Specific Soil Resistivity

There is a direct and an indirect method of measuring specific soil resistivity. The direct method is carried out in the laboratoiy on a soil sample using a soil box as shown in Fig. 3-16. The resistivity of a soil specimen of cross-section, S, and length, I, is measured and the specific resistivity determined  

The indirect method is performed in the field with the arrangement shown in Fig. 3-14. In both cases the measurement is made with ac to suppress polarization effects. 

When making measurements in the soil box, it has to be remembered that soil samples can change from their original condition and this will have an effect on the resistivity. Soil resistivity measurements in the soil box only give accurate results with cohesive soils. However, the order of magnitude of the specific resis- 

The most commonly applied indirect method of measuring soil resistivity using the four-electrode arrangement of Fig. 3-14 is described further in Section 24.3.1. The measured quantities are the injected current, /, between the electrodes A and B, and the voltage, t/, between the electrodes C and D. The specific soil resistivity follows from Eq. (24-41). For the usual measuring arrangement with equally spaced electrodes a = b,ii follows from Eq. (24-41)  

If the specific soil resistivity varies vertically with depth, t, an apparent specific resistivity can be obtained from a combination of the resistivity of the upper and 

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The Wenner method is chiefly used to determine the grounding resistance along the pipeline track and the installation positions for cathodic structures. Local limited soil resistivity is most clearly determined from the grounding resistance of an inserted Shephard rod (see Fig. 3-18). Soil stratification can be recognized from the apparent specific soil resistivity, p, by the Wenner method, if a is varied. 

Fig. 3-16 Soil box for determining the specific soil resistivity (dimensions in millimeters).

Since the Wenner rod is mechanically somewhat delicate, it is only used in loose soils or in bore holes. For all measuring rods, the specific soil resistivity is equal to the product of the measured ac resistance and the shape factor Fq, which is determined empirically. 

Fig. 9-3 Grounding resistance of anodes in a continuous coke bed with a covering of earth t = 1 m and a diameter d = 0.3 m for a specific soil resistivity of p = 10 Q m. Horizontal anodes from Eq. (24-23), see line 9 in Table 24-1 vertical anodes R ...

For installations with continuous coke backfill, the anodes can be installed at double the spacing of the anode bed extension. The lower the ratio p /p (i e., the higher the specific soil resistivity), the further apart the anodes can be placed. 

The wattage is directly proportional to the grounding resistance of the whole anode bed and therefore to the specific soil resistivity. Equation (9-5) gives the grounding resistance of the anode installation which either consists of n horizontal or vertical single anodes or of anodes with a horizontal continuous coke bed of total length I = ns. The total cost function is given by [1] ... 

The measured potential contains, besides the true object/soil potential, an ohmic voltage drop that is proportional to the specific soil resistivity and the current density. 

The current output of galvanic anodes depends on the specific soil resistivity in the installation area and can only be used in low-resistivity soils for pipelines with a low protection current requirement because of the low driving voltage. Impressed current anode installations can be used in soils with higher specific soil resistivities and where large protection currents are needed because of their variable output voltage. 

Additional individual anodes must be installed at points on the protected object where a sufficiently negative pipe/soil potential cannot be achieved. Since usually only the voltage cone is of interest, the place of installation does not depend on the specific soil resistivity. Coke backfill is not necessary, and the place of installation is determined by the local circumstances. Individual horizontal anodes are conveniently installed parallel to the pipeline at the depth of the pipe axis. The voltage, length and distance of the anodes from the protected object are chosen according to Section 9.1 so that criterion No. 6 or No. 7 in Table 3-3 is fulfilled. 

This method gives an average in situ resistance at a depth equal to the pin spacing. Foreign buried structures may interfere with the measurements when using the Wenner method. Therefore, it is important to position the pins perpendicular to the underground pipeline [44]. If the pins are positioned parallel to the pipeline, it would result in lower resistance values than the actual resistance. If the specific soil resistance varies vertically... 

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