Monitoring Microbial Corrosion in
Large Oilfield Water Systems
E. Y. Chen, SPE, Aramco
R.B. Chen, Aramco
Summary
Monitoring of microbial corrosion is always difficult
because of the sessile nature of bacteria and the lack of
meaningful correlation between routine bacteria counts
and bacterial activity. This problem is further aggravated
in a large oilfield water system because of size and
sampling difficulties. This paper discusses some
monitoring techniques currently used in the oil industry,
their limitations, and possible areas for improvement.
These improved techniques are in use or will be im-
plemented in the Aramco systems.
Introduction
Microbial corrosion has caused some failures in seawater
injection systems. Whether or not microbial corrosion
represents a major corrosion mechanism in the oilfield
water system is a controversial question. However, it has
certainly become a major concern in recent years.
There are two approaches in dealing with microbial
corrosion problems in a large oilfield water system. One
approach is to start treating the system with bactericide
in conjunction with regular scraping when the system is
commissioned. The other is to treat the system only
when an impending microbial-related problem is clearly
defined. In either case, monitoring of microbial corro-
sion is essential.
The first approach is more or less a precautionary
measure. The treatment and selection of bactericides is
usually based on past experience and laboratory evalua-
tion tests. While the treatment is being implemented, a
reliable monitoring program could assess the effec-
tiveness of the current program of microbial corrosion
control.
In the second case, monitoring of microbial corrosion
is even more important. It would provide timely infor-
mation toward implementation of a treatment program
before the system could get out of control.
The industry's awareness of microbial corrosion has
been indicated by the number of papers published in re-
cent years on this subject. These articles cover a wide
spectrum of interest from fundamental corrosion
mechanisms to case studies, detection methods, control
measures, etc. Although it is not clear to what extent
microorganisms are responsible for the observed field
corrosion failures, the general consensus still favors ear-
ly establishment of a routine microbial corrosion
monitoring program. The best approach seems to be the
establishment of solid baseline data for the system after
0149-2136/84/0071·1509$00.25
Copyright 1984 Society of Petroleum Engineers of AIME
JULY 1984
which any significant future deviation can be interpreted
as a sign of a potential problem.
The following sections describe the current methods
used for routine monitoring, specifically for Aramco's
large oilfield water systems. The limitations of these
methods, the difficulties encountered, and some sug-
gested studies for modification and improvement are
discussed also.
Current Monitoring Methods
The methods currently used by Aramco can be catego-
rized as (1) cell counts in water, (2) metal surface ex-
amination, (3) scraping solids analysis, (4) water quality
analysis, and (5) evaluation of current bactericide
treatment.
Cell Counts in Water. These are used to detect bacterial
organisms and their concentrations. It is recognized that
confirmation of free-flowing bacteria in the water does
not automatically mean trouble. However, if bacteria
counts demonstrate a definite increase across the system,
or over a period of time, the odds are that bacteria are ac-
tive and working on the metal somewhere in the system.
Cell counts routinely monitored include sulfate-
reducing bacteria (SRB) , general aerobic bacteria
(GAB), iron bacteria, and others. SRB are widely
recognized to be primarily responsible for bacteria-
induced corrosion in an anaerobic environment. Depend-
ing on the nature of the sample to be tested and the types
of problems encountered (or expected) in the field, one
or several different enumeration techniques are
employed.
For field work, the method generally used by Aramco
is culturing of samples in liquid growth media specifical-
ly designed for detecting a certain group of organisms.
These laboratory media are prepared using the ap-
propriate field water as a base, with addition of general
growth nutrients for the organisms. The use of field
water to prepare the media provides a water composition
similar to that in which the bacteria originated. The
media are supplemented with other ingredients to create
an environment conducive to growth of certain bacteria
(e.g., certain reducing agents have to be added into the
SRB media). The media then are dispensed into serum
vials at exactly 9 mL [9 cm 3 ] each and sealed with rub-
ber stoppers and aluminum seals. After sterilization, the
vials are inoculated in the field (using sterile disposable
syringes), followed by lO-fold serial dilution of the
original sample into a series of seven or eight medium
1171
 vials. These vials are incubated at the corresponding
water temperature (as close to the operating temperature
as possible) for observation of positive microbial
growth.
The main reason for using the serial dilution method is
its simplicity and convenience for field work. This
method requires little equipment, reasonable working
time, and minimal training of technicians.
For laboratory testing, other conventional microbio-
logical techniques can be used. These techniques, which
require the skills of specially trained microbiologists, in-
clude direct microscopic examination, spread plate or
pour plate using solid agar medium, agar shake tubes,
most probable number (MPN) method, etc. All these
methods have advantages and disadvantages and one
should be aware of this when conducting a test.
Sometimes, more than one technique is used, depending
on the kind of information needed and the nature of the
test samples.
Recently, a high-quality microscope has become
available in our laboratory for quantitative and
qualitative examination of various types of samples. This
microscope is capable of bright- and dark-field, phase-
contrast light microscopy as well as epifluorescence
microscopy. The epifluorescence examination allows
direct counting of the total bacteria population present in
a sample within a short time. Specific stains are used in
this technique to make organisms fluoresce and cells
thereby are differentiated from other nonliving particles
of similar size and shape. These stains, such as acridine
orange (AO) and DAPI (4' ,6-diamidino-2-phenyl-
indole), are highly sensitive and specific for nucleic
acids. AO binds specifically with deoxyribonucleic and
ribonucleic acids (DNA and RNA); DAPI is a DNA
stain. This method was developed only in the last few
years but has been widely used in aquatic systems. It is
precise, quantitative, and is considered the most power-
ful tool for estimating total numbers of bacteria.
Metal Surface Examination. Metal surface examina-
tion probably is the only reliable and effective way to
correlate other bacterial monitoring data with corrosion
damage. The metal surfaces referred to here include
corrosion-monitoring coupons, drop-out spools, and the
pipe surface.
Corrosion coupons are commonly installed in water
systems at various sites where a high potential for corro-
sion, including microbial corrosion, exists. These
coupons are regularly removed from the system for ex-
amination. Before undergoing the routine cleaning pro-
cedure for corrosion/pitting rate measurement, the
coupons are subjected to a series of microbiological
tests.
Drop-out spools are used much more selectively than
corrosion coupons. These spool sections are actually part
of the piping system and are installed in locations likely
to have a high potential for bacterial growth. Sometimes
spool sections are designed to include dead-legs that
would simulate worst-case conditions. As operations
permit, drop-out spools are removed from the system for
inspection.
The pipe surface is the metal surface least available for
examination. Unless the system develops a leak or is
shut down for testing and inspection, direct access to the
1172
potential corrosion sites is virtually impossible. Once the
system is open, corrosion engineers and microbiologists
can take this opportunity to conduct various tests.
The microbiological tests related to metal surface ex-
amination generally consist of (1) various types of
bacteria counts per unit area and (2) visual and
microscopic examination of the surface for topographical
changes and damages. In our opinion, metal surface ex-
amination provides the best clues for solving the mystery
of microbial corrosion, and this method deserves more
attention.
Scraping Solids Analysis. Major water-Injection
systems are scraped regularly, as frequently as monthly.
The solids removed by scraping are a composite sample
of pipe wall deposits that contain corrosion products and
biomass. A scraping solids analysis may provide infor-
mation on the extent of bacterial activities on the metal
surface.
The solids generally are tested for various types of
bacteria counts per unit weight of dry solids, elemental
analysis, and sulfide concentration. They also are tested
for solids identification, such as total organic carbon
(TOC) and volatile suspended solids (VSS) vs. total
suspended solids (TSS). The total amount of solids
removed from a scraping operation is estimated from the
quantity of sludge found in the receiver and by integra-
tion of periodic suspended solids measurements made
during the scraping.
Water Quality Analysis. A water quality analysis
generally provides secondary information on microbial
corrosion. These tests are conducted mainly for other
reasons such as water quality assurance for injectivity
consideration, scaling tendency monitoring, and con-
cerns about other corrosion mechanisms. Again, like cell
counts in water, water analysis itself will not indicate if
the system is suffering from significant microbial corro-
sion. Only the trend of water quality variations may pro-
vide such information and that is where we should focus
our attention.
Parameters routinely monitored include sulfide level,
iron concentration, TOC, TSS, particle counts, dis-
solved oxygen, redox potential, pH and temperature.
Evaluation of Current Bactericide Tre~tment. Water
samples are routinely collected for bacteria counts and
water analysis as described in previous sections. In addi-
tion, water samples are periodically collected for special
field tests to evaluate the performance of the bactericide
presently used in the system.
Bactericide-persistence tests become critical in large
oilfield water systems in light of the long transit time for
bactericide. Our seawater injection project is a good ex-
ample. The nominal time required from bactericide en-
trance at the Qurayyah treatment plant to the remote in-
jection wells is about 24 hours. The bactericide slug,
when reaching the far end of the system, should still be
effective in rendering the water bactericidal.
Bactericide persistency depends on its stability when
interfacing with bacteria, metal surfaces, and other con-
taminants in the water. There are two methods being
used to determine the persistence of the bactericide in
our water systems. The first method is analysis of the
JOURNAL OF PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY
residual concentrations as the bactericide travels along
the system. This requires an accurate, sensitive, and
reliable analytical method that specifically measures the
active ingredient in the bactericide. The other method is
to determine experimentally the bactericidal efficacy of
the residual. This is accomplished by collecting water
samples which contain different concentrations of the
bactericide residual, at different points throughout the
system and reinoculating them with fresh bacteria
culture. This is followed by enumeration of the surviving
bacteria after a certain contact period. Results from these
tests provide a profile of bactericidal activity across the
system. Consequently, they help to determine whether
the current treatment program is adequate or whether an
alternative program should be considered.
Limitations of Current Monitoring Methods
and Possible Improvements
Significance of Cell Counts.
Limitations of Bacteria Enumeration Methods. The
limitations of bacteria counting methods have been
discussed extensively in the literature. 1•2 The culture
method usually gives a low estimate of the total bacteria
population in a system because no single medium can
allow growth of all microorganisms due to the dif-
ferences in growth requirements of each group. Only
those bacteria able to develop in that particular medium
will initiate growth. Clumps of bacteria are counted as a
single cell during enumeration processes. Results ob-
tained from these techniques represent viable counts of
certain physiological groups of organisms. However, the
several counts generated by using various types of media
cannot be simply added up to reach an answer of total
bacteria count.
To estimate the total bacteria count, direct enumera-
tion using epifluorescence microscopy is probably the
most commonly used method. This technique is rapid,
specific, quantitative, and generally gives the highest
cell count when compared with other enumeration
methods. However, it does not provide any information
about the identities of physiological groups or their
metabolic conditions. Another limitation is obviously the
practicality of using such equipment routinely in the
field.
As stated earlier, the method most frequently used in
the field is culturing of samples into liquid broth medium
using a to-fold serial dilution technique. This method
will provide only a range (not exact numbers) of viable
counts of certain physiological groups. The serial dilu-
tion technique, when performed singly, is recognized as
being statistically less precise in counting bacteria,
especially when the sample contains solids or clumps.
Precision can be improved by using a statistically sound
MPN method. This number can be generated only when
the test is done in multiple series (at least triplicates).
The additional effort invested in running the MPN
method may not be justified for routine monitoring,
especially in a large water system.
Planktonic Population vs. Sessile Population. One
particularly important item, which should be pointed out
here, is that the cell counts obtained from routine
analysis of water samples are only an indication of the
free-floating microbial population in the system. These
counts do not truly reflect the microbiological conditions
JULY 1984
of the sessile population existing in the same system.
Unfortunately, bacteria (such as the notorious SRB) are
sessile in nature. Therefore, it is possible to have low
bacteria counts from water analysis, but still have active
and localized infestations on the internal metal surfaces.
These bacteria may multiply rapidly, hidden from the
moving stream of water by a slimy biofilm matrix, debris
and sediments in the system, or accumulated corrosion
products.
It has been well-documented that sessile populations
are quantitatively predominant over the floating popula-
tions. 3 In addition, sessile bacteria are more hetero-
trophically active than are the planktonic organisms on a
cell-to-cell basis. 4 Sessile bacteria normally are en-
closed in a complex biofilm matrix attached to the metal
surface, and thus are protected from the bactericidal ef-
fect of many antimicrobial agents. Many bactericides
that are effective in killing free-swimming bacteria may
not be as effective against sessile populations at the same
treatment concentration. Therefore, it is apparent that the
sessile population, not the free-swimming population, is
more directly involved in microbial corrosion.
Therefore, more effort should focus on this area.
However, measuring the sessile population is a very
difficult task. First, it is difficult to gain access to the in-
side of an anaerobic system and most oilfield water
systems are anaerobic (oxygen-free). Second, bacterial
growth on metal surfaces may not be uniform in large
water systems. The probability of obtaining a sample
that is truly representative is unknown. Consequently,
interpretation of the data collected from this sample and
extrapolation to the whole system is extremely difficult.
In view of these difficulties, attention probably should
focus on corrosion coupons as a major tool for monitor-
ing sessile population.
The current monitoring data generated from routine
water analyses are not quantitatively correlative with
sessile bacteria population and activity. Despite this
limitation, routine water analysis for bacteria counts is
still extensively used. In fact, this is the only common
method endorsed by both the American Petroleum Inst. 5
and the Natl. Assn. of Corrosion Engineers 6 for
monitoring of microbial corrosion.
Collection of water samples from existing sampling
ports is relatively easy. Field bacterial testing using the
serial dilution method can be accomplished in a
minimum amount of time. The collected data are ana-
lyzed and compared with the baseline data, which should
have been established in early operation. Consistently
high counts of bacteria in water samples taken across the
system are indicative of high level of infestation. When
evaluating a problem, it may be very helpful to know
whether a few or many of a particular group of
organisms exist in the system. Cell counts in water
samples would still be valuable in microbial corrosion
monitoring, provided that the nature of the data
generated is understood and that the data are properly
used within their limitations.
Bacteria Counts vs. Bacteria Activities. The first im-
mediate action one would normally take in response to
any biological problem is to enumerate the organisms in
the system. Microbial corrosion in an oilfield water
system is no exception. However, bacteria counts from
various enumeration methods do not indicate the
1173
metabolic conditions of the population existing in the
system. High bacteria counts only imply that the en-
vironment is such that physiologically active bacteria
probably are present.
Counts determined from culture methods are based on
bacteria growth in labomtory-prepared culture media in
conditions most favomble· for bacteria growth. Field
conditions might not be nearly as favomble as those in
the labomtory. Therefore, results obtained in the
labomtory reflect a potential level of activity only if all
favomble substmtes for bacteria growth are present in the
field at optimal concentmtions and under optimal growth
conditions. The data do not give any information on the
metabolic state (actively growing or dormant) of these
organisms under field conditions.
Direct microscopic examination of unstained living
specimens using phase-contmst microscopy may
qualitatively indicate some bacterial activity such as the
degree of motility for certain organisms. However, when
the sample is fixed and stained or collected on filters,
direct microscopic techniques will not allow one to
assess the viability or activity state of the population
examined.
Quite often, microbiologists are pressed to identify a
finite number of bacteria per milliliter as an acceptable
level. From opemtional and management points of view,
it seems to be a legitimate request. Technically, it is im-
pmctical to come up with such a number. The sessile
nature of bacteria and the lack of correlation between
bacteria counts and bacterial activity make such a task
impossible. At best, a reasonable goal on maximum
bacteria counts can be established for a particular system
after enough opemting experience has been ac-
cumulated. However, it is quite dangerous to extend the
same criterion to other systems unconditionally.
When studying microbial corrosion, too much em-
phasis may have been put on the number of bacteria in
the water instead of their activity. The presence of
microorganisms in a system does not necessarily indicate
a problem, but only a potential problem. Bacterial activi-
ty really causes or contributes to microbial corrosion
problems and should be cause for concern. A bacteria
number may be more important in special studies such as
bactericide evaluation than in corrosion monitoring.
The area of studying the metabolic status of a bacterial
population is relatively new. Methods are still being
developed to estimate the total number of living (actively
growing or dormant) bacteria in a sample. These include
ATP measurement, 1 automdiogmphy studies, 1 tetrazol~
ium dye reduction, 2 and mdiolabeled-substmte uptake. 4
At present, all these techniques have uncertainties and it
appears that no single technique will give a perfect
answer. 1
One method used extensively in marine and freshwater
environments for determining SRB activities 7 involves
quantitative determination of sulfate reduction mte ~si~g
:J5S-labeled sulfate as a tmcer. The 35S04 - IS
injected into the sample, and the mixture incubated at the
field tempemture for a predetermined period (e.g., 8
hours). Following incubation, sufficient HCI is added to
release the acid-volatile sulfides (FeS) from the sample.
The released sulfide, together with H 2 S, is collected in
Zn-acetate tmps. The amount of mdioactive H 2 S pro-
duced during the incubation period is quantified. From
1174
this and the analysis of sulfate concentmtion (including
nonmdioactive sulfate) in the system, the sulfate reduc-
tion mte is determined. This, in turn, reflects the in-situ
activities of SRB. The suitability of this technique for
monitoring SRB activities in oilfield water systems still
has to be investigated. This mdiotmcer study, when con-
ducted periodically, provides a reasonable assessment of
the metabolic activity of the SRB population in the
system. We believe any quantitative measurement of
microbial activity, in addition to bacteria counts, is a big
step toward understanding microbial corrosion.
Metal Surface Examination. Metal surface examina-
tion provides the best information for assessing
microbial corrosion. However, difficulties encountered
in working with a large oilfield water system can hamper
its effectiveness. The method's effectiveness, however,
can be improved by slight modification of current pmc-
tices or simply by increased awareness of the problems.
Although often many coupons and drop-out spools are
installed throughout a large water system, the surface
area covered is still minimal compared with the total sur-
face area of the system.
Most of the corrosion monitoring fittings and coupons
are installed at the top of the line for easy retrieval, while
most microbial activities and corrosion failures have oc-
curred in the bottom of the quadmnt. Ideally, coupons
should be installed at the latter locations to reflect what
has really happened on the metal surface. To accomplish
this goal, a more extensive use of flush-mounted
coupons located at the bottom of the line seems justified.
The other advantage of using coupons flush with the
pipe wall is that they don't have to be removed from the
system before the pipeline is scmped. This makes long-
term, undisturbed exposure possible. For coupons used
primarily for microbial corrosion evaluation, it is more
desimble to keep them in the system for a longer period
of time.
Metal loss on metal surfaces is not caused exclusively
by microbial corrosion. There usually are other corrosion
mechanisms taking place at the same time that also could
result in pitting attack, as commonly observed in
microbial corrosion. Visual inspection of a metal sur-
face, even with positive identification of bacteria around
the localized corrosion attack, is just the first step in
building a strong case for microbial corrosion. In in-
dustry, there is a strong opinion that bacteria may be in-
nocent bystanders, even when they are found in intimate
association with a corroded site.
Timely analysis for microbial corrosion attack may be
lacking. The suspected metal surface must be analyzed
by a microbiologist before evidence is destroyed. Usual-
ly the microbiologist does not have the responsibility for
pulling the coupon. Therefore, timely coupon evaluation
will become possible only through better coordination
and coopemtion among all involved parties. Sufficient
advance notice should be provided to the microbiologist;
a hasty notification generally will result in no action. If
the coupon cannot be processed properly, it is probably
better to let it remain in the system.
Weare not promoting microbiological study on every
single coupon retrieved. Such study should be done
systematically when the system is onstream. Later, this
effort should be devoted to those areas where microbial
JOURNAL OF PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY
corrosion is suspected or even be phased out on those
systems under control.
When a system develops a corrosion-related leak or
failure and direct access to the metal surface is available,
a microbiologist should conduct an on-site investigation.
In this case, time is pressing because leaks will occur
unexpectedly, and the system will be put back into ser-
vice as soon as possible. Also, the microbiologist must
be told of the opportunity; this requires a close working
relationship with the area engineers and local foremen.
The scraping analysis evaluates the overall bacterial
activities on the metal surface. It cannot reveal whether
these activities are localized or distributed. If bacterial
activities are concentrated at a few spots, early failures
from microbial corrosion should be expected.
Correlation Between Bacteriological Data and Corro-
sion Damage. Microbiological data have to be used in a
practical way; that is, data interpretation should be cor-
related with actual damage. Otherwise, all efforts
devoted to the routine and special bacteriological studies
are academic. From the management level down, we are
concerned with consequences of bacterial activities such
as corrosion or formation damage. Bacteria can stay in
the system as long as they don't cause problems.
Correlations between bacteriological data and actual
corrosion damage are not always apparent. Thus,
microbial corrosion damage has been difficult to identify
positively. This limitation probably has discouraged the
corrosion engineers' effort. As a result, corrosion failure
caused by bacteria is often diagnosed by a process of
elimination. When other possible corrosion mechanisms
cannot be identified, microbial corrosion often is sug-
gested as the primary cause of the failure. A large
oilfield water system can not be maintained sterile;
bacteria will always exist. But this fact alone should not
be considered direct evidence for microbial corrosion.
To detect correlations between bacteriological data
and actual damage, we believe that long-term data
analyses and manipulation are necessary. The implica-
tions of bacteriological data probably will not be
recognized without these processes. As stressed
repeatedly in this paper, most data will become mean-
ingful only when a trend is established, and this takes
time. Before such a'trend becomes obvious, monitoring
data and the analytical results must be stored where they
can be retrieved easily.
Bacteriological data also have to be integrated with
other information such as operating data and physical
parameters of the systems. For example, equivalent
levels of bacterial activity in a system with differing
flowing velocities may result in different degrees of
microbial corrosion. Bacterial countS from water
samples taken simultaneously, but at different locations,
also may cause different damage if these two points
receive different levels of bactericide treatment. Such
data manipulation is very labor-intensive and will be im-
proved significantly by more efficient use of available
computer facilities. We became very aware of a need for
computers for data gathering, analyzing, and retrieval in
the area of corrosion monitoring and control. While an
appropriate computer program is being developed, data
are handled manually by corrosion engineers, laboratory
chemists, and microbiologists.
JULY 1984
Maintaining an Anaerobic Environment During
Analysis. Major oilfield water systems are anaerobic.
Anaerobic bacteria, which are the dominant group of
organisms present in these systems, are the major con-
cern in corrosion and corrosion monitoring. The
anaerobic nature of the system presents a major
methodological problem in handling and analyzing field-
collected samples likely to become exposed to air. Cer-
tain bacterial and chemical analyses, therefore, have to
be conducted on-site. It is extremely difficult to avoid
oxygenation and the subsequent bacterial and chemical
changes of the sample during transportation to the
laboratory. Some special tests, however, must be done in
the laboratory. They require equipment available only in
the laboratory, such as the muffle furnace for VSS, cen-
trifuge for collecting and identifying solids, and emis-
sion spectroscopy for elemental analysis. Some of these
tests are time-consuming. Further delay and excessive
oxidation will bias the test results. Special handling
devices and techniques are required, and use of nitrogen
purge while the test is being conducted may be a suitable
compromise.
Bactericide Study. Laboratory bactericide evaluation
tests and field bactericide persistence tests are normally
conducted under static conditions against free-floating
bacteria. For preliminary chemical screening purposes,
this approach probably is adequate. Because of the
sessile nature of microorganisms as described in the
previous sections, final selection of bactericides should
include tests against surface-associated bacteria pqpula-
tions and their effectiveness in penetrating biofilm layers
on the inetal surfaces.
To do this, corrosion coupOns or other special equip-
ment, such as the newly developed Robbins device, 3 can
be used to test the sessile bacteria. Field-contaminated
water is allowed to flow continuously through the device
until a biofilm, is built, up on the pipe surface or the
coupon. The system then is subjected to various bacteri-
cide treatment programs. The effectiveness of the treat-
ment is determined by analyzing the total number of sur-
viving bacteria on the metal surface and the rate of their
metabolic activities When coupons or the special
"studs" built into the Robbins .device are removed.
Radioiracertech~iques, involving 14C-Iabeled bacteri-
cide for example, may be very useful in these studies for
understanding the overall bactericide function. From the
distribution of radioactivity in the system it is possible to
find out the mechanisms of bactericide action, the
penetration of bact~ricide into the surface-associated
fouling layer, the stability of bactericide in the system,
its reactivity with other chemicals present in the system,
and its incorporation into cellular materials. This is. a
new technique in oilfield water systems but certainly
deserves fUrther investigation.
Conclusions
1. All available methods for monitoring microbial cor-
rosion have limitatio~s. This problem is more pro-
nounced in tiuge dUfield water systems.
2. Microbiological datil cannot be used directly, to
predict the extent of microbial corrosion in the field. The
data have to be interpreted in conjunction with field
1175
observation, operational experience, and established
baseline infonnation.
3. In view of all the limitations and difficulties,
monitoring of microbial corrosion can be greatly im-
proved by (1) emphasizing bacteria activity monitoring
in addition to bacteria count and (2) utilizing metal sur-
face examination more effectively.
Acknowledgments
We thank the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Petroleum and
Mineral Resources and Aramco for pennission to publish
this paper.
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JPT
Original manuscript received in Society of Petroleum Engineers Office Dec. 28, 1982.
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JOURNAL OF PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY