Patent ID: 8200737

Claim:
A system to manage a pipeline rupture, the system comprising: a computer positioned in communication with a communication network to define a pipeline information management server and having a processor, memory coupled to the processor; a user computer in communication with the communication network and having a graphical user interface; and pipeline information management analyzing software to analyze a pipeline rupture, the pipeline information management analyzing software stored in the memory of the pipeline information management server and including instructions that when executed by the pipeline information management server cause the pipeline information management server to perform the following operations: receiving an indication of a location of a pipeline rupture, identifying an immediate upstream valve located upstream of the location of the pipeline rupture and an immediate downstream valve located downstream of the location of the pipeline rupture responsive to receiving the indication of a location of the pipeline rupture to thereby identify pipeline valves potentially needing to be closed, calculating an amount of pipeline segment volume inventory between the identified immediate upstream valve and the identified immediate downstream valve responsive to the identification of the immediate upstream valve and the immediate downstream valve and one or more pipeline attributes to thereby determine potential lost inventory from the pipeline rupture and to facilitate forecasting a potential environmental impact of the pipeline rupture, determining a rupture exposure radius coverage area of the pipeline rupture responsive to the location of the pipeline rupture to thereby identify an area affected by the pipeline rupture and to thereby provide information about selected pipeline equipment within the rupture exposure radius coverage area, and providing data to display on the graphical user interface of the user computer, an indication of the rupture exposure radius coverage area and critical engineering data for one or more of the following: the ruptured pipeline, the identified immediate upstream valve, and the identified immediate downstream valve.