ICII2001-Beijing A-09

GIs Technology and Application on Oil-gas Pipeline Construction

Zhu Xiaoge, Dong Wentong

Remote Sensing Geology Department, Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development (RIPED),
PetroChina Company Limited
Tel: (86-10)62098465,Fax: (86-10)623 13371, Email: zhuxg@riped.cnpc.com.cn

Abstract: Long distance oil-gas pipeline construction is a complex system. GIS technology is
applied on this field and provides a high-tech method for construction operation and
management. Digital pipeline is the main feature of 21st century’s oil-gas pipelines. The new
oil-gas pipeline construction in China has the aim of high standard, good quality, advanced
technology and best efficiency and GIS technology gives a powerful tool to accomplish the
target. GIS and remote sensing technologies are used on route selection of the “West-East
Nature Gas Transportation” Cross Continent Pipeline. The remote sensing images and revising
maps of 1:50000,based on new SPOT images, produced from a GIS system are offered timely
to the planning department of the pipeline and used for in situ investigation. Which obtain
wonderful results.
Keywords: GIs, digital pipeline, remote sensing, route-selection of oil-gas pipeline

1. Introduction of GIs Application on Pipelines

GIs-Geographic Information System technology is an advanced technology based mainly on computer

and information technologies. In the strictest sense, a GIS is a computer system capable of assembling,
storing, manipulating, and displaying geographically referenced information ‘‘I. In other hand, GIS is a
management system for spatial data and information. GIS is a new technology but has been used
increasing in different fields in recent years. It’s also an important part of Information High-way.
Application of GIS technology on pipelines has been reported both in China and abroad. For example,
GIS technology was used successfully on planning of the gas pipeline from Empress to Emerson,
Canada. A database system for pipeline GIs is under construction in USA, which will includes gas,
poisonoushoxic liquids and liquidized gas pipelines [21. GIS is applied on an oil pipeline of Taiwan,
China for supervision and maintenance. It is used increasingly on city water supply pipeline systems
and a pipeline sureness database based on GIs is being developed in China.

2. Digital Pipeline and GIs

A long distance oil-gas pipeline is a complex system. It relates closely to geographic location,
environment, geological condition and many other factors as a geographic object with continuous
distributive character. There will be many different data, diagrams, figures, files and other information,
which are difficult to use and update them together and effective on each step of pipeline planning,

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construction, operation and management by manual method.
Pipeline engineering technology has great development with the fast progress of economy, science and
technology in last century. The new oil-gas pipeline construction of 21st century in China has the aim
of high standard, good quality, advanced technology and best efficiency than ever before. GI$
technology gives a powerful tool to accomplish the target, which will change the traditional methods to
a high-tech process.
Digital pipeline is the main feature of 21st century oil-gas transportation pipelines with all the digital
data, graphs and images assembling in computer. They are stored in corresponding database based on
GIS technology. These different kinds of information can be used and analyzed comprehensively,
displayed and demonstrated visually, inquired and updated conveniently. Which will bring innovation
on long distance oil-gas pipeline planning, construction, operation and management.

3. GIs and Remote Sensing Application on Oil-gas Pipeline Construction

GIS and remote sensing technologies can be applied on several processes of oil-gas pipeline
construction.

3.1 Route selection: feasibility study

Remote sensing and GIS technologies can be applied on comprehensive environment research along
pipeline routes to select suitable result.
Remote sensing technology has been applied on route selection for long distance oil-gas pipeline since
1980s’ through interpreting the geological and geographical information of remote sensing images.
The research content includes: topographic landforms, regional geology, disastrous geology and
geographical conditions. The related database will be set up based on GIS technology for each of the
factors as the results of studies. These databases will be the fundamental information resources for the
pipeline construction.
Market, engineering cost and local economical and social conditions dong pipeline routes are another
important factors will be imported to GIS database for market and economic evaluation.
Above materials, all stored in databases, will be analyzed complexly by using GIS interface to perform
or help feasibility study for an oil-gas pipeline. Which can also give key route engineering estimates
and macro-comparison for different route schemes, meanwhile these databases provide the good
foundation for following steps.

3.2 Visual querying of planning drawing: planning process

The advanced GIS technologies such as database management of magnanimity vector data, step-less
magnifyhinify display of multi-scale maps, integrated management of vector and raster data and so
on give the powerful tools for visual querying and looking up various initial and final drawings.
Image database, graphic database and related database management system can handle the inquiring
between maps and blueprints, features and graphics, images and features, as well as editing, updating
and modifying conveniently.
In addition, traditional maps show the real world on a sheet of paper with point, line and some symbols

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to represent physical objects. One who uses maps must interpret these symbols but the actual shapes or
features of the land or object can’t be seen or can be “seen” only in the one’s mind. Graphic display
techniques of GIS make relationships among map elements visible, heightening one’s ability to extract
and analyze information. This advantage gives great help to designers on their planning work.
The visual querying and result displaying technique of GIS makes the work of pipeline planning more
efficiently than traditional way. The key points in this process are the construction of database
structure, research of standardization and transformation between different databases.

3.3 Dynamic supervision: construction process

A project of long distance oil-gas pipeline is often divided into several sectors and construction stages,
but multi-engineering groups and different sub-projects are often working and acting in the same
periods. Meanwhile the plans and projects usually need improving or adjusting with the proceeding of .
engineering. Which require high standard management to run and supervise such big projects.
The data integration technology of GIs is capable of linking or integrating data, drawing and other
information that are difficult to associate through any other means. The data store way of GIS by
which maps and other data have been stored or filed as layers of information makes it possible to
perform complex analyses.
These advantages can be used to set up management database and carry out dynamic and visual
supervision for efficient construction of pipelines.

3.4 Management: operation and market

A GIs system can manipulate geographical information analyses as well as convert existing digital
information, which may not yet be in map form, into forms can be recognized and used. For example,
digital satellite images can be analyzed to produce a map like layer of digital information about
landform features, a set of coordinate data of a pipeline route can be displayed on maps or satellite
images as a line to show its geological or geographical conditions of sites. The interface between
supervisiodcontrol system and GIS can monitor pipeline parameters such as pressure, temperature,
rate of flow and so on at real time. It can also display the operating situation of a pipeline, devices and
distribution of end users.

GIS can provide the facility to extract the different sets of information from a map, list or image and
use them as required. This provides great flexibility, allowing mapsldata to be quickly produced the
objects, such as thematic maps or data, exactly meeting the needs of the user 13’. GIs also provide
visual querying and result displaying. However, GIS goes further, as the data are stored in a computer,
complex analysis and application becomes possible. For example, one might point at two gas storages,
ask the computer to describe each from an attached database (much more information than could be
displayed on a paper map) and then to calculate the best route between them.
A pipeline GIs with all these high-tech can play an important role on safe operating, supervising and
marketing of a long distance oil-gas pipeline.

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4. GIs and Remote Sensing for Route Selection of “West-East Nature Gas Transportation”
Pipeline

4.1 “West-East Nature Gas Transportation” Pipeline

The “West-East Nature Gas Transportation” Pipeline is from Lunnan, Xinjiang Vygur Autonomous to
Shanghai, eastern coastal Municipality in China. It will pass through eight provinces and one
Municipality (Shanghai) and is one of the four greatest projects in the new century in China. The
pipeline will play a significant role to boost the less-developed western region’s economic growth.

4.2 Remote sensing technology for route-selection

Remote sensing technology has been applied in route selection for long distance oil-gas pipeline
through interpreting the geological and geographical information of remote sensing images. There are
often a lot of changes on geographical condition such as roads, highways, railways, citiedvillages,
rivers/canals and so on as the fast development in China, especially in recent scores of years. These
changes can’t be shown on old maps but are important factors for route selection of oil-gas pipelines.
Satellite remote sensing images are of macro-prospect, direct-perceptibility and precision and
especially can give new information timely. These advantages can be fully developed and provide the
more effective method for assisting route-selection of pipelines.

Mosaic satellite image from Lunnan to Shanghai are made by using fifty-two Landsat TM images to
give the colorful and macro-scopical display of all region along the pipeline. DEM data and the mosaic
remote sensing image are used to produce the 3D image. Several different proposed routes for this
nature gas transportation pipeline are shown on the mosaic satellite image to carry out the geological,
geographical and physiognomy interpretation. The different routes are also displayed on the 3D image
and dynamic 3D display technology: Fly, demonstrates actively the landforms and physiognomy along
these routes. Studies of route comparison and selection based on these remote sensing techniques assist
greatly the determination of final plan.

4.3 GIs on route-selection

Besides remote sensing technology, GIS technology is used first time on the route selection of oil-gas
pipeline in China on the map revision for the “West-East Nature Gas Transportation” Pipeline project.
New SPOT satellite images, most received in 1999-2000, with space resolution of 10m, are used
along key section of the pipeline. From which, new map lays including road, railway, river, lake,
residential area and so on are extracted based on the SPOT image interpretation. These new map lays
reflect the latest changes of these map factors and are stored separately in graphic databases set up
with GIs database standard. The SPOT image interpretation and map factor extraction are done in the
range of every lOkm both sides along the pipeline. The range and boundaries is also a map lay, called
buffer lay, which is produced by space analysis tool of GIs. The pipeline lay and the buffer lay are
stored separately in database of GIs, too. All these graphic lays can be displayed, inquired, modified
and edited conveniently and further more be analyzed or calculated separately or jointly on a GIS

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system. For example, the pipeline lay and the river lay can be used together to calculate the total
number of rivers which the pipeline will cross through. If the rivers are classified to several ranks
saying big, middle and small according to their width, the different numbers for each type of rive
which the pipeline will cross through can be counted, too.

4.43s application and summary

The Remote Sensing image maps of different scales and revision maps of 1:50000 produced from a
GIs system (ARC/INFO) are offered timely to the planning unit of the pipeline and used for in situ
investigation. GPS is used, too, on the field works. These images and maps give great help for the in
situ surveying and get wonderful results.
Summary, GIs is a powerful tool which give us the ability to collect and manage large volumes of
complex spatially data. Which can be used to settle some important problem on Oil-gas transportation
Pipeline Construction.

References:
[ 11 //www.usgs.gov/research/gis/title.html
[2] Oil and Gas 1998.2
[31 //w ww.geo.ed.ac.uk/home/research/whatisgis.html
(//www.geo.ed.ac.uk/home/research/purple.html)
[4] //ww w.rcgis. wtusm.edu.cn/wwwgis/DEFAuLT.HTM
[5] //gis.itc.nrcs.usda.gov/gis/giswhatisit.html

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