Saturday, 9 February 2013
Many of the water pipeline leakages in the UK could be due to inteference from the cathodic protection systems of the oil and gas pipelines.
All cathodic protection systems alter the electrical equilibrium of remote earth
with respect to all conducive paths that might provide a return path to negative of
the source of energy. Electrical energy passing from metal into electrolyte dissolves
metal in proportion to the current. This causes pipelines to leak. Have any of the
learned bodies and institutions advised the water distributors about this matter and
what is their advice?
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Reply posted on another blog
ReplyDeleteTo investigate this issue should be Know this water pipe line is
:-
* carbon steel material .
* bare matal- not coated or wrraping.
* It is protected or not - ( CP system ) .
* It is crossing with gas & oil protected pipe lines . ( How much the clearance ? .
You are absolutely correct Xxxxxxxx and your comment is welcome. I
ReplyDeletehave worked in South Africa where the distribution of water is considered as important as the distribution of energy and water pipeline operators are represented on the corrosion committees. I am not aware that this is the case on the UK and feel that we should draw attention to this matter.
Comment by another Roger,
ReplyDeletei think you know it well, but you like teaching and i think it’s S. thing like teaching from your side, i think we can control corrosion in discharge point with 3 simple way:
1- using sacrificial anodes in discharge point
2- using electrical direct bonding between 2 protected pipes ( maybe with resistors)
3- using electrical shield such as casing ( i think is not so practical)
in addition, for Al pipes, we have maybe corrosion in pick up point too, and we
should care about it!
Roger Alexander • This topic is intended to draw the interest of the water authorities to the widely publicized national problem of leaking pipes to the solutions that Ahmed and Mahdi have indicated are available if advice is sought from
ReplyDeletecorrosion control engineers. There are institutions and associations in the UK that
have the purpose of advising on these matters and I want to draw comments from these
before I raise the subject through Cathodic Protection Network.
I tried to present a paper at the European Corrosion Conference in Istanbul last
year asking for an international electrical potential to be established for the purposes of analyzing, studying and mitigating interference corrosion but this was rejected and is now published on line. I have mentioned this in discussion groups and it has been ridiculed by some posters who have refereed to the 'esteemed minds' of long time members of institutions and associations who subject their publications to 'peer review'.
It seems that these individuals are the national advisers on corrosion and corrosion control matters and I am trying to draw the attention of the end users of our science and technology to the wealth of knowledge and experience that lies outside of vested interests.
I am NOT knocking established Institutes and Associations but trying to help their members to understand that they should respect science, technology and engineering as it is practiced today and not adhere to principles that are buried in the past but are sustained for commercial advantage.
The water distribution industry would benefit by a proper application of the mitigation of interference corrosion and it is not public knowledge that this is being undertaken.