The Formation of Sulfide Scales on Carbon Steel in Saturated H2S

Abstract

There are three contributing elements of corrosion of Carbon Steel in H2S environment: the effect of H2S on water chemistry; electrochemical reactions of the bare iron surface (both anodic and cathodic processes); and the formation and growth of corrosion product layers. The electrochemical reaction commonly contains three stages: first, the reactant transported from the solution (bulk) to the metal surface; then the transfer of the charge reaction on the surface, followed by the reaction product transported away from the iron surface to the bulk solution or the formation and development of the corrosion product which then can decrease the corrosion rate. Development of a robust corrosion model to predict the corrosion process in H2S these requires a mechanistic understanding of all these elements.

An experimental study was carried out to assess the corrosion of C-steel under open-circuit technique conditions and in solutions at several ranges of time and temperatures. The effect of film composition, morphology, structure, thickness, and ion- concentration of corrosion product films formed on pipeline Carbon Steel in an acid sour solution were examined. The electrochemical behavior of the filmed steel was measured, and the film properties assessed using a range of advanced techniques including Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Raman spectroscopy (RS). The data will be discussed in terms of film formation mechanisms.