ABSTRACT
Corrosion testing is a broad discipline that includes topics such as corrosion monitoring, investigating the nature of threshold conditions, evaluating materials durability and understanding corrosion mechanisms. Corrosion testing is not widely practiced when designing plants for mature technologies such as most hydrocarbon and chemical process plants. For technologies that are new or for "improved" technologies, corrosion testing may be a significant activity. The variables affecting corrosion depend, to some extent, on whether the process is a batch or continuous operation. Some forms of corrosion, such as stress corrosion cracking, crevice corrosion and pitting can be especially sensitive to temperature. In most cases pressure does not have a large influence on corrosion behavior. The influence of fluid flow rate on corrosion depends on the alloy, the fluid chemistry, the physical properties of the fluid and the geometry of the equipment/piping system, and can depend on the corrosion mechanism.
