Abstract:
The phenomenon of sulfide stress corrosion (SSC) can result in catastrophic failures
of pressurized equipment and piping, resulting in extensive damage, injuries and
possible fatalities. Sulfide stress corrosion, a major degradation process in metals, is
commonly associated with the petroleum industry where high concentrations of H2S
is involved. The term, "Sulphide Stress Corrosion", is a customary term for aqueous
corrosion in the presence of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) at a level high enough to
significantly affect the corrosion behavior and corrosion products compared with the
same conditions without H2S. Sulphide stress corrosion resistance of pipe line steel is
evaluated in NACE "B" solution at room temperature This research focuses on the
corrosion mechanism and variation of tensile strength with time. A constant stress of
40 MPa that is 10% of yield stress of the API 5L Grade B steel was applied to a set of
samples and they were kept at a constant H2S environment for a predetermined time
period. Thereafter, microstructural analysis was carried out for cross sections of the
corroded specimens using SEM /EDS. The depth of corrosion versus exposure time
and tensile strength versus exposure time graphs were plotted while monitoring
corrosion propagation within the pre-determined time slots.
