Ethanol Roadmap Status Ethanol Roadmap Status

Update

PHMSA R&D Forum

June 2009
Overview Overview

 Background

 Ethanol Roadmap Meeting Summary

 Roadmap Gap Analysis and outcome

 Recent research proposal awards

 Progress update on short, mid, and long term questions

 Outstanding gaps and challenges
Background Background

 Keen interest in Ethanol Transportation by PRCI members led to

creation and funding of several projects (SCC 4-3,4-4, & 4-5)

 Project SCC 4-4 included a project task to hold an industry

roadmap meeting to identify:

 Current state of ethanol transportation

 Gaps in current research

 Challenges to ethanol transportation by pipeline

 Areas for future research

 This industry meeting was held on October 25-26 in Columbus

OH.
Roadmap Meeting Summary Roadmap Meeting Summary

(October 25-26, 2007) (October 25-26, 2007)

 Key Challenges Facing Ethanol Transportation in Pipelines

 Quantifying and managing risk

 Making the business case for new construction or dedicated lines

 Achieving operating efficiency with new product mixes

 Finding new materials solutions

 Learning from Brazilian experiences

 Investing under Changing regulations

 Understanding potential environmental threats

 Improving coordination and communication

 Four topical breakout sessions

 Ethanol Sources and Quality Issues

 Pipeline Integrity Management Issues

 Pipeline Operations Issues

 Standards, Guidelines, & Training
Gaps in Ethanol Sources and Gaps in Ethanol Sources and

Quality Issues Quality Issues

 Lack of a practical method for ethanol testing

 Lack of “ASTM-like” specifications for FGE tailored for reliable

transportation rather than just for end-use

 Challenges in ensuring product quality when products from

different producers get commingled

 Lack of standardized ethanol source mixtures

 Incomplete knowledge of real oxygen concentrations in pipelines

nor where stream is picking up oxygen

 Lack of understanding of how product composition changes

during aging (time, head, length of travel, etc.)

 Gaps in knowledge of why different ethanol sources differ in their

effect on materials of construction
Gaps in Pipeline Integrity Gaps in Pipeline Integrity

Management Issues Management Issues

 Avoiding oxygen contamination

 Mixing ethanol from different sources

 Understanding how to prevent SCC

 Understanding which blends cause SCC

 Understanding of consequences of SCC on pipeline, environment,

repair, safety

 Understanding of how fast SCC develops

 Swelling and permeation in seals and gaskets

 Understanding the impact of inhibitors on the consumer

 Prioritizing locations of greatest integrity concern for inspection

and mitigation
Gaps in Pipeline Operations Gaps in Pipeline Operations

Issues

 Lack of a sustainable business case (policy, regulation, demand

distribution, etc.)

 Convincing regulators, media, public that new operation is safe

 Understanding differences between application lab results versus

real world operations

 Developing timeline for research results

 Understanding how chemistry limits may define safe operating

limits to prevent cracking (e.g., oxygen, water)

 Understanding what needs to be monitored and why, where, and

when

 Lack appropriate commercial monitoring technologies
Gaps in Standards, Guidelines, Gaps in Standards, Guidelines,

& Training & Training

 Lack of understanding of mechanism of ethanol SCC

 Understanding differences between sugar-based and corn-based

ethanol

 Sharing experience internationally

 Turning research into standards

 Influencing (proactive) regulations

 Coordinating research activities

 Cost-benefit analysis

 Define threat and susceptibility
Gap Analysis by Ray Fessler Gap Analysis by Ray Fessler

 Build upon the results of the “Safe and Reliable Transportation of

Fuel-Grade Ethanol Workshop” held on October 25-26, 2007, in

Dublin, Ohio

 Group and condense the list of gaps, indicating which are being

addressed by current or planned research, and which require new

research projects.

 Phase 1 summarizes the results and presents recommendations

for new projects that could profitably be started in the near future.

 Phase 2 work will be conducted to produce a final report that will

contain a roadmap of all of the future projects that have been

identified.

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Suggested Projects for Near Suggested Projects for Near

Future

 Safety of Transporting Blends Containing More than 10 Percent

Ethanol

 Standardized Tests for SCC in Ethanol

 Technical and Economic Feasibility of Preventing SCC Through

Control of Oxygen

 Feasibility of Preventing SCC by Using Inhibitors

 Compatibility of Polymeric Materials and Non-ferrous Metals with

Ethanol

 Understanding of Ethanol SCC

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Other Recommended Actions Other Recommended Actions

 Incorporate research results into recommended practices for

ethanol transportation and integrity management.

 IMP guidelines should address all elements of the program ( risk

management, integrity assessment, data integration, etc)

 It is recommended that API or some other suitable industry

organization establish committees or direct existing committees

to prepare those documents. For example, API might develop an

overall or umbrella standard, which would refer to other

standards to be developed by other organizations, such as NACE

for corrosion control and monitoring, ASTM for testing, etc.

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Development of Guidelines

and Standards (API,

NACE, ASME)

WP#323 -Ethanol source

project

(SwRI, Ga Tech, DNV)

WP#325 – Ethanol blends,

batching, mitigation,

seals, project (DNV)

Mechanisms & electrochemical

methods

(Ohio State University)

W#327 - Monitoring project

(DNV, SwRI, Aginova)

Overall Ethanol Program Overall Ethanol Program

Integration Integration

Microbial effects

(Colorado School of

Mines)

PRCI SCC 4-1 to 4-5

Polymer piping (GTI)

API Tank

Individual companies

Industry Government Industry &

Government
Short-term questions have Short-term questions have

been answered been answered.....

 Short-term questions: what blends can be transported without

changing infrastructure?

E-10 can be transported without any modification. E-95

will require operational modifications (inhibitors,

deaeration, etc.)

No significant effect of metallurgy on SCC

Some inhibitors are effective (amine-based)

SCC 4-4-1 report submitted in March, 2008

Elastomer survey report submitted in May 2008
Answers to medium-term questions are Answers to medium-term questions are

being generated being generated.............

 What do less-conservative tests reveal about blends and SCC

 Less conservative cracking tests confirm previous findings - PHMSA

Quarterly Reports, December 2008 through March 2009

 What effect does ethanol have on elastomers?

 Two elastomers (Viton and low-swell Buna N) that failed in static

loading have been identified – dynamic loading tests are continuing

 Are there effective inhibitors?

 Some inhibitors have been found effective in mitigating SCC. Crack

growth tests will confirm findings

 Flowing conditions do not affect performance of an inhibitor – may

even enhance its effectiveness – PRCI SCC 4-3 Report Submitted

January 2009
Answers to medium-term questions are Answers to medium-term questions are

being generated being generated.............

 Can FGE be transported under batching conditions?

 Batching tests are continuing – no significant effect of batching on

SCC

 What effect does ethanol source have?

 Tests on several ethanol chemistries (lots) have been completed –

some differences in SCC noted, but no definitive correlation to

chemistry

 Results to these are expected by end of 2009
Research to answer to long-term Research to answer to long-term

questions are in preparation questions are in preparation...........

 Monitoring ethanol tanks/piping/pipeline

 Activities have begun to identify monitoring sites

 Integration of electronics and wireless has been completed

 Installation of sensors will await safety assessment

 Developing ethanol finger prints

 Significant progress has been made. Tests on different lots of ethanol

are continuing.

 Microbiological effects in ethanol

 Research at Colorado School of Mines – initial results suggest

viability of bacteria
Research to answer to long-term Research to answer to long-term

questions are in preparation questions are in preparation...........

 Understanding ethanol SCC – basic research

 Progress being made at OSU and Georgia Tech. Results not expected

until 2010

 Ethanol transportation guidelines and risk management

 Activity needed to capture research knowledge generated to date

 Potential future research topics
Outstanding Gaps Outstanding Gaps

 Long term questions are beginning to be addressed, but some

gaps identified in the original roadmap session remain

 Monitoring of tanks and piping is crucial to answer some

fundamental questions

 Need to develop industry guidelines and Integrity

Management Program approaches

 Risk Analysis

 Threat Identification

 Integrity Assessment

 Repair Criteria

 Preventive & Mitigative Measures

 Etc
Outstanding Gaps Outstanding Gaps

 Long term questions are beginning to be addressed, but some

gaps identified in the original roadmap session remain

 More effort toward understanding ethanol SCC fundamentals

is needed

 Validate current research

 Expedite follow-on research

 Develop ASTM-like specification for shipping

 Ethanol “fingerprinting” work hasn’t progressed far enough

yet to know if follow-up research will be needed

 Standardized Ethanol Testing

 Degradation Products
Summary Summary

 Ethanol program funded by PHMSA and co-funded by industry is

robust

 Many short-term engineering issues have been addressed

 Some medium-term questions have been addressed

 Some long-term questions are now in process

 Some gaps still linger but, in most cases, can’t be addressed yet

 Research towards moving ethanol by pipelines is on track
Acknowledgements Acknowledgements

 The Presenter would like to thank:

 Dr. Narasi Sridhar – DNV (CCTech)

 Dr. Raymond Fessler - Biztek

 Dr. Preet Singh – Georgia Institute of Technology

 Xiaoyuan Lou – Georgia Institute of Technology

 Lindsey Goodman – Georgia Institute of Technology