Prestressed concrete cylinder pipe condition assessment — what works, what doesn’t, what’s next

This paper presents a summary of the research performed for Water Research Foundation on the evaluation of condition assessment and remaining service life prediction/failure margin analysis technologies in use for prestressed concrete cylinder pipe (PCCP). The project involved a literature review, an industry survey, and a workshop. The literature review integrated the published experiences with all condition assessment and monitoring technologies. The industry survey included design, distribution, and compilation of responses to a questionnaire sent to water utilities, technology stakeholders, and consultants to document their experiences. The workshop provided a venue to discuss utility experiences and utility needs. The results of the literature review, industry survey, and workshop were used to develop a Best Practices Guidance Manual that identifies a method of prioritizing pipelines for condition assessment; condition assessment, monitoring, and failure margin analysis technologies that are in existence or near deployment; benefits and limitations of existing technologies; gaps in knowledge; what works and what does not work in management of a pipeline; and further research and field work needed to improve condition assessment and pipeline management.

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