Photovoltaic-powered regulated cathodic-protection system

Abstract The objective of a cathodic protection system is to protect metallic structures against corrosion. To achieve this, a sacrificial anode is connected to the protected structure (which acts as a cathode) through a d.c. power supply. To stop the corrosion, the protected structure requires a constant current. The current is determined by the metal and area of the structure, as well as the surrounding medium. The major difficulty in achieving a constant current is the variation in the resistivity of the surrounding medium that is caused by changes in the climatic conditions. Conventional cathodic-protection systems resolve this problem by manual adjustment of the d.c. voltage periodically to obtain a constant current. Such adjustment depends on the experience of the technician and the accuracy of the measuring equipment. Moreover if the interval between successive adjustments is relative long, the corrosion could become excessive. To overcome such difficulties, an automatically regulated system has been developed. The proposed system senses variations is the resistivity of the surrounding medium and adjusts the d.c. voltage accordingly so that the current is kept constant at the required level. The design of a solar photovoltaic system to supply the required d.c. power is discussed in this communication.