I was looking for some information on reversible multi-purpose pipelines. Well, first off, I was looking to see if there are such creatures or it was just my imagination that they exist.
Didn't actually find any because, first, I got sidetracked by an article promising a computer program that would address a number of known issues. According to the abstract:
As the construction of twin pipelines transporting products in opposite directions demands large capital investments, reversible-flow pipelines arise as a promising alternative. This paper introduces a novel continuous-time formulation for the short-term operational planning of reversible multiproduct pipelines. The proposed model allows to change the flow direction as many times as needed to meet terminal demands, determining precise time instants for flow reversals. It provides the input and output schedules in a single step, and the most convenient product used as filler to push current batches out of the line. Three examples are successfully solved with much less computational effort than previous approaches.
As the sentence structure suggests, the authors are not native speakers of English. However, little other information can be garnered since, as is increasingly common on the internet, when it comes to real information, getting it requires payment. My curiosity is not strong enough to relieve me of 35 bucks.
Besides, going back to Google brought me to Oiltanking and this totally delightful banner.
"We Can, We Care." How is that not an homage to our USA?
Apparently, other parts of the Globe get what some of our Republican friends refuse to understand. Or, perhaps they do, but they just refuse to follow suit. They can't and they don't care. The Party of No.
That's the problem with the ACA, isn't it? It's about care; not about illness or medicine or doctors or surgical procedures or endurance. Care.
Now, it may all be a come-on -- typical corporate speak. But there is something to hold them to.
Health, Safety, Security & Environment
To involve all employees worldwide, our Health, Safety, Security, and Environmental (HSSE) Policy was translated into all relevant languages, countersigned by the local profit-center managers, and is prominently displayed in all terminals.
In joint ventures, we use our influence to ensure that we meet international HSSE standards. We also require contractors to adhere fully to our HSSE principles. To eliminate accidents and work-related ill health and to protect the environment, Oiltanking has implemented an HSSE management system. Rather than joining a standardized certification system, we have developed a tailor–made, integrated HSSE structure.
For some reason, I am reminded that the owners of Koch Industries also have their signature management system. Somehow, I doubt the results are the same.
What is it Oiltanking is into?
Oil Storage
Chemical Storage
Biofuel Storage
Gas Storage
Dry Bulk
EPC
Pipeline
Where do they do it?
On all continents, it seems, except Australia and New Zealand. One of five locations in the USA is at Corpus Christi, Texas
There's a short video.
Forty miles south of New Orleans might be something for Crashing Vor to explore.
BONUS: In Oiltanking news we learn there's a Pomeranian reversible pipeline:
PERN „Przyjaźń” S.A. is a company with 100 per cent share held by the Treasury. It deals mainly with transportation of crude oil to refineries in Poland and Eastern Germany via the “Przyjaźń” pipeline running from Adamowo to Plock and further to Schwedt as well as the Pomeranian pipeline linking Plock and Gdansk. The reversible Pomeranian pipeline in conjunction with an oil terminal in Gdansk enables import of crude oil from the sea and its transit through Poland. PERN also provides crude oil storage services in its three tank farms in Adamowo, Plock and Gdansk with the total storage volume of nearly 3.0 million m3. PERN also owns a network of product pipelines used for transportation of liquid fuels.
Sounds almost romantic, pipelines transiting through the Pomeranian Vovoideship in Poland.