SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE

High-Temperature Oxidation and Corrosion Processes

	SwRI staff expose alloy samples to remelted volcanic rock to evaluate the effects of magma on waste package material at high temperatures up to 1,250°C. Corrosion prediction for systems with extremely long design lives (on the order of tens of thousands of years) is important for assessing the performance of high-level radioactive waste geologic repositories.

High-temperature oxidation and corrosion play an important role in the selection of materials for geological and aerospace applications. Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) provides technical assistance for

• Oxidation

• Sulfidation

• Nitridation

• Molten salt corrosion

• Protective coatings

State-of-the-art laboratory facilities and extensive computer modeling capabilities, as well as plant-site investigations and monitoring are used to meet client needs.
 

Microbalance system for studying high-temperature oxidation and corrosion

High-temperature oxidation and corrosion kinetics can be monitored using a state-of-the-art continuous-recording microbalance. SwRI's thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) system has a heating furnace with 1,700°C temperature capability, and is supported by an associated data acquisition and analysis system. SwRI staff have extensive experience in evaluating high-temperature oxidation and corrosion mechanisms, as well as in the development of protective coatings to mitigate materials degradation.

Oxidation kinetics of Alloy 22 material in air at 850 °C. and 1100 °C.: (left) mass gain vs. time; (right) mass gain vs. time1/2.

Cross section through the scale produced on Alloy 22 after 120 hours oxidation at 850°C. [1,562°F]: (left) scanning electron microscope backscattered electron image; and (right) concentration profiles of oxygen, chromium, iron, nickel, molybdenum, and tungsten along the line of traverse

For more information about the high-temperature oxidation and corrosion service capabilities at SwRI or how you can contract with SwRI, please contact Dr. Ken Chiang at kchiang@swri.org or (210) 522-2308, or Dr. Gary Walter at gwalter@swri.org or (210) 522-3805.
 

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Southwest Research Institute^® (SwRI^®), headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, is a multidisciplinary, independent, nonprofit, applied engineering and physical sciences research and development organization with 12 technical divisions.

August 21, 2009