[ntiacnews]NASA Seeking Licensees for Insulated Pipeline Evaluation System

[Chris Coughlin]

Hello All;

    NASA's Kennedy Space Center is seeking to license their Thermal
Insulation Performance Analyzer, originally developed for testing the
thermal insulation systems of cryogenic pipelines containing fluids, such as
the liquid nitrogen used in the launching of the Space Shuttle. The
technology includes testing hardware and a testing procedure that are used
to measure the thermal performance of insulated process piping.  The
analyzer has potential application for a number of applications, including
companies involved in cryogenics (medical, food storage, aerospace, and
semiconductor industries), storage and transfer of liquid nitrogen, and
those involved with future energy storage systems.

    What might be of more interest to the NDE community would be the
potential applications in the oil and gas industries.  Petroleum product
pipelines commonly need to maintain a temperature higher than ambient to
prevent paraffin and other deposits from building up in the pipeline,
restricting product flow; a very important issue for offshore lines such as
the Asgard line at the bottom of the North Sea, and for pipelines in remote
and colder climates such as the Alaska pipeline.  The system could
potentially be developed into a new method of nondestructive evaluation for
service providers, or find application as a value-added service to an
existing customer base.

    For further information on the Thermal Insulation Performance Analyzer,
please reference Case Number KSC-12205 and contact:

Lynne Henkiel
SERTTC Industry Liaison
Technology Commercialization Office
Mail Code:YA-C1
Kennedy Space Center,FL 32899
Telephone:(321)867-8130
FAX:(321)867-2050
Lynne.Henkiel-1@ksc.nasa.gov

Regards,
Chris

--
Chris Coughlin / NTIAC
415 Crystal Creek Drive / Austin TX 78746
ccoughlin@ntiac.com / http://www.ntiac.com