The Impact of Corrosion on Society

C.M. HANSSON

Almost all metals and alloys are unstable in the Earth’s atmosphere and will always be sus-
ceptible to corrosion. The basic principles of corrosion are briefly described in order to explain
the observations of corrosion, which render our personal items as well as industrial machinery
and public property dysfunctional, aesthetically displeasing, and potentially dangerous. This is
followed by a discussion, with case study examples, of three aspects of the impact of corrosion
on society: (1) direct effects resulting in injury or death, (2) contamination of the environment,
and (3) the financial costs.

DOI: 10.1007/s11661-011-0703-2
 The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society and ASM International 2011

I. INTRODUCTION very simply as an anodic electrochemical reaction in

ALMOST all metals and alloys are unstable in the
Earth’s atmosphere and will always be susceptible to
corrosion, i.e., conversion to a lower energy inorganic
compound, such as carbonate, sulfide, or oxide. Thus,
the metals and alloys used by engineers today are all in a
metastable state and will corrode, at a rate dependent on
the environment, unless steps are taken to minimize the
risk of corrosion for the expected service life of the
component. Unfortunately, while this fact is known by
the majority of engineers, corrosion resistance is often
relegated to a lower priority when materials are selected
on the basis of those properties essential to the specific
application, such as strength, stiffness, and electrical
conductivity. The result is that corrosion is ubiquitous,
occurring in all forms of engineering materials from
microelectronics to orthopaedic implants to major civil
infrastructures and to the everyday objects in our lives,
as illustrated by the collage of images in Figure 1.
While the images in Figure 1 show the breadth of
corrosion, the examples illustrate the waste and loss of
functionality corrosion causes, but they do not consti-
tute major hazards. However, there are instances where
seemingly trivial amounts of corrosion can have major
impacts, and three aspects of these are considered
subsequently: (1) direct effects resulting in injury or
death, (2) contamination of the environment, and (3) the
financial costs. These will be illustrated by case histories
of some of the worst corrosion-related disasters reported
in the last half century.
II. CORROSION PRINCIPLES
Most corrosion occurs in aqueous solutions, including
the very thin film of condensate moisture on the surface
of metals exposed to the atmosphere. It can be described
C.M. HANSSON, Professor, is with the Department of Mechanical
and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON
N2L 3G1, Canada. Contact e-mail: chansson@uwaterloo.ca
Manuscript submitted September 20, 2010.
Article published online April 29, 2011
which the metal atom, M, gives up one or more electrons
to become a cation:
M ! Mnþ þ ne ½1
This reaction will only happen if there is a corre-
sponding cathodic reactant available to receive the
electrons; in aqueous solutions, this is usually one of
the following:
2Hþ þ 2e ! H2 in acidic solutions ½2
1=2O þ H2 O þ 2e ! 2ðOHÞ
2
½3
in neutral or basic solutions
The metal ions may remain dissolved in the solution
or may react with other ions and precipitate as solid
compounds.
As in any other electrical circuit, the passage of
electrons between the anode and cathode constitutes a
current. Electrochemical corrosion measurements are
based on directly or indirectly measuring this current
and using Faraday’s law to convert this to a corrosion
rate, for example, in material loss expressed as lm/
year.[1]
Fortunately, instead of continuing to actively corrode,
several metals and alloys form a thin (nanometer thick),
passive film in certain environments, which reduces the
corrosion rate to a negligible level. For solutions in the
neutral pH range, these include aluminum and its alloys,
titanium and its alloys, and stainless steel, as long as the
chromium content of the steel is in excess of ~12 wt pct,
at which level a protective film of Cr2O3 will form. In
highly alkaline environments, plain carbon steel also
becomes passivated. The regions of pH and electro-
chemical potential for which metals are passivated are
given in the ‘‘Atlas of Electrochemical Equilibria in
Aqueous Solutions.’’[2]
The rate of corrosion can be increased significantly,
either overall or locally, by a number of factors, which
has led to a classification of corrosion forms, some of
which are described subsequently.

2952—VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011 METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A

Fig. 1—Everyday examples of corrosion: (a) corrosion of a computer circuit board (courtesy: oldcomputers.net); (b) crevice corrosion on the
underside of the author’s washroom sink; (c) corrosion of a food can (courtesy: Cesar Mejar); (d) pitting corrosion of a silver-plated water jug
(courtesy: Corrosion Doctors); (e) corrosion of brass plate (courtesy: Corrosion Doctors); and (f) deicing salt-induced corrosion of reinforcing
steel corrosion in reinforced concrete bridge.

A. General Corrosion contaminants from the atmosphere such as sulfates or

General corrosion is sometimes known as uniform
corrosion, because it occurs over the entire exposed
surface. However, once it progresses, there are always
variations in the degree of corrosion so ‘‘uniform’’ as
not completely accurate. If the corrosion products are
soluble, then the result is a general thinning of the
metal and can result in structural failure or in perfora-
tion of the part. The most common form of general
corrosion is the atmospheric rusting of steel. In this case,
the corrosion product is insoluble but is porous and
poorly adherent and is, therefore, not protective.[3]
There are many forms of oxides of iron, and rust is
often considered to be simply Fe2O3. However, it is
generally a hydrated form of the oxide incorporating
chlorides.[3]
The worst example of this kind of corrosion observed
by this author is illustrated in Figure 2(a). This ship
carried 130 passengers and ‘‘crew’’ for 58 days from
China to Canada in 1999 and, amazingly, all survived.
In this case, the ‘‘rust’’ would have incorporated
chlorides and possible sulfates and gave rise to a very
nonuniform attack, as shown in Figure 2(b).
B. Galvanic Corrosion
Contact between two different metals (galvanic cor-
rosion) enhances the protection of one (which becomes
more cathodic) at the expense of more rapid dissolution

METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011—2953

of the other (which becomes more anodic). A classic
example of the detrimental effects is the perforation of
the copper skin of the Statue of Liberty.[4] The gaskets
isolating the copper skin from the steel support structure
Fig. 2—(a) Refugee ship from China. (b) Close up of the corrosion
of the ship in (a), showing general corrosion with additional local-
ized corrosion below the water line, attributable to the chlorides in
sea water.
Fig. 3—Galvanic corrosion-induced perforation of the copper skin on the statue of Liberty.[4]
2954—VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011
disintegrated over the years, allowing contact between
the two metals. The steel corroded and its expansive
corrosion products perforated the copper, as shown in
Figure 3. Galvanic corrosion leads to failures in many
fields, some of the most common of which are in
electronic components and household pipe components.
The following guidelines are given to mitigate gal-
vanic corrosion:[5]
(1) use one metal or alloy throughout the system;
(2) if this is not possible, use metals that are as close
as possible in the galvanic series;[1]
(3) avoid a surface area ratio in which the more active
(anodic) metal is smaller than the more noble
(cathodic) metal;
(4) isolate the dissimilar metals; and
(5) design for easy replacement of the anodic part.
The beneficial exploitation of galvanic corrosion is
exemplified by the widespread processes of galvanizing
steel and of cathodic protection using ‘‘sacrificial
anodes.’’ The latter are used extensively in applications
ranging from household water heater tanks to offshore
oil platforms and thousands of kilometers of oil, gas,
and water pipelines. The principle is shown schemati-
cally in Figure 4.
C. Pitting Corrosion
Pitting usually occurs in passivated metals and alloys
and is often associated with saline environments. Chlo-
rides cause local breakdown of the passive film, the actual
mechanisms of breakdown being a matter of debate. The
various theories[6] include (1) penetration through the
point defects in the passive oxide film by chlorides and
subsequent aggressive dissolution,[6] (2) competitive
absorption of chloride and oxygen ions, and (3) dynamic
depassivation-repassivation. However, what is agreed is
METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A

Fig. 4—Schematic diagram of cathodic protection of a buried pipe
using magnesium as a sacrificial anode.
Fig. 5—Schematic representation of chloride-induced pitting corro-
sion of a passivated metal.
that, where the passive film is locally destroyed, active
corrosion is initiated and that area becomes more anodic
with respect to the remaining passivated surface. The
sequence of reactions is as follows:
M ! Mnþ þ ne
Mnþ þ nCl ! MCln
MCln þ nH2 O ! MðOHÞn þnHþ þ nCl
The electrons released by the metal travel through the
metal, as indicated in Figure 5, and react with water and
dissolved oxygen to form hydroxide ions, according to
Eq. [3]. Consequently, the remaining passive area
becomes more alkaline and the anodic area in the pit
becomes more acidic; because the chloride ions are not
consumed, the process becomes autocatalytic. The local
corrosion rate increases, and the anodic area tends to
grow in depth rather than laterally. This can lead to
perforation of containers, such as that shown in
Figure 1(d), with no readily visible warning and can,
therefore, be more dangerous than general corrosion of
the metal surface.
METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A
Fig. 6—Schematic representation of crevice corrosion.
D. Crevice Corrosion
Local stagnant conditions often develop in confined
spaces, such as under a lap joint or a washer, and can lead
to that area becoming anodic with respect to the remain-
ing area of the metal, which remains exposed to aerobic
conditions and becomes cathodic. Since the number of
electrons consumed by the cathodic reaction (Eq. [3])
must, at all times, equal those released by the anodic
reaction (Eq. [1]), and the area in the confined space is
usually significantly smaller than the rest of the part, the
result is more rapid corrosion of the metal in the confined
space, illustrated schematically in Figure 6. An example,
in practice, is shown in Figure 1(b) in which corrosion was
initiated between a cast iron bathroom washbasin and the
metal straps supporting it. The electrolyte, in this case,
was just the moist air in the bathroom.
Stainless steels seem to be particularly susceptible to
crevice corrosion, because when oxygen becomes
depleted in the crevice, the passive film of Cr2O3 cannot
be maintained. Molybdenum in the stainless steel
enhances the resistance to crevice corrosion as it does
to pitting corrosion.
E. Microbially Induced Corrosion
Another factor that must be taken into account in
evaluating or predicting corrosion is the role of bacteria:
microbes can radically change the environment in terms
of both pH and access to oxygen, often creating acidic
conditions.[7] Sulfate reducing bacteria, such as the
Desulfovibrio species, are believed[8] to be responsible
for the cathodic reaction, producing H2S, which dis-
solves to form sulfuric acid and decreases the pH.[9,10] A
great number and variety of bacteria can influence
corrosion, some of which are described in Reference 11.
Olszewski[12] described the problems associated with
identifying this form of corrosion and distinguishing it
from other forms such as crevice corrosion and pitting.
However, as emphasized by Lane,[11] microbially in-
duced corrosion is not accurately a form of corrosion:
the bacteria and fungi change the environment and,
thereby, create the conditions for different forms of
corrosion. Bacteria have played a major role in many
serious corrosion-related failures and warrant careful
monitoring.[7] They are a well known cause of failure in
oil, gas, and sewage pipelines but can also cause
corrosion of more personal items such as intrauterine
devices[13] and household appliances.[12]
F. Intergranular Corrosion
In many alloys, minor constituents segregate to the
grain boundaries. When these constituents are less noble
VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011—2955
Fig. 7—Intergranular corrosion of a 7075-T6 failed aircraft compo-
nent (Courtesy: Corrosion Doctors).
Fig. 8—Burnt out pesticide plant in Bhopal, India after explosion in
1984.
than the alloy matrix, preferential dissolution can occur
along the grain boundary, for example, in the aluminum
alloy in Figure 7. This can be a particular problem in
stainless steels if they are heated within a critical range
of 723 K to 1073 K (450 C to 800 C) in which
chromium reacts to form Cr23C6, particularly at the
grain boundaries, leaving the steel adjacent to the grain
boundary depleted in chromium and, therefore, unable
to form the protective passive film of Cr2O3. The heat-
affected zones of welds in stainless steels are particularly
susceptible to this problem. This problem can be
avoided by suitable heat treatment after welding, by
the use of steels with a low carbon content or those
containing alloying elements such as titanium, niobium,
or tantalum, which have a greater affinity for carbon
than has chromium.
Fig. 9—Sunken ferry ‘‘Princess Ashika’’ in which 78 people lost their
G. Corrosion-Induced Fracture lives.

Corrosion can also lead to environmental cracking

methylisocyanate, the iron corrosion products provided
which may take the form of stress corrosion cracking,
a catalyst for a reaction, which blew apart the plant
hydrogen embrittlement, or corrosion fatigue.[14] In
allowing the methylisocyanate and other toxic gases to
these cases, there is usually no observable corrosion
escape, killing over 8000 people. Since then, an addi-
and, instead of a gradual dissolution of material, the
tional 15,000 have died as a result of the explosion
consequence is usually fracture without any prior
and an estimated 500,000 others are suffering from gas-
deformation.
related disorders.[15–18]

III. CORROSION RESULTING IN INJURY
AND LOSS OF LIFE
A. Chemical Plant Explosion, Bhopal India, 1984
There are many cases of injuries and deaths (of both
humans and animals) related to corrosion. By far the
worst corrosion-related disaster, in terms of human
death, injury, and subsequent health problems was the
explosion at a chemical plant in Bhopal, India in 1984
(Figure 8). This plant was part of India’s ‘‘Green
Revolution’’ intended to provide fertilizer and pesticides
to boost grain production. However, a number of design
flaws and management problems converged to cause a
catastrophic explosion. It is reported that, when steel
pipes corroded and water leaked into tanks containing
B. Sinking of the Tongan Inter-Island Ferry ‘‘Princess
Ashika’’
Barely a month after being commissioned in 2009, the
ferry ‘‘Princess Ashika’’ sank, resulting in the death of
all passengers and crew (a total of 74) (Figure 9). During
the Royal Commission established to investigate the
cause of the disaster, a marine engineer who inspected
the vessel prior to its sailing presented photos showing
doors and entrances on the Ashika unable to fully close
due to corrosion and had advised against the sailing.[19]
C. Berlin Congress Hall Collapse, 1980
In 1957, the Berlin Congress Hall, shown in
Figure 10(a), was hailed as a spectacular building with

2956—VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011 METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A


Fig. 10—(a) Prize-winning Berlin Congress Hall built in 1957.[22]
(b) The Berlin Congress Hall after collapse in 1980.[22]
unique design and construction. One of its features was
a curved canopy constructed of post-tensioned concrete
panels. In such systems, a metal or plastic duct is
positioned in the formwork and a high strength rod or
7-wire steel strand is inserted in the duct and anchored
at one end. After the concrete is placed and has
hardened, the nonfixed end of the steel is pulled in
tension and anchored. The duct is then filled with grout
to allow transfer of load between the concrete and the
post-tensioned steel, as illustrated schematically in
Figure 11(a). The steel is protected from active corro-
sion by the highly alkaline (pH > 13) concrete and
grout, which induce a passive film on the steel.[20,21] In
1980, the building collapsed (Figure 10(b)), killing one
person. Analysis of the failure[22] showed the ducts in
several of the post-tensioned panels to have been placed
incorrectly in a manner illustrated schematically in
Figure 11(b). In these cases, the ducts and the post-
tensioned steel were not completely surrounded by
concrete and grout and, therefore, were not passivated
over the entire surface. Consequently, the cathodic half-
cell reaction was that given by Eq. [2], rather than that
in Eq. [3]. Fractography showed corrosion along prior-
austenite grain boundaries, and numerous inner cracks
and the failure were attributed to hydrogen embrittle-
ment.[22] Once the embrittled panels had failed, the
remaining panels failed in a ductile manner due to
overload.
METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A
Fig. 11—(a) Illustration of the correct placement of the duct and
post-tensioned steel within the concrete. (b) The duct and steel are
resting on the support and are not completely coated in the highly
alkaline concrete and grout required for passivation.
Fig. 12—Aloha Flight 243 after landing safely in 1988 following
fracture of part of the fuselage. One person was killed as a result.[23]
Fig. 13—Schematic illustration of cracks, initiated by stress corro-
sion cracking after moisture seeped under epoxy at the rivets and
propagating to form a critical crack.
D. Failure of Aloha Airline Flight
In 1988, a Boeing 737 passenger liner ‘‘experienced an
explosive decompression and structural failure at 24,000
feet…. Approximately 18 feet from the cabin skin and
structure aft of the cabin entrance door and above the
passenger floor line separated from the airplane during
flight’’[23] (Figure 12). A flight attendant was swept
overboard and presumed dead; eight others received
serious injuries. The cause of this failure is believed to
have been initiated by crevice corrosion. The skin of the
fuselage was joined by rivets, as illustrated in Figure 13,
and these were reinforced by a two-component epoxy. It
is believed that the epoxy did not adhere well and that
moisture got under the epoxy and resulted in crevice
VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011—2957
Fig. 14—Swine barn at Innerkip, ON after corrosion-induced
collapse.[3,5]
corrosion, leading to stress corrosion cracking. Small
cracks formed at several adjacent rivet joints and
propagated by fatigue to form one large critical crack.
E. Failure of Livestock Facilities
Corrosion-related failures leading to deaths of ani-
mals receive far less publicity than those involving
human tragedies. Nevertheless, these deaths are tragic
and many could be avoided.
Many livestock facilities integrate manure storage
with livestock housing. Animal manure contains sulfates
and sulfides, which, in high concentration, are known to
cause corrosion of reinforcement in concrete.[24] Anal-
ysis of the chemicals in waste from poultry, dairy cattle,
and swine[25] indicates that there are also relatively high
levels of chlorides and ammonia, and of course, the
waste contains significant levels of bacteria. Most
structural metals, with the exception of stainless steel
and batch galvanized steel, exhibit severe corrosion in
these wastes. One example of the consequences of such
corrosion is illustrated in Figure 14: a reinforced con-
crete support column in a swine barn in Ontario,
Canada failed, causing the barn to collapse and killing
250 hogs. This is, unfortunately, not an isolated case.[26]
In addition to structural collapse caused by corrosion,
many barn fires, such as that shown in Figure 15, are
attributed to corrosion of electrical wiring by the moist
and corrosive atmosphere inside the barn. The heat
generated by an electrical current is directly propor-
tional to the resistance of the conductor. Thus, when the
cross section of the wire is reduced, its electrical
resistance increases and the wire heats up.[27]
IV. IMPACT OF CORROSION
ON THE ENVIRONMENT
Most corrosion-related contamination of the environ-
ment can be traced to leaks from perforated tanks,
containers, and pipelines. As the number and length of
pipelines for oil, gas, water, and sewage grow, more and
2958—VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011
Fig. 15—Remains of farm buildings after fire initiated at corroded
electrical wiring (#921).
more such contamination can be expected. Corrosion
can occur on both the inside wall and the outside surface
of a pipeline, but is more common on the inside.
Papavinasam et al.[28] report that internal corrosion
accounted for 15 pct of all pipeline incidents in the
United States between 1994 and 2000 and that those
occurring in Alberta, Canada amounted to almost
1 per day over the last 20 years. In many cases, the
cause is MIC, such as sulfate reducing bacteria, which
produced the pit and perforation in a carbon steel heavy
oil pipe in Figure 16.[29]
The impact of oil leaks on wildlife is horrific, as
illustrated in Figure 17. Note that there are more than
160,000 such images on Google. Sewage also contains
bacteria, ammonia, and sulfur compounds, and sewage
pipe leaks can be equally harmful to the environment.
A. Prudhoe Bay Oil Pipeline Leak
One of the worst oil leaks occurred on March 2, 2006,
when approximately 1 million liters of crude oil leaked
from a corroded transit pipeline in Northern Alaska and
covered two acres of snow-covered tundra. The location
of the leak, shown in Figure 18, was in a culvert
surrounding the transit line as it passes under a caribou
crossing.[30] According to the company’s corrosion
authority, the pipeline was designed for a 25-year service
life, and at the time of leaking, it had been in service for
29 years. The cause was internal corrosion of the
pipeline steel.[31] The company spent 72 million dollars
to fight corrosion in the previous year and 60 million
dollars in the year prior to that. The effort, according to
the company spokesman, included corrosion inhibition,
X-ray runs, and ultrasonic tests.
The U.S. Department of Transportation ordered
smart pig inspections in response to the leakage report.
The inspection record noted that the steel had corroded
in 12 places on the eastern side of Prudhoe Bay up to
METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A
Fig. 16—Pit and perforation of 6.3-cm internal diameter carbon steel
pipe carrying heavy oil. The pit morphology is typical of sulfate
reducing MIC attack.[22]

Fig. 18—(a) Source of the leak at the Prudhoe Pipeline in 2006.[23]

(b) Transit line spill.[23]

Corrosion Engineers (NACE), the Federal Highway

Fig. 17—Result of oil leak from corroded pipeline. Administration (FHWA), and CC Technologies, and
the report was published in 2002.[34] The following data
70 to 81 pct of the original thickness, which was less are reproduced from the presentation of the report data
than company standard. by permission of CC Technologies. The sectors studied
were as follows.
B. Sewage Spill into Buena Vista Lagoon Infrastructure:
In 2007, a 25-year-old, 0.6-m- (24-in.-) diameter sewage Highway bridges
pipe running adjacent to the Buena Vista Lagoon in Gas and liquid transmission pipelines
California (Figure 19) and buried 4.8 m (16 ft.) below Waterways and ports
ground developed a 24 cm (10 in) diameter hole (Fig- Hazardous materials storage
ure 20). Although the pipe was repaired within a record Airports
time (less than 24 hours after the leak was discovered),[32] Railroads
it is estimated that 7.3 million gallons of raw sewage
Utilities:
spilled into the lagoon.[33] The problem was attributed to
erosion-corrosion due to the high velocity of flow and Gas distribution
strong sulfuric acid vapors in the pipe. Drinking water and sewer systems
Electrical utilities
Telecommunications
V. FINANCIAL COSTS OF CORROSION Transportation:
In 1999, the U.S. Government funded a study of the Motor vehicles
direct and indirect costs of corrosion in 26 sectors. The Ships
study was carried out by the National Association of Aircraft

METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011—2959

 Railroad cars The indirect costs of corrosion include plant down-
Hazardous materials transport time, loss of product, environmental contamination, loss
of efficiency, over design, user costs, and insurance costs.
Production and manufacturing:
When these are added to the direct costs, the total
Oil and gas exploration—production amount rises to $276 billion and contributes more than
Mining 3 pct to the U.S. Gross Domestic Product
Petroleum refining (GDP)—more than those of the mining and agriculture
Chemical, petrochemical, and pharmaceutical sectors combined (Figure 22).
Pulp and paper As mentioned previously, one of the major costs is
Agriculture corrosion prevention, which was calculated to be $121.4
Food processing B, almost 90 pct of the direct costs of corrosion. Of this,
Electronics almost 90 pct is spent on protective coatings. For the
Home appliances organic coatings, the materials accounted for 4 to 20 pct
of the cost, depending on the complexity of the project,
Government:
the remainder being the application costs. The most
Defense widely used metallic coating is zinc, used mostly as hot-
Nuclear waste storage dip galvanizing of steel, but also, with aluminum, as
sprayed or electroplated coating.
The overall annual direct costs of corrosion, illustrated in
The very small amount of funds being spent on
the pie chart in Figure 21, were considered to be (1) the
research and development and on education and train-
additional or more expensive materials needed to prevent
ing is noted in the report. It is stated that, ‘‘It has been
corrosion damage, (2) the labor for corrosion manage-
observed that over the past few decades less funding has
ment, (3) equipment required for corrosion-related
been made available for corrosion related research and
activities, (4) loss of reliability, and (5) loss of capital
development, which is significant in light of the cost and
due to corrosion-induced deterioration. The total of all
inconvenience of dealing with leaking and exploding
sectors was calculated to be $137.9 billion per year.
underground pipelines, bursting water mains, corroding
storage tanks, aging aircraft and deteriorating highway
bridges. In fact, several government and corporate

Fig. 19—Buena Vista Lagoon. Fig. 21—Direct costs of corrosion in the five major sectors.[27]

Fig. 20—(a) Damaged pipeline and (b) close up of the 25-cm (10-in.) hole in the 61-cm (24-in.) diameter pipe.[3,5]

2960—VOLUME 42A, OCTOBER 2011 METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A

Fig. 22—Contribution of total direct and indirect corrosion costs to the U.S. gross domestic product relative to the other major contributing
sectors.[27]
research laboratories have significantly reduced their
corrosion research staff or even have closed down their
research facilities.’’[34]
VI. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
In summary, corrosion takes many forms and is costly
on many fronts. Although rare, catastrophic failures due
to corrosion have cost many lives and, unfortunately,
will do so in the future because considerations of
environmental degradation of materials frequently take
lower priority to other property requirements.
However, corrosion-induced pollution of the environ-
ment is much more common and can affect the health of
crops and drinking water and, therefore, of wildlife and
humans. Then there is the ‘‘everyday corrosion,’’ which
makes items, from household objects to production
machinery to highway infrastructure, dysfunctional,
aesthetically displeasing, and potentially dangerous.
The financial cost of all of this is enormous, constituting
a significant percentage of the gross domestic products
of industrial countries and, possibly, of developing
countries too, although this has not been documented.
To quote Reference 34: ‘‘Corrosion research has, over
the years, suffered from inadequate industry and gov-
ernment funding, especially given the cost and inconve-
nience associated with corrosion of water mains, bridge
structures, automobiles, airplanes, and pipelines. In
contrast, physicists and biologists have captured the
attention of the public and Congress by describing the
dynamics of high-energy physics and biotechnology.
While not as noteworthy to the popular press as some
METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A
other technologies, corrosion research has much to
contribute to delivering social services more efficiently
and more reliably while lowering the costs of many of
the products and services purchased by the public.’’
Most materials engineers are aware, at least to some
extent, of the principles of corrosion. Therefore, the only
conclusion that can be made of the overall cause of the
huge numbers of corrosion-related failures and the
exorbitant associated costs is that materials scientists
and engineers are not doing enough to educate and
inform those whose responsibility it is to design and
produce engineering components, i.e., the mechanical
engineers, chemical engineers, civil engineers, and elec-
trical engineers. Qualification in these disciplines usually
requires, at most, a one term or semester course in
materials and rarely is corrosion mentioned in these
courses.
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ntice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 1996.
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3. T.E. Graedel and R.P. Frankenthal: J. Electrochem. Soc., 1990,
vol. 137 (8), pp. 2385–94.
4. R. Baboian and S.L. Pohlman: in ASM Handbook, Corrosion,
M.B. Ives, ed., American Society for Metals International,
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METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A