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01/20/15 12:39 AM
not sure if any help but had to have a little look around to get more of an idea of your problem.
http://www.epa.gov/sciencematters/april2011/leaks.htm
Using this information to compare problematic waters with corrosion-free waters will not only allow scientists to identify the mechanisms of pitting corrosion, but also to identify possible solutions to these problems. For example, one case study near Cincinnati, OH involved two neighboring communities, both receiving water from the same main source, but one community had prevalent pinhole leak problems while the other did not.
“We went to the community that doesn’t have a problem,” recalls Lytle, “and we found out the only difference is that they add a phosphate-based chemical for corrosion control, and the community that has a problem does not add phosphate.”
In addition to compiling this database and comparing water chemistries, researchers have designed and utilized a pipe-loop system to test water for its tendency to initiate pitting corrosion by continuously running water through a series of copper pipes. A small-scale, preliminary study using this pipe-loop system showed researchers that evidence of localized corrosion could be found after only 72 days of flowing water through the system. A tool like this pipe-loop system could prove very useful for water utilities.
“It’s an inexpensive system. You can go to the local hardware store and pick up all the plumbing and the fittings. A water utility could easily build it, put it in their water distribution system, and just run water through and periodically pull sections of the pipe out to examine them for any signs of corrosion by-products,” says Lytle, encouraging the use of such a system.
Pitting corrosion in copper piping is difficult for a homeowner to detect and correct before it becomes a big problem, and often will result in expensive repairs and replacement. The EPA-designed pipe-loop testing system offers the potential to provide a solution, giving water companies a low-cost early warning system for identifying water likely to lead to pinhole corrosion, and preventing homeowners from facing the damage and health risks that come from leaking pipes. Such pipe-loop testing systems could also help water companies to identify potential solutions for existing problems.
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