Stray Current (SC) has been an area of concern to Cathodic Protection professionals since at
least 1917(1) and in the intervening century it has only become a bigger problem. The three
biggest causes of increased CP interference is the increased use of underground utility
construction, increased oil and gas exploitation, and increased number of electric rail systems.
While analyzing the effects of SC is straightforward, methods of analyzing the problem are
rather difficult. Specifically, gathering the data was an inefficient process. Measuring potentials
gave an incomplete picture of what was happening and measuring current was difficult.
Modern electronics and software assists in the ease of gathering enough data to assess SC and
helping make the information more easily analyzed. The biggest advancement may be noncontact
test methods and the ability to accurately measure DC currents.