Abstract
The effects of fluid flow on the corrosion resistance of oil-well materials were studied with two experimental techniques. One method employed a large flow-loop which can attain a maximum gas flow rate of 100m/sec. The other consisted of electrochemical measurements with a rotating cylinder electrode. The corrosion rate of carbon steel measured in the flow loop increased with the increase of flow rate. Corrosion rates were obtained from the electrochemical data using the Stern-Geary equation, as a function of the speed of rotation. The results obtained by the two independent experimental methods were compared on the basis of hydrodynamic analysis. Using the similarity solutions obtained for mass transfer with pipe flow and the rotating electrode, the rotating velocity was converted to the equivalent velocity in the pipe. On that basis the corrosion rate of the pipe was equal to the corrosion rate of the rotaing electrode. The corrosion rate of rotating electrode obtained by the electrochemical method was used to predict the corrosion rate of the pipe at the equivalent velocity. The predicted corrosion rate is in good agreement with the measured corrosion rate.
