Integrity Analysis of Polyamide 12 Applied in Oil Pipelines

Pipes of polyamide were installed in oil fields and, after one year of operation, were removed and analyzes were carried out to assess any degradation and study its use in oil pipelines as corrosion mitigation. The outer layers of all field samples and the unaged sample did not show, in the DSC, any primary peak close to the melting peak. This is due to the extrusion and the formation of different crystalline structures on the inner surface, giving rise to two melting peaks. All layers of the field samples showed endothermic peaks. The unaged sample did not show these peaks. This can be attributed to the annealing process, but this phenomenon does not affect the properties PA12. The results showed no degradation and PA12 can be a viable alternative for oil pipelines, providing savings of more than 50% compared to steel, in addition to operational, human and environmental safety.