Smart meters communication using Gas pipelines as channel: Feasibility study

In recent years, the use of sensor networks for monitoring and control applications is rapidly spreading. Several standards and technologies have been developed for the data communication among the devices included in the network. In particular, most of the sensor networks rely on wireless communication exploiting different frequency bands and modulations. A different approach has been explored, as an example, in applications related to the monitoring of water and gas pipelines, in which the use of the pipe as communication line for the data transmission has been investigated in several papers. In this preliminary work, a feasibility study is presented for using gas pipeline networks as communication infrastructure in a cathodic protection system.