Breaking Barriers: In-line Inspection for High-Temperature Bitumen Pipelines

A high-temperature MFL-A solution enables safe and reliable corrosion inspection under extreme conditions

Bitumen is a highly viscous material that cannot be pumped at ambient temperatures. To enable pipeline transport, it must be heated to temperatures typically around 140°C. This heating reduces viscosity and allows the bitumen to flow.

Standard in-line inspection tools are not designed for such high-temperature environments. The electronic components and batteries are often rated at maximum operating temperatures around 65°C. Even moderate exceedance of these limits can lead to malfunction or failure of components critical for data acquisition.