against a probable environmental hazard and pilferage. Both surface and borehole geophysical techniques such as electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), ground penetrating radar (GPR), surface seismic refraction tomography (SRT), cross-hole seismic tomography (CST) and cross-hole seismic profiling (CSP) were used to map the vulnerable zones. Data were acquired using ERT, GPR and SRT along the pipeline for a length of 750 m, and across the pipeline for a length of 4096 m (over 16 profiles of ERT and SRT with a separation of 50 m) for high-resolution imaging of the near-surface features. Borehole techniques, based on six CSP and three CST, were carried out at potentially vulnerable locations up to a depth of 30 m to complement the surface mapping with high-resolution imaging of deeper features. The ERT results revealed the presence of voids or cavities below the pipeline. A major weak zone was identified at the central part of the study area extending significantly deep into the subsurface. CSP and CST results also confirmed the presence of weak zones below the pipeline. The integrated geophysical investigations helped to detect the old workings and a deformation zone in the overburden. These features near the pipeline produced instability leading to deformation in the overburden, and led to subsidence in close vicinity of the concerned area. The area for imminent subsidence, proposed based on the results of the present comprehensive geophysical investigations, was found critical for the pipeline.

Download Full-text