Efforts Continue To Develop International Coating Standards

1. The contents of ISO 21809-1 (Three-layer PO Coatings) were revised to include not only extruded systems but also powder-application polyolefin coatings. This now encompasses not only the more traditional three-layer extruded PE/PP coatings, but the powder/powder/powder (PPP) coatings which have gained wide-scale acceptance in North America in the last decade.
2. It is proposed that the scope of the FBE Standard 21809-2 be revised to include both dual-layer FBE coatings and high-temperature systems.
3. A proposal was accepted to undertake the preparation of an additional ISO coating standard to cover the requirements for wet thermal insulation coatings for pipelines, flow lines, equipment and sub-sea structures.

Conclusion
Field Joint Coatings Standard 21809-3 is the second in a series that will represent the industrial integration of external coating standards to be published through ISO for use on buried or submerged pipelines.

Under the Vienna agreement with ISO and CEN (European Committee for Standardization, Central Secretariat, Rue de Stassart 36, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium) this standard will be adopted as a European standard. As an international standard, the 21809-3 documents will bring a much-needed consistent and uniform approach to the qualification, application and testing of globally applied field-joint coatings.

This consistency of approach will help define the necessary requirements for material composition, dimensional tolerances and performance in regard to an internationally accepted set of criteria and allow objective comparisons and the elimination of the unnecessary variances in quality that the pipeline industry has encountered in the last few decades.

The introduction of addition pipeline-coating standards, such as Three-Layer Polyolefin and External Concrete Coatings, will go even further in providing operating pipeline companies with optimum external coating systems for use on their domestic and non-domestic pipeline projects.

Author
Keith E.W. Coulson has spent more than 30 years in the pipeline industry with NOVA Gas Transmission and TransCanada Pipelines in Calgary and then Jotun Powder Coatings (Norway). Since 2006, he has served as a technical consultant with Dragon Pipeline Specialists. He was Chairman of the Canadian Standards Association Coatings Committee that published Z245.20/21 (FBE and Polyethylene Coatings). He also was the work group leader of the ISO group that developed and published the first ISO external pipeline coating standard (21809-2 on FBE) and was head of the Canadian delegation to ISO on pipeline materials from 1998-2008. He has authored more than 25 technical papers on pipeline activities. He is a registered Professional Engineer in Alberta (APEGGA) and a certified Corrosion Specialist with NACE, as well as being licensed as a Chartered Engineering (UK) and as a European Engineer (Eur Ing). He was recently made a Life Fellow of the Institute of Corrosion. He was educated at the University College of Swansea (Wales) and Aston University (England). E-mail: keithcoulson@shaw.ca.