Learn how divers repair the underwater damaged pipelines
Overview of how underwater pipelines are repaired.
Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz
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Transcript
Repairing damaged pipelines is a complicated job, especially when they are under water. Damaged pipelines can mean huge losses for their owners. But there is a way to keep repair times as short as possible. Welcome to the underwater habitat, a sort of underwater repair shop.
Before the divers can start work in this special workshop, however, they have to acclimatize to conditions beneath the waves. To do this, they use a pressurized chamber on board the support ship. From here, a diving bell takes them to their underwater workshop. The bell is lowered into the water. Normally, after a dive of more than 100 meters, the divers would have to spend several hours acclimatizing to normal surface pressure. To avoid this, they live for three weeks at a time under deep sea pressure conditions, either beneath the waves in the diving bell or on the surface in the ship's pressurized chamber.
Meanwhile, the habitat is lowered into the water as well. A separate dive team is in charge of positioning the repair shop, which weighs several tons. For their own safety, the divers are monitored closely from on board the support vessel. The habitat has to be positioned exactly over the damaged pipeline. It's a dangerous waiting game at these depths.
Mission accomplished. Powerful pumps remove the water from inside the habitat, leaving it dry and ready for work. Because of the pressure at these depths, divers breathe a mixture of helium and oxygen. This results in squeaky little voices, something which detracts from the very serious nature of their work.
It's cramped down here in the habitat. Workers are directed and monitored from on board the ship. It's real teamwork. Today's task is welding the pipeline. Their welding seams will be rigorously tested. Soon, gas will once more be flowing through this pipeline at high pressure. Any weaknesses in the welding could be very costly.
The work for today is done. The underwater workshop is winched back aboard. The divers wait in the pressurized chamber for their next job somewhere along the endless pipeline at the bottom of the sea.
Before the divers can start work in this special workshop, however, they have to acclimatize to conditions beneath the waves. To do this, they use a pressurized chamber on board the support ship. From here, a diving bell takes them to their underwater workshop. The bell is lowered into the water. Normally, after a dive of more than 100 meters, the divers would have to spend several hours acclimatizing to normal surface pressure. To avoid this, they live for three weeks at a time under deep sea pressure conditions, either beneath the waves in the diving bell or on the surface in the ship's pressurized chamber.
Meanwhile, the habitat is lowered into the water as well. A separate dive team is in charge of positioning the repair shop, which weighs several tons. For their own safety, the divers are monitored closely from on board the support vessel. The habitat has to be positioned exactly over the damaged pipeline. It's a dangerous waiting game at these depths.
Mission accomplished. Powerful pumps remove the water from inside the habitat, leaving it dry and ready for work. Because of the pressure at these depths, divers breathe a mixture of helium and oxygen. This results in squeaky little voices, something which detracts from the very serious nature of their work.
It's cramped down here in the habitat. Workers are directed and monitored from on board the ship. It's real teamwork. Today's task is welding the pipeline. Their welding seams will be rigorously tested. Soon, gas will once more be flowing through this pipeline at high pressure. Any weaknesses in the welding could be very costly.
The work for today is done. The underwater workshop is winched back aboard. The divers wait in the pressurized chamber for their next job somewhere along the endless pipeline at the bottom of the sea.