This paper addresses pipeline conditions leading to a protective corrosion product scale. The special case of Top-Of-Line (TOL) corrosion will be considered in detail. Methods for TOL corrosion rate prediction are discussed and compared with new and old experimental data. Data best agree with the so-called iron super-saturation model. Avoiding high water condensation rates resulting from a low pipe wall temperature can obviate TOL corrosion. The protective corrosion product scale formed in TOL corrosion may be jeopardized by the presence of organic acids.
Keywords: pipeline, carbon dioxide, corrosion, condensation, scaling, iron carbonate, organic acids