The general objective of this laboratory evaluation was to provide an assessment of the current corrosive conditions of Khafji and Hout Fields been exploited by Khafji Joint Operations (KJO). Rotating Cylinder Electrode in an Autoclave (RCA) and in an electrochemical set-up (RCE) were used to determine the baseline corrosivity at selected production conditions using the weight loss and linear polarization techniques respectively. Also, Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) was used to determine the oil/water inversion point. Finally the measured corrosion rates where compared with the prediction of two models. It was found that the corrosion rates for the Khafji Field condition ranged from 0.3 mm/yr (11.9 mpy) to 0.31 mm/yr (12.3 mpy), while the corrosion rate for the Hout Field condition ranged from 0.7 mm/yr (27.8 mpy) to 0.72 mm/yr (28.6 mpy). The water-cut inversion point for the Khafji Field condition was 75%, while the critical water-cut inversion point for the Hout Field condition was 70%. The predicted corrosion rates showed to be in good agreement with the corrosion rates measured in laboratory tests for the conditions of Khafji Field but overestimated the corrosion rates measured in the sour environment. It is believed that the lack of sufficient corrosion rate data in dynamic conditions at high concentrations of H2S contributed with the non-accurate prediction at the conditions of Hout Field. It was recommended to keep critical production and transmission lines continuously monitored and to implement inspection programs to determine the actual condition of the Hout Field production facilities.

Subject
Test methods, Water, Corrosion rate, Predicted corrosion rate, Probes, Corrosivity, Sour environments, Steel coupons, Partial pressures, Corrosion modeling, De Waard corrosion model, Crude, Oil
Keywords:
corrosion assessment, corrosion prediction, CO2, H2S corrosion
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2006
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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