Monitoring Coating Degradation with a

Wireless, Battery-Powered Coating Health

Monitor (CHM)

Presented By: Ryan Dunn & Guy Davis, Ph.D.

ElectraWatch, Inc.
Presented To: MEGA RUST 2009

February 2, 2017 www.electrawatch.com 1

 Presentation Outline

Need for Corrosion Detection

Systems
CHM Technology
EIS/CHM Fundamentals
Hand Probe Configurations
Graphical User Interface
CHM Specifications
Advantages / Competition
Predictive Maintenance /
CBM
AA5XXX Sensitization
Cracking
CHM Testing & Validation
February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 2
 Corrosion Annual Financial Impact

U.S. Military

Annual Military Direct Corrosion Costs = $10-$20 Billion

Corrosion is one of top three O&M costs.
Safety : Anumber of weapon system & aircraft mishaps
have been attributed to the effects of corrosion.
Readiness: Weapon systems are routinely out of
commission due to corrosion deficiencies.
Annual Corrosion Costs = 3.1% of the U.S. GDP or $300
Billion

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 3
 Need for CHM Technology

Paint coatings are the primary

means of preventing
corrosion.
Paints Degrade & are
Temporary.
Blister
Scratches
UV Degradation
Abrasion *U.S.S. San Jacinto (CG- 56), March 2009.

Moisture Absorption

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 4
 CHM Technology

Miniature Electrochemical
Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS)
device.
Moisture penetration during
coating degradation decreases low
frequency impedance.
CHMs measure the electrical
impedance at three low frequencies.
CHM uses a single sensor electrode
as the reference and counter
electrode, the substrate acts as the
working electrode.
February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 5
 Conventional EIS vs. CHM

Potentiostat
Reference Electrode
V A
Counter Electrode

Electrolyte

Clamp-on Cell CHM

Paint Coating V A

Metal Substrate Tape Electrode

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 6
 CHM Fundamentals

A small ac voltage is applied to

CHM
the coated metal at three low
frequencies (0.2, 0.5, 0.9 Hz).
The response can be modeled Coating Metal
as an electric circuit.
Impedance of coated

Log Low-Frequency Impedance

1.E+07
Moisture Uptake by Coating

structures. Corrosion of Substrate

1.E+06

Early measure of deterioration

before visual indications.
1.E+05
Incubation Time for Substrate Corrosion

Can predict coating Breach of Coating

performance. 1.E+04
0 50 100 Time
Immersion 150 200

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 7
 EIS Predicts
Extent of Corrosion

In cyclic laboratory tests, EIS

measurements correlate with future
corrosion
Time for low-frequency impedance to
100 0

reach 107
Corroded Area at 100 Cycles, %

10 -1

1 Galvannealed -2

Aluminum
Cold Rolled Steel
Electrogalvanized

0.1 -3

0 20 40 60 80 100
Cycles for 10E7 Impedance

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 8
 Coating EIS Spectra

Painted Panels Show Variability in

Performance
1E+10 1E+10
Time
1E+09 Good Primer 1E+09 Poor Primer
1E+08 1E+08
Impedance ()

1E+07 1E+07

Impedance ( )
1E+06 1E+06
1E+05 1E+05
1E+04 1E+04
1E+03 1E+03
1E+02 1E+02
1E+01 1E+01
1E+00 1E+00
1E-01 1E+00 1E+01 1E+02 1E+03 1E+04 1E+05 1E-01 1E+00 1E+01 1E+02 1E+03 1E+04 1E+05
Frequency (Hz) Frequency (Hz)

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 9
 Evolution of EIS Instrumentation

Potentiostats are becoming

smaller and more portable.

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 10
 Potentiostat vs. CHM

Laboratory Potentiostat ElectraWatch CHM

Key Specifications: Key Specifications:

Size (whd): 20 x 23 x 30 cm (7.8 x 9.1
x 11.8 in)
Weight: < 6.0 kg (< 13.22 lbs)
Price: > $5,000 U.S.
Communication Mode: USB Cable
Size (whd): 7.8 x 7.8 x 3.3 cm (3 x 3 x
1.3 in)
Weight: < 0.39 kg (< 0.86 lbs)
Price: < $3,000 U.S.
Communication Mode: Zigbee Wireless
or USB Cable (~450 feet)

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 11
 Additional CHM Specifications

Powered by self contained

A or AA size commercially
available battery
Estimated battery
lifespan up to 7 years
(AA) or 11 years (A)
Can be overcoated with
paint for
cosmetic, camouflage, or
Easy and quick to install
CARC reasons
Bolt on and apply tape
Temporary mounting
under development

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 12
 CHM Hand Probes

CHM
CHM Hand
CHM
Hand
HandProbe
Probe withwith
Probe with Tape
Spring
Wire Electrodes
Loaded
Electrodes
Electrode

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 13
 Graphical User Interface

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 14
 CHM Advantages

Coating Health Monitor (CHM)

Battery life: 11 years
Inspection costs
Coating inspection frequency
Estimate time until maintenance is needed
Easily retrofit to existing structures
Detects intrusion of moisture before corrosion
occurs
Flexible tape sensor conforms to complex surfaces
Monitors coating around sensor electrodes
Wireless sensor can be read from 500 feet away
Nonvolatile memory stores results until interrogated

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 15
 Competing Sensor Technologies

Corrosivity / Environmental Sensors

Suitable only measuring environmental conditions.
Require elapsed time; not suitable for instantaneous,
one time measurements.
Measure corrosion of a sacrificial sensor element; not
of the structure being inspected.
Sacrificial element often not the same material as
structure.
Sacrificial element mechanically smaller and
thinner than structure, making it difficult to
correlate element corrosion to structure corrosion.
If retrofit to structure with existing coating
degradation or corrosion damage sensors will not
accurately reflect the health of the structure.

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 16
 Competing Sensor Technologies

Sensing Paint Systems

Fluorescent dyes in
paint/primer detect pH changes
or metal ions at interface
Measure actual corrosion, but
require visual access: direct or
embedded fiber optics
Limited to doped paint systems
Traditional NDE techniques
Require significant material
loss (>5%) or interfacial
delamination
Traditional electrochemical
techniques
Require immersion conditions
and remote electrodes
Total immersion *Airbus Piezoelectric Coating Sensor
Clamp-on cells or sponge/gel
electrolytes

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 17
 Comparison of Corrosion Monitoring Devices*

ElectraWatch Analatom Aginova Aginova Corr. Instr. Luna Luna

CHM LPR CDS/ER MAS CMEA EIS RFID
Detects Degradation of
Actual Structure
Y N N N N N N
Detects Prior Degradation
Y N N N N N N
if Retrofit
Macro or Conformal Micro Micro Meso Meso Meso Micro Micro
Instillation of Probe Conformal Flat
Retrofittable to Existing
Structures
Y Y Y Y Y Y Y
Independent or Accepts Unclear Unclear

Flexible Shape
Y Y N N N
Measures Actual Possible Possible
Possible N N N N
Corrosion Rate
Meas.Corrosivity, Meas.
Coating Degradation
Y N Y Y N N N
Detects Pitting
N N N Y Y N Y
Battery Powered**
Y N N N N N N/A
Wireless Communication**
Y Y N N N N Y
February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com
*John Scully, Ph.D., Evaluation of State-of-the-Art and Emerging Innovative Corrosion Rate Sensors For Monitoring Steel Bridges in Various Corrosive Environments. 1/15/2009
EDRC-CERL **Added by ElectraWatch for additional comparison points
18
 CHM as Part of CBM System

EIS measurement time for low-frequency impedance

to reach 107 , correlates with future corrosion.
Need for CBM Systems: The purpose of CBM
strategy is to perform maintenance only when there
is objective evidence of need, while ensuring safety,
equipment reliability and reduction of total
ownership cost.*
Maintenance Costs, Readiness & Safety. 100 0

Aging Equipment

Corroded Area at 100 Cycles, %

High Speed Naval Ships (LCS, JHSV, JMAC).**
10 -1
Coatings Quality Assurance Tool Kit (CQATK)
Web based portal for coating inspection data.
Paperless Q&A, meets NAVSEA Standard Item:1 Galvannealed -2

Aluminum
009-32 requirements and specifications. Cold Rolled Steel
Electrogalvanized
CHM generates an Excel spreadsheet which can 0.1 -3

easily be automated to feed into CQATK. 0 20 40 60 80 100

Cycles for 10E7 Impedance

February*Ken
2, Jacobs,
20 NAVSEA, DoDwww.electrawatch.com
2000 Maintenance Symposium.
19
**Dr. Paul Hess, ONR Presentation on Structural Health Monitoring for High Speed Naval Ships. September,
 Risk Based Application

60-75% Nuts, bolts Tie-downs, Frame

and fasteners lift points

50-60% Axle housings Suspension

springs

Body beds (1)

(P) %

40-50% Door frames Fuel tank

Bumpers, assemblies
body beds Universal
joints, Tie
Door frames (2)
Rods, radiator
Frame (4)
Probability

assembly
30-40% Fuel lines,
Drive shafts,
engine valve
Fuel tank (1)
covers
20-30% Fenders, Welded Bumpers (2)
suspension seams, Air
control arms,
idler arms,
tanks
Leaf springs (4)
engine mounts
10-20% Metal brake Injectors,
lines engine heads

1 2 3 4 5

Consequence (C) (1:low 5:severe)

Risk = Severity * Probability

Some of the proposed sensor locations

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 20
 CHM to Address Sensitization Cracking

*U.S.S. San Jacinto (CG- 56), March 2009.

AA5XXX Sensitization DOES NOT

reduce alloy strength.1,2
Beta phase MORE susceptible to
corrosion than the surrounding
alloy.1,2
Sensitization Cracking is a TWO
Part Problem:
AA5XXX alloy is Sensitized (Temp/Age).
Coating is not effective, does not protect
the sensitized beta phase from
corroding.
Radar Absorbing Material (RAM)
traps moisture and prevents visual
inspection, compounding the
problem.

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 21
1. T. Mae, M. Ihara, K. Komura, S. Toriyama, S. Sunada, and K. Arai, Materials Transactions JIM, 37, 1781, (1996).
 CHM Alternate Immersion Testing

ASTM G44
3.5% NaCl solution
10 minutes immersed
50 minutes atmosphere
CHM schedule
programmed and
interrogated from
laptop in office 15
meters away
Data automatically
imported into Excel
spreadsheet for plotting

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 22
 CHM Validation Testing

CHM results compare well with

those of bench potentiostat.
1E+09

1E+08

1E+07

1E+06
()
Impedance

1E+05

1E+04

1E+03

1E+02
closed symbols -- Bench Potentiostat
1E+01 open symbols -- CHM

1E+00
1E-01 1E+00 1E+01 1E+02 1E+03 1E+04 1E+05
Frequency (Hz)

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 23
 CHM Validation Testing

EIS impedance measurements of CHM

and bench potentiostat correlate very well

Resistors Painted Panels

1.E+09 1.E+10
Impedance Impedance
RC Circuits 1.E+09
Painted Panels

Bench Poentiostat ()
Bench Potentiostat ()

1.E+08 1.E+08

1.E+07
1.E+07
1.E+06

1.E+05
1.E+06 0.9 Hz
0.9
0.5 Hz
0.5 1.E+04
0.2 Hz
0.2
1.E+05 1.E+03
1.E+05 1.E+06 1.E+07 1.E+08 1.E+09 1.E+03 1.E+04 1.E+05 1.E+06 1.E+07 1.E+08 1.E+09 1.E+10

CHM () CHM ()

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 24
 Coating Comparison

1.E+10 1.E+10
1.E+09 1.E+09 KP1
1.E+08 1.E+08

Impedance ( )
1.E+07
Impedance ( )

1.E+07
1.E+06 0.9 Hz CHM 1.E+06 0.9 Hz CHM
1.E+05 0.5 Hz CHM 1.E+05 0.5 Hz CHM
1.E+04 0.2 Hz CHM 1.E+04 0.2 Hz CHM
1.E+03 0.9 Hz Bench 1.E+03 0.9 Hz Bench
1.E+02 0.5 Hz Bench 1.E+02 0.5 Hz Bench
1.E+01 0.2 Hz Bench NLR2A 1.E+01 0.2 Hz Bench
1.E+00 1.E+00
0 20 40 60 80 100 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Exposure Time (Days) Exposure Time (Days)

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 25
 Detection of Hidden Defect

Solid - Mounted CHM

Dashed - Free CHM

1.E+09
1.E+08 KP2/KTC1
1.E+07
Impedance ( )

1.E+06
1.E+05
1.E+04
1.E+03 0.9 Hz CHM 0.9 Hz CHM
1.E+02 0.5 Hz CHM 0.5 Hz CHM
1.E+01 0.2 Hz CHM 0.2 Hz CHM
1.E+00
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Exposure Time (Days)

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 26
 CHM MIL-STD Enclosure

CHM Enclosure
Redesign

Polycarbonate
Enclosure

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 27
 CHM MIL-STD Finite Element Analysis

MIL-STD-167a Vibration MIL-STD-901-D Light Weight

Testing Shock Testing

*Safety Factors based off of Polycarbonate Resultant Von Mises Stress (top)
Flexural Yield Strength of 27.3MPa Displacement (bottom)

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 28
1.7MPa
 MIL-STD-901-D Testing

Top: Mounted CHM

enclosure and
accelerometer

Right: Mounting with

spacers

Loaded lightweight shock machine

with mounted CHM enclosure

www.electrawatch.com 29
February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 29
 MIL-STD-901-D Test Results

Initial Impact
Impact after Bounce

Enclosure post shock test

with no visible fractures.

February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 30
 Presentation Summary

Need for Corrosion Detection

Systems
CHM Technology
EIS/CHM Fundamentals
Hand Probe Configurations
Graphical User Interface
CHM Specifications
Advantages / Competition
Predictive Maintenance /
CBM
AA5XXX Sensitization
Cracking
CHM Testing & Validation
February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 31
 Contact Info & Questions

Ryan C. Dunn Guy D. Davis Ph.D.

Chief Executive Officer Principal Scientist

Email: Email:
rdunn@electrawatch.com davis@electrawatch.com
Phone: 434-970- Phone: 434-970-
RUST(7878) RUST(7878)
February 2, 20 www.electrawatch.com 32