Pipeline Failure: the Roles Played by Corrosion, Flow and Metallurgy

Carbon dioxide corrosion has been widely studied in the field and laboratory. It is recognized that flow regime and metallurgy are important factors that influence in-situ corrosion rates but there are relatively few documented case studies that are able to separate the individual contributions of corrosion, flow regime and metallurgy on the observed corrosion damage. This paper deals with failure of a pipeline where high quality inspection data together with comprehensive as-built records and stable production conditions allowed the separate influences of flow and metallurgy on corrosion to be studied. The flow regimes in the pipeline ranged from low velocity, stratified flow to high velocity, slug flow. The inspection data showed that the affect of turbulent flow was to increase the frequency of corrosion pits and, in the case of weld corrosion, the mean corrosion rate. The pipeline was constructed from two grades of steel and welded using two types of welding consumable. One grade of pipeline steel corroded at a significantly higher rate and with a higher frequency of corrosion pits than another, apparently similar steel. However, no significant relationship was found between weld metallurgy and corrosion rate or frequency.