Violet Canal Siphon

Design Engineering, Inc. (DEI) was contracted by the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) to lead the Engineering Services for the Violet Siphon (PO-01) Intake Repair project. As an amendment to the original contract, we were tasked with performing a comprehensive visual and acoustic inspection of the exposed portions of the Violet Canal Siphon pipes and the discharge weir box structure.

The Violet Canal Siphon, located in Violet, Louisiana, is a critical component in conveying water between the Mississippi River and Violet Canal. Using cutting-edge technology, including the Inuktun VersaTrax 150 Crawler System and Imagenex Model 831 A Digital Pipe Profiling Sonar system, our team thoroughly inspected the interior and exterior of the pipes to ensure their structural integrity. The Violet Canal Siphon structure, a timber and chain-link fence structure supported by 70-foot long timber piles, was unfortunately struck by a marine vessel and was in need of removal and replacement.

Our team, utilizing their engineering judgment, determined the necessary actions to stabilize the structure and ensure a satisfactory embedment depth. Our Inspection Objectives include:

• Visually inspecting the exposed portions of the siphon pipes and identifying potential damage • Inspecting the interior of the siphon pipes to identify potential damage
• Acoustically inspecting the interior of the siphon pipes to identify damage not visible to the naked eye
• Visually inspecting the exposed portions of the discharge weir box
• Determining the condition of the siphon pipes and discharge weir box and determining if repairs are necessary.