Mathematical Modeling of the Effect of Water Velocity on the Marine Immersion Corrosion of Mild Steel Coupons Available to Purchase

The velocity of seawater flowing past coupons is known to increase the rate of marine immersion corrosion. This has been demonstrated both in laboratory conditions under short-term exposures and in recently reported field trials for mild steel coupons with exposures to 1 year. The effect is most significant in the early corrosion period before marine growth, and corrosion products offer protection from the effect of velocity. The present paper considers how the previous observations can be used to represent the effect of water velocity on the previously proposed phenomenological model for corrosion material loss as a function of time. It also attempts to provide an explanation for the observations and how they relate to earlier work reported in the literature.