SwRI: Corrosion Science and Process Engineering Services, Geosciences and Engineering

			CNWRA® researchers use a wide spectrum of test equipment and control systems to evaluate the stress corrosion cracking susceptibility of waste package materials in potential repository environments. Our slow strain rate test results (lower image) established the possibility of Alloy 22 stress corrosion cracking within a narrow range of environmental conditions and electrochemical potentials.

Corrosion science and process engineering services at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) provide technical assistance for evaluating material performance in complex industrial and subsurface applications, including:

• High-temperature oxidation and corrosion processes

• Microbially influenced corrosion

• Corrosion characteristics

• Corrosion monitoring

• Surface metrology

• Stability

• Life prediction

• Safety of chemical and waste treatment processes

• High-strain-rate material behavior

• High-speed machining

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.

SwRI is currently developing nanostructured copper-chromium (Cu-Cr) coatings to protect underlying copper-based materials from high-temperature oxidation, hot gas erosion, and cyclic oxidation and reduction environments.

SwRI staff recently co-authored the book, Techniques for Corrosion Monitoring, which was edited by Leitai Yang, Ph.D., and published by Woodhead Ltd.

For more information about corrosion science and process engineering services at SwRI or how you can contract with SwRI, please contact Dr. Keith Axler at kaxler@swri.org or (210) 522-2951.