Effect of HCO3- concentration on CO2 corrosion in oil and gas fields

The effect of HCO3- concentration on CO2 corrosion was investigated by polarization measurement of potentiodynamic scans and weight-loss method. Under the conditions of high pressure and high temperature, the corrosion rate of steel X65 decreased with the increase of HCO3- concentration, while pH of solution increased. SEM, EDS, and XRD results of the corrosion scales indicated that the typical FeCO3 crystallite was found at low HCO3- concentration but Ca(Fe,Mg)(CO3)2 was found at high HCO3 concentration. Ca2+ and Mg2+ are precipitated preferential to Fe2+ at high pH value. Potentiodynamic polarization curves showed that the cathodic current density decreases with the increase of HCO3- concentration at low HCO3- concentration. When the HCO3- concentration reaches 0.126 mol/L, increasing HCO3 concentration promotes cathodic reactions. Anodic behavior is an active process at low HCO3- concentration and the anodic current density decreases with the increase of HCO3- concentration. An evident active-passive behavior is exhibited in anodic process at 0.126 mol/L HCO3-.