A review of research methods for corrosion under insulation

Abstract

Corrosion under insulation (CUI) is a crucial issue in the industry. Its importance has been increasingly acknowledged because of the high cost and potential danger of causing severe losses. This review gives essential knowledge of CUI and summarizes the research from several aspects, including lab experiments, field tests, CUI prediction methods and numerical simulation research in porous materials. Insulation material, coating, substrate metallic material of the equipment, operating temperature and surroundings are some critical factors that should be considered in the CUI problem. Experimental research methods of CUI and mass transfer in insulation materials were summarized, as well as the applications of data science in CUI prediction. This review also focuses on simulation researches on heat and moisture transfer in porous insulation materials since numerical simulations are helpful for establishing validated models for CUI by modeling to describe the specific processes and predict environmental conditions of CUI for further corrosion research. Combined experimental and simulation work of CUI would be a practical and effective method for CUI research.