Chemical Petroleum Chemistry
Petroleum Industry –Corrosion challenges
Table of Contents
Introduction 3
Case Study Analysis 4
Corrosion challenges for the oil and gas industry in Qatar 7
Corrosion monitoring in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry 9
Corrosion control methods in the USA 11
Discussion 11
Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….13
2
1.0 Introduction
Petroleum chemistry is a branch of chemistry that provides a systematic study of petroleum products. Petroleum is consisting of a large number of hydrocarbons that are available in various forms. In this paper, the focus will be given on the Corrosion in the pipes of petroleum supply and various techniques applied for protection from Corrosion. Corrosion is an environmental deterioration phenomenon that causes the gradual destruction of the material through a chemical reaction. Globally petroleum and its product supply companies face several problems due to Corrosion such as spillage, injury, waste, hazardous environmental impacts, and damage evolution. Metals extracted from ore are tending to revert to their natural state when exposed to the oxygen and moisture. Generally, Corrosion occurs in the metal with anodic and cathode section imperfections (Dean F, Powell S. 210). Different types of Corrosion exist, but most common metals are erosion-corrosion and Corrosion in the form of under deposit, microbiological induced, crevice, stress cracking, and de-alloying inter-granular, and top of the line and galvanic. These corrosion types have failure mechanisms of uniform degradation, pitting, and cracking. To provide the uninterrupted supply of petrol and other crude oil, it is highly required to provide a corrosion-free pipe system for the flow of petrol.
Most importantly, in the oil and petrol industry, there are several types of Corrosion and corroding agents available in it. It is required to understand the mechanism of Corrosion in materials before selecting the material for designing, fabricating, and utilizing the metal structure for designing the pipes so that proper corrosion prevention measures can be taken.
Further, according to the research petroleum products last long when inhibitors and corrosion protection system is effectively applied in the supply system. But developing effective methods for the protection against the Corrosion is a very challenging task. The atmospheric conditions develop various adverse conditions for the protection system against Corrosion as the atmospheric conditions such as high humidity, high-level chloride content, dust /sand combine with variation in temperature, etc. causes the external Corrosion in pipes. The high content of H2S in the hydrocarbons with its exposure to the corrosive aquifer water causes the internal Corrosion in the pipes (Kerman MB.2014)
2.0 Case study Analysis
In this section, the presentation of real-life case studies dealing with Corrosion’s problem will be presented, and learning achieved through these case studies will be presented. This case study analysis will help understand the key measures and challenges for controlling the Corrosion obtained through it.
2.1 Corrosion challenges for the oil and gas industry in Qatar
This research paper was presented by (Roy Johnson, 2015); Qatar is one of the highest oil supplying countries in the world. But due to varied atmospheric conditions, it is very challenging for the engineers to control the Corrosion in the oil supply center. Following are some of the details about Qatar petroleum system-
Table: 1 Source – www.reserachgate.com
The primary corrosion factors in the atmosphere are as follows-
- Atmospheric Pollution
- Airborne salinity
- Sand/dust
- Temperature
- Time of wetness
Fig 1: Graph for displaying the average temperature and humidity in Qatar
Challenge in maintaining the level of H2S
Practically the level of H2S varies at various levels of oil and reservoir, and the main challenge is that H2S content gives partial pressure at the pipes with the level of 10 bars. The reservoir content is categorized to the level sour by the ISO committee. 666
Table2: Source www.researchgate.com
Challenge in maintaining the Aquifer water
In Qatar, the natural aquifer reservoir exists in the ground to put the pressure on the wells that are referred to as Powered water Injection (PWI). Several production wells are implemented through the aquifer water only. Research study shows that it is evident that these aquifers are mainly used for dumping the produced water from oil and gas that contain a significant amount of H2S, dissolved salts, co2, and sulfate-reducing bacteria. Due to these factors, this aquifer is considered to be highly corrosive.
Key steps took by Petroleum corporation in Qatar.
According to a survey, about 29% of the failure in the petrol supply, the leading cause was Corrosion, so Qatar petroleum has taken many vital measures to control it. Designing the structural parts for pipes and other parts, they selected carbon steel as the primary material. Further, to protect the carbon steel from external Corrosion, the coating was done. To have a more efficient coating, they preferred to use the organic coating for their pipes and other materials. The protection against atmospheric affects the Qatar petroleum corporation is still having a lot of challenges to deal with they have although had developed a periodic checking system for atmospheric effects. According to that, they apply various procedures of coating and other measures. They are also using advanced multi-finger caliper tools for determining the atmospheric conditions on the well, and they use other advanced techniques for protection against Corrosion too.
2.2 Corrosion monitoring in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry
The research paper presented by (J.O Odigoure, A.S Abdul Kareem, 2002) presented the significance of corrosion monitoring in the petroleum industry and presented different results of their monitoring system. According to the research paper, a high level of Corrosion in the supply system raises the question mark on the organization’s technical department. Most importantly monitoring system provides useful information that helps in developing effective corrosion control measures. In most cases, the Corrosion occurs in the metals through electrochemical phenomena in which metal reacts with the electrically conducted solution in which the conduction between the anode and cathode occurs. It is required to have simultaneous anodic and cathode reaction to coincide (Hulling HH, 2014)
The anode reaction in seawater is as follows
Fe→ Fe+2+ 2e
2Fe (OH) 2+H2O+1/2 O2 →2Fe (OH) 3
Coupon Test method
This research paper had presented the coupon test method had been presented. In this method, the pieces of metals are put in the atmosphere for Corrosion, and then the level of Corrosion is analyzed. This method was found to help determine the corrosion rate in the pipes and the process vessels. The corrosion rate in these coupons are calculated by using the following formula-
MDD = [Coupon weight (mg)]/ [{exposed surface area (dm2)} x {days of exposure}]
Fig2: Schematic diagram representing the installation of coupons source-www.nopr.niscair.res.in
Results of the study
The researchers in their study had presented the following results of their coupon study.
Source-www.nopr.niscair.res.in
Generally, the Corrosion is differentiated based on the appearance of the corroded material. Various results obtained through the study revealed that Corrosion in refinery increases after a standard level. This result also indicates that the Corrosion is not only in the observed part but also in various other sections of the refinery. The result has also shown that if proper water treatment is not done on a timely basis, then the rate of corrosion increases (Rajendran, Susai, 2014).
2.3 Corrosion control methods in the USA
In this case study, the (S.Santhana, R.Joseph, 2014) presented the corrosion control methods in the USA petroleum industry. The USA Industry is focused on utilizing the methods such as Medicinal plants as the green corrosion inhibitors, Microbial control strategies and treatments, polygulcusides as green corrosion inhibitors, estimation of onshore plant effluent concentration, utilizing the sulfite reducing bacteria’s, Fouling of pipes in the U.S.A Petroleum Industry. Along with this in the USA Petroleum industry, some specific benchmarks and policies have been developed that are made mandatory to follow to control the Corrosion and have control over the risk factors and loss of materials too. The guidelines for designing the insulation and fireproofing features and thickness of the pipes and vessels have been given. Along with this, the primary focus is given on the implementation of green corrosion control methods.
Results of these approaches
The above-discussed approaches of green corrosion control techniques are very promising. These approaches are not the only environment friendly but also very economical too. These approaches have helped not only in detecting but also controlling the Corrosion more effectively.
3.0 Discussion
The above case studies’ research study has depicted that Corrosion is a significant problem in the Petroleum Industry. Along with advanced approaches, it is also required to follow the petroleum industry’s well-followed techniques worldwide. It is suggested to have proper checking of all the vessels, pipes, and other resources on a timely basis for having the proper control over the problem of Corrosion. Practically it was observed that physical checking is more useful in detecting the Corrosion rather than any other approaches. Some of the significant areas to control the Corrosion in the petroleum industry are regular monitoring of the mud drilling system, digesters, water wash system, flow lines, transport pipelines, etc. to control the Corrosion.
Most importantly, in the oil and petrol industry, there are several types of Corrosion and corroding agents available in it. It is required to understand the mechanism of Corrosion in materials before selecting the material for designing, fabricating, and utilizing the metal structure for designing the pipes so that proper corrosion prevention measures can be taken. Further according to the research petroleum products last long when inhibitors and corrosion protection system is applied in the supply system in an effective way (Simons MR. 2008)
Fig3: Framework suggested for having control over the corrosion source –www.springer.com.
It is highly required to develop effective corrosion mitigation methods depending on the corrosion type and selecting the appropriate approach accordingly. Most importantly, advanced methods of corrosion testing are required to develop. Using the green control methods for Corrosion should be encouraged as they are not only highly cost-effective. To develop robust corrosion control strategies, the detailed mechanism of Corrosion is required to understand, and the impact of atmospheric conditions in a particular geographic area is also highly required to study. Every case should be appropriately analyzed, and the approaches applied for corrosion control should be developed through these studies.
Conclusion
Corrosion is a very stochastic phenomenon that requires studying the interdisciplinary studies of surface science, metallurgy, electrochemistry, thermodynamics, hydrodynamics, kinetics, and associated branches. Corrosion’s damage to the petroleum industry is very significant and is required to follow a systematic approach. The approaches of green corrosion control techniques are very promising. These approaches are not the only environment friendly but also very economical too. These approaches have helped not only in detecting but also controlling the Corrosion more effectively. The guidelines for designing the insulation and fireproofing features and thickness of the pipes and vessels are required to follow. It is suggested to have proper checking of all the vessels, pipes, and other resources on a timely basis for having the proper control over the problem of Corrosion. Practically it was observed that physical checking is more useful in detecting the Corrosion rather than any other approaches.
Most importantly, in the oil and petrol industry, there are several types of Corrosion and corroding agents available in it. It is required to understand the mechanism of Corrosion in materials before selecting the material for designing, fabricating, and utilizing the metal structure for designing the pipes so that proper corrosion prevention measures can be taken. Further, according to the research petroleum products last long when inhibitors and corrosion protection system is effectively applied in the supply system.
References
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