US-12618503-B2 - System and method for containment of fluids from a compromised pipe or piping system

Abstract

Embodiments presented provide a modular repair enclosure for repairing or sealing leaks or potential leaks in a pipe. In some embodiments, the modular repair enclosure comprises three or more interchangeable enclosure sections that, when assembled around a section of pipe, seal the section of pipe and provide containment for any leaks in the section of pipe. The use of three or more interchangeable enclosure sections allows much thinner materials to be used to construct enclosure compared to a 2-piece enclosure, and also results in much less wasted material. Such an arrangement allows significant cost savings to be realized. These interchangeable enclosure sections can also be pre-manufactured and stocked in inventory, allowing for much faster response times to make the repair on a leaking pipe, where conventional methods would require custom manufacturing.

Inventors

• Matthew R. Gallian
• Wesley R. Hoffer

Assignees

• COLT SERVICES, LLC

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20220922

Claims (20)

1. 1 . An enclosure apparatus, comprising: at least three bodies, each of the bodies having a connection portion and a receiving portion and an inside face and an outside face, the connection portion having at least one opening therein and the receiving portion having at least one threaded opening therein; and at least two connectors for each of the at least three bodies, wherein each of the connectors has a threading on an exterior surface thereof and is configured to insert into the at least one opening of the connection portion of one of the at least three bodies and the at least one threaded opening of the receiving portion of an adjacent body of the at least three bodies, wherein when the at least three bodies are connected and positioned around a pipe, a containment volume is formed between an exterior surface of the pipe and the at least three bodies.
2. 2 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the at least three bodies is four bodies.
3. 3 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein each of the at least three bodies is identical in size and shape.
4. 4 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein each of the at least two connectors is a bolt with an associated nut.
5. 5 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , where the at least two connectors is seven connectors.
6. 6 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein each of the at least three bodies is made of metal.
7. 7 . The apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the metal is one of aluminum, carbon steel, stainless steel, magnesium, tungsten, brass, copper.
8. 8 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the at least three bodies is provided with at least two compression rings disposed on the inside face of each of the at least three bodies.
9. 9 . The apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the at least two compression rings is four compression rings.
10. 10 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein each of the bodies includes thereon a first linking tab and a second linking tab at opposite ends from one another, the first linking tab on a body of the apparatus being connectable to the second linking tab on a body of an adjacent apparatus to attach the apparatus to the adjacent apparatus.
11. 11 . A method for containing a pipe using an enclosure apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the at least three bodies comprises a first body, a second body, a third body, and a fourth body, the method comprising: connecting the first body of the enclosure apparatus to the second body of the enclosure apparatus to form a first half body; connecting the third body of the enclosure apparatus to the fourth body of the enclosure apparatus to form a second half body; and connecting the first half body to the second half body around the pipe such that the enclosure apparatus forms a volume around the pipe that contains any leak within the volume.
12. 12 . The method according to claim 11 , wherein the connecting of the first body of the enclosure apparatus to the second body is through a mechanical connection.
13. 13 . The method according to claim 12 , wherein the mechanical connection is through one of a bolt and nut arrangement and a stud and two nuts arrangement.
14. 14 . The method according to claim 11 , wherein the connecting of the first body of the enclosure apparatus to the second body of the enclosure apparatus is through seven mechanical connections.
15. 15 . The method according to claim 11 , wherein the connecting of the third body of the enclosure apparatus to the fourth body of the enclosure apparatus is through seven mechanical connections.
16. 16 . The method according to claim 11 , further comprising connecting a first linking tab on a body of the enclosure apparatus to a second linking tab on a body of an adjacent enclosure apparatus to attach the enclosure apparatus to the adjacent enclosure apparatus.
17. 17 . An enclosure section for a modular repair enclosure, the enclosure section comprising: a connection portion located on one end of the enclosure section, the connection portion having one or more attachment points formed therein; a receiving portion located at an opposite end of the enclosure section, the receiving portion having one or more threaded attachment points formed therein, each threaded attachment point in the receiving portion aligned with an attachment point in the connection portion; an outside face extending between the connection portion and the receiving portion; and an inside face extending between the connection portion and the receiving portion, the inside face having at least one curved surface thereon such that when at least three enclosure sections are connected to one another around a pipe, a containment volume is formed between an exterior surface of the pipe and the enclosure sections.
18. 18 . The enclosure section according to claim 17 , wherein the outside face of the enclosure section has a plurality of lifting holes formed therein.
19. 19 . The enclosure section according to claim 17 , wherein the one or more attachment points on the connection portion are through holes and the one or more attachment points on the receiving portion are blind holes.
20. 20 . The enclosure section of claim 17 , wherein the enclosure section is configured to be interchangeable with other enclosure sections such that the connection portion receives a connector in the one or more attachment points thereof at an angle to a connector received in the one or more threaded attachment points of the receiving portion.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS None. FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE Aspects of the disclosure relate to repairing and sealing of leaks in piping components under pressure and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method for easily containing a section of pipe that has or may leak using a cost effective and standardized connective apparatus that can be easily assembled around a section of a fluid carrying pipe in the field and subsequently removed. Aspects of the disclosure also apply to corrupted non-leaking piping as a preventative maintenance procedure to eliminate the risk of a future leak. BACKGROUND Leaking pipes can be a problematic issue that occurs at industrial, commercial and residential locations. When a pipe leak at an industrial or commercial location occurs, the pipe leak severity may dictate the actions of operators and/or maintenance personnel in dealing with the situation. As can be understood, when a pipe leak occurs, fluid contents of the pipe may exit the pressure boundary of the pipe and become “uncontrolled” within the local vicinity. If the pipe carries water, maintenance on the pipe may involve channeling the running fluid (such as water) to a drain within a building. If a large amount of water is carried by the pipe, drains may not be able to withstand the amount of flow. If the pipe carries a liquid other than water, then more elaborate precautions may have to be performed. In such instances, the liquid may have to neutralized to prevent acid/basic reaction with local equipment. The liquid may also generate vapors that become airborne and potentially cause a health hazard to workers. In such instances, evacuation of personnel may have to occur as well as providing a supply of fresh air to the leak site. As can be seen from the above, various factors, including the type of fluid, temperature, air pressure, types of surrounding equipment, availability of drains and other factors may affect the function of a work site. To alleviate these concerns, it is better to contain a leak at the source rather than to let the leak spread. To this end, conventional technology provides some solutions. These solutions, however, have their own drawbacks that have not been solved. Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional or prior art apparatus is illustrated. The apparatus 100 entails creating a welded box 102 around a section of pipe 104 that has a leak. In this embodiment of the apparatus 100, the box is a four (4) sided square shape around the pipe 104 which is configured approximately circular. Generally, three (3) side portions 106a, 106b, 106c are pre-welded together and lowered over the section of pipe 104. A fourth side portion 106d is then raised to contact the first and third side portions 106a and 106c. A welder then creates tack welds 108 (only one weld shown for simplicity) connecting fourth side portion 106d to first and third side portions 106a and 106c. The tack welds 108 allow the apparatus 100 to maintain a proper shape, as the welder goes back to an end portion of the side portion 106d and welds along the entire side connecting side portions 106d to 106a. The process is then continued as a full length weld is placed along the connecting sides of 106d and 106c. At this juncture, an open-ended box 110 is formed around the section of pipe 104. Next, individual half ends 112a, 112b, 114a, 114b are created to seal the ends of the box 110. Individual half ends 112a, 112b form one box end 112 for the box 110, while Individual half ends 114a, 114b form an opposite box end 114 for the box 110. Each individual half end 112a, 112b, 114a, 114b has a semicircular portion removed therefrom such that a circular opening 116 is formed in each box end 112, 114 when their respective half ends 112a, 112b, 114a, 114b are assembled. Each of these half ends 112a, 112b, 114a, 114b are individually templated and then a raw steel plate is fabricated into the desired templated shape. In the event that the leak is in a high pressure pipe, the thickness of the raw steel plate required can exceed 1 inch in some cases. Fabrication of such thick individual half ends 112a, 112b, 114a, 114b can involve use of high strength steel that is very costly to procure on a per unit volume. The fabrication process can be time consuming, therefore the costs of repair may be very high. In the conventional technologies described above, fabrication of the individual parts to exactly match the environmental conditions can take an excessive amount of time, requiring the plant to cease operation. Such cessation of operation at the plant may incur large economic costs to operators. There is a need to provide an apparatus and method that are easier to operate than conventional apparatus and methods for pipe system repair. There is a further need to provide apparatus and method that do not have the drawbacks discussed above, including high costs of materials used, excessive time for fabrication and necessity of plant shutdown. There is