Temperature Effects on Cathodic Protection

In general corrosion is arrested when the current density on the cathode exceeds the oxygen replenishment rate, according to the equation: 02 + 4e- + 2H2O --> 4(OH)- (1) This reaction raises the pH at the boundary, and if calcium carbonate concentration in the electrolyte is near the solubility limit, it will precipitate out on the cathode, restricting oxygen diffusion to the cathode, and current density decreases. Cathodic protection anode consumption increases drastically at the design temperatures of this flowline. The current density required to protect buried bare steel at 77 F is 2 mA/ft2 (1). As temperature increases, the current density requirement increases at a rate of 0. 1 mA/ft2 per 1.8F increase above 77F (0.1 mA/m2 as temperature increases above 25 C). Conversely, the anode current capacity decreases as the temperature increases as shown in Figure 2 (2). Since no industry data was found at the design temperatures for this flowline, the anode properties were extrapolated.

Figure 2 - Effect of temperature on the current capacity of A1-Zn-In anodes in seawater