Mitigating Hazards and Corrosion

Associated With HVAC Co-location

Co-location of Pipeline
and HVAC powerline is
becoming more common
as new right-of-way is
needed.
 Co-Location Effects

Continuous Corrosion Damage

Slight to Moderate Personnel Hazard

Instantaneous Isolation Device/Equipment Damage

Severe Personnel Hazard
Underground Arc Damage
High-voltage Line Co-Location
 HVAC: What To Look For

Number of towers
Number of conductors
 HVAC: What to look for

Number of insulators
Height of towers
AC Coupling: Capacitive
AC Coupling: Resistive
AC Coupling: Inductive

AC Power

Induced AC
AC Coupling: Resistive

Well Site
LOW Personnel Danger
MODERATE Risk of Equipment Damage

Block Valve
MODERATE Personnel Danger
HIGH Risk of Equipment Damage

Valve Yard
HIGH Personnel Danger
HIGH Risk of Equipment Damage

11
 Two Approaches to AC Mitigation

Goal: Reduce risk of equipment damage,

personnel hazard, and AC corrosion
Modeling Design
Engineered approach
Requires tons of field work
Model output is dependent upon
quality input and parameters used
Does not take advantage of
available natural grounds
Generally very expensive
Field Design
Practical approach
Designs sometimes need to be
adjusted during/after installation
Takes advantage of available
resources
Generally less expensive
 Two Approaches to AC Mitigation

Modeling: How much grounding do I need to

prevent anything bad from happening?

0.6 Miles
Answer: A ton
 Two approaches to AC Mitigation

Field Design: Address the issues step by step

Protect personnel first
Identify threats to the asset

0.6 Miles
Add corrosion protection and re-test

C C

C C
C
C
Isolation Equipment Damage

FLANGE
INSULATION KITS

INSULATED UNIONS

INSULATED TUBING
FITTINGS
Prevention

1. Eliminate unnecessary
isolation devices
2. Bond across necessary
isolation with decoupling
devices
3. Use robust isolation
devices in lightning prone
areas
Direct Discharge Damage

Occurs when high amounts of

current discharge off a
pipeline to return to a source.

Electric Generation
Substations
HVAC Towers
Prevention

Install High Current Drain

Points between pipeline and
return structure.
Bare Copper Conductor
Decoupling Device
Protective Anodes
Personnel Hazards
 Prevention

A carefully engineered, properly built ACLM

system using components specifically
designed for the purpose.
De-Coupling Devices
Gradient Control Mats
High Resistivity Backfill
Galvanic Cathodic Protection for Mats
 Prevention

PCR

S
S
D
Gradient Control Mats

Installation of
Magnesium Anodes
Under Mat Area
Gradient Control Mats
 Gradient Control Mats

Finished
Exothermic
Weld
Connection
 Gradient Control Mats

Properly
Coat
Finished
Connection
 Gradient Control Mats

Magnesium
Anode Installation
Properly Sized
Lead
Minimize Lead
Length
Exothermic
Connection to
Mat
 De-Coupling Devices

SSD
Pin-Brazed directly to pipe
 De-Coupling Devices

SSD
Coupling nut
attaches to pipe
Mounted Close to
the Ground
Ready to Cover
AC Coupling: Inductive

AC Power

Induced AC
Does AC Really Cause Corrosion?

YES
A specific AC
corrosion morphology
Proven results in the
lab
Observed and
recorded field
occurrences
 Why are we seeing this now?

Factors influencing AC corrosion rate:

Induced AC Potential
Discharged AC Current Density
Defect Size
Isolation From Ground
Soil pH
Frequency
Changes in Pipeline/Powerline Geometry
 What Does AC Corrosion Look Like?

Morphology Characterized by
Hard Tubercle
Corrosion Product
Soil @ Coating Defect
 What Does AC Corrosion Look Like?

Coating
Disbondment at
the Coating
Defect Area
 What Does AC Corrosion Look Like?

Active Corrosion
 What Does AC Corrosion Look Like?

Smooth Rounded
Pits within Pits
 What can we measure?

NACE: Keep pipe/soil AC potentials below 15 Volts

Safety Standard Only!

AC Corrosion State-of-the-Art: Corrosion Rate, Mechanism, &

Mitigation Requirements #35110

AC CURRENT DENSITY AC CORROSION RISK

0-20 A/M2
NO or LOW LIKELIHOOD
20-100 A/M2
UNPREDICTABLE
100+ A/M2
VERY HIGH LIKELYHOOD
The Prinze Diagram
 How Can We Measure It?

External Corrosion Coupons

Consider: Coupon Size
~1 CM2 yields the most accurate results
 How Can We Measure It?

External Corrosion Coupons

Consider:
Coupon Placement
 How Can We Measure It?

External Corrosion Coupons

Consider:
Coupon Placement
 How Can We Measure It?

External Corrosion Coupons

Consider: Measurement Method
1 CM2 Coupon 1.0 mA = 10 A/m2 on pipeline

Meter MUST have low-range AC

current reading mode with a 0.1
mA resolution or better

Fluke 179 will read to .01mA

Example: 12.25 mA = 122.5 A/m2
Coupon
Pipeline
 Mitigating AC Corrosion

Field Design Methodology

1. Analyze Parallelism

0.6 Miles
2. Designate Potential High Current Drain Points
3. C Install Coupons for Current Density Measurement
4. Connect Available Natural Drains
5. Install Additional Grounding Where Required
C C

C C
C
C
 Mitigating AC Corrosion

De-Coupling Devices:
Kirk Cell

(Polarization Cell)

PCR
(Polarization Cell
Replacement)

SSD
(Solid State Decoupler)
 Mitigating AC Corrosion

Good natural drains:

Well Casings
Road Casings
Plant Grounding Systems
Bare Pipe
Large Bull Guards
Drainage Culvert
 Mitigating AC Corrosion

Adding additional drains:

Gradient Control Mats
Part of personnel safety equipment
Grounding is provided by multiple anodes
SSD decouples mat from Pipeline
 Mitigating AC Corrosion

Adding additional drains:

PCR

Deep Vertical Ground

Generally 100+ ft. deep
Copper core surrounded by backfill
Conductive concrete increases ground contact
A PCR is used to de-couple the pipeline from the ground
 Mitigating AC Corrosion

Adding additional drains:

Linear Cable Grounding
Easy To install at pipe depth
Long runs must be connected via PCR at every road and creek crossing
Subject to excavation damage if not clearly marked on one-calls
May act as a secondary conductor

PCR
 Mitigating AC Corrosion

Adding additional drains:

Zinc Anodes
Easy To install with coupon test stations

Provide a local point drain that each CTS location

that can be easily disconnected if needed
 Recap

Co-Location Threats Mitigation Methods

Instantaneous Gradient Control Mats

Personnel Hazard De-Coupling Devices
Isolation Damage Designed Discharge Points
Discharge Damage

Continuous Coupon Test Stations (Monitoring)

Corrosion Damage Gradient Control Mats (If Used)
Engineered Grounding
Deep Type
Linear Cable
 References

Technical Report on the Application & Interpretation of Data from External Coupons Used in the
Evaluation of Cathodically Protected Metallic Structures #35201

AC Corrosion State-of-the-Art Corrosion Rate, Mechanism, & Mitigation Requirements #35110

49 CFR 192.467 (f)

External Corrosion Control; Electrical Isolation

NACE SP0177-2007
Mitigation of Alternating Current and Lightning Effects on Metallic Structures and Corrosion Control
Systems
 Questions?

Jordan Groody
jordan.groody@bass-eng.com
(903) 759-1633