Analysis of Unexpected Leaks in AISI 316L Stainless Steel Pipes Used for Water Conduction in a Port Area

Abstract

This paper clarifies the causes of a corrosion process observed in austenitic stainless-steel pipes, grade 316L, used for conducting freshwater in a port area. During the pressure test of the installation, before it was put into service, about five months after its construction, a loss of pressure was detected due to leaks of the fluid contained and the presence of corrosion damage on the wall of the tubes, in some cases even passing through the thickness of the tube. An analysis of the chemical composition of the pipe material was carried out, as well as semi-quantitative analysis of the chemical composition of the deposits in the defects, and a culture of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) in Kliguer medium of the stagnant waters within the facility. All this makes it possible to conclude that the observed process fits within the so-called microbiologically induced corrosion (MIC), and, in all probability, it can be affirmed that this process is promoted by the presence and proliferation of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB).