TY - CONF A1 - Rhode, Michael T1 - Welding of in service hydrogen pipelines for repair and maintenance purposes Concepts and Challenges N2 - Hydrogen will make a decisive contribution to a sustainable large-scale energy supply, the transport of which will be based on long-distance pipeline grids. Previous material compatibility studies have shown that the currently used low-alloy pipe steels are generally suitable for hydrogen pipelines. However, this cannot be directly transferred to the case of repair welding. For technical and economic reasons, welding work on hydrogen pipelines in service is usually carried out during operation under continuous pressure and gas flow. In this context, concepts such as hot tapping and stoppling are well established in natural gas (NG) grids and crude oil transportation. In hot tapping, a pressurized pipeline is drilled by flanging a sealed, pressure-tight system consisting of a shut-off valve and drilling equipment. For this purpose, sleeves (made of preformed cylindrical half-shells) must be welded by longitudinal seams and then welded to the product-carrying pipeline by circumferential girth welds. Preheat temperatures of approximately 100 °C must be maintained for most manual metal arc (MMA) / shielded metal arc welding (SMAW) and 250 °C for the interpass temperature in multi-pass welding. This is particularly important for thin-walled pipelines because the austenitizing temperature is exceeded on the inside of the pipeline when the girth welds are welded. As a result, significantly higher hydrogen absorption in the pipeline steel is expected, with possible degradation of mechanical properties or cracking. T2 - MSE 2024: International Materials Science and Engineering Congress CY - Darmstadt, Germany DA - 24.09.2024 KW - Hydrogen KW - Repair welding KW - Pipelines KW - In-service PY - 2024 AN - OPUS4-61155 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Erxleben, Kjell T1 - Hydrogen determination in welded metallic materials: Necessity and challenges N2 - In the course of tomorrow's hydrogen-based energy transition, the construction of the corresponding infrastructure will play a central role. The majority of materials used to date are typically welded for component fabrication. In that context, steels are widely applied and can be prone to hydrogen embrittlement. For the evaluation of any hydrogen effect on, for example, the mechanical properties of a welded metallic material, the hydrogen content must be precisely determined. According to ISO 3690, carrier gas hot extraction (CGHE) can be used. In addition to the pure quantification of hydrogen, thermal desorption analysis (TDA) with varied heating rates can be used to determine and evaluate the bonding state at microstructural defects in the material. For both techniques, experimental and measurement influences have to be considered, which have a great effect on the result. For CGHE, for example, ISO 3690 suggests different sample geometries as well as minimum extraction times. The present study summarizes results and experiences of numerous investigations with different sample temperatures and geometries (ISO 3690 type B and cylindrical TDA samples) regarding: the influence of the sample surface (polished/welded), measurement accuracies depending on the sample volume. In particular, a deviating extraction temperature to the set temperature, can significantly falsify the measurement results. Based on the results, methods are shown to quickly reach the desired extraction temperature without having to physically interfere with the measurement equipment. This serves to substantially improve the reliability of hydrogen measurement through increased signal stability and accelerated hydrogen desorption. In general, an independent temperature measurement with dummy samples for the selected heating procedure is advisable to exclude possible unwanted temperature influences already before the measurement. In addition (and way more important), the methods described can be transferred directly to industrial applications. T2 - Eurocorr 2023 - The European Corrosion Congress CY - Brussels, Belgium DA - 27.08.2023 KW - Hydrogen KW - Carrier gas hot extraction KW - Welding KW - ISO 3690 KW - Measurement PY - 2023 AN - OPUS4-58305 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Erxleben, Kjell T1 - Repair welding of in service hydrogen pipelines N2 - In the course of tomorrow's hydrogen-based energy transition, the construction of the corresponding infrastructure will play a central role. In that context, large diameter long-distance transmission pipelines for hydrogen will be the backbone in the European Union with service pressures from 70 to 90 bar (e.g., depending on national regulations). It is a major goal to rededicate the existing LNG infrastructure despite the necessity of new pipelines. From that point of view repairing of such transmissions pipelines via welding can be necessary. For the LNG infrastructure, it is state of the art that repair welding is conducted at pipelines under service, i.e., the LNG is still flowing as pressurized gas in the steel pipes. The reason is that a shut-down of large diameter pipelines is not so easy or sometimes impossible. In fact, as long no oxygen enters the pipeline, there would be any combustion or (in the worst case) explosion. At the moment, it is entirely open if current repair welding procedures for LNG pipelines can be transferred to pure hydrogen pipelines. In opposite to LNG, hydrogen can be way easier absorbed to the pipeline steels and diffuses through the material. If it accumulates in susceptible regions, i.e., in the welded joint, hydrogen assisted embrittlement could occur. The planned welding procedure requires a so-called preheating and maintenance of the weld joint of up to 300°C for several hours. This temperature is way higher compared to the typical service temperature of max. 40 to 50°C at operational pressures of 100 bar. In accordance to API 941, these low-alloyed pipeline steels are subjected to short-term service loads, which they are not designed for. For that reason, a collaborative project between BAM and DVGW (German Association for Gas and Water professions) was initiated in 2022 to answer the following questions by experiments and numerical simulation of: (1) How many hydrogen is additionally absorbed during the heating of the material to max. 300°C under remaining operational pressures? (2) Is the hydrogen concentration sufficient to reach a critical condition? (3) Which material and weld microstructure is the most susceptible? (4) Is there a significant difference in the repair welding behavior of LNG pipelines that had been already in use for long-term? (5) Which welding parameters and joint dimensions must be ensured for safe repair welding repair of typical pipelines? For that reason, the present study gives an overview on the current practice in repair welding of in-service pipelines, the industrial importance of this topic for the hydrogen-based energy transition and summarizes first results. T2 - Eurocorr 2023 - The European Corrosion Congress CY - Brussels, Belgium DA - 27.08.2023 KW - Hydrogen KW - Repair Welding KW - Pipeline KW - In-service KW - High-pressure PY - 2023 AN - OPUS4-58334 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Rhode, Michael T1 - Standardization and examples for R & D activities on hydrogen technologies with respect to testing procedures in Germany N2 - This contribution briefly summarizes the standardization activities in accordance with the "Nationale Roadmap Wasserstofftechnologien" and presents selected results on the activities in Germany with scope on hydrogen transport in pipelines. The talk was given during a panel discussion to set-up a steering committee for standardization for hydrogen pipelines and welding , coordinated by the International Institute of Welding. T2 - IIW Annual Assembly, Meeting of Commission XI CY - Singapore DA - 19.07.2023 KW - Hydrogen KW - Welding KW - Pipelines KW - Standardization KW - Research PY - 2023 AN - OPUS4-57976 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Rhode, Michael T1 - Intended weld repair of in service hydrogen pipelines N2 - In the course of tomorrow's hydrogen-based energy transition, the construction of the corresponding infrastructure will play a central role. In that context, large diameter long-distance transmission pipelines for hydrogen will be the backbone in the European Union with service pressures from 70 to 90 bar (e.g., de-pending on national regulations). It is a major goal to repurposing the existing natural gas (NG) infrastructure despite the necessity of new pipelines. From that point of view repair welding or further welding of branch pipe etc. can be necessary during in-service, i.e., permanent flow of pressurized hydrogen. The reason is that a shut-down of large diameter pipelines is not easy or sometimes merely impossible. At the moment, it is entirely open if current repair welding procedures for NG pipe-lines can be transferred to pure hydrogen pipelines. For that reason, a collaborative project between BAM, DVGW (German Association for Gas and Water Professions) and a large number of gas grid operators, pipeline manufacturers and construction companies was initiated in 2023 to answer questions on: (1) How many hydrogen is additionally absorbed during the preheating and maintaining at interpass temperature under remaining operational pressures? (2) Is the hydrogen concentration sufficient to reach a critical condition? (3)Which material and weld microstructure are the most susceptible? (4) Is there a difference in the repair welding behavior of NG pipelines with materials in “used” condition? (5) Which welding parameters and joint dimensions must be ensured for safe repair welding? The final aim of this project is the publication of a recommended practice for repair welding of in-service hydrogen pipelines. For that reason, the present study gives an overview on: (A) current practice in repair welding of in-service pipelines and (b) plans for hydrogen pipelines and first results of international research projects. T2 - IIW Annual Assembly, Meeting of Commission XI CY - Singapore DA - 19.07.2023 KW - Hydrogen KW - Repair Welding KW - Pipelines KW - Research PY - 2023 AN - OPUS4-57975 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rhode, Michael A1 - Mente, Tobias A1 - Kannengießer, Thomas A1 - Schaupp, Thomas A1 - Zavdoveev, Anatoly T1 - Challenges for testing hydrogen-assisted cold cracking in weld seams of high-strength steel grades N2 - Hydrogen can cause weld cold cracking even days after fabrication. In this respect, higher strength steels present a challenge to established cold crack testing. In general, the tolerable hydrogen concentration for crack prevention decreases with increasing material strength. In addition, advanced welding processes require changes in weld geometry and heat input. This directly influences the formation of crack-critical microstructures, e.g. in hardened areas of the heat-affected zone. The limits of use and application of modern cold cracking tests are evaluated by (1) the externally loaded Implant-test and (2) the self-restraint Tekken-test. In particular, external mechanical stresses, which cause additional mechanical loads on the components during welding, must be considered due to the component-specific stiffness of high-strength steels. Accompanying test methods for determining hydrogen concentration and diffusion in welds are presented, such as carrier gas hot extraction for determining hydrogen concentration (ISO 3690) or temperature-dependent diffusion coefficients. These values are of great importance for a holistic approach to the evaluation of the cold cracking sensitivity of high strength steels. KW - Hydrogen KW - Welding KW - Cold cracking test KW - High-strength steel PY - 2024 DO - https://doi.org/10.37434/tpwj2024.08.01 SN - 0957-798X VL - 2024 IS - 8 SP - 3 EP - 9 PB - International Association "Welding" CY - Kyiv, Ukraine AN - OPUS4-60946 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Erxleben, Kjell T1 - Component test for safety assessment of in-service welding on / onto pressurized hydrogen pipelines N2 - Hydrogen is the energy carrier of tomorrow for a fossil-free future. This requires a reliable transport infrastructure capable of transporting large quantities of hydrogen, e.g. for the steel and chemical industries. In addition to the construction of new pipelines, the conversion of existing natural gas (NG) networks is an essential part of global hydrogen strategies. The transport of hydrogen is fundamentally different from that of NG, as hydrogen can be absorbed into the pipeline material. Given the known effects of hydrogen embrittlement, the compatibility of the materials for the proposed pipelines (typically low alloy steels in a wide range of strengths and thicknesses) must be investigated. However, pipelines require frequent maintenance, repair, or the need to install additional outlets. In some cases, it is necessary to perform welding on or to the pipelines while they are still in service, i.e. with active gas flow under high pressure, such as the well-known "hot tapping". This in-service welding poses challenges for hydrogen operations in terms of additional hydrogen absorption during welding and material compatibility. The challenge can be roughly divided into the possible austenitization of the inner pipe material exposed to hydrogen, which can lead to sufficient hydrogen absorption, and the welding itself, which causes an increased temperature range. Both lead to a significant increase in hydrogen solubility and diffusivity of the respective materials compared to room temperature. In this context, knowledge about hot tapping on hydrogen pipelines is scarce due to the lack of operational experience. Fundamental experimental investigations are required to investigate the transferability from natural gas to hydrogen pipeline networks. For this reason, the present study presents a specially designed mock-up / demonstrator concept for the realistic assessment of the welding process conditions. T2 - Materials Week 2025 CY - Frankfurt am Main, Germany DA - 02.04.2025 KW - In-service KW - Hydrogen KW - Pipeline KW - Repair welding PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-62874 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kaiser, Sebastian T1 - Evaluation of welding on in-service pressurized hydrogen pipelines by component testing N2 - Hydrogen transportation is fundamentally different from natural gas (NG) as it can be absorbed into the pipeline material. However, pipelines require frequent maintenance or repair, in some cases on or onto the pipelines while they are still under pressure. This in-service welding causes challenges for hydrogen operations. They can be roughly divided into: (1) possible austenitization of the inner pipe material exposed to hydrogen, and (2) welding itself with its temperature cycles. Both lead to a significant increase in hydrogen solubility/diffusivity of the materials. Fundamental investigations are required due to the missing service experience. The present study introduces a specially designed demonstrator concept for the assessment of the welding processing conditions. The mock-up was designed to enable temperature measurement during welding as well as ex-post extraction of samples for the quantification of the absorbed hydrogen. The necessary pressurized hydrogen volume was limited by the insertion of a solid cylinder. Welding experiments on the pressurized mock-ups (DN50 and DN200) have shown that the austenitization temperature is nearly reached on the inner surface of the pipeline. This corresponds to a significant hydrogen absorption of several ppm in the welded joint, especially for thin-walled pipelines. Nonetheless, a potential hydrogen assisted cracking was not identified. T2 - 24. Werkstofftechnisches Kolloquium CY - Chemnitz, Germany DA - 02.04.2025 KW - Pipeline KW - In-Service KW - Welding KW - Hydrogen PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-62917 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kaiser, Sebastian A1 - Erxleben, Kjell A1 - Rhode, Michael A1 - Kannengießer, Thomas T1 - Repair Welding of In-Service Hydrogen Pipelines - Concepts and Challenges N2 - Hydrogen is set as the energy carrier of tomorrow for a more sustainable fossil fuel free future. As this necessitates a reliable transport infrastructure, repurposing of the existing natural gas grid is planned. With regards to the well-known effect of hydrogen embrittlement, the compatibility of utilized materials must be investigated. First comprehensive studies on pipeline material hydrogen compatibility indicate that these materials can be applied to a certain extent. Nonetheless, the material compatibility is currently of high interest and focus of numerous research projects worldwide. However, pipelines require frequent maintenance and repair work. As part of these, in some cases it is necessary to do weldments onto pipelines while they are pressurized. This in-service welding introduces additional challenges for the material compatibility. Due to the resulting high temperatures, the metallurgical changes in the material and of course the presence of high-pressure hydrogen in the pipeline, additional investigations need to be conducted to ensure that no critical material degradation because of increased hydrogen absorption occurs and an overall material compatibility is given. For this reason, the present paper introduces in-service welding on pipelines. An overview of current research projects that deal with the application of in-service welding specifically on hydrogen pipelines and the emerging problems when applying these techniques on hydrogen pipelines is given. Methods of material testing, their limits and possible solutions are presented and discussed. T2 - 2024 15th International Pipeline Conference CY - Calgary, Alberta, Canada DA - 23.09.2024 KW - Hydrogen KW - Pipeline KW - Welding KW - In-Service PY - 2024 SN - 978-0-7918-8856-8 DO - https://doi.org/10.1115/IPC2024-133052 SP - 1 EP - 6 PB - The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) CY - New York AN - OPUS4-62262 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Erxleben, Kjell T1 - Challenges in repair welding of in-service h2-pipelines N2 - Hydrogen will be one of the most important energy carriers of tomorrow. For the necessary large-scale and long-distance transportation, a reliable pipeline infrastructure is required. It is meanwhile in the most countries accepted to follow a two-way strategy by (I) repurposing the existing natural gas (NG) grid combined with (II) the installation of new pipelines. For example, in Europe a so-called European Hydrogen Backbone (EHB) is planned for 2040. Currently, 28 countries work together to establish a hydrogen pipeline grid of several thousands of kilometers. In that connection, a wide number of materials are used with different thicknesses, strength levels, chemical composition, surface conditions and so on. Worldwide research projects suggest the general compatibility of the currently applied pipeline steels e.g., in Germany the “SysWestH2” project. Nonetheless, the hydrogen gas grid will require regular inspections, repair, and maintenance. In addition, sometimes pipeline tees are required to connect new grids or pipelines the existing infrastructure. From that point of view, existing concepts from NG-grids must be investigated in terms of the transferability to hydrogen service. An overview on occurring challenges for this hydrogen transition, especially for in-service weld repair procedures is given in this presentation. T2 - AMPP 2024 - The Association for Materials Protection and Performance CY - Genoa, Italy DA - 09.06.2024 KW - In-service KW - Pipeline KW - Repair welding KW - High-pressure KW - Hydrogen PY - 2024 AN - OPUS4-60327 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -