Corrosion of metals — II. Lead and lead-alloy cable sheathing

This paper discusses the corrosion of cable sheathing in the aerial and underground cable plants. Corrosion does not appear to be a primary factor affecting the life of aerial cables; failure of these cables occurs usually from intergranular embrittlement and is minimized by the use of alloy sheathing. It is shown that corrosion of cable sheathing in conduit occurs by means of the operation of small corrosion cells on the surface of the sheath or by the leakage of current from the sheath to ground. The driving force of these corrosion cells arises from some chemical inhomogeneity in either the metal or the surrounding environment. The course and the character of corrosion is determined chiefly by the influence of the constituents of the environment on the operation of these cells. These constituents may be classed as corroding or protective; — the corroding including oxygen, nitrates, alkalies and organic acids, while the protective are silicates, sulfates, carbonates, soil colloids and certain organic compounds. Cable sheathing buried directly in soils is seriously corroded by differential aeration-cell action resulting from physical contact of relatively large soil particles and metal. In general it is concluded that corrosion of cable sheathing is influenced more by the nature of the environment than by the chemical composition of the metallic material. The incidence of corrosion of cable sheathing is small owing to the maintenance of non-corrosive chemical and electrical environments in the cable plant.