Chapter 19 - Manufacturing, testing, and operational techniques to prevent sour service damages

Abstract

Leak or rupture of carbon steel line pipe caused by hydrogen-assisted cracking (HAC) in near-ambient temperature of wet sour hydrocarbon services could lead to catastrophic consequences ranging from loss of lives to a heavy financial impact. This chapter discusses practical techniques that should be implemented during the plate/coil and pipe manufacturing and testing and field application to avoid occurrence of HAC failures including hydrogen-induced cracking, stress-oriented HIC, and sulfide stress cracking. These techniques include the following measures: (1) quality control of plate/coil (raw product) manufacturing process and testing requirements, (2) quality control of pipe (finished product) manufacturing process and testing requirements, and (3) pipe selection criteria and field application quality control. Implementation of these requirements will result in enhanced oil and gas plants’ safety/reliability, reduced maintenance/inspection costs, and unnecessary usage of corrosion mitigation methods, such as cladding, coating, or inhibition systems. Case histories are included in this chapter to illustrate the root causes of HAC.