Investigation of Behavior of Stress-Corrosion Cracks in a Pipes under Internal Pressure

Corrosion induced by ambient conditions causes generation of longitudinal cracks on outside surfaces of gas pipelines, and this can lead to breaks in main pipelines. The paper presents experimental data on behavior of cracks in sections of pipelines with aws under constant and cyclically varied (45 cycles) hydrostatic pressure, the pressure magnitude corresponding to operational parameters. Crack parameters (increasing depths and openings of cracks) were monitored by sensors of magnetic induction placed on pipes immediately over cracks. The data indicated that cracks with depths of up to 30–35% of the wall thickness did not show residual changes (in their depths and openings) after tests. Residual changes were detected in deeper cracks, which manifested as critical ows of metal near the crack edge and growth of cracks to their critical dimensions. Photographs of fractured surfaces showed that crack depths started to increase long before the ultimate fracture of a pipeline. Thus, tests conducted by applying high pressure to operating gas pipelines can lead to increases in crack dimensions without detecting them. This effect is actually detrimental to the tested pipeline's safety. The absence of residual changes in cracks with depths of up to 30–35% of the wall thickness indicates that, possibly, new limits on aw dimensions should be established for decommissioning unsafe sections of pipelines, and these limits should take account of the hazard due to stress-corrosion cracks, depending on their dimensions and inside gas pressure.