Panel Peer Review of PHMSA Pipeline Safety Research Projects: 2020
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In accordance with mandates from the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of the Secretary of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) Pipeline Safety Research and Development (R&D) Program held annual peer reviews of 29 active Core Program (Core) research projects October 14, 15, and 21, 2020. These peer reviews—which have been conducted since 2006 and are designed to maintain research data quality—frequently are held virtually via teleconference and web-based communication platforms, saving both time and resources by foregoing physical meeting spaces. Additionally, virtual meetings facilitate attendance from Canada, Europe, and all U.S. time zones, increasing participation for panelists, researchers, project cosponsors, PHMSA Agreement Officer Representatives, and PHMSA Technical Task Inspectors.
The annual peer review continues to build on an already strong, systematic evaluation process developed by PHMSA's Pipeline Safety R&D Program and certified by the Government Accountability Office. The 2019 peer-review panel, which consisted of three academic representatives, reviewed five projects using 11 evaluation criteria grouped into the following four categories: The annual peer review continues to build a systematic evaluation process that was developed by PHMSA's Pipeline Safety R&D Program and reviewed by the Government Accountability Office. The Calendar Year 2020 peer review panel, which comprised seven academic and two federal agency representatives, reviewed all 29 projects using the following six evaluation criteria:
- Is progress being made toward project objectives and project management for both the budget and the schedule?
- Is there a plan for technology/knowledge transfer or the dissemination of results, including publications, reporting, and/or patents?
- How much end-user involvement is incorporated into the scope of work?
- Is the project work being communicated to other related research efforts?The quality of project results.
- Are the intended results consistent with scientific knowledge and/or engineering principles?
- Are the intended results presented in such a manner as to be useful for identified end-users?
The rating categories assigned by the peer-review panel were Ineffective, Effective, More Than Effective, and Very Effective. The average rating for the 29 projects assessed during the October 2020 review was More Than Effective. The summary report provides a ranking and rating of each individually reviewed research project and provides additional details such as project descriptions and panel review comments.
| Very Effective | 4.5 to 5.0 (11 Projects) |
| More than Effective | 3.0 to 4.4 (16 Projects) |
| Effective | 1.9 to 2.9 (2 Projects) |
| Ineffective | 0.0 to 1.8 (0 Projects) |
| Average Program Score | 4.124 |
| Review Categories and Sub-Criteria | Score | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Project Management | 4.2 | More than Effective |
| 1.1. Is progress being made toward project objectives and project management of budget & schedule? | 4.2 | More than Effective |
| 2. Technology/Knowledge Transfer | 4.0 | More than Effective |
| 2.1. Is there a plan for technology/knowledge transfer or dissemination of results, including publications, reporting and patents? | 4.0 | More than Effective |
| 3. End User Involvement | 4.2 | More than Effective |
| 3.1. How much end user involvement is incorporated into the work scope? | 4.2 | More than Effective |
| 4. Communication | 4.0 | More than Effective |
| 4.1. Is the work of the project being communicated to other related research efforts? | 4.0 | More than Effective |
| 5. Scientific Quality | 4.1 | More than Effective |
| 5.1. Are the intended results consistent with scientific knowledge and/or engineering principles? | 4.1 | More than Effective |
| 6. Results Formatting | 4.2 | More than Effective |
| 6.1. Are the intended results presented in such a manner as to be useful for identified end users? | 4.2 | More than Effective |
| Project | Rank | Contract | Project Title | Score | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 846 | 1 | 693JK31910002POTA | Data Collection, Normalization and Integration Methods to Enhance Risk Assessment Tools for Decision-Making | 4.9 | Very Effective |
| 730 | 2 | 693JK31810005 | External Leak Detection Body of Knowledge | 4.8 | Very Effective |
| 728 | 3 | 693JK31810002 | On-Board Power and Thrust Generation for the Explorer Family of Robots for the Inspection of Unpiggable Natural Gas Pipelines | 4.7 | Very Effective |
| 734 | 3 | 693JK31810009 | Improved Tools to Locate Buried Pipelines in a Congested Underground | 4.7 | Very Effective |
| 847 | 3 | 693JK31910003POTA | Evaluation of the Efficacy and Treatment of Hazard Mitigation Measures for LNG Facilities | 4.7 | Very Effective |
| 854 | 3 | 693JK31910009POTA | Develop an Evaluation Protocol for Non-LNG Release Hazards - Modeling | 4.7 | Very Effective |
| 731 | 4 | 693JK31810006 | Consistency Review of Methodologies for Quantitative Risk Assessment | 4.6 | Very Effective |
| 849 | 4 | 693JK31910005POTA | Procedures for Selecting Locating and Excavation Technologies | 4.6 | Very Effective |
| 850 | 4 | 693JK31910006POTA | Validation of Remote Sensing and Leak Detection Technologies Under Realistic and Differing Conditions | 4.6 | Very Effective |
| 852 | 4 | 693JK31910008POTA | Develop a Risk-Based Approach and Criteria for Hazard Detection Layout | 4.6 | Very Effective |
| 862 | 4 | 693JK31910018POTA | Mapping Indication Severity Using Bayesian Machine Learning from Indirect Inspection Data into Corrosion Severity for Decision-Making in Pipeline Maintenance | 4.6 | Very Effective |
| 848 | 5 | 693JK31910004POTA | Subsurface Multi-Utility Asset Location Detection | 4.4 | More than Effective |
| 860 | 5 | 693JK31910016POTA | Develop Remote Sensing and Leak Detection Platform that can Deploy Multiple Sensor Types | 4.4 | More than Effective |
| 861 | 5 | 693JK31910017POTA | Improving Subsurface Non-metallic Utility Locating Using Self-Aligning Robotic Ground Penetrating Radar | 4.4 | More than Effective |
| 739 | 6 | 693JK31810011 | River Scour Monitoring System for Pipeline Threat Prevention | 4.3 | More than Effective |
| 851 | 6 | 693JK31910007POTA | Develop and Demonstrate a Remote Multi-Sensor Platform for Right of Way Defense | 4.3 | More than Effective |
| 736 | 7 | 693JK31810010 | ORFEUS Obstacle Detection for Horizontal Directional Drilling | 4.1 | More than Effective |
| 746 | 8 | 693JK31810012 | Modernize the Assessment of River Crossings | 4.0 | More than Effective |
| 856 | 9 | 693JK31910012POTA | Improve ILI Sizing Accuracy | 3.9 | More than Effective |
| 729 | 10 | 693JK31810003 | Validating Non-Destructive Tools for Surface to Bulk Correlations of Yield Strength, Toughness, and Chemistry | 3.8 | More than Effective |
| 853 | 10 | 693JK31910010POTA | Program to Advance Computed Tomography for the Development of Reference Standards for Pipeline Anomaly Detection and Characterization | 3.8 | More than Effective |
| 855 | 10 | 693JK31910011POTA | Improve Dent/Cracking Assessment Methods | 3.8 | More than Effective |
| 858 | 10 | 693JK31910014POTA | Validate In-Line Inspection (ILI) Capabilities to Detect/Characterize Mechanical Damage | 3.8 | More than Effective |
| 859 | 11 | 693JK31910015POTA | Improving the Reliability, Detection, and Accuracy Capabilities of Existing Leak Detection Systems (CPMs) Using Machine Learning | 3.7 | More than Effective |
| 857 | 12 | 693JK31910013POTA | Systematize 20 Years of Mechanical Damage Research | 3.5 | More than Effective |
| 845 | 13 | 693JK31910001POTA | Review the Intent and Safety Impact of Hoop Stress and Percentage of Specified Minimum Yield Stress Boundaries on Natural Gas Transmission and Distribution Pipelines | 3.3 | More than Effective |
| 743 | 14 | 693JK31810016 | Reliability of Subsurface Safety Valves | 3.1 | More than Effective |
| 727 | 15 | 693JK31810001 | Improvements to Pipeline Assessment Methods and Models to Reduce Variance | 2.8 | Effective |
| 745 | 16 | 693JK31810015 | Tubing and Packers Life-Cycle Analysis for Underground Gas Storage Applications | 2.7 | Effective |