Method for monitoring the position of above-ground pipelines under permafrost conditions

1. A method for monitoring positions of an above-ground pipeline located in areas subject to permafrost conditions using deformation control benchmarks on piles of support foundations, deep benchmarks, reference stations and a rover, the method comprising:

installing the deformation control benchmarks on piles of support foundations of the above-ground pipeline, the deformation control benchmarks being positioned at least 0.5 meters (0.5 m) above a ground surface;

installing the deep benchmarks spaced apart by 1.5 kilometers (1.5 km) or less and spaced at least 50 m from any of the support foundations;

installing the reference stations along the above-ground pipeline such that the reference stations are spaced from each other by between 20 km and 40 km from each other and are adapted to communicate with a server;

detecting initial coordinates of the deformation control benchmarks and the deep benchmarks during installation;

detecting initial heights of the above-ground pipeline at the locations of the benchmarks;

transmitting the detected initial coordinates and the detected initial heights to a server for building a digital pipeline model;

detecting subsequent coordinates and subsequent heights of the above-ground pipeline using the rover;

transmitting the detected subsequent coordinates and the detected subsequent heights of the above-ground pipeline to the server; and

determining any deflection of the above-ground pipeline by comparing the detected initial heights of the above-ground pipeline and the detected subsequent heights of the above-ground pipeline by the server.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the detected initial coordinates correspond to coordinates in a state coordinate system based on state geodetic network benchmarks and wherein the method further comprises converting the coordinates in the state coordinate system to coordinates in a local coordinate system based on the deep benchmarks.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining any deflection of the above-ground pipeline further includes determining that a deflection has occurred when a difference between the detected initial heights and the detected subsequent heights are greater than a predetermined value.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein detecting subsequent coordinates and subsequent heights is performed at least once per month for a first year of pipeline service and at least twice per year thereafter.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein a device equipped with a GNSS receiver and a means of wireless connection is used as a mobile receiver for the transmitting steps.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein detecting subsequent coordinates and subsequent heights of the above-ground pipeline using a GPS/GLONASS transmitter is performed by an optic control device.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the deformation control benchmarks are made of rolled steel that forms a sharp angle and are attached to a metal pilework or a support pile in such way that a top of the sharp angle is a top point of the deformation control benchmark and are detected during pipeline service.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein each pile of the above-ground pipeline includes a separate deformation control benchmark.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the deep benchmarks include a metal pipe and has a head made of the stainless steel with a polished spherical surface, the metal pipe being installed into a bore of a concrete anchor and equipped with a protective case made of a metal pipe and filled with a sandy non-frost-susceptible soil.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the deep benchmarks are installed to a depth that corresponds to a location where maximum seasonal soil thawing occurs rounded up to a nearest meter and is at least 11 meters.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein height sensors are installed on pipeline compensators.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein each reference station includes a multi-frequency navigation units of GLONASS consumer or GLONASS/GPS of a phase mode, a multi-frequency GLONASS or GLONASS/GPS geodetic GNSS aerial device with multi-path and re-reflected signal suppression systems, an eccentricity value of a phase center that is no more than 2 mm, a device for fixing the reference station on a fixed object, a computer with a controller function to set up equipment of a permanent reference station, and software to perform main functions of the reference station.

13. A system for monitoring positions of an above-ground pipeline comprising:

deformation control benchmarks installed on piles of support foundations of the above-ground pipeline;

deep benchmarks installed in such a way that their height remains relatively constant regardless of effects of permafrost conditions;

reference stations installed along the above-ground pipeline that include GNSS transmitters for creation of a local geodetic network; and

a server coupled to the reference stations and to a rover and configured to:

receive initial coordinate and height data from the rover regarding a height and a location of the deformation control benchmarks,

receive subsequent coordinate and height data from the rover regarding a subsequent height and a subsequent location of the deformation control benchmarks, and

determine whether deflection of the above-ground pipeline has occurred by comparing the initial coordinate and height data to the subsequent coordinate and height data.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the deformation control benchmarks are made of rolled steel that forms a sharp angle and are attached to a metal pilework or a support pile in such way that a top of the sharp angle is a top point of the deformation control benchmark and are detected during pipeline service.

15. The system of claim 13 , wherein each pile of the above-ground pipeline includes a separate deformation control benchmark.

16. The system of claim 13 , wherein the deep benchmarks include a metal pipe and has a head made of the stainless steel with a polished spherical surface, the metal pipe being installed into a bore of a concrete anchor and equipped with a protective case made of a metal pipe and filled with a sandy non-frost-susceptible soil.

17. The system of claim 13 , wherein the deep benchmarks are installed to a depth that corresponds to a location where maximum seasonal soil thawing occurs rounded up to a nearest meter and is at least 11 meters.

18. The system of claim 13 , further comprising height sensors installed on pipeline compensators.