ISO 13174:2012

Overview

ISO 13174:2012 - Cathodic protection of harbour installations - specifies how to apply cathodic protection (CP) effectively to the immersed, driven and saline‑mud‑exposed metallic external surfaces of steel port, harbour, coastal and flood‑defence structures. The standard covers fixed and floating port structures (piers, jetties, dolphins, sheet/tubular piling, pontoons, buoys, floating docks, lock and sluice gates) and submerged appurtenances electrically connected to those structures. It is focused on anodes exposed to water or saline mud and on structures fabricated principally from bare or coated carbon and carbon‑manganese steels.

Key topics and technical requirements

• Scope & exclusions: Applies to seawater, brackish water and saline mud environments; does not cover offshore structures, submarine pipelines, ships, internal surfaces (e.g., ballast tanks) or reinforced concrete (see ISO 12696 / EN 12696). Buried‑in‑soil requirements are covered by EN 12954.
• Design basis: Defines objectives, CP criteria and design parameters required to determine current demand and system sizing for both impressed current and galvanic anode systems.
• Electrical current demand: Guidance for assessing current requirements to polarize steel surfaces and mitigate corrosion, including coated vs. bare steel considerations and coating breakdown factors.
• System types: Requirements and design considerations for impressed current systems and galvanic (sacrificial) anode systems, including anode materials, placement and life estimation.
• Electrical continuity & interactions: Ensures control of galvanic coupling, stray current interactions and mitigation of risks such as hydrogen embrittlement (cross‑referencing ISO 12473).
• Commissioning, operation & maintenance: Procedures for commissioning CP systems, performance verification, monitoring and maintenance planning.
• Competence & documentation: Requirements for qualified personnel, measurement techniques and documentation needed for long‑term asset management.
• Special corrosion issues: Applicability to structures affected by Accelerated Low Water Corrosion (ALWC) and microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC).

Practical applications

• Protecting steel harbour infrastructure against seawater and saline mud corrosion
• Designing CP for new piers, jetties, pontoons, sheet‑pile walls and floating docks
• Retrofitting CP systems to existing port assets experiencing localized corrosion or ALWC
• Specifying anode type, placement and monitoring regimes for long‑term maintenance plans

Who uses ISO 13174:2012

• Corrosion engineers and cathodic protection designers
• Port authorities, asset owners and marine infrastructure operators
• Structural and marine contractors installing CP systems
• Manufacturers/suppliers of anodes, rectifiers and monitoring equipment
• Inspectors and maintenance teams responsible for lifecycle asset protection

Related standards

• ISO 12473 - General principles of cathodic protection in seawater
• EN 12954 - Cathodic protection for buried/immersed metallic structures (soil)
• EN 12496 - Galvanic anodes for seawater/saline mud
• ISO 12696 / EN 12696 - Cathodic protection of steel in concrete
• EN 13509 - Cathodic protection measurement techniques
• EN 50162 - Protection against stray DC currents

Keywords: ISO 13174, cathodic protection, harbour installations, seawater corrosion, galvanic anodes, impressed current, port structures, ALWC, MIC, corrosion protection.