John Bollinger, Farwest Corrosion Control Company, USA,

discusses design considerations in utilising sacrificial

magnesium anodes for newly buried pipelines.

CATHODIC
COMPLEXITIES
ften customers ask to have a sacrificial magnesium anode cathodic protection
(CP) system designed for their new pipeline system. In many cases, however, the
customer does not understand the many complexities that can profoundly affect
the design and long-term operation of the CP system. Mistakenly, they think that
the application of a few magnesium anodes along the length of the pipeline will offer sufficient
protection but unfortunately, this is usually not the case.
In designing any CP system for a buried pipeline, there are a number of factors that must be
considered. These factors are even more critical when considering a sacrificial anode system,
which cannot be adjusted to provide additional CP if needed. Therefore, a robust design approach
and careful installation techniques are a must if the CP system is to provide the expected results.
Otherwise, the integrity of the pipeline may be at stake for a number of reasons described later.
As mentioned above, there are many design elements to be considered that include pipeline
coating type, coating effectiveness or efficiency, electrical isolation of the pipeline, soil resistivity
and moisture content, operating temperatures of the pipeline, cathodic interference, induced
AC voltages from power lines, lightning strikes, operational issues caused by pigging or similar, and
the required service life of the CP system.

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Figure 1. Shorted parallel pipeline.

Besides coating efficiency, all coatings have a dielectric

strength, which varies with coating type. This is the ability of
the coating to act as an electrical insulator or barrier between
the pipeline and the soil. So even with a perfect or 100%
efficient coating, a minute amount of CP current can pass
through the coating thereby affecting the CP systems design
life.
As it relates to coating efficiency, the new generation of
fusion bonded epoxy (FBE) coatings, used on a majority of new
pipeline installations, can provide efficiencies well in excess of
99%. Farwest Corrosion Control Company has found, through
empirical testing, that FBE coatings provide long-term stability
and efficiencies well in excess of 99.9%. This is far superior
to some of the old coal tar-type coatings that had a much
lower dielectric strength and that would degrade with time.
No matter what the coating type, it is important that the
entire pipeline is checked for coating imperfections (called
holidays) with a high voltage holiday detector. Doing so will
help to ensure a minimum number of holidays and much better
performance from the designed CP system.

Electrical isolation

Figure 2. Pipeline electrically shorted to structural steel.

Coating efficiencies
The basis of any CP design requires knowledge, or a competent
estimate, of the amount (area) of bare steel that will be exposed
to the soil. In a perfect scenario, a pipeline would have a 100%
flawless coating. If this were possible, there would be no need
for CP as there would be zero contact of the steel with the
earth and therefore no possibility of corrosion.
This is an unrealistic expectation due to the inevitable
nicks, scratches (called coating holidays) and possibly less
than perfectly coated field joints. Therefore, it is up to the
CP designer to estimate the coating efficiency for the pipeline
in order to calculate the amount of CP current needed to
adequately protect the pipeline.
As an example, how does a 99% efficient coating sound?
The vast majority of people might agree that a 99% efficient
coating would be a relatively good effort. However, consider
a requirement or specification to coat a structure that is
10 ft x 10 ft, or 100 ft2 in total. A 99% efficient coating would
mean that 1 ft2 of the surface area was missed and is now bare.
In the authors opinion, a new coating with even 99.9% coverage
should be considered unacceptable.

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As important as an efficient coating is the need for electrical

isolation of the pipeline. In a perfect scenario, a pipeline would
be a stand alone metallic structure that has no electrical
interconnections to other foreign metallic structures. This is
typically accomplished by the installation of the appropriate
dielectric insulating pipeline fittings, such as isolating flange kits,
unions and couplings, which are designed to electrically isolate
one section of a pipe from another.
Any physical contact between a subject pipeline and
a foreign structure, in this instance another pipeline, will
electrically bond or short the two structures together creating
many CP related problems for the operators of both pipelines.
Therefore, much care and planning to avoid this issue is critical
to isolating the pipeline.
There are many situations along the pipeline that can cause
electrical isolation issues. These include flanged connections,
motor operated valves, pig signals, temperature probes,
flowmeters, pipeline taps, casings, bridges and more. Each will
require close design and installation attention to ensure that
they are properly isolated from the pipeline.
A lesser known isolation problem can occur when a low
resistivity product, such as brine water, can bridge a perfectly
good isolation flange gasket, thus allowing CP current to cross
the previously isolated gasket. The magnitude of the current
loss is a function of the resistivity or conductivity of the
product and the diameter of the pipeline. As an example, a large
diameter pipeline with a low resistivity product can lose the
greatest amount of current.
Pipeline pigging can present problems as well. As the pig
pushes the sediments, oxides or other contaminants (which
can be electrically conductive) through the line and across a
dielectric isolation flange, these contaminants can also bridge
the isolation gap in the flange. This can again reduce the
effectiveness of the isolating fitting, or in some cases, result in
a completely shorted flange. The good news is that there are
solutions to this problem, such as monolithic isolating fittings

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and internally coated pipeline spools in conjunction with flange

isolation kits.
Pipeline casings must also be electrically isolated in order to
achieve an effective and efficient CP system. A shorted casing
will serve as a metallic shield to CP current and eliminate any
possibility of providing protective current to the pipeline within
the casing. Therefore, electrically isolating the pipeline from
the casing is important and achieved with the use of casing
insulators and casing end seals.
Any compromise to the pipelines electrical isolation
will reduce or nullify the effectiveness of the CP system.
When an isolating fitting fails or is bypassed by some parallel
metallic circuit (such as a new conduit installation or similar)
that touches the isolated section of pipeline, the CP current
requirement will increase, which in turn will shorten anode
life and/or minimise the CP systems ability to protect the
pipeline.
The ratio of anode service life between an isolated pipeline
and a shorted pipeline can be as much as 100 to 1. This means
that the theoretical service life of a CP system in an isolated
condition may be as much as 30 years. However, if the pipeline
is shorted to other metallic structures, the additional current
loading on the CP system can reduce the actual anode life to
less than one year. Therefore, it is extremely important to fully
isolate the pipeline and to install enough anode material to
survive any increase in CP current demand events.

Cathodic interference
Cathodic interference is caused by stray CP current from
foreign cathodically protected pipelines interfering with the
subject pipeline. These protected foreign pipelines, which
include crossing and parallel pipelines, can cause cathodic
interference with a new, well coated pipeline. In this instance,
when this stray current finds and then leaves the pipeline, severe
damage can occur at any location where a holiday or defect in
the coating exists. For this reason, the new, well coated pipeline
is very sensitive to the effects of stray current.
In a perfect world, the more distance between these
pipelines would be better but unfortunately, this is not usually
possible. Therefore, solutions such as anode drain stations,
shielding or, as a last resort, resistance bond stations can be
installed to control and eliminate the effects of cathodic
interference.

Induced voltage issues

Well coated pipelines that are in the vicinity of overhead
electrical power transmission lines can be subject to
induced AC voltages. This phenomenon can occur when the
electromagnetic field from the power lines crosses the pipeline
and induces a voltage. Similar to cathodic interference, the
AC voltage travels along the pipeline and then leaves the
pipeline causing damage where the energy departs.
Depending on the length of parallel transmission line, in
respect to the pipeline, as well as the approach and departure
angle of the pipeline to the power corridor, the induced
voltage can be significant. Depending on the level of induced
AC voltage and the actual available power produced, serious
corrosion problems can occur.

Figure 3. Over voltage protector across a double isolated,

internally lined pipeline spool.

Additionally, well coated pipelines that are in the vicinity of

power transmission lines can be seriously damaged if a power
cable falls to the ground. The voltage gradients in the soil
can produce significantly high voltages on the pipeline. This
high voltage is going to seek the path of least resistance and
a holiday in the coating is a typical location for the current to
discharge. If enough power is available, serious physical damage
to the pipeline can occur.
Yet another source of induced voltage is lightning strikes. If
a lighting strike occurs near the pipeline, significant voltages can
again be generated on the pipeline with the same possibility of
serious physical damage.
In any of the high voltage events described above, there
is also the possibility of damage to the CP equipment, but
more importantly, there can be an electrical shock hazard to
personnel contacting the pipeline. It is known that a lightning
strike many miles down the pipeline can produce high enough
voltages to cause serious injury or death to humans as well as
damage to CP power supplies or other equipment connected to
the pipeline.
One proven method to reduce the induced voltages on
the pipeline is to install numerous magnesium anodes or
other grounding devices to serve as ground rods. Besides
the improved grounding ability, the anodes can provide
needed CP current. Additionally, there are also electronic
over voltage protection devices that can be installed on the
pipeline to offset these high voltage events. In extreme cases,
dedicated low resistance grounding electrodes with associated
DC decoupling equipment may be required.

The CP design
It is an essential requirement that any sacrificial magnesium
anode system should include more than the minimum
anode requirements to obtain adequate CP current over the
specified design life of the system. While some may consider
the additional anodes to be overly cautious and expensive,
it is important to remember that the cost to mobilise labour,
equipment and materials in the future will be many times
greater versus the cost to install the additional CP anodes
during pipeline construction.

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Magnesium anodes deteriorate at a rate of approximately

17 lb/A.yr. This means that for every ampere of current
discharged, 17 lb of magnesium will be consumed every year.
Therefore, a pipeline with a CP requirement of 1.0 A and a
specified design life of 10 years will require a minimum of 170 lb
of magnesium to reach the specified service life. Magnesium
anodes do not deteriorate at a linear rate, however, and near the
end of their life, the anodes are not capable of producing the
same amount of current as when they were new.

To compensate for this decrease of usable anode

material, a design or utilisation factor must be used. This
is a matter of how conservative the designer wants to be
but in this authors opinion, a minimum 1.3:1 ratio should be
used. Theoretically, the original requirement of 170 lb of
magnesium would be increased to 221 lb (170 x 1.3). Besides
anode weight, the designer must also consider the soil
resistivity and physical size of the anodes required to achieve
the needed CP design current.
Remember, the above CP design example yields the
weight of magnesium required under ideal coating and
electrical isolation conditions. However, it is common for an
insulator to be bypassed or fail for a variety of reasons and
once this occurs, the demand for anode current will increase
dramatically and shorten anode life proportionately.
Besides the anodes, a complete CP system design should
also include:
Test stations or monitoring points along the entire

pipeline for routine monitoring.

Proper electrical isolation along the pipeline.
Over voltage protection (OVP) devices at primary

electrical isolation points.

Additional recommendations
Figure 4. Pipeline electrically shorted to rebar.

During the installation of the pipeline and CP system, it is

strongly recommended that an onsite inspector, familiar with
the CP design requirements and installation techniques, be
hired to oversee all aspects of the installation that relates
to CP. This includes anode installation, cable connections,
dielectric insulating devices and other protective devices
discussed in this article. It is always better to prevent a
problem from occurring at the time of pipeline construction
than trying to fix the problem down the road, which often
means shutting down an operational pipeline.
It is important that any CP system be routinely monitored
by a qualified corrosion professional. Doing so will ensure
that the CP system provides the required level of protection
and maximises the service life of the system. However,
if this is not carried out and technical issues occur, such
as a compromised dielectric isolator, the anodes can be
consumed much sooner than anticipated and protection to
the pipeline can be adversely affected.

Conclusion

Figure 5. Electrical conduit shorted to protected pipeline.

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As discussed, there are many factors that must be considered

when designing a sacrificial CP system for buried pipelines.
Some of these considerations not only prevent corrosion
but can also prevent certain hazardous conditions on the
pipeline. Additionally, even seemingly minor issues can
greatly affect the ability of a CP system to protect the
pipeline.
Therefore, what first may appear as an over-designed
CP system may ultimately save the pipeline from damage
caused by more than just corrosion. All things considered, the
initial extra cost during pipeline design and installation may
be many times less costly in the long run.

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