The natural gas industry relies very heavily on sensitive electronic equipment utilized in the production, gathering transportation, and distribution phases. There is an increasing reliance on the use of electronics for performing important tasks relating to measurement, control, and safety. Coupled with increased reliance is the demand by users for increased reliability.

Failures in electronic equipment causes:

  Increased man hours for maintenance

  Inaccurate data

  Loss of data

  Overall increased cost

While there are many factors that contribute to failures in sensitive field electronics, this paper will focus on two: High Relative Humidity (RH) and Corrosion. Having a keen understanding of RH is very helpful for controlling RH and corrosion in field electronics. What follows is an explanation of RH, saturation, and water dew point.