Faculty: Sir Senthil Kumar

CHEMISRTY DIGITAL ASSIGNMENT -2

NAME: T.USHASREE
REG NO: 18BEC0206

TOPIC: CORROSION TECHNOLOGY

This is a study on pipeline (work) corrosion; this study includes nature of

corrosion, what is the reason to corrode and how to prevent it.

Nature of corrosion that occurs outside of pipe is dry corrosion (or) chemical
corrosion that is oxidation corrosion. Corrosion in pipe work is a deterioration of
the pipe’s surface. And in this case study the material is undergoing “pitting
corrosion and uniform corrosion”.

General reactions at anode and cathode during corrosion are:

Anode:-M Mn+ +ne- (oxidation)
Cathode: -H + ne- H2 OR
O2+ne- O2-
REASON FOR THE METAL TO CORRODE AND GET DAMAGED:-

It is a result of electro chemical reaction in the presence of electrolyte or a

microbiological outbreak. “The most occurring type of corrosion is metal rusting
where iron oxide is produced in response to a reaction between oxygen and
water”. This results in decrease in the bond strength of the metal.

When corrosion occurs, it is in patches, and “These patches become positively

charged relative to the surroundings, leading to localised pitting .the addition
of the fresh water flowing over the corroded pipe can rapidly progress the
pitting into perforation and in few months pipes will get damaged”.

Pitting corrosion:-
This is a localised accelerated attack, resulting in the formation of cavities
around which the metal is relatively unattached, this result in formation of pin
holes, breakdown or cracking of the protective layer film on particular areas of
the metal.

Uniform corrosion:-
This is a corrosion in which there will be a uniform loss of the material along the
surface of the pipe, resulting in a continuous thinning of its solid structure.

RATE OF CORROSION CAN BE AFFECTED BY THE FOLLOWING PARAMATERS IN

PIPE WORKS THEY ARE:-
It can be affected by both internal and external factors.

 Thickness of the pipe (thinner walled pipes are more susceptible to

corrosion).
 Age of the water system.
 Stagnation time of the water within pipe work.
  PH, temperature, oxygen and mineral concentrations of the water.
 Velocity and pressure of water within the pipe.
 Microbiological outbreak.
 Presence of sand, sediment and other suspended solids.
 Oxygen content or reactivity of liquids and gases carried.

What are the problems that can be caused?

1) Decreased efficiency.
2) Failure of the entire system.
3) Staining and reduced water quality.

Steps to prevent it:

All pipe work will suffer corrosion at some point and it is almost impossible to
prevent, these are the steps that we can follow.
A) Pre-commission cleaning:-

The process will involve flushing and draining pipe work using water to until
water clarity is achieved. The addition of a cleansing passivator will add a
protective layer to the pipe work, stabilize its surface and reduce the possibility
of corrosion.

B) Water chlorination:-
As mentioned above presence of microbiological bacteria can cause corrosion
so, chlorine is the better disinfectant properties and injecting into water system
in a process known as water chlorination.
The addition of chlorine can have varying effects, sometimes even increasing
the levels of corrosion.

C) Using phosphates:-
Phosphates are sometimes added to a water supply to prevent corrosion. They
act as a corrosion inhibitor to prevent leaching of metals from lead and copper
pipe work. When inorganic phosphates are added to the water supply, they
form an insoluble protective mineral scale layer on the inside of service pipes
and household water lines. This helps maintain the pipelines from water
corrosion. The amount of phosphate in a water supply is very small compared to
that in a typical adult diet. Phosphates and other chemical water treatments
need to be handled by professionals, who have the expertise to assess the type
of treatment most suited to an area.
D) Devising cathodic or anodic protection or sacrificial anode:-
Cathodic protection is an electrical method of reducing the corrosion rate of the
pipe’s metal surface converting it into the cathode of an electrochemical cell.
This is achieved by moving the potential of the pipe metal into the negative
direction by impressing the necessary voltage through external power source.
Or forcing anode to behave as cathode (based on the galvanic series).

And some of the alternative methods are:-

1) Decreasing flow rate to minimize turbulence.

2) Monitoring and changing water PH.
3) Changing the pipe material (in extreme cases).

Even though there are few advantages and disadvantages in protecting

methods but these are best solutions.

This is how we can reduce the corrosion on pipe line works

SITE: www2.mtech.or.th, BC opens textbooks.