Investigations on corrosion behaviors of super-strength sucker rod FG20 steel in high SO42− environment

In some sour reservoirs and tertiary oil recovery blocks, SO 4 2− in the well fluid can cause the corrosion and corrosion fatigue of the sucker rods . In this paper, the corrosion behaviors of super-strength sucker rod FG20 (16Mn2SiCrMoVTiA) steel in the well fluid are investigated by electrochemical measurements, and electron probe micro-analyzer (EPMA) analysis. The results show that FG20 steel has a favorable corrosion resistance in neutral solution. When the hydrogen ions increase, the hydrolysis of SO 4 2− greatly accelerates the corrosion of FG20 steel. The energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) results demonstrate that the corrosion process of FG20 steel in neutral well fluid is an oxygen concentration process, and the protective FeCO 3 and Fe 2 O 3 on the surface of the samples can prevent the further corrosion. With the increase of the acidity in the well fluid, the corrosion process converts into a sulphide concentration process, and the sloppy FeS and mackinawite film cannot provide effective protection for the specimens, resulting in the increase of corrosion rate .