Preliminary Study on the Impact of GIC on Pipe-to-Soil Potential of Buried Pipeline Near Equatorial Region

Geomagnetic induced current (GIC) is an aftermath effect of space weather activity that caused disruption to earth-related applications including the Impressed Current Cathodic Protection System (ICCP), a corrosion mitigation system of buried pipelines. ICCP performance degrades by large voltage swings caused by GIC, thus corroding the pipeline faster. The effect of GIC on the ICCP system had been investigated in high-latitude regions, however, fewer discoveries on this subject matter in Equatorial Region particularly near the geomagnetic equator. This paper presents the effect of GIC based on the H component of the Earth's magnetic field with the Pipe to Soil Potential (PSP), during moderate and intense geomagnetic storm events day. Results show that the H component variations and its time derivative had a stronger relationship during intense geomagnetic storm events. This study also found a new finding, i.e., the PSP was also out of the safe range with the possible effect of equatorial electrojet (EEJ), a daily variation of the H component. This has made the PSP swing out of the safe range even during moderate geomagnetic storm days. This research is important in understanding the cause and extent of the impact of GIC in the process of controlling pipeline corrosion where safety issues may arise in the long run due to this event.