Using transient models of liquid pipelines

Trans Mountain owns and operates approximately 1300 km of pipelines in Alberta, British Columbia and Washington state. These pipelines transport a variety of liquids including crude oils, refined products and methyl tertiary butyl ether. They traverse both very remote areas and highly populated ones, as well as hundreds of creek, stream, and river crossings. Environmental concerns have led us to construct a number of transient models to assist our monitoring of the pipeline hydraulics and to provide early warning in the unlikely event that we have a leak. These models have also proved useful with the design of our facilities and for training our control centre operators