Pigging Information
Since its conception, pigs have been cleaning pipelines in the oil and gas industry for over 30 years. However, nowadays pigs are being used to
clean  pipelines in all types of industries including municipalities, power plants, mining,
refineries, chemical plants, as well as, pulp and paper mills. Over the years, pigs have evolved from basic "plugs" to being fairly sophisticated pipeline cleaning devices.
Ranging in standard sizes from 2" to 48," they can be manufactured in varying lengths, diameters, styles and configurations to best suit your application.
The mechanics behind pigging are quite simple. A pig is inserted into the line to be cleaned by means of a launcher. This is simply an oversized barrel with a reducer
mating to the existing line. This allows for easy insertion of the pig, because a pig's outside diameter is larger than the pipe's inside diameter to maintain a good seal.
Once in the launcher, a propelling medium is introduced to launch the pig. This can be air or liquid, (Normally, the pipeline's
product is used). The pig's path is determined by isolating the line to be cleaned by closing valves to
lateral lines if necessary. On the receiving end, the same over-sized barrel design is used as a receiver,
allowing for easy removal of the pig from the line. As long as all pertinent information, (line size, inside
diameter, line length, build-up thickness, valve and fitting types, etc.), are known before-hand, there should be no complications. Please browse through our web site for more detailed information on the
different types and styles of pigs available. |
