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CP Design Challenges on Onshore Pipelines

Qurban A. Lashari
Technical Support Unit,
North Area Pipeline Department,
Saudi Aramco, Dhahran, 31311
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Muhammad A. Sherwani
Technical Support Unit,
East West Pipeline Department,
Saudi Aramco, Dhahran, 31311
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

ABSTRACT

This paper presents an overview about the CP design challenges for onshore pipelines in Saudi Arabia.
It discusses the design complexities & challenges in terms of different geographical conditions,
heterogeneous soils strata, and common corridors with multiple existing pipelines, electrical isolations,
associated buried structures and overhead power transmission lines. It also discusses some other
design approaches to address the design challenges.

Key words: Cathodic Protection; Design Challenges; Design Approaches; Onshore Pipelines;

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INTRODUCTION

The objective of CP designing is to obtain pipe-to-soil potential along the entire length of pipeline within
the limits of protection criteria. In CP designing many characteristics and parameters are measured and
then theoretical calculation are conducted to design systems with optimized protection. Data collection,
pre-design surveys, design current calculations, CP circuit designing and pipeline attenuation
calculations are the main parts of designing which looks simple but sometimes becomes complicated
due to unusual challenges like different geographical conditions, existing pipelines in common corridors,
electrical continuity with incidental structures, earthing systems and AC/DC interferences. In this paper
these all challenges and their associated problems are addressed with possible potential solutions.

CP designing for the pipelines starts with a comprehensive pre-design survey where required
measurements and assessments of all variables are gathered in the field. In case of new pipeline laid in
independent corridor then methodology of data collection and survey requirements will be as follows;

1. Pipeline data like diameter, length, wall thickness, base metal, coating type, burial depth, valve
stations, UG/AG transition points etc.
2. Assessment of soil conditions and resistivity measurement along the entire length of pipeline and
at proposed anode groundbed locations.
3. Electrical isolation of pipeline at UG/AG transition points and with other structures in case of
electrical contact is a possibility.
4. Parallel and crossed pipelines data i.e. location, distance and length of parallelism, location of
crossings and potential measurements.
5. Road, railway and rivers crossings, casings used in crossings and type of crossings like open cut,
thrust bored, micro tunneling, horizontal directional drilling etc.
6. High Voltage Power Lines (HVPL) parallelism and crossings. This requires extensive data
collection at site and as well as from power generation house to perform AC mitigation studies,
as required.

In case new pipeline laid in existing pipelines corridor then the data collection and survey
requirements are expanded with following additional requirements;

1. Existing pipelines data like diameter, length, wall thickness, base metal, coating type and
condition, burial depth, valve stations, UG/AG transition points etc.
2. Distance between each pipeline (edge to edge).
3. DC and AC potential measurements of existing pipelines.
4. Operating and rated outputs of CP source units nearby and connected to existing pipelines.
5. Distances and operating outputs of anodes and anode groundbeds of CP source units nearby as
well as connected to existing pipelines.
6. Any data related to existing pipelines coating conditions, integrity assessments and
rehabilitation/repairs will be additive to evaluate the existing conditions and critical locations.
7. Bonding details and current measurement at each bond station and its direction.
8. Earthing system details specially method of grounding and location of grounding. Pipeline casing
details at road/railway crossing i.e. type of casing, its isolation method, coating details, present
isolation status.

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The data related to Pre-design survey determines the factors like soil resistivity, type of anode groundbed
required, location and capacity of CP source units, AC power availability and its KV ratings, location of
electrical bonding, location of monitoring facilities, requirement of bonding facilities, supplementary CP
requirements, different types of crossing details (road, pipeline and HVPL etc.), existing CP system
operating parameters, AC induced voltages, AC current densities, interferences mitigation requirements
and over voltage protection requirements.

Next step is to perform CP design through electrical and mathematical formulas which comprises more
or less of CP current requirement calculations based on established current densities for the known
environment and coating types, CP source unit sizing calculations, anodes/groundbeds calculations, CP
circuit resistance calculations, earth potential rise calculations, pipeline attenuation calculations and
system life calculations, AC mitigation requirement (if required).

In designing CP system using galvanic anodes, the main basic requirement is to calculate the pipeline
current requirement and required number of anodes by mass and current. Generally based on theoretical
calculations for coated structures and average dry environment, the required anode quantities computed
as low, but practically there should be a consideration for environmental changes and seasonal effects
like dew, rains, temperature change, coating degradation, natural heterogeneity and fluctuations in
ground water levels causing variation in soil resistivity. Therefore, the proposed anodes quantities should
be more than the computed depending on expert judgments and past experiences in similar areas.

While designing CP with ICCP system, the main basic requirements are to calculate the pipeline current
requirement, the anode bed sizing, CP circuit resistance, sizing the power source. and the pipeline
attenuation calculation to see the CP current spread over the structure. These are all based on theoretical
calculations, however this can effectively determine the limits of operations based on considered worst
case design parameters.

CP DESIGN CHALLENGES

Different Geographical Environments

Most part of Saudi Arabia is consisting of desert land, where sand dunes often exceed 100 feet in height.
This land rises into hills and mountains in the west and southwest area till to the coast of Red Sea. Many
cross-country pipelines are laid in these lands however still passing through other different environments
which are generally classified as Subkha, non-Subkha, rocky, Wadi and agricultural areas.

1. Subkha area is the coastlines along the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf where high salt contents
present in ground due to coastal sediments and groundwater sediments. The resistivity in this
area is extremely low.
2. Non-subkha area is the desert areas with low salt contents and consisting of sand. Resistivity in
this area is considerably high.
3. Rocky area consists of rocks and mountains which formation is extremely dry and hard. In these
areas pipelines are laid in trenches filled with soil/sand from other areas, therefore creating high
resistance in surrounding.
4. Wadi areas are the low altitude areas in mountains usually the bed for rainy water. In these areas
displacement of soil around pipelines are very common.
5. Agricultural areas are the lands used for cultivation. These areas consist of loams which resistivity
is low.

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CP design for these pipelines passing through different areas is always a challenge due to following
reasons;

1. Potential criteria for protection might vary due to the environment around the pipeline surface,
therefore defining minimum and maximum limits of protection criteria is critical. Saudi Aramco
conducted studies on their pipeline corridors and established protection criteria for their pipelines
in different environments. Figure-1 is table from Saudi Aramco Engineering Procedure SAEP-333
for the potential ranges in such different environments and structures. Another approach while
designing is to select few representative locations of different environments based on soil
resistivity survey along the pipeline and propose to install test stations with coupons for the
evaluation of true polarized potentials, IR drop in soil and protective current densities during
commissioning.
2. CP current distribution on a pipeline in different environments is affected as current flows through
lowest resistance path to flow. Due to which CP current cannot be forced to flow from low
resistivity area to high, ultimately causes the pipeline portion in high resistivity area left with
inadequate CP current. Figure-2 shows a condition of a pipeline in Subkha and non-Subkha
areas, where CP source unit is in Subkha area. The immediate potential drops in non-Subkha
area shows the low current distribution towards this area. The best way to counter this problem
is to design CP source unit in high resistivity areas.
3. The rocks and mountains generally very hard and dry which causes for CP current shielding on
pipeline surfaces. The external corrosion rates in these areas are extremely low. However, during
rainy seasons this can be critical as these pipelines laid in the trenches filled with foreign soils
which get damped and cause to accelerate the corrosion rate. Figure-3 shows an exposed
pipeline in trench in rocky area. Here supplementary protection with galvanic anodes or galvanic
ribbons can be effective to provide localized CP protection. ICCP system with linear anodes can
also be an option in case of CP source units installed with effective intervals based on linear
anodes current attenuation.
4. Washouts around the pipelines are very common in wadi areas. This causing some portion of the
pipe surfaces uncovered with the soil, therefore in many places these pipelines are encased in
concrete to protect from the damages due to stones/rocks fall. These portions of the pipeline are
subject to CP current shielding. For exposed pipeline surfaces CP cannot be the solution for
protection, therefore extra coating to be applied to these pipelines in these areas. See Figure-4
which shows the exposed pipeline due to soil displacement.

Electrical Isolation in Multiple Pipelines Corridors

Loss of CP current due to metallic contacts between the pipeline and other structures is a concern. The
incidental metallic contacts causing the low potentials on pipelines and adding extra load on CP systems
(larger surface area to protect). Therefore, electrical isolation of the pipelines is mandatory at all
underground/above-grade transition points (plants, terminals, pump stations, valve stations etc.)
wherever the possibilities of electrical contact with earthing systems foreseen. Earthing system consisting
of bare galvanized steel or copper conductors is able to draw most of the CP current.

Generally, pipelines are isolated through isolation flange kits and monolithic isolation joints. This condition
becomes challenging in corridors of multiple pipelines where all pipelines are bonded together as per the
standard regulations and if any from these pipelines had failed isolation or no isolation. There are existing
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cases which resulted in CP current losses and low potentials. Figure-5 shows similar cases where all
pipeline potentials are low due to the electrical continuity of pipelines with valve station piping and
earthing system and due to coating damage.

In such cases where an effective electrical isolation for the pipelines cannot be achieved, few approaches
can be applied to resolve the problems.

1. Design and locate CP source units away from the earthing systems in such a way that CP current
path towards grounding becomes high resistive in comparison to current path towards pipelines.
2. Design supplementary CP for associated structures based on earth rise potential method. This
approach is being used to design a CP system with remote anode groundbed for pipelines and
distributed anode groundbed for valve station piping and grounding with single CP source unit.
The current distribution between these two anode groundbed is controlled through cable sizes
and lengths.
3. Another approach is to design supplementary CP system in plants and valve stations where
pipelines are connected with piping and other structures. Use of linear anodes to lay along the
pipeline and piping with dedicated CP source unit.
4. Installation and repair of insulation kits for existing pipeline may be an effective solution during
shut down In this case all electrical isolations points must be provided with safety devices like
spark gaps or DC decoupler.
5. Installation of DC decoupler devices or earthing cells at valve stations grounding can also be an
effective solution in case of less number of earthing connections.

Attenuation in Multiple Pipelines Corridor

Pipeline attenuation calculation is most important part of CP designing which determined the extent of
electrical losses along the structure. Based on the attenuation calculation results the quantities and
distances of CP source units are determined.

Attenuation calculation is mainly based on two important factors i.e. pipeline lineal resistance and coating
leakage conductance. Pipeline lineal resistance is the function of electrical losses due to pipeline base
metal depend on the dimensions, thickness and material resistivity. Pipeline leakage conductance is the
function of electrical losses due to pipeline-to-ground interface conductance depend on dielectric strength
of pipeline coating and electrolyte conductivity. If pipeline coating is new and in good condition, then
dielectric strength is high and attenuation is low whereas it is reverse in case of old and poor coating
condition of pipeline. Hence attenuation is mainly based on the condition of the pipeline coating.

Now the cases where new pipeline is to be installed in corridor of existing pipelines with old and poor
coating condition then attenuation calculation will not be as simple as for a new coated pipeline. In this
case two approaches can be utilized as follows;

1. In theoretical calculation, all variable and parameters are to be considered as worst case e.g. in
a group of pipelines in a corridor the smallest diameter pipeline should be considered for
calculation, coating conductance value will be considered for oldest pipelines and lowest value
from the measured soil resistivity should be in consideration to have most conservative results.
2. Measure the CP source coverage individually over the pipelines during pre-design survey. This
will provide the information of extent of CP protection in local environment.
3. Evaluate from the CP monitoring data of existing pipelines the extent of CP protection in local
environment.
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Coating rehabilitation of existing pipelines is important to reduce the overall CP current demand, lower
the attenuation and optimize the CP protection levels.

Anode Groundbeds Designing and Locations

The performance of anode groundbed is dependent on several factors like location, type, designing,
resistivity, subsoil strata, material quality, installation practice and ventilation systems. Design challenges
related to these factors is discussed in this section.

Generally, anode groundbeds in high resistive environments are unable to impress same amount of
current as those in low resistive environments, therefore mostly groundbeds are designed in low
resistivity environments for higher current outputs. A disadvantage of low resistive anode groundbeds is
that it cannot be able to force the CP current in high resistive environments if the same structure passes
through different environments. Therefore in multiple environments condition the anode groundbeds
need to be designed for high resistive soils. In order to lower the groundbed-to-earth resistance different
approaches can be used like design multiple anode groundbeds in parallel or design anode groundbeds
with watering system.

There is a case observed during commissioning of a newly installed system, where surface anode
groundbed in high resistivity environment cannot impress the CP current more than 2 Km on the pipelines.
After re-designing with deep anode groundbed, same system resulted to impress CP current more than
10 Km on the pipelines.

The performance of the anode groundbed is measured to provide optimum current output till the designed
lifetime, therefore quality control and inspection of the anode groundbed material is important. The quality
hold points are anode material, anode-to-cable connection, cable insulation, coke breeze and proper
ventilation system.

CP Circuits Complications

CP circuit calculation are conducted to evaluate the overall CP circuit resistance is balanced within the
capacity of CP source unit resistance. The purpose is to ensure that the CP source unit operating
parameter will remain within the rated capacity. During this calculation the resistance of each contributing
factor is calculated and added in circuit like groundbed-to-earth resistance, anodes cable tail resistance,
positive header cable resistance, negative header cable resistance, negative distribution cable
resistance, cathode resistance and back EMF resistance due to cathode-anode potential differences.

CP circuit design either for new system or modification of existing system, sometimes becomes
complicated due to addition of many variables and factors like addition/deletion of anode groundbeds,
addition/deletion of a pipelines and relocation of the anode groundbeds. For existing system modifications
field measurements are required.

In new CP circuit design methods, Electrical Circuit Modeling and Simulation (ECMS) software are not
only used to validate the CP circuit calculations but also to simulate current distribution in the circuit.
Through these simulations the CP current distribution not only can be evaluated but by applying
modifications can be controlled.

An experienced case, where a supplementary CP of a valve station piping based on distributed anode
groundbeds was the part of main CP circuit with remote anode groundbed for pipelines. Initially this
system was working to distribute 40% of its current towards deep anode groundbed and 60% of its current
towards distributed anode groundbed. This distribution impacted as low potential on main pipeline and
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very high potentials on valve station piping. With small modifications of cables size and length, the current
distribution was changed to 70% towards deep anode groundbed and 30% towards distributed anode
groundbeds.

Similarly the current distribution between the pipelines can be controlled through the resistance in the
negative return path. In such cases the current is controlled by adjusting the cables size and length in
negative loop of the circuit. For optimum results field tests are required to measure each individual
pipeline-to-earth resistances, because the results may vary due to the dimensions and coating conditions
of each individual pipelines.

Simulating a CP circuit before installing the system can significantly improve the design efficiency as well
as saves the time during installation phase. Figure-6 shows an example of ECMS modelling of a CP
system with two different anode groundbed system.

Overhead Power Transmission Lines

Pipelines under the influence of AC interference due to nearby High Voltage Alternating Current (HVAC)
overhead transmission lines are usually associated with two types of hazards. First is electric shock
hazard for the people who may be/become in contact with above grade metallic connections of
underground pipelines or exposed to step potential hazard and second is AC corrosion on the pipelines
itself.

Pipeline with suspected AC hazards should be evaluated to identify the quantum of AC induced voltages
and level of AC interference and to provide mitigation design in order to eliminate all risks associated with
AC hazards. These evaluations usually done by field measurements and AC Interference Simulation
software. In this study following investigations are conducted;

1. Personal safety under steady state and fault conditions.


2. Pipeline coating damage under fault conditions.
3. Pipeline AC corrosion under steady state conditions.
4. Arcing between HVAC tower grounding and pipeline under fault and lightning conditions.

To mitigate the excessive AC current density and coating stress voltage on pipelines, the mitigation
system usually consists of bare grounding wires connected with pipeline through DC decoupler devices.
Further grounding mats are used at all above-grade connections points near in close vicinity of HVAC
transmission lines. There are special types of CP test station which provides protection from AC shock
called as Dead Front Test Station with grounding mats.

CONCLUSIONS

This paper discussed the general design practices, new design approaches, challenges being faced by
the CP system designers, operators and provides a summarized idea about possible and practical
solutions based on the authors’ experiences in designing and maintaining cathodic protection systems.
We have earnest hope that our effort, that is the result of practical verification of application of our design
challenges solutions shall found useful and shall serve the design community well.

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REFERENCES

1. Cathodic Protection of Pipelines – Saudi Aramco Engineering Standard SAES-X-400


2. Cathodic Protection Monitoring - Saudi Aramco Engineering Procedure SAEP-332
3. Cathodic Protection Design Considerations for New Pipelines in Existing Pipelines Corridor
(Pankaj Panchal, Faiyaz Ahmad)
4. Innovative Design for Deep well Anode bed in High Resistivity Area (Pankaj Panchal, Faiyaz
Ahmed)
5. Design and optimization of pipeline cathodic protection systems (Marius Purcar, Leslie Bortles)

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Figure-1: Cathodic Protection Monitoring Criteria, Table-1 from SAEP-333

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Figure-2: CP Potential Profile in Different Soils

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Figure-3: Pipeline in Rocky Area

Figure-4: Pipeline in Wadi Area

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Figure-5: CP Potential Profile at Valve Stations

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Figure-6: Current Distribution Evaluation through ECMS Software

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