Enbridge Pipelines Inc., TransCanada Corp. and Kinder Morgan Canada signed a joint industry partnership (JIP) to research aerial-based leak detection technologies for pipeline safety, the companies said April 28.

The project will identify technologies that detect small leaks from liquid petroleum pipeline systems. Laboratory research and field trials will evaluate the feasibility of commercially available aerial-based leak detection technologies for crude oil and hydrocarbon pipelines.

Airborne leak detection technologies to be tested may include Infrared camera-based systems, laser-based spectroscopy systems and flame ionization detection systems are among potential technologies that might be tested. The flame ionization detection systems have sensors that can attach to light aircraft or helicopters.

Representatives of Enbridge and project research partner C-FER Technologies Inc. are surveying commercial vendors of these technologies to validate their feasibility for liquid hydrocarbon pipelines. Project research and trials are expected to begin during the third quarter of 2015.

All three companies will provide funding, and each has already provided CA$200,000.

Alberta Innovates - Technology Futures will analyze data, and C-FER Technologies will carry out testing.

Meanwhile, work on the Elder leak detection project, originally announced in December 2013 by Enbridge and TransCanada, continues at C-FER Technologies' Edmonton, Alberta, research facility.

Kinder Morgan was added to a previous JIP between TransCanada and Enbridge. The JIP has used the external leak detection experimental research (Elder) test apparatus, a pipeline simulator.

Enbridge and TransCanada committed CA$1.6 million to the Elder project, while Kinder Morgan committed CA$1 million. The total commitment is more than CA$6 million.