The control of electrolytic corrosion on an underground cable system requires an adequate supervision of the various factors causing corrosion and the maintenance of the measures adopted for its mitigation. The supervision and maintenance are accomplished through surveys and tests systematically planned to check periodically the conditions existing on the system and to obtain the information required for the application of corrective measures. The test methods used are of primary importance and must yield data that will correlate with the actual corrosion experienced.
This paper presents a summary of the test methods and practices which are the outgrowth of long experience with electrolysis and corrosion on the power system cables of the Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc. The system comprises approximately 22,000 miles of underground lead-covered cable operated in cable ducts and subject to a wide variety of soil and duct conditions.
The principal causes of corrosion are...
