Founded in 1950, Cathodic Protection UK was one of the first companies in the United Kingdom set up specifically to provide equipment and engineering services for cathodic protection of high pressure gas & oil pipelines, marine structures and storage facilities. The company has grown continuously since those early years.
Cuprion™ anti-fouling systems
Cuprion™ is the most environmentally-safe marine growth anti-fouling system available for bio-fouling
Cathodic Protection UK have manufactured and supplied the electrolytic Cuprion™ anti-fouling system since the early 1970s to protect pumped sea water systems against marine growth. Today, the system is used by many major oil and gas offshore operators to protect vertical sea water and fire water pumps on platforms. Other applications include jetty fire pumps and sea water intake systems.
Benefits
- Reduction in power requirements over alternative methods for fouling control
- Low maintenance system
- Low power requirement
- No handling or storage of chemicals required
- Environmentally acceptable
- 35 years or proven experience
System Description
The method is based upon the use of impressed current on copper and aluminium anodes which are themselves contained within an insulated steel frame which forms the cathode. The anode/cathode electrode unit is suspended from the pump motor base within the confines of the caisson so that all the water entering the pump must pass the electrode unit.
The Cuprion™ system consists of two parts — the electrode unit and control panel. The electrode contains a number of copper and aluminum anode bars held together in a steel frame to form the cathode. The actual number and size of the anodes is configured to suit each installation and available space for mounting the electrode unit. The anodes are connected to the constant current rectifier located within a safe area.
The control panel is designed to regulate the anode currents in both ‘pump on’ and ‘pump off’ conditions, so that during pump standby an atmosphere of copper ions in the local environment will protect the pump from fouling. This feature is particularly useful for installation on fire pumps that are generally operated for a short period each week.
Dosage levels of copper ions are extremely small and measured in micrograms per litre of seawater. Therefore, relatively small quantities of copper are required to provide protection dependent upon the flow rate and life required.
Deck Mounted Option
For some applications, traditional method of pump/electrode configuration may not be suitable. As an alternative, Cathodic Protection UK offer the deck mounted system.
With the deck mounted Cuprion™ anti-fouling system, the anodes are located inside a tank through which water is fed from the main sea water system. As the water passes through the tank, the carefully controlled anode currents ensure that the correct dosing level is applied for the particular application. The treated water is then piped down directly to the pump suction. In this way, several pumps can be protected against fouling from a single treatment source.
The deck mounted Cuprion™ system is ideally suited for retro-fitting where installation of the more traditional pump/electrode configuration is not feasible.