Water Research Foundation Partners With Bureau Of Reclamation To Study Corrosion Of Drinking Water Utility Pipes
Project Will Provide Practical Guidance for Corrosion Protection of Buried Pipelines
The Water Research Foundation (WaterRF) recently announced that it is partnering with the Bureau of Reclamation to conduct research aimed at helping extend the life of pipelines through improved understanding of corrosion processes and corrosion protection approaches. The project is titled: "Study of Corrosion Protection Criteria and Minimum Requirements."
The project will assemble data on pipes of different materials, including ductile iron, pretensioned concrete, reinforced concrete, pre-stressed concrete and steel. Data collected will include location, project name, and Region (if USBR feature), type of structure, type of metallic pipe, type of corrosion protection system, type of monitoring system, soil resistivity, date of installation, date of each failure, failures per mile, characterization of failures (leaks, ruptures, and cause if known), and if cathodic protection was installed and maintained.
The study will also analyze these data and develop a technical memorandum to document the findings which will include the following sections: Corrosion Design, Corrosion Mitigation, Corrosion Prevention Criteria, Life Cycle Costs, and Recommendations.
"The pipe materials that will be examined in this study constitute a significant portion of the assets owned by drinking water utilities," said Rob Renner, Executive Director of WaterRF. "The corrosion of these pipe materials has been a major issue in their daily operations and asset management programs. The technical memorandum to be developed by this project will provide valuable and practical guidance for utility procurement practices and maintenance of these pipes. That, in turn, will help reduce overall operational costs."
The project is expected to take over 27 months to complete at a total cost of $500,000. The project is funded through WaterRF's Emerging Opportunities Program, which enables the Foundation to respond quickly to emergent subscriber challenges and research ideas identified as priorities. The WaterRF will seek qualified parties to perform this work under the terms of a Request for Proposals to be released in April, as well as water utilities willing to share their pipe data for purposes of a more robust analysis of corrosion processes and protection measures which could aid the entire water community. Utilities interested in participating in this study should contact Research Manager Jian Zhang at JZhang@WaterRF.org.
About The Water Research Foundation
Founded in 1966, the Water Research Foundation is an international, 501(c)3 non-profit organization that sponsors research to enable water utilities, public health agencies and other professionals to provide safe and affordable drinking water to the public. With more than 950 subscriber members who provide water to 80 percent of the U.S. population, the Water Research Foundation has funded and managed more than 1,000 projects. For more information, visit www.WaterRF.org.
SOURCE: Water Research Foundation