IBP1140_19

EVALUATION OF NON INTRUSIVE SYSTEMS

IN REAL PIPELINES FOR CORROSION
MONITORING
1 2
Victor G. Silva , Gustavo L. Vaz , Ana Martha B. e
Silva3, Angélica D. Salvador4, Patrícia Iris da S. Peres5

Copyright 2019, Brazilian Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels Institute - IBP

This Technical Paper was prepared for presentation at the Rio Pipeline Conference and Exhibition 2019, held
between 03 and 05 of September, in Rio de Janeiro. This Technical Paper was selected for presentation by the
Technical Committee of the event according to the information contained in the final paper submitted by the
author(s). The organizers are not supposed to translate or correct the submitted papers. The material as it is
presented, does not necessarily represent Brazilian Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels Institute’ opinion, or that of its
Members or Representatives. Authors consent to the publication of this Technical Paper in the Rio Pipeline
Conference and Exhibition 2019.

Abstract

Internal corrosion monitoring is an important activity that provides information about pipeline
integrity. One of the most useful information given by this activity is the corrosion rate that is
usually obtained from corrosion coupons and ER probes. The non intrusive systems can also
provide such results and could be another alternative for corrosion monitoring adding some
advantages in installation and maintenance in comparison with usual instruments. After the first
laboratory evaluation published in 2017, some commercial equipment were installed in real
facilities including onshore and offshore pipelines. The results obtained with non intrusive
systems were compared with corrosion coupons and ER probes showing that all instruments
presented convergent results.

Internal corrosion, monitoring, non-intrusive

1. Introduction

Internal corrosion in pipelines is a real problem that affects its integrity. For this reason,
some mitigation methods shall be selected and applied to minimize corrosion damage.
However, to better understand the possible corrosion mechanisms and use the most adequate
mitigation method, it is important to use some monitoring methods.
There are different ways to perform corrosion monitoring including direct and indirect
methods. Indirect methods are measurements of a parameter that influences or is influenced by
corrosion, for example, fluid chemical analysis and the corrosion products analysis. On the
other hand, direct methods are the parameters changed directly by corrosion: corrosion rate
provided by corrosion coupons, electrical resistance probes and other instruments [1].
The use of corrosion coupons and ER probes are very common in the industry because
of several advantages as direct contact with the fluid, well defined evaluation criteria [2] and
well known technology. However, as these techniques are intrusive, the use of these instruments
requires special tools, qualified professionals and safety procedures because of the higher
operational risks of this activity.

______________________________
1
Master, Corrosion Engineer - Petrobras
2
Master, Petroleum Chemist - Petrobras
3
Master, Equipment Engineer - Petrobras
4
Production Engineer, Corrosion Consultant - Petrobras
5
Master, Metallurgical Engineer - Petrobras
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Besides that, there are many applications that requires non intrusive instruments due to
the type of fluid, operational conditions, corrosivity of the system etc. Therefore, it is important
to have non-intrusive alternative techniques for directly monitoring internal corrosion. In this
paper some high resolution ultrasonic equipment were applied in real industrial environments
and compared with intrusive instruments like coupons and ER probes.

2. Field Test Location

Four different sensors were installed in topside pipes and onshore pipelines, generally,
in places where intrusive instruments are present. Figure 1 shows that sensor (a) and (b) were
installed in onshore pipeline while (c) and (d) were installed in topside facility in a pipeline
origin.

(a) (b)

(c) (d)

Figure 1: Installation locations of field test.

The location where sensor (b) was tested do not have intrusive instrument because the
use of intrusive methods in liquefied petroleum gas pipeline is not allowed due to the freezing
risk in retrieving operation. The other three sensors were installed beside the corrosion coupons
and ER probe for comparison.
Sensor (a) was installed in an onshore pipe that carries different types of oil, sensor (c)
was installed in an offshore facility in the start point of a gas offshore pipeline, and finally
sensor (d) was installed in a pipe located in an offshore platform in the entrance of an oil
offshore pipeline.

3. Results and Discussion

In Figure 2 (a) it can be seen that sensor (a) showed an unexpected increasing thickness
after eight months. In this same time, it was related that this pipe started to flow only Arabian
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oil that has high content of H2S. Besides that, the corrosion products analysis after May 2018
showed high content of FeS. Probably this increasing thickness occurred because the formation
of FeS in pipe wall.
Figure 2 (b) shows the results of sensor (b) located in an onshore-liquefied petroleum
gas pipeline. The wall thickness measurements shows that the corrosion rate is low as expected
for this type of pipeline.

(a) (b)

(c) (d)

Figure 2: Results for the four sensors evaluated showing thickness vs time plot.

Figure 2 (c) shows the results of sensor (c) in which it indicates a decrease in wall
thickness in August 2018 after the platform shutdown for maintenance. The absence of data
during this time is because the computer was turned off and only when the operations started
again it was turned on. To try to explain what happened, the ER probe results until 2009 were
evaluated and it is showed in Figure 3. It is observed that when the platform stops the operation
the metal loss increases because this gas pipeline decrease the temperature and the water
condensates, increasing the corrosion rate.
Finally, in Figure 2 (d) it is observed that two sensors (d) installed in different clock
positions in the same location showed different results. While the sensor in six o’clock position
showed constant wall thickness the whole time, the sensor installed in five o’clock position
presented a decreasing wall thickness. However the corrosion rate remains still lower (0,05
mm/y), showing that the resolution of this system is very good.
Although all the equipment presented convergent corrosion rate trends, the absolute
values were, in some cases, very different and it maybe happened because of the nature of the
measurement. While intrusive systems evaluate a device that is replaced all the time, the non-
intrusive measures the direct wall thickness of the pipe with possible protective corrosion
products and some kind of fouling.
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Figure 3: ER probe results showing the corrosion rate increasing when the platform is shutdown.

4. Conclusions

This paper presented that non intrusive equipment could be another option for direct
internal corrosion monitoring showing that although this type of system has lower resolution
when compared with intrusive instruments, it is possible to get reliable information about the
internal corrosion of the pipe in the monitored area.
However, the system selection is important to get direct internal corrosion monitoring
because as this equipment has lower resolution they could not be applied in situations that
requires immediate corrosion control programs. On the other hand, there are many applications
that intrusive instrument could not be applied because of operations and safety requirements
and non intrusive system appears as a possibility.
It was observed that corrosion rates obtained with non-intrusive equipment is much
different from intrusive ones. Therefore, it is necessary develop other criteria for classification
of the fluid corrosivity potential for this kind of equipment.

5. References

[1] NACE International Task Group 390, TECHNIQUES FOR MONITORING CORROSION AND RELATED
PARAMETERS IN FIELD APPLICATIONS, Houston: NACE International Publication 3T199, 2013.
[2] NACE SP0775-2018 "Preparation, Installation, Analysis, and Interpretation of Corrosion Coupons in Oilfield
Operations", 2018.