Investigation of the circumferential stress corrosion cracking mechanism in pipeline materials

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Canadian pipeline companies own and operate more than 100,000 kilometers of large diameter transmission pipelines across Canada, transporting natural gas and liquid petroleum products to North American markets. Ensuring safe operation of the pipeline network is of great economic and environmental importance to meet the energy requirement that drives Canadian society. Mostly buried underground, steel pipeline material is prone to experience corrosion degradation. Pipeline failures are costly, usually resulting in energy loss, carbon emission, impacts to environment, ecology and community. A key degradation mode in pipeline steel is stress corrosion cracking (SCC), defined as cracking of a material produced by the combined action of corrosion and tensile stress. This project will focus on studying the contribution of residual stresses and local chemistry to understand the mechanism of near-neutral pH SCC in pipeline steel, with a focus on circumferential direction cracking. The extensive network of large diameter transmission pipelines across Canada provide for the energy needs of millions of consumers. Therefore, ensuring safe operation of the pipeline network is of great economic and environmental importance to meet the energy requirement that drives Canadian society.