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05/30/2007 -
Modelling of Cathodic Protection Systems (2006)
edited by R.A. Adey
ISBN 1-85312-889-9. WIT Press, Southampton, United Kingdom. 2006. Hardcover. 257 pages. $145.
Recent corrosion-related incidents involving deterioration of pipelines in the petroleum industry, compounded with aging infrastructure and other extraneous factors, have made engineering control of, and research activity in understanding factors affecting cathodic protection systems, of long term economic and strategic significance.
In this light, the industry practitioner will find parts of the selection of articles in this collection extremely relevant. The opening chapter by K. Ayama provides an insightful overview into the primary engineering considerations of the corrosion reaction phenomenon as it relates to mechanism impinging upon infrastructure. The collection starts off with an introduction to the electrochemical reaction phenomenon, and skillfully moves from the qualitative descriptions to the general governing optimization problem viz. the Laplace equation, with respective boundaries and constraints for current density and potential value. However, even beyond the opening chapter, the reader will continue to be impressed with the complexities that are addressed in each case by the specific BEM (boundary element method). The researcher will find the advanced articles to be highly specific and relevant to those areas where the editor has been a prolific contributor.
The ICCP (impressed current cathodic protection) contribution by Pei is one of the more outstanding articles in the collection, again from the industry practitioner perspective, because of the systematic discussion starting with the problem (for a naval platform), a pragmatic algorithm, and an actual numerical solution. Readers will find the discussion enlightening and accessible because of the relation of the objective function (and associated boundaries/constraints) to actual real-world cases. Provided graphics and tables will enable new researchers of cathodic protection to understand the optimization problem and transfer the methodology to their own situation.
In a similar vein, the subsequent articles by Diaz and Adey are also excellent insights into the problems associated with a modeling approach to an actual physical phenomenon. The assumptions that are inevitable in complex and multivariable optimization problems can be daunting in interpretation of results, however, Diaz and Adey are effective in addressing such pitfalls with solid, numerical examples, and provide a critical analysis of their own predictive techniques.
The issues around simulation and modeling are introduced in the second chapter by workers at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. Further discussion of these issues is a theme in the last two articles. Overall, the collection is obviously intended for an expert audience with some appreciation for nonlinear methods from the decision sciences/operations research disciplines, but the specific problems of corrosion (e.g. pipelines, soil characteristics) are always brought back (especially in these last two articles) to the forefront of discussion. The collection is highly unique in this regard – as a unique area of applied mathematics, the articles treat the optimization problem viz. the BEM method, in a straightforward manner, without taking away from the significant aspects of corrosion.
An aspect that could be improved upon in subsequent editions would include a table of contents that would better elucidate upon the pedagogy of topics addressed in each respective chapter, as well as an index that might provide an insight into common themes running through the articles and enable the collection to be a more convenient reference. Another long term effort in standardizing the variable names and descriptions would also lend itself to a better understanding and adoption of BEM methods by corrosion experts that may just happen to be from an audience with little understanding of operations research, optimization, and applied mathematics. However, these suggestions are from the standpoint of accessibility by the industry practitioners who will want to avail themselves of the (proven) methodologies in minimizing corrosion damage.
For more on Modelling of Cathodic Protection Systems , visit the WIT Press web site.
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