1. Technical Features and Advantages

The fiber Bragg grating pipeline monitoring system has several outstanding features. Firstly, its intrinsically safe characteristics make it particularly suitable for flammable and explosive environments, without generating the risk of electric sparks. Secondly, it has extremely strong anti-electromagnetic interference ability and is not affected by strong electromagnetic fields such as power transmission and transformation facilities. Furthermore, it adopts an all-optical fiber structure, which has excellent corrosion resistance and can adapt to various harsh medium environments. In addition, a single optical fiber can achieve distributed monitoring over tens of kilometers, significantly reducing the complexity of wiring. These characteristics make FBG an ideal choice for long-distance pipeline monitoring.

2. Typical Application Scenarios

In terms of oil and gas pipeline monitoring, the FBG system plays a key role. Strain monitoring is the most important application. By arranging FBG sensors along the axial direction of the pipeline, real-time monitoring of pipeline deformation caused by factors such as geological settlement and third-party construction can be achieved. Leakage monitoring is equally important. By using distributed FBG temperature sensing technology, abnormal temperature change points caused by leakage can be quickly located. Cathodic protection monitoring uses FBG potential sensors to evaluate the effectiveness of the anti-corrosion system.

In the application of thermal pipelines, FBG technology demonstrates unique value. Temperature field monitoring is a core application. By densely arranging FBG temperature measurement points, the temperature distribution of the heating pipeline can be comprehensively grasped. Stress monitoring is equally crucial, as it can detect the stress changes in pipelines caused by thermal expansion and contraction, and prevent thermal fatigue damage. The failure detection of the insulation layer utilizes the precise measurement of the outer wall temperature of the pipeline by FBG to promptly identify insulation defects.

Monitoring of chemical pipelines is another important field. Corrosion monitoring employs specially designed FBG corrosion sensors to assess the degree of corrosion by measuring the strain changes caused by the thinning of the pipe wall. Vibration monitoring utilizes the high-frequency response characteristics of FBG to capture pipeline vibrations caused by abnormal fluid flow or pump and valve failures. Pressure fluctuation monitoring is carried out through FBG pressure sensors to record transient pressure changes and prevent water hammer effect damage.

3. System Composition and Implementation

A complete FBG pipeline monitoring system consists of multiple key components. The sensor network adopts a variety of dedicated FBG sensors, including strain sensors, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, etc., and is optimally arranged according to the characteristics of the pipeline. The signal transmission system uses special optical cables with high tensile strength and is usually laid in parallel along the pipeline. The data acquisition unit adopts industrial-grade optical fiber demodulation equipment, which has protective features such as explosion-proof and waterproof. The monitoring software platform realizes data visualization, trend analysis and abnormal alarm functions, and supports remote access.

4. Characteristics of Technical Implementation

The FBG system used for pipeline monitoring has special technical requirements. Sensor packaging needs to take into account medium compatibility, and stainless steel or polytetrafluoroethylene materials are commonly used for protection. The installation process has strict requirements. There are both welding installation schemes and clamp fixation methods. The laying of optical cables needs to take into account both protection requirements and construction convenience. Usually, they are laid in the same trench through pipelines or directly bound and fixed. The system design needs to take into account the problem of long-distance signal attenuation, and adopt optical amplifiers or relay devices to ensure signal quality.

5. Application Cases and Development

There have been many successful application cases at home and abroad. The China-Russia Eastern Gas Pipeline has adopted the FBG strain monitoring system to monitor the deformation of the pipeline in the permafrost area in real time. The Alaska oil pipeline has deployed the FBG temperature monitoring network for leakage detection. A certain domestic chemical industrial park has achieved comprehensive status monitoring of high-risk pipelines through the FBG system.

The current development trends are mainly reflected in several aspects: Firstly, there is the development of intelligence, which combines artificial intelligence algorithms to achieve early warning of pipeline risks. Secondly, there is multi-functional integration. A single FBG sensor can simultaneously measure multiple parameters such as strain and temperature. In addition, new packaging technologies are constantly enhancing the environmental adaptability of sensors, such as special designs that can withstand high pressure and strong corrosion. The application of wireless transmission technology is also simplifying system deployment.