Corrosion encountered in most industrial environments is more likely than not to be accompanied by pitting, and this, rather than measured uniform corrosion, is the principal cause of failure in industrial equipment. Yet it is usually assumed that measurements of uniform corrosion by test coupons, resistance probes and various other methods can safely predict equipment life and failure probability.1  It is further assumed that changes in these measurements resulting from use of inhibitors or alteration of operating parameters will result in corresponding changes in the service life of the system. These assumptions are not without value but they are so much mistrusted that safety factors are often built into a system to allow for pitting. Design engineers may assume that the pitting rate will be, say, five times the uniform corrosion rate calculated from coupon weight losses, etc. (Buhrow).2 

Subject
Acids, Pits, Water, Corrosion rate, Uniform corrosion rate, Dispersants, Acidity, Metals, Cycles of concentration, Corrosion inhibitors, Equipment, Pitting, Fouling
© 1977 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
1977
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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