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We can provide specialist training on corrosion subjects. See training under services or click here.
Corrosion Investigation
Corrosion Testing
Corrosion Protection
Salt Fog Testing
Humidity Cabinet Testing
Stray Current Corrosion
Corrosion Training
Sulphate Reducing Bacteria (Mircobial Corrosion)
Stress Corrosion Cracking
Chloride Corrosion
Corrosion Under Insulation / Lagging (CUL)
Crevice Corrosion
Bimetallic Corrosion
Preferential Weld Attack
Corrosion Fatigue
Preferential Phase Attack
Oxygen Concentration Cell
Filamentary Corrosion
Hydrogen Embrittlement
Cavitation Damage
At Materials Technology our engineers have many years of experience of corrosion investigation. We specialise in corrosion investigation, testing, fault analysis and prevention.
As corrosion is a very broad subject we are only able to give you a summary of the services that we can provide you with in this area. We welcome further discussion of your specific problem.
Our corrosion investigation work involves both on site inspection work to determine the root cause of problems combined with our own laboratory testing facilities. Corrosion problems can often be complex and require a range of disciplines to solve. Our multidisciplinary engineers can provide you with these skills to solve your corrosion problems. Our engineers have worked extensively in the petrochem industry which provides some of the harshest operating conditions and where corrosion protection and failure analysis can be a matter of life or death. Over the years they have also gained considerable experience in other industries including: power generation, pharmaceutical, automotive, marine, defence, electrical, and aerospace.
The first step in any corrosion investigation is to understand the root cause of the failure or problem. This will typically involve inspection work combined with a review of the conditions prior to failure and a review of the materials specifications. Following this samples may be required for more detailed chemical analysis or microscopic work. Once the root cause has been determined we can then provide you with clear and concise remedial actions and assist you with the selection of the correct materials for the application. All of our work is backed by full technical reports and will include full colour photographs.
You don't need to wait for a failure to happen. It's often better to have us review your plant, designs and material selection at the earliest opportunity so that future failures or shutdowns can be prevented. We typically conduct this sort of work for a range of petrochem clients prior to any planned development work.
Some of our recent corrosion investigations have included anchor chain failures, failure of heat exchanger in a major brewery, stress corrosion cracking of brass fire extinguishers, microbial attack of stainless steel pharmaceutical storage tank.
Sulphate reducing bacteria can produce dramatic corrosion in only short time spans. These pictures demonstrate the typical corrosion pits afer only 10 days exposure to new stainless steel.
Corrosion from Sulphate Reducing Bacteria (SRB)
Accelerated Corrosion Testing
We specialise in conducting accelerated corrosion testing in house and have a range of techniques available. The purpose of an accelerated corrosion test is to cause corrosion, degradation or failure in a shorter time period than under normal conditions without a change in the failure mechanism. This can be conducted using humidity and salt spray tests, simulated service tests, electrochemical corrosion testing, immersion tests, and atmospheric corrosion tests. We can also build bespoke customer test rigs if you have a special requirement.
Accelerated corrosion testing is highly useful when changing suppliers and can be used to validate new suppliers and insure that there is no deterioration in the design life of the product. Accelerated corrosion testing is achieved by subjecting the test components to conditions that are more severe than normal service conditions. This results in shorter lives than would be normally observed.
Corrosion Investigation
Example of Stress Corrosion Cracking
We Value Our Customers. Throughout the years, we have noticed that much of our business comes from repeat customers. Our expertise and well equipped lab can account for some of this, but we also attribute it to the fact that we promote an open and friendly environment that is never too busy to meet your needs. We value your business whether you are a large corporation or a small enterprise and always aim to give you a solution that you can understand. We will provide you with the attention you need and deserve. We invite you to visit us and get to know our staff, and share in the learning experience. Feel free to drop by and see our facilities.
Why Choose Materials Technology? As one of the UK's premier testing and failure analysis companies featuring state of the art equipment we are able to offer a unique and diverse blend of services combined with many years of experience. Thousands of investigations have been performed at Materials Technology over our 30 year history. These have resulted in many successful litigation cases, savings of millions of pounds and prevention of future catastrophes. We realise that your time is precious and will always aim to provide a speedy response to all problems. If necessary our engineers can be on site within 24 hours during emergency situations. All of our work is conducted with the highest confidentiality and we regularly work under non disclosure agreements with our clients.
We provide you with a laboratory that you can count on. We deliver accurate and reliable test results and root cause determinations on which future materials selection and corrosion control decisions can be based.