American Oil and Gas Reporter - November 2022 - 48

SpecialReport: Drone Surveillance For Emissions
To inspect well pads, compressor stations
and complex gathering line networks,
Flogistix uses a helicopter-like
rotary drone that can hover and move in
any direction, notes David Martinez,
who oversees operations for Flogistix'
leak detection services. While rotor
drones fly slower than those with fixedwing
designs, their maneuverability
makes them ideal for close-up inspections,
he explains. " We fly at least 360
degrees around every component that
can leak to get the best angle for the optical
gas imager or other leak detection
tool, " he assures.
Martinez points out that drones improve
safety by eliminating any need for
inspectors to climb onto storage tanks, a
common source of leaks.
For equipment housed inside a cabinet
or building, or located beneath objects
too low for the drone to fly under, cameras
remain relevant. But for most equipment,
Martinez says, drones are more
efficient, thorough and affordable.
Learning to perform thorough drone
inspections takes patience, Talton says.
" We developed our procedures through
trial and error, " he relates. " We would create
tiny leaks and then use different pieces
of equipment to find them, which let us
sort out the strengths and weaknesses of
each sensor type, whether it is a methane
sniffer, an optical gas imaging camera or
a laser. That experimentation has given us
a practical understanding of how to get
accurate data quickly and consistently. "
Turning the data into useful reports
rarely takes more than 72 hours, and most
reports are complete in a day, Martinez
reports. " We are oil field people, so instead
of merely pointing out where a leak
is occurring, our reports explain in detail
what is going on, " he describes. " For example,
we can tell whether a leak comes
from a thief hatch, the flange gaskets on
a pipeline or a dump line. "
Getting Better
Drones' thorough and repeatable inspections
are helping the industry find
leaks that are more difficult and expensive
to notice with only handheld cameras and
gas balancing techniques, Martinez says.
He indicates operators and pipeline companies
appreciate that capability.
" The public often thinks people in oil
and gas do not care about the environment,
but almost everyone I have worked
with is trying to do the right thing, " he reflects.
" We all live in the same communities
and want everybody to go home safe
and happy. "
Many companies use the data from repeat
inspections to prevent leaks before
they start, Martinez relates. " For example,
some of our customers have noticed
that certain valves leak even when their
technicians change out parts and do other
maintenance frequently. That can be a
sign the valve is the wrong model for the
application, but it also may indicate
faulty parts or incorrect procedures for
seating or repairing the valves. Those
problems can be fixed. "
The extra gas sales from repairing
leaks frequently pay for LDAR inspections,
Martinez adds. " How quickly the
inspection pays out will depend on how
many leaks we find and their type, " he
notes. " A large leak can cover the inspection
by itself, but so can several small
leaks, especially when gas and liquids
prices are high. "
Talton mentions that a few companies
have deployed drones to evaluate potential
acquisitions. " Before companies close on
a deal, they often inspect a property for
leaks so they know what they are getting
into, " he says. " Eventually, these inspections
likely will become standard practice. "
Other companies hire Flogistix'
drones to construct 2-D and 3-D models
of their assets, Talton continues. " These
models are so detailed that engineers can
see the brand and model of the valves and
pipes installed throughout the pad or facility, "
he illustrates. " They are a huge
improvement over the drawings in a typical
oil and gas asset file. "
The digital twins can help engineers understand
recently-acquired assets, plan
changes at existing sites or verify that construction
has gone as expected, Talton says.
" Drones also could be deployed to site and
permit wells and pads, " he assesses.
Thanks to precise flight paths and increasingly sophisticated sensors, unmanned aerial
vehicles are helping companies find methane leaks more quickly and consistently. This is
true of both fixed-wing UAVs, which have the endurance to handle long pipelines, and
rotor drones, which have the maneuverability to thoroughly inspect well pads, compressor
stations and other facilities.
48 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER
Long-Range Pipeline Inspections
To reduce pipeline inspection costs,
Flogistix has partnered with Commaris,
the manufacturer of a fixed-wing drone
that can fly as fast as 75 miles an hour and
stay in the air for more than three hours,
depending on the payload. " We looked all
over the world for drones that combined
a high flight time and the carrying capacity
for methane sensors with the speed to
complete long-range inspections quickly, "
Talton says. " Commaris' aircraft is the
only one that meets our criteria. "
Talton says the fixed-wing drone can
fly much lower than the planes and helicopters
often used for pipeline inspections.
" We think the fixed-wing drone
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