A leading Canadian energy transmission company recently embarked on a multibillion-dollar program that involved replacing more than a thousand miles of pipeline and installing or upgrading an entire pipeline of motors, pumps and valves needed to keep oil and gas flowing . This capital-intensive project is the largest of its kind in the company's history.
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The company operates a complex infrastructure involving tens of thousands of miles of transmission pipelines that transport crude oil and other hydrocarbon liquids across the United States and Canada. It transports a significant portion of the crude oil produced in North America and the natural gas consumed in the United States. The project entails upgrading some of the aging infrastructure and adding the capacity needed to support steady growth in Canadian crude oil production.
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The reliability of any oil and gas pipeline is directly dependent on the reliability of the electrical connections that power the machinery that keeps the stock moving. To protect these critical assets and ensure reliable service, the company needed an electrical medium-voltage termination for the power cables connected to the motors, pumps and valves. It has to withstand harsh environmental conditions and operate worry-free for many years. Any failure would require costly and dangerous intervention.
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solution
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After reviewing competing products, including TE's cold-applied termination that did not require a field-installed heat source, the company selected the G-APEX heat-shrink termination. haitan heat shrink terminations were determined to best meet the performance and reliability requirements to ensure that power cables are electrically and mechanically protected from common forms of failure that equipment may experience in the field. These include tracking, moisture ingress, extreme temperatures and exposure to hydrocarbons.
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The project ultimately involved the installation of 2,500 heat-shrink terminations in two sizes (8 kV and 15 kV) over an 18-month time span.
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Two separate tubes of protective polymer insulation need to be heat-shrunk onto the existing cable, and G-APEX heat-shrink products are manufactured as co-extruded two-layer products. The two-tier structure includes:
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- Zinc oxide inner layer helps minimize stress damage and provides maximum impact resistance
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- Coextruded outer layer made of non-tracking material to protect the cable from environmental factors such as chemicals, moisture, oxidation and UV radiation
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This two-tier construction allows the heat shrink termination to be installed as a unit, simplifying the field installation process. Once the bilayer tubing is heat-shrunk, the inner layer softens and anneals into an irregular surface, providing a moisture-tight seal and maximizing electrical stress control. Medium voltage terminations for shielded cables fully comply with IEEE-48 Type I termination requirements, providing long, trouble-free life.
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