About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2027 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Advanced Welding, Joining, and Bonding of Structural Steels
|
| Presentation Title |
Lessons Learned from Monolithic Isolation Joint Failures in Cathodically Protected Oil and Gas Pipeline |
| Author(s) |
Khaled S. Sulayman, Abdelhamid Elghazwani, Naser Aloribi |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Khaled S. Sulayman |
| Abstract Scope |
Cathodic protection (CP) is widely used to control external corrosion of buried oil and gas pipelines; however, failure of monolithic isolation joints (IJs) can lead to stray current interference and localized corrosion. This paper presents the findings of a Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA) conducted on multiphase flowlines carrying oil, gas, and produced water with a water cut of 50–70%. The investigation included visual inspection, pipe-to-soil potential measurements, current surveys, and ultrasonic testing (UT). The failed joints showed severe coating deterioration, while electrical surveys confirmed stray current drainage onto aboveground pipeline sections. UT measurements identified significant wall-thickness loss adjacent to the isolation joints. The RCFA concluded that inadequate coating application reduced the electrical resistance of the IJs, allowing stray current corrosion to develop. Temporary installation of CP bond resistors and permanent replacement with internally coated isolation spools successfully restored CP performance and improved pipeline integrity. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Joining, Iron and Steel, Characterization |