Main Body of China's Largest Suspension Bridge for Natural Gas Pipeline Completed

Construction of the main body of the Wujiang River suspension bridge, the natural gas pipeline crossover project with what is currently the longest span and largest load in China, was completed on Aug 25.

Built by Sinopec Tianranqi, the suspension span is 467.8 meters long and the main span is 355 meters. It can hold a total weight of 1,008.3 tons.

Located at Sanmenzi village, Baitao town in Fuling district of Chongqing, the project is a core section of the Nanchuan-Fuling natural gas pipeline and has a double-tower structure.

The distance between the bridge and the river bottom is 85 meters.

Natural gas pipelines, shale gas exploration and exhalent tubes as well as communication optical fiber cables are installed in parallel on the surface of the bridge.

It was also the first time a main steel tower had been hoisted as a whole. With the distributing design of four main cables and a flexible anchoring assembly, the crossover can resist nine-grade ravine winds.

The Nanchuan-Fuling natural gas pipeline is the only heavy caliber high pressure output transmission line in Nanchuan district.

The 65-kilometer pipeline has a 1,016-millimeter diameter and a designed pressure of 10 MPa.

It is estimated that gas transmission through the pipeline will begin this October.

The pipeline will be connected with the Fuling-Wangchang natural gas pipeline and transfer shale gas to regions in middle and eastern China under the Sichuan-East Natural Gas Transmission project.

It will also contribute clean energy to the Yangtze River Economic Belt to benefit thousands of enterprises and over 200 million residents in more than 70 large and middle-sized cities in six provinces and two municipalities in the affected areas.

The Wujiang River suspension bridge of the Nanchuan-Fuling natural gas pipeline project under construction [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]

(Executive editor: Zhang Tianyuan)