On Friday, January 26th, Dr. Robert Caligiuri , Corporate Vice President at Exponent, Inc., will describe An Example of the Challenges and Adventures of Failure Analysis and Risk Mitigation—The Camisea Pipeline System.

Engineering systems sometimes fail in service. Understanding the origin of such events can lead to improved design and increased performance life. Funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), the Camisea pipeline system in Peru was designed and built in the early 2000’s by the operator TGP to transport natural gas and natural gas liquids from the Amazon basin to the coast. The system traverses three distinct geographical regions: a tropical rain forest, a high elevation mountain range, and a coastal plain. Each region brought its own risks to pipeline integrity: flooding, mudslides, rockslides, earthquakes. Shortly after beginning operation, the pipeline system experienced five distinct leaks and ruptures, some of which impacted the indigenous population. Exponent was retained by the IADB to investigate the causes of these leaks and to develop measures to mitigate the risks of future failures. Given its multi-disciplinary nature, Exponent was uniquely qualified to conduct this investigation.

Bob Caligiuri is an internationally recognized leader in understanding the fracture and fracture mechanics of materials used in critical engineering systems. He holds a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from UC-Davis and a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from Stanford. He specializes in combining the principles of solid mechanics with an understanding of the physical, mechanical and corrosion behavior of metals to solve complex problems in industrial applications. He has over 35 years of experience conducting failure investigations, root cause studies and risk assessments for clients in the petrochemical, consumer product and transmission pipeline industries throughout North America, Europe and Asia. He has specialized expertise in the use and application of the standards, codes and regulations that govern the design, operation, and maintenance of engineered systems. Bob Caligiuri is a member of the National Academy of Engineering.