Disaster reduction stick equipment: A method for monitoring and early warning of pipeline-landslide hazards

Oil and gas pipelines are of great importance in China, and pipeline security problems pose a serious threat to society and the environment. Pipeline safety has therefore become an integral part of the entire national economy. Landslides are the most harmful type of pipeline accident, and have directed increasing public attention to safety issues. Although some useful results have been obtained in the investigation and prevention of pipeline-landslide hazards, there remains a need for effective monitoring and early warning methods, especially when the complexity of pipeline-landslides is considered. Because oil and gas pipeline-landslides typically occur in the superficial soil layers, monitoring instruments must be easy to install and must cause minimal disturbance to the surrounding soil and pipeline. To address the particular characteristics of pipeline-landslides, we developed a multi-parameter integrated monitoring system called disaster reduction stick equipment. In this paper, we detail this monitoring and early warning system for pipeline-landslide hazards based on an on-site monitoring network and early warning algorithms. The functionality of our system was verified by its successful application to the Chongqing Loujiazhuang pipeline-landslide in China. The results presented here provide guidelines for the monitoring, early warning, and prevention of pipeline geological hazards.