Corrosion can be described as the gradual destruction of metal and other related materials caused by chemical reaction with the air and/or the surrounding physical environment.
Corrosion is one of the biggest problems we face today, our aging infrastructure is crumbling around us, and it takes all our efforts and strength just to slow it down. Bridges, motorways, railway lines, sewer systems are all victims, and these are just some of the systems we hear about in the press or we come up against day to day when we're trying to get too or from work, for example. Just take a moment to think about the other places corrosion may still be eating away at our infrastructure, keep reading.
It has been estimated that in the United States direct costs associated with corrosion was well over $22 billion in 2002. Adjusted for inflation this is likely closer to $42 billion in 2013.
The problem with corrosion is that it is so variable in form and difficult to predict and remedy in some places. Corrosion will never be totally eradicated, but we should come closer to managing the effects, it has been estimated that we could save 25-30% of these costs annually if we could employ an efficient corrosion management system. Think about how our car industry has tackled the problem. 20 or 30 years ago it was quite common to see badly corroded cars still in use on our roads, today, of course, due to many factors, one being macro-economics we do not see as many, but technology has also played a part in managing the rate of the corrosion process.
A US based company has recently filed a patent application for a new nano coating to be used in the oil and gas industry, an industry which is also heavily victim to corrosion. Let's look forward to more such discoveries.