CORROSION NEWS - MAY 2001

Planes sprayed for Hoof & Mouth Costing Millions in Corrosion Costs

Sharing Know-How at BP Amoco includes Emphasis on Corrosion

FAA Denies Spray's Harm to Planes

Maintaining, Installing Key with Metal Roofing

USCAR Consortium Begins Work on Magnesium Project; Structural Cast Magnesium Research Could Lead to Reduced CO2 Emissions

Question Extended Life from Hot Water Tank

Poison Leak Hospitalizes 90 in South China

Systems Fix Due at State Building

Land Rover Recalls V8 Cars

Issues in Sharp Focus after Erika

Will Kirk, Researcher, Dies at 68

Pennsylvania Engineer Develops Easier Way to Produce Synthetic Diamonds with Corrosion

Speedway Officials Step Up Safety after Bridge Failed

Profile to Begin New Alaskan Pipeline Inspection Work in June

Smart 'Human-Like' Products on The Way

Bathrooms Pamper Owners with Luxury and Resists Corrosion Too

Eastern Michigan Workers to Help Restore Titanic Artifacts

Jury Watches Doomed Flight Disappear from Radar

Safety Scare at Pool

Zonal Drying TM System being Developed for Swedish Air Force (SwAF) C-130 Hercules Transport Aircraft

Underground Gasoline Storage Tanks Continue to Leak, Agency Reports

Water Stoppage Means Faucet Trouble

Shaping Your Future - Finding a job in corrosion control

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council Gives Grant for Corrosion Study

Major General Dennis M. Mccarthy of United States Marine Corps Reserve Aires Concern About Corrosion Before The Senate Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Defense

A Question of Rust: CorrosionSource - FORBES BEST OF THE WEB

University of Chicago Receives U.S. Grant to Investigate 'Space Corrosion"

Donlar/Biomune Announces a Major Environmental Breakthrough in Oil Field Production

Savannah River Moves on Waste Leak Concerns

Tips for Making a Safe Back-Yard Playground: Don't Let Corrosion Cause Danger

Hi-Tech Set for Growth in Houston Fighting Corrosion

Rules for Fuel Tanks; FAA Mandates Changes in New Aircraft Designs to Find and Minimize Corrosion

Corrosion Damage to Sunshine Skyway Bridge Costs $1 million, Others May be Affected Too

Kirk Wins ASTM Award of Merit

More Class Societies Tell of Finding 'Super-Rust'

Rusty Front Ends Prompt General Motors Recall of Nearly 83,000 Automobiles

Three Port Aransas Ferries Will Be at Work Today. One Boat Was Down Makes the Commuting Time Longer for Some

FAA Issues Two New Boeing Airworthiness Directives

Warning To Flood Victims: Replace All Gas Control Valves, Electric Circuit Breakers, GFCIS, and Fuses that Have Been Under Water

PLANES SPRAYED FOR HOOF & MOUTH COSTING MILLIONS IN CORROSION COSTS   top

HILL AIR FORCE BASE -- Despite the risks, corrosive disinfectants are still being sprayed on aircraft landing gear to curb the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, and new cases of corrosion are documented daily, three Air Force experts say. The disinfectants can alter landing gear within hours, causing it to shatter spontaneously.

While researching the effects of foot-and-mouth disinfectants, three Hill Air Force Base engineers made some disturbing findings: One or two new corrosion cases are documented each day.

European countries won't stop using the corrosive disinfectants, and the United States has no mechanism in place to stop the practice. At least two Boeing commercial aircraft suffered crippling damage from the practice. Commercial and military engineers can't say for certain how many planes were sprayed with corrosive disinfectants before the problem came to light.

Some military planes likely will need to be grounded for repairs.

While mostly used in Europe, the corrosive disinfectants also have been used on American soil.

The corrosion will cost commercial airlines and the military millions of dollars in repairs.

Daily, more cases are reported to Hill -- the Air Force's center of excellence for landing gear and provider of landing-gear maintenance for 80 percent of Department of Defense aircraft. As of Thursday the three engineers had recorded 46 cases.The disinfectants, which kill foot-and-mouth virus, can cause landing gear to shatter spontaneously or wear down slowly over time. Either scenario could lead to crashes. The worldwide problem was discovered, Forrest said, after two commercial Boeing aircraft suffered stress corrosion in landing gear axles.While no aircraft have been ordered to stop flying, "There's probably a good likelihood that aircraft will be grounded.

The solution is finding a disinfectant that not only kills foot-and-mouth virus but is also noncorrosive. All the chemicals currently approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture are corrosive and can cause hydrogen embrittlement in landing-gear metal.

SHARING KNOW-HOW AT BP AMOCO INCLUDES EMPHASIS ON CORROSION   top

The development focus at this international oil producer rests on a framework for sharing knowledge that starts with a business objective and ends with business results. Long-recognized for its capability in knowledge management, BP has used principles established prior to the merger with Amoco in 1998 to accelerate the integration of assets from BP, Amoco, Arco, and Burmah/Castrol. The new organization is furthering their capabilities for transferring know-how and innovation through applied technology and a focus on core processes. Improved capability in these areas is a corporate imperative, linked to improving productivity by more than 4 percent per year.

In the area of knowledge management and innovation, BP's recent focus has been on applied visualization techniques and the promotion of common work processes. Computer-supported visualization environments are promoting teamwork, innovation and creativity, while common work processes are forming the basis for shared culture and experience as a platform for enabling individual units to improve performance in areas they target for themselves. Having demonstrated clear value through pilot programs in recent years, implementation throughout BP's new corporate system is an imperative to achieving promised productivity gains.

Operations Value Process. A companion to the Capital Value Process is the Operations Value Process (OVP). OVP is based on the assumption of "Plan, Do, Check, Act" routines within BP's businesses that are linked to corporate policy. Operationally, businesses use OVP to assess their performance and aspirations against 26 parameters defined as common and important across the businesses. The 26 parameters are:

* Morale and Motivation * Ensure Competency * Share, Transfer and Imbed Know-how * Communicate Effectively * Drive Performance Improvement * Management of Change * Enhance Our Reputation with the Community * Get HSE Right * Manage Greenhouse Gas fissions * Measure and Manage Production * Ensure Reliability * Manage Corrosion * Plan, Schedule and Resource * Prepare and Execute Planned Shutdown * Optimize Resources * Optimize Plant Performance * Forecast Production * Assure Product Quality * Manage Process and Consumables Budget * Manage Share Parts and Stores * Manage Organizational Effectiveness * Manage Conte Services * Manage Energy Efficiently * Manage Water * Manage Wong Capital * Manage Opex Budget

The data also allow the creation of a diagram referred to in BP as a Steps Diagram to focus on a particular parameter. The Steps Diagram plots performance versus the gap between performance and aspiration for each parameter. Using the topic of managing corrosion, for this particular set of data, the Trinidad West Business Unit feels unsatisfied with its current capability for managing corrosion. Naturally, Trinidad West must be wondering where it can go for assistance. The Steps Diagram points it toward two units that are satisfied with their corrosion management practices, Magnus and Central North Slope. OVP thus acts as a kind of dating agency to pair those with something to offer with those who have a need.

FAA DENIES SPRAY'S HARM TO PLANES  top

The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday that a chemical sprayed on some planes at European airports to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease does not compromise a plane's safety. But technicians at Hill Air Force Base disagree (See Previous Story), insisting that the chemical sodium hypochlorite, a strong bleach degrades steel and can cause serious safety hazards for airplanes by making brakes, axles and landing gear brittle.

At least 40 military aircraft arriving at airports in England, France, Italy and Spain have been sprayed with the disinfectant since March, according to Clint Forrest, lead landing gear engineer at Hill Air Force Base.

The Air Force now recommends that all aircraft be washed upon returning from Europe to ensure the chemical does not sit on the parts for too long, Wiser said. He said several measures, like painting or lubricating parts with oil, will help minimize the chemical's damage. Another division of the Air Force began a comprehensive test three weeks ago to determine the specific effects of the acidic solution on plane parts beyond just landing gear. In March, Boeing Co. alerted hundreds of commercial airlines to the potential corrosion problem. Later that month, Britain's Civil Aviation Authority sent a letter to aircraft operators in that country warning that the solution ''contains compounds which have the potential to cause deterioration'' in the materials used to make landing gear.

At smaller airports where you might not have fenced-off runways. At these airportscattle can get out on runways and plane tires can pick up mud potentially laced with foot-and-mouth disease.

MAINTAINING, INSTALLING KEY WITH METAL ROOFING   top

Metal roofing, while adding a special touch to your home, often brings up questions regarding maintenance and installation. As far as painting goes, Terne (copper and tin plate) should be painted as soon after application as conditions will permit with a red iron-oxide, linseed-oil vehicle primer to prevent corrosion.

This paint, which is brush-applied, has a 72-hour drying time. This is followed with a compatible linseed-oil finish coat. In the old days, folks just used two coats of the red iron-oxide primer, which is the reason many of us picture old metal roofs as red. Today, the compatible finish is available in a variety of colours. Depending on environmental conditions, expect to repaint about every eight years. Some of the metal shingles made today are of galvanized steel, the same way they were at the turn of the century.Like Terne, galvanized steel should be painted. This smooth, slick and shiny surface must be etched or roughened up before paint will adhere to it properly. Today, most of the major paint companies sell self-etching primers for use on new galvanized panels.

Another self-healing alloy used in the manufacture of metal roofing is Galvalume, a sheet-metal product with an aluminum-zinc alloy coating. This material also requires no paint and will weather and eventually look like dark zinc. It's also available in a variety of factory-finished colours. Fortunately, installing metal shingles isn't much different from installing any other composite single roof. Any roofing contractor will be able to do it. So should any of you do-it-yourselfers who aren't afraid of heights and are willing to tackle a roofing job.

USCAR CONSORTIUM BEGINS WORK ON MAGNESIUM PROJECT; STRUCTURAL CAST MAGNESIUM RESEARCH COULD LEAD TO REDUCED CO2 EMISSIONS   top

The United States Automotive Materials Partnership (USAMP-AMD), as part of the United States Council for Automotive Research (USCAR), recently began a new Structural Cast Magnesium Development (SCMD) project that will focus on resolving critical issues that limit the large-scale application of structural cast magnesium castings in automotive components. Project Chairman Richard Osborne, of General Motors Corp., indicated the 5-year $10M project activities "will focus on developing the technology necessary to cast and implement a front cast magnesium structural cradle."

The choice of a chassis component provides many stretch goal challenges for the project team to overcome. Key manufacturing issues include: the production of high integrity castings (high-pressure die, semisolid, low pressure, squeeze, etc.) and appropriate joining methods. Harsh service environments create significant material challenges including: erosion/corrosion issues and stress-relaxation concerns.

The objectives of the SCMD project are:

* Improve understanding of cast magnesium alloys;
* Develop a cost model that compares cast magnesium chassis component cost to alternative materials and processing techniques;
* Provide comprehensive database and design guidelines;
* Improve cast component integrity;
* Identify and/or develop methods to improve corrosion resistance;
* Develop accurate Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) for design and manufacturing of chassis-type components;
* Improve dissimilar material joining technologies; and
* Transfer knowledge and lessons learned to industry.

This project, sponsored cooperatively through USAMP-AMD and the Department of Energy through a Cooperative Research And Development Agreement (CRADA), involves a number of research entities:

* National Laboratories: Lawrence Livermore (LLNL), Oak Ridge (ORNL), and Sandia (SNL)
* General Motors, Ford, and DaimlerChrysler
* More than 35 light metal suppliers
* Academia: University of Windsor, Georgia Institute of Technology, Alfred University

QUESTION EXTENDED LIFE FROM HOT WATER TANK   top

I have a 52-gallon electric water heater and wonder if it would be a problem to click it off at the breaker just before taking my morning shower. I could turn it back on after arriving home from work, heating the water up in time to do dishes etc. Would this wear the water heater out more quickly?

Answer: No extra wear or problems should be expected. You may in fact get almost imperceptibly longer tank life due to less mineral deposition and corrosion (a cooler average temperature over the life of the tank). With gas water heaters, the same effect can be realized by turning the thermostat down to the "vacation" setting. In either case you will have a 10- to 30-minute wait for hot water when you get back home, with the gas models having a quicker recovery time. The energy you save will be the amount that would have been wasted during the day keeping the water up to temperature. Storage losses, in other words. The actual amount of storage loss would depend on desired water temperature, age and location of the water heater--with a newer model obviously losing less during the course of the day.

If the water heater is located inside the heated area of the home, during nonsummer months those storage-heat losses are partially recovered and serve to keep the interior of the home warmer, if only slightly. Turning it off during the summer (again if located inside) will serve double duty--saving energy and keeping the house cooler. Just don't come home dead tired expecting a soak in the tub. Side note: What is the benefit of an exterior water-heater insulating blankets. On gas models they tend to be installed exuberantly, blocking flow of intake and exhaust air, sometimes becoming a marginal fire hazard. On both gas and electric, they hold moisture against the tank housing and connection nipples, increasing the onset of rust and corrosion.

Darrell Hay answers readers' questions: dhay@seattletimes.com

POISON LEAK HOSPITALIZES 90 IN SOUTH CHINA   top

Gas from leaked sulfuric acid caused burns and injuries that forced at least 90 residents in southern China's Zhanjiang into hospitals over the weekend, staff at one of the hospitals treating victims said Monday. Clouds of poison gas rose from the acid as it mixed with rainwater after leaking from storage silos belonging to a local chemical company, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported Monday, without naming the company. One source told Kyodo News on condition of anonymity the site was owned by a British-invested firm that had specialized in manufacturing dyes. But the factory, called Huangguan, was shut down in 1997 after operating for only three years, he said. Cylinders containing the sulfuric acid, kept at concentrations higher than 90%, began leaking recently after years of corrosion and neglect, he said.

Ninety victims are currently being treated in three separate hospitals for burns, nervous disorders and chest pains. Nine are in critical condition, Xinhua said. In the wake of the disaster, city officials have launched a campaign to boost factory safety and an investigation into the specific cause of the acid leak, the source said.

SYSTEMS FIX DUE AT STATE BUILDING   top

AUGUSTA, Georgia - The state will spend $ 112,497 to repair the heating and cooling systems in the 9-year-old Bureau of Motor Vehicles building near the Augusta Mental Health Institute campus. "The system should have lasted longer than 10 years. I'm checking on whether we have any (legal) recourse on this," said Charles Jacobs, assistant commissioner of the Department of Administrative & Financial Services. Suing the equipment manufacturer, or the installer, could take years of litigation and result in no financial gains for the state, he added.

Employees in the building at 101 Hospital St., which cost $ 7 million and opened in the fall of 1992, will continue on the job while the work is done during the first two weeks of June. About 200 people, including division directors and deputy directors, work in the Hospital Street facility. Offices are on the first and second floors, and the basement houses stock rooms, the cafeteria and the information services department.

Jacobs said coils in the heating and cooling apparatus will be replaced. 'Water from the humidification system caused the heating and cooling coils to deteriorate,' he said. In recent years, employees have complained that heating and cooling in the building has been uneven. The nature of the replacement job should prevent similar chemical accumulations in the future, Jacobs said. The new system will use a different kind of humidification process to prevent corrosion from building up, he added. The Bureau of General Services, a division in the administrative department, has handled the contract terms and the awarding of the $ 112,497 job.

LAND ROVER RECALLS V8 CARS  top

Land Rover Australia has recalled a batch of Range Rover and Discovery Series II V8 vehicles to fix a problem that could damage the automatic gearboxes. The company said the cars involved were built between June 1998 and December 2000. It said under certain circumstances water could travel up a breather pipe and into the gearbox of the cars, possibly causing corrosion to the park lock mechanism.

"If the park lock function is used to sustain the vehicle when parked without applying the hand brake and the park lock mechanism does not engage this may cause the vehicle to roll away," Land Rover said in its recall notice.

The company said owners should contact a Land Rover dealer to arrange for their vehicles to be inspected and for the breather pipe to be re-routed. In the meantime it said drivers should not use just the park lock function to hold a vehicle on a slope but should always engage the hand brake as well.

U.S. Army, EPA reach accord on fuel tanks ; $60,000 fine with penalty for failure to monitor underground tanks The Army has agreed to pay a $ 60,000 fine and spend at least $ 200,000 removing underground storage tanks at Fort Lewis in a settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday. EPA and Fort Lewis officials said the fort failed to adequately monitor some of its underground fuel tanks for leaks, spills and corrosion. Regulators found the deficiencies during inspections in 1999. Subsequent tests showed no contamination of wells and springs that supply drinking water on or near Fort Lewis, officials said. The Army promises to spend at least $ 200,000 to remove underground storage tanks and clean up any contamination found at each site, officials said.

ISSUES IN SHARP FOCUS AFTER ERIKA   top

Repercussions following the tanker disaster have brought many parties together to redefine environmental and safety concerns. Erika is neck and neck with Exxon Valdez in terms of media coverage and political repercussions. In addition, the more recent tanker accident may yet generate the same volume of new rules as the Alaska tanker spill 10 years earlier.

Yet Erika is likely to have a less disruptive effect on the international tanker industry than did Exxon Valdez and, as good as the benefits stemming from Exxon Valdez have been in terms of reductions in the volume of oil spilt from tankers, Erika has the potential to have an even greater positive effect.

The tanker industry has been much more together in response to Erika than it was with the earlier accident. So far, it has managed to deflect the threat of unilateral European legislation on the accelerated phase-out of single-hull tankers and to have this debate transferred to the international IMO forum. At IMO a compromise solution on phase-outs has been agreed, and the outcome is one which should not overly disrupt the markets. More importantly, Erika has forced all those engaged in tanker shipping, including the regulators, to consider carefully how and why such an accident, and some other recent tanker mishaps, should come to pass.

The issue is not one of single versus double hulls, but rather the importance of proper rule enforcement, the efficacy of the present ship inspection regime and the need for greater transparency in the shipping industry. The tendency to pare scantlings to an absolute minimum, based on sophisticated finite element calculations, is causing concern among those who say the corrosion behaviour of such ships over a full service life is unproven. The appearance of cargo tank corrosion in relatively new double-hull crude carriers is reinforcing these worries. It is also causing several responsible owners to reassess what constitutes a sound double-hull design and to back up their beliefs when placing orders for new ships, despite the additional cost.

The recent past has been a time of great activity in tanker shipping circles. The feeling is that the industry has worked to good effect within the regulatory framework and that the effort has been more usefully harnessed this time than ever before. As a result, further noticeable improvements in the tanker safety record are expected in the years ahead. The Erika casualty may yet generate the same volume of new rules as the Exxon Valdez spill 10 years earlier.Industry will need to monitor the corrosion phenomenon on double-hull tankers.

WILL KIRK, RESEARCHER, DIES AT 68   top

Wilber Wolfe "Will" Kirk, who made a career researching the corrosive effects of saltwater and sea air, died Tuesday at his home at Ivanhoe. He was 68. Mr. Kirk, who grew up in Latrobe, Pa., spent 28 years with the LaQue Center for Corrosion Technology at Wrightsville Beach and Kure Beach. The LaQue Center is one of only a few research companies in the world that studies saltwater's effects on materials. Clients include the Navy and oil and gas companies. When Mr. Kirk wasn't doing research of his own, he was help|ing Wilmington students do theirs. He served on Cape Fear Community College's Board of Trustees for seven years. Mr. Kirk also was a Rotarian for 31 years, a member of Salvation Army Advisory Committee, president of the Brigade Boys Club board and president of the Albert Schweitzer International Prizes.

PENNSYLVANIA ENGINEER DEVELOPS EASIER WAY TO PRODUCE SYNTHETIC DIAMONDS WITH CORROSION   top

A Drexel University engineer has come up with an easier and cheaper way to produce a material almost identical to natural diamonds. Yury Gogotsi headed a team with the University of Illinois that announced the invention in the journal Nature. He said he anticipates dozens of applications, from hip replacement joints to car engine parts, where ordinary industrial diamond would have been too expensive. The new synthetic diamond is still the world's hardest substance, able to cut through concrete, stone and marble. But it has slightly different heat conductivity and other properties than natural or other synthetic diamonds, Gogotsi said. Synthetic diamonds ordinarily are made by subjecting graphite to crushing pressure and searing heat, a process that creates diamonds chemically identical to what is found in nature.

But Gogotsi starts with silicon carbide, a cheap, abundant material commonly used in sandpaper. Working at ordinary air pressure, he basically pulls out the silicon, leaving the carbon in the form of tiny diamond crystals. Gogotsi said the first step toward his diamond discovery happened while studying corrosion in Japan in 1993. "All great discoveries were made by mistake," he said from his office in Drexel's engineering building in University City. Everyone thought that corrosion of silicon carbide produced blobs of silicon oxide. But when Gogotsi created conditions he thought would speed up the corrosion process, he found that he actually had turned some of the silicon carbide into carbon.

The process involved heating the silicon carbide to 1,000 degrees Celsius -- a relatively low temperature compared to conventional diamond-making processes -- and exposing it to a gas that reacts with the material. Since his initial discovery, he had tried myriad variations on the process before finding something that reliably produced the hardest form of carbon, diamond. His technique, described in the Nature article, involves putting the silicon carbide into glass tubes, heating it, and exposing it to a mixture of chlorine and hydrogen gases.

What results is a form of pure carbon almost identical to both natural and conventional synthetic diamond, but not quite. Like natural or other synthetic diamond, each carbon atom is tightly bonded to four neighbors, but these groups of five are arranged slightly differently. The new structure has the same or slightly lower hardness while some other properties are different, including thermal conductivity, the ability to transfer heat. Other diamond feels cold to the touch because heat from your hand is being transferred to it, Gogotsi explained. Not so with this new diamond. One of the applications he is exploring for his new diamond material is in gaskets for automobile water pumps. These normally are made from silicon carbide, but the lower heat conductivity of the new diamond would make it less likely to transfer heat to other parts of the engine. He said he believes that mass production could become practical with his simpler manufacturing method.

SPEEDWAY OFFICIALS STEP UP SAFETY AFTER BRIDGE FAILED   top

One year after the collapse of a walkway at Lowe's Motor Speedway that injured more than 100 people, NASCAR fans crossed a new bridge to the speedway. On May 20, 2000, just as fans were leaving The Winston, an all-star NASCAR race, corrosion in a 320-foot-long pedestrian walkway over U.S. 29 caused it to collapse, sending fans tumbling 20 feet to the road below.

The bridge was replaced free of charge by the Tindall Corp., the company in South Carolina that built the walkway in 1995. The new bridge was in place in October and has already been used by some fans.

''We have gone back and reviewed all of the pedestrian bridges throughout the state,'' Goins said. ''We want to make sure everything out there crosses our system.'' Goins said the inspectors looked for the type of corrosion that occurred in the walkway collapse in other bridges and have not found it.

PROFILE TO BEGIN NEW ALASKAN PIPELINE INSPECTION WORK IN JUNE   top

PROFILE TECHNOLOGIES, INC (NASDAQ: PRTK) announced today that it would return to Alaska's North Slope next month to begin new below-ground electromagnetic wave ("EMW") inspection work. The new work is scheduled to begin on or about June 15.

This will be the fourth consecutive year that Profile has employed its automated scanning technology to inspect buried piping for corrosion in Alaska. Though the exact work scope for 2001 has not yet been finalized, the Company anticipates that it will at least equal last year's work scope. "The fact that we are asked to continue our pipeline inspection work on the North Slope year after year is, in our view, a testament to the utility and growing acceptance of our technology, "said Philip Jones, Profile's Chief Operating Officer. During the next several months, the Company also plans to demonstrate its technology to additional companies doing business in Alaska. Profile Technologies is engaged in the business of researching and developing a high speed, non-invasive and non-destructive scanning process to remotely test buried and insulated pipelines for corrosion. The Company's electromagnetic wave inspection process, referred to as Profile's Inspection EMW(TM) or "EMW," is a patented process of analyzing waveforms of electrical impulses in a way that extracts point-to-point information along a pipeline segment in order to determine the integrity of the entire pipeline without the need to remove pipeline insulation or excavate the pipelines.

SMART 'HUMAN-LIKE' PRODUCTS ON THE WAY   top

Future 'smart' consumer products will have 'human-like' functionality, a CSIRO Science Briefing in Wollongong heard today. The products will combine sensors, actuators, vision and hearing systems to give them this human-like quality according to University of Wollongong's Associate Professor Geoff Spinks. The Briefing, titled "Re-engineering Engineering", was sponsored by the NSW Department of State and Regional Development and hosted by Colin Markham MP, Member for Wollongong. "Many consumer products are becoming 'smart' - washing machines, dryers, vacuum cleaners, internet refrigerators," Dr Spinks says.

"These products combine microprocessor controls with existing sensors for pressure, temperature, motion etc. Improved sensors - an electronic nose for example - will expand the range and versatility of smart products as will the further development of efficient actuators and energy storage/conversion systems.Intelligent polymers are one of a number of novel "smart materials" that can be used in these products. The polymers combine sensors, actuators, information processing and energy storage/conversion functions into the one material or composite material system.

"The smart material is capable of detecting a change in its environment - the onset of corrosion for example - and actuates an appropriate response, for example the release of a corrosion inhibitor. This material can be autonomous and self-powered," he says. e-mail: gspinks@uow.edu.au

BATHROOMS PAMPER OWNERS WITH LUXURY AND RESISTS CORROSION TOO   top

Today's bathroom takes on a life of its own. It's the pampering place, especially the master bathroom. As the bathroom becomes the room of retreat -- and more than a place to get ready for the world each day -- it takes on style, personality and lots and lots of amenities. It becomes the ultimate "suite" spot in the house. People are doing more and traveling more and are staying at luxury hotels, resorts and spas and want to incorporate the amenities enjoyed at these destinations into their homes.

Faucet finishes feature durable, stylish ones such as satin gold, brushed nickel and polished nickel or chrome, created to resist scratches, corrosion and tarnish.

EASTERN MICHIGAN WORKERS TO HELP RESTORE TITANIC ARTIFACTS   top

Faculty, staff and students at Eastern Michigan University are being given the chance to help conserve some of the artifacts brought up from the Titanic. Among the items that went down with the legendary ocean liner in 1912: a chandelier, the chef's hat, playing cards, books, purses, clothes and silverware. The Titanic sunk after hitting an iceberg about 350 miles southeast of Newfoundland. Of the 2,228 passengers and crew, 1,523 died. The ship was located by a French and American team in 1985 under 12,500 feet of water.

Currently about 800 artifacts are stored in a laboratory off campus. The job of conserving involves retrieving, cleaning away salt, rust and corrosion and chemically treating artifacts to freeze them in the exact state they are in when they are removed from the ocean floor. Ligibel said the conservationist's goal is to maintain the integrity of the condition items are in upon retrieval. He said when on display, the bronze chandelier - thanks to conservationists - will look just as it did when it was brought up from the ocean's floor.

JURY WATCHES DOOMED FLIGHT DISAPPEAR FROM RADAR   top

THE jury in the manslaughter trial of Dash 8 pilot Garry Sotheran in Palmerston North watched yesterday as Ansett Flight 703 disappeared from an air traffic controller's radar screen. Flight 703 crashed into hills near Palmerston North on June 9, 1995, killing four people. Sotheran denies four charges of manslaughter and three of unlawfully injuring passengers. The plane's final moments, recorded on radar by the Airways Corporation, were played to the court yesterday.

The plane was shown inching its way across the screen, leaving a trail of dots and preceded by its "velocity leader", a projection of its anticipated flight direction. Its altitude and speed were also shown and toward the end a "route error" sign, indicating it had departed from its planned course, appeared. The plane's symbol began flashing, showing the plane was no longer responding to the radar signal, before the Airways computer removed it from the screen.

Earlier, the chief air traffic controller at Palmerston North in 1995, Tony Chapman, told of waiting in vain for a visual sighting of Flight 703, and then ringing Airways' Ohakea air traffic controllers to be told the plane had vanished from their radar screens. He then started the airport's emergency procedure, which began a search for the plane and closed the airport to all traffic other than rescue services.

Environmental Science and Research Institute scientist David Firth told of finding corrosion on the plane's two radio altimeter aerials but said it was not enough to affect the aerials' electrical integrity.

SAFETY SCARE AT POOL   top

ALL Seasons Leisure Centre was forced to temporarily close its swimming pool after a fault was discovered with the ventilation system. The Chorley pool was shut on Friday, May 4, after a supervisor discovered the fault in ducting attached to the ceiling above. He reported it to Chorley Borough Council and an inspection by a team of experts found the ducting had corroded and was in need of repair. All Seasons Leisure Centre is owned by the council, with the management contract belongs to the DC Leisure group. Jack Wilson, leader of the council, said: "A fault was discovered with the ventilation and ducting system which necessitated urgent repairs involving the erection of scaffolding to the roof.

"The baths were closed immediately when the fault was recognised because safety is of paramount concern of both the council and DC Leisure." Mr Wilson went on to say: " We apologise sincerely to any customers who have been disappointed and the baths will be open for business when all repairs have been carried out satisfactorily."

Following a meeting at the leisure centre between council and DC Leisure staff, a spokesman for Chorley Borough Council said: "We would have preferred to have built the repairs into our normal programme, but considering the extent of the corrosion we felt the work had to be done sooner rather than later. There was a health and safety issue and that is why we are not waiting.

"The fault was identified as part of routine maintenance checks and we in talks with the original suppliers of the materials with a view to finding out how the problem came to be." The pool is expected to open as normal early next week.

ZONAL DRYING TM SYSTEM BEING DEVELOPED FOR SWEDISH AIR FORCE (SWAF) C-130 HERCULES TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT   top

Today, a ground-based dehumidification system is in use for the aircraft when they are on the ground at their home base. The purpose is now to add on the CTT on-board Zonal DryingTMSystem to prevent problems associated to condensation also during flight and when the aircrafts are operating where the ground- based dehumidification system is not available. The aim is primarily to protect electrical and avionics systems in the cockpit. CTT Zonal DryingTMSystem has been in commercial operation since 1994 at a number of airlines. The development of this dehumidification system for the Swedish Airforce C-130 Hercules shows FMV 180s long term aim to assure increased reliability and good operational capability of these aircraft.

The CTT Zonal Drying TM System is designed to combat water condensation in the thermal and acoustic insulation of modern passenger aircraft. Airlines can use the Zonal Drying TM System to reduce maintenance costs by increasing the service life of the insulation and realize significant fuel savings by eliminating the non-revenue weight of the accumulated water condensate. By keeping dry the area between the interior trim panels and the aircraft skin, the Zonal Drying TM System also reduces corrosion and the risk of failure of electronic systems and wiring.

With the Zonal Comfort TM System, which is based upon the evaporative cooling technique, CTT System is now able to provide the industry with a complete moisture management system. The system provides increased humidity for passengers and crew, in particular on long-haul flights, while at the same time condensation is prevented with the Zonal Drying TM System.

UNDERGROUND GASOLINE STORAGE TANKS CONTINUE TO LEAK, AGENCY REPORTS   top

The nation's underground storage tanks continue to leak gasoline and other dangerous substances despite expensive federal efforts to stem those leaks, a watchdog arm of Congress reported Wednesday. The U.S. General Accounting Office found that many underground tanks appeared to comply with federal rules that had gone into effect in December 1998, but nearly one-third actually failed to comply because of poor maintenance and operation. As a result, the GAO found, about 200,000 tanks are at increased risk of leaking gasoline or other harmful chemicals into the soil, groundwater and drinking water. The GAO audits and investigates federal programs at the direction of Congress. The GAO report includes the following conclusions:

Most states, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, do not inspect tanks frequently enough to know how many actually comply with the federal rules. They also do not have the most effective enforcement tools, such as the authority to prohibit delivery of fuel to tanks not in compliance.

The equipment installed to upgrade tanks is often faulty. Nineteen states reported frequent problems with equipment intended to prevent corrosion of steel tanks. Fifteen states reported that leak-detection equipment frequently was turned off or was improperly maintained. And seven states reported problems with equipment to prevent spills when transport trucks transfer fuel into underground tanks.

To stop the continuing leaks, the GAO recommended that the EPA increase money to train people who work with tanks. It also said the EPA should negotiate with states a minimum frequency for inspections of tanks. And, it said, the EPA should report to Congress the cost of improving compliance. In June, the EPA reported to Congress that annual inspections would cost $93 million in the first year and $70 million each additional year.

WATER STOPPAGE MEANS FAUCET TROUBLE  top

QUESTION: Terri asks: We have a small sink in our family room. The faucet ran hot and cold water slow, but it came out. Then one day it just stopped, no water at all, why?

ANSWER: This is a common problem that can be fixed in one of three ways: by cleaning the aerator at the tip of the faucet spout, by checking or changing the faucet valve gasket(s) or by replacing the nipples (short pipes) that protrude through the wall beneath the sink.

The first thing you should check is the faucet spout. Unscrew the aerator tip to remove it and turn on the water. If water comes out, it means your culprit is a clogged aerator. Clean it with vinegar and a toothbrush. If the aerator isn't the problem, remove the valve stems to see if the gaskets inside are preventing the free flow of water.

If your investigation of the faucet proves fruitless, it's time to scrutinize the nipples that come out of the wall. The nipples are connected to angle stops (shut-off valves) that are below the sink and against the wall.

The nipples and the shut-off valves are usually made of different materials. Electrolysis occurs when dissimilar metals are in contact. The resultant corrosion can completely clog the inside of a nipple. We have no idea why the valve always seems to skate through unscathed. Shut off the main water valve, remove the shut-off valves, remove and replace the nipples with modern Teflon-coated nipples (they won't corrode because they prevent electrolysis from occurring) and put everything back the way you found it.

WARNING: The fittings and pipes in the wall could possibly be corroded, as well. This means that the project could turn out to be a big job. Be prepared for this possibility.

SHAPING YOUR FUTURE - FINDING A JOB IN CORROSION CONTROL  top

Need information about working overseas in the anti-corrosion industry. Is there an agency can be contacted or an organisation I could register with? If you use a good search engine such as Google, at www.google.com, and search for "anti corrosion or corrosion engineer"', you should find several websites, many of which seem to be US-based. Use these as a starting point for further research. One example can be found at www.corrosionsource.com. Choose the Career Center to access its job vacancy section and a free registration form. Another organisation that may be able to advise you is NACE International, The Corrosion Society. See the website at www.nace.org. However, in order to post your resume on this website you must first pay to become a member of the organisation.

NATURAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING RESEARCH COUNCIL GIVES GRANT FOR CORROSION Study  top

The Honourable Brian Tobin, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), announced yesterday new research grants worth $346 million over 5 years to more than 2,500 university professors across Canada. The grants were awarded in a nation-wide competition conducted by NSERC. Systems studied by the University of Guelph's Peter Tremaine includes corrosion chemistry at the high temperatures and pressures encountered in nuclear reactors and thermal electric power stations. This research is determining how dissolved gases and salts in water behave under extreme conditions - information that will allow the creation of models to predict and control corrosion in these very aggressive environments. $60,000 a year for four years.

MAJOR GENERAL DENNIS M. MCCARTHY OF UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS RESERVE AIRES CONCERN ABOUT CORROSION BEFORE THE SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE SUBCOMMITTEE ON DEFENSE  top

Maintaining our aging equipment continues to challenge the Force. Even though the Marine Corps is replacing some equipment and modernizing others through extensive modifications, these initiatives will take a few years to complete. Since the Reserve generally receives new equipment and modifications to existing systems after the Active force, the equipment we currently possess will continue to age and require more frequent repairs. Lengthy repair cycle times greatly reduce the amount of time that reservists have for annual training. Time is a valuable commodity that is extremely limited in the reserve environment. The more burdensome these repairs become to our units, the more the quality of training will diminish.

To maintain current levels of readiness, we must have sufficient operations and maintenance funding for corrective and preventive maintenance programs. Due to topline constraints, the existing depot maintenance backlog for MARFORRES equipment is growing. Corrosion control funding is, as always, a high priority to all Marine Corps units. Current funding provides relief, but the pending requirement for corrosion control repairs to equipment located at our home training centers remains a challenge. The aging of our equipment plays a major role in this area. We are outsourcing and competitively bidding some of our intermediate maintenance requirements as an innovative way to stretch the maintenance dollar.

A QUESTION OF RUST: CORROSIONSOURCE - FORBES BEST OF THE WEB  top

Rust does $350 billion of damage globally each year. Here's how one Web site is cashing in on all that corrosion. Can a Web site succeed if it charges for access? The answer is definitely yes-if it offers the kind of data this one does. Rust never sleeps, the adage goes, and Russell Kane, metallurgy Ph.D., has made a career of dealing with it. He lives and breathes corrosion and he runs Corrosion Source, a Web site devoted to the phenomenon. Ask him about it and you get a fascinating lecture.

He starts out with a description of oxidation, the basic chemical process in corrosion. Electrons leave the atoms they start with -- iron atoms or copper atoms or aluminum atoms, say -- to mingle with oxygen atoms. Those wandering atoms result in rusted iron, corroded pipes and tarnished doorknobs and silver. Corrosion isn't all bad: Wine is the by-product of grape controlled oxidation - a process involved in corrosion. But Corrosion Source makes its living dealing with some of the nastier results of corrosion. Corrosion Source, owned by U.K.-based Integriti, serves as a portal and a marketplace for corrosion-fighting services and equipment.

The Web site began in 1995 as a marketing activity for InterCorr, a corrosion-consulting business where Kane had previously been president. The company used the site to host an online conference, posting technical papers and setting up some rudimentary discussion forums.

In the late 1990s, while scores of "content" sites were giving their wares away, Kane realized that InterCorr's vault of highly technical information was worth money. "People weren't asking whether we were going to charge for our content," he says. "They were asking how much." Today Houston-based Corrosion Source charges $995 per year per user for access to its Java-based corrosion prediction software and database. This year it expects to gross $1 million. Clients commission InterCorr to do tests to determine such matters as what materials to use in pipelines. When clients' confidentiality periods expire, generally after about two years, InterCorr makes the data available on Corrosion Source.

As this story shows, the secret of being able to charge for Web access is having information that nobody else has. "Ninety percent of the stuff on our site is stuff you can't find anywhere else," says Srinivasan. One such report is a graph showing how chrome piping costing $4 a pound holds up under increasing temperatures. Corrosion Source has more than 30,000 pages of such detailed information.

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO RECEIVES U.S. GRANT TO INVESTIGATE 'SPACE CORROSION'  top

The University of Chicago will become headquarters for a new national center devoted to investigating the long-term performance of high-tech materials in space with a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense. The center's unclassified fundamental research program could potentially lead to the development of new and improved materials for satellites, space stations, high-altitude aircraft, as well as advanced terrestrial applications.

The collaboration will initially focus its attention on understanding the chemistry of polymers in space. Polymers, a class of relatively soft, lightweight materials that includes Teflon and Kapton, are widely used in spacecraft design. Hard coatings such as diamond films also will be examined.

Much of what is known about the effects of such phenomena on materials resulted from the study of the Long Duration Exposure Facility. Launched in 1984 by the space shuttle Challenger, LDEF was mounted with a variety of metals, polymers and ceramics to see how they would fare in the extreme space environment. The satellite completed more than 32,000 Earth orbits at altitudes ranging from 275 to 175 miles before the shuttle Columbia returned it to Earth in 1990.

LDEF demonstrated how little scientists knew about the durability of materials in space. Some samples that experts thought would survive disappeared, while others that were expected to be destroyed managed to endure. The synergistic effects of space chemistry complicate the issue. It's one thing to understand what happens when electrons, ions, oxygen atoms or ultraviolet radiation separately react with a material and quite another matter to understand the reactions when any two or three of the phenomena operate at the same time.

Orbital debris-both man-made and meteoritic-takes its toll, too, as LDEF also showed. One question that is hoped to be answered is how the microscopic defects left by debris impacts influence the subsequent chemistry and structural evolution of such materials.

Especially appealing is the challenge presented by trying to synthesize a polymer that resists multiple sources of corrosion in space. In theory, a polymer coated with aluminum or some other metal could possibly resist the corrosion. When a marauding oxygen atom strikes the material, the atom and the metal will react to form a surface film of aluminum oxide that prevents further corrosion. At the same time, the aluminum oxide would serve as a good conductor, potentially draining away damaging floods of electrons.

DONLAR/BIOMUNE ANNOUNCES A MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL BREAKTHROUGH IN OIL FIELD PRODUCTION  top

Donlar/Biomune Systems, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: BIME) announces a major environmental breakthrough in the North Sea Oil production. At the 12th International Oil Field Chemistry Symposium, Baker Petrolite of Aberdeen Scotland has announced that they were able to solve a significant corrosion and scale problem for Phillips Petroleum using a new environmentally friendly protein product manufactured by Donlar/Biomune. Phillips' Ekofisk North Sea oil field has been experiencing severe corrosion, principally caused by bacteria. The Donlar product solved the resulting corrosion problem while proving to be a significantly more efficient scale inhibitor. These benefits resulted in a substantial cost saving for Phillips and showed a significant environmental improvement in their operation. North Sea Oil Production is represented by 135 separate oil fields, with over 500 platforms producing in excess of 10,000,000 barrels of oil per day.

Donlar/Biomune is a diverse biotech company specializing in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sales of protein technologies. These protein products are used in a global range of industrial, agricultural and pharmaceutical markets. The proteins are a new family of biopolymers known as thermal polyaspartates (TPA). They are non-hazardous, non-toxic, hypoallergenic, environmentally friendly and biodegradable. Investments of over $60 million devoted to Donlar's research and development efforts have resulted in one hundred and thirty global patents that protect its TPA technology, products and marketplace. Donlar has also generated at least six million in revenue from research alliances, start-up and market development activities over the past four years.

SAVANNAH RIVER MOVES ON WASTE LEAK CONCERNS  top

Following criticism from a watchdog agency, officials at the Energy Department's Savannah River Site announced this week they will remove another 270,000 gallons of high-level radioactive waste from an underground storage tank to resolve concerns about leakage. Westinghouse Savannah River Co., which operates the South Carolina nuclear weapons facility for DOE, said it was taking the action to lower the level of waste in Tank 6 below three potential leak sites in the wall of the tank.

Westinghouse earlier this year removed 40,000 gallons of waste from the tank after it discovered six spots of corrosion on the tank wall, two of which were found to be oozing waste. The leaks, first noticed January 12, dribbled about 90 gallons down the walls of the massive storage tank into the annulus, a giant saucer-shaped pan under the tank designed to catch any leakage before it seeps into the ground. In removing the initial 40,000 gallons, Westinghouse officials said they were lowering the level of waste in the tank below three of the leak sites, including the two active ones. At that time, they said the three additional leak sites-which are lower on the tank wall-were not leaking and therefore they did not need to lower the waste level inside the tank below them. That decision was subsequently blasted as unwise by the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, a federal agency that oversees nuclear safety at DOE sites. The watchdog board said leaving waste in the tank above the three inactive leak sites clearly compromised environmental safety.

The board also said Savannah River officials were seeking to minimize waste transfers out of Tank 6 because it would take up dwindling space in other Savannah River storage tanks needed to support pretreatment and vitrification of high-level waste at the site, a key to final disposal.

The leaks-products of stress corrosion near weld seams in the tank wall-raised red flags for many of Savannah River's 51 underground storage tanks, which cumulatively hold some 32 million gallons of high-level waste. Eight of the 51 tanks are single-walled and 24 do not have "secondary containment" walls to catch leaks. The oldest tanks date back to the early 1950s and all are subject to high pressure and temperatures from the heavy loads of hot waste they hold.

To date, ten tanks have leaked, with only one of those incidents-in 1960-resulting in overflow of the annulus, with less than 100 gallons of waste estimated to have seeped into the ground.

TIPS FOR MAKING A SAFE BACK-YARD PLAYGROUND: DON'T LET CORROSION CAUSE DANGER  top

If you don't want your child to be one of the 51,000 kids to be treated in emergency rooms each year for injuries suffered in back-yard playgrounds, take heed to recommendations from the Lowe's Home Safety Council. Cover areas under and around play equipment with ground-surfacing materials such as wood chips, mulch, pea gravel, sand or interlocking rubber matting. Grass, dirt, asphalt and concrete will cause problems and injuries. These safe ground coverings should be 9-12 inches deep and extend 6 feet out from all sides of the equipment. Replenish these safer ground-surfacing materials. Rain and other weather can wreak havoc on them. Check equipment for signs of deterioration or corrosion, signs that the structural integrity of the equipment may be compromised. Beware of entrapment hazards such as openings in the equipment that are 31/2-9 inches wide in which a child's head could become trapped. Watch out for entanglement hazards such as S hooks or protruding bolts on which a child's clothing might catch and cause strangulation.

HI-TECH SET FOR GROWTH IN HOUSTON FIGHTING CORROSION  top

A YOUNG Aberdeen hi-tech company, which has picked up several Scottish awards, has ambitious plans for spreading its wings across the Atlantic. Commercial Microbiology, based at Aberdeen Science and Technology Park, is shortly to open an office in Houston and hopes to double its workforce to nearly 60 in the next few years on the back of the US venture.The company has grown from a one-man operation to having nearly 30 employees, in 13 years, while annual turnover has also shot up from GBP 17,000 to GBP 1million in that time. Founder and managing director , 41, a qualified microbiologist, revealed his expansion plans to the Press and Journal at OTC.

He is moving to America in June to head up the new base at Scottish Enterprise's STAR Centre in Houston, an "incubator" office facility.Operations manager Alison Gardiner will remain in the UK to run that side of the business. Commercial Microbiology has three divisions - the world-wide energy operation being the biggest and specialising in investigating bacterial corrosion in water-injection and production systems offshore. There is also a food testing division for food processors in Grampian. The third division is environmental, involved in using bacteria to take pollutants out of effluent and also to remove oil from drill cuttings. This is a new offshoot aimed at food and water companies.

The focus of the Houston base will be the energy operation. Mr Maxwell said he had seen opportunities opening up in South America, but he felt he had to be in Houston as that was where these projects were run from. He was also excited at possibilities for Commercial Microbiology in the Gulf of Mexico, where seawater injection is about to begin in oil-fields.

RULES FOR FUEL TANKS; FAA MANDATES CHANGES IN NEW AIRCRAFT DESIGNS TO FIND AND MINIMIZE CORROSION  top

The Federal Aviation Administration yesterday published rules that will require fuel-tank changes in new aircraft designs to prevent explosions like the one that brought down TWA Flight 800 nearly five years ago. The new rules would impose a nearly revolutionary change in aircraft design for new planes not yet produced. They require that new aircraft designs must minimize the buildup of flammable vapor in fuel tanks. For decades the industry's design philosophy has been based on the concept that fuel tanks are flammable and the way to prevent explosions is to keep any sparks out of them.

But the major changes won't apply to any current aircraft now flying, or any derivatives of current models that may be manufactured in the future. Instead, the manufacturers of nearly 7,000 jet aircraft with more than 30 seats will be required to conduct reviews of their fuel-system designs to ensure that nothing could cause the fuel vapors to ignite. The manufacturers-including Boeing and Airbus-will then have to come up with new maintenance plans to prevent the vapors' ignition. Such maintenance plans may involve new inspections to detect corrosion or wiring problems.

The new rules were first proposed in October 1999. In the draft proposal, the FAA said it planned to give manufacturers 12 months to complete the design review and give airlines another six months to incorporate changes into their maintenance programs. But the new rules will give Boeing and the other manufacturers 18 months to complete the design reviews and give airlines 18 months after that to alter maintenance practices.

CORROSION DAMAGE TO SUNSHINE SKYWAY BRIDGE COSTS $1 MILLION, OTHERS MAY BE AFFECTED TOO  top

As modern bridges go, the 14-year-old Sunshine Skyway in St. Petersburg, Florida, is young, but it's already showing distressing signs of old age. One of the 536 vertical steel tendons that hold together the bridge's 76 hollow pillars has failed from corrosion, and inspectors have discovered potentially harmful rust on several others. "Something like this to happen in such a short time really wakes you up," said Michael Sprinkel, a Virginia state engineer who has spent 30 years studying bridge problems and is familiar with the Skyway tendon troubles. DOT engineers say they aren't sure how the tendon corrosion happened so quickly in a bridge designed to last a century.

Tampa Bay area commuters will see their first indication of the trouble this week. Wednesday, work crews plan to start closing northbound lanes, one at a time, between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to rectify the problem. The repairs will take an estimated four to six weeks to complete. Bridge workers have to close the lanes so they can drill 5-inch holes through the roadbed and superstructure, insert reinforcing steel rods and plug one of the Skyway's hollow support pillars with 81 tons of concrete. It will be the first time that engineers have ever fixed corrosion problems in a "post-tensioned" bridge in such a manner. Engineers say the bridge foundation can handle the extra dead weight, but if the tendons in higher columns fail, a similar fix "would not be a viable alternative" because of the excess weight involved.

This repair project could be just the beginning of a much larger problem, not only for the Skyway but also for similarly constructed bridges around the world. Florida's DOT has declared a moratorium on the post-tensioned system used to build the Skyway. That means engineers must redesign proposed new spans that will replace the Bayway Bridge in St. Petersburg and the Clearwater Memorial Bridge. Similar corrosion troubles have recently prompted tendon replacements in two other Florida bridges, the Mid-Bay Bridge crossing Pensacola Bay and the Niles Channel Bridge spanning islands in the Florida Keys.

The tendon corrosion issue has bridge engineers buzzing across the nation. "I'd say it's an eye-opening experience," remarked engineer Sprinkel, who is research manager for the Virginia Transportation Research Council. Sprinkel specializes in bridge rehabilitation and repairs and has attended a private presentation by DOT engineers on the Skyway problem. "It's having a national impact," Sprinkel said. "Bridge engineers across this country are stepping up inspections of bridges of this type to make sure there's no problem."

The Skyway problem first came to light during an inspection of column 133 North, a 511/2-foot-tall pillar that supports the northbound superstructure and roadway at the point where the bridge's downward slope meets the level bridge on the Pinellas County end of the Skyway. DOT is spending half a million dollars to research the extent of the corrosion on other bridge tendons, and another half a million to fix the damage inspectors already have uncovered. That total doesn't include repairs for similar problems at the Mid-Bay Bridge spanning Pensacola Bay and the Niles Channel Bridge in the Florida Keys. Those corrosion problems required the replacement of tendons that connect the longitudinal sections of those bridges and are more alarming than the current Skyway troubles.

KIRK WINS ASTM AWARD OF MERIT  top

A 2001 Award of Merit from the American Society for Testing and Materials will be presented in May to Wilber W. Kirk, president emeritus of the LaQue Center for Corrosion Technology. Mr. Kirk, a resident of Ivanhoe, will also receive the accompanying title of fellow. The award is the highest the group gives to an individual for contributions to committee work. Committee G01 on Corrosion of Metals will recognize Mr. Kirk for his contributions in the field of corrosion in seawater and the marine atmosphere and other work. He has also written papers and presented or published them in ASTM books. Committee G01 previously recognized Mr. Kirk with the Francis L. LaQue Award, which recognizes significant contributions in the field of corrosion testing and evaluation. It was established in memory of Dr. Francis L. LaQue, the founder of Committee G01.

MORE CLASS SOCIETIES TELL OF FINDING 'SUPER-RUST'  top

Two more of the world's top classification societies have revealed that they have encountered "Super-Rust", which eats tankers from inside out nearly 10 times faster than anticipated. The discovery of "hyper-accelerated corrosion" or "super-rust" was revealed by leading ship surveyor the American Bureau of Shipping earlier this month after it examined the Castor. Now Det Norske Veritas and Lloyd's Register have said they too have seen the phenomenon. "Corrosion rates of one to 1.5 mm a year have been experienced. The ABS investigation into deck-cracking of the gasoline tanker Castor showed that new 16 mm thick deck plate installed in 1997 had wasted up to 5 mm in three years. ABS said though an investigation was still under way it appeared a supporting steel girder had also failed, causing the Castor's deck to buckle and shear. It said part of the 1997-built tanker's girder had become chemically "sacrificed" when it became sandwiched between two areas of newly replaced steel.

RUSTY FRONT ENDS PROMPT GENERAL MOTORS RECALL OF NEARLY 83,000 AUTOMOBILES  top

Nearly 83,000 General Motors cars are being recalled to fix front-end corrosion. It is the second recall of GM products in the past year for the same problem. Vehicles in the latest recall are from the 1988-91 model years and include the Buick Regal, Chevrolet Lumina, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme and Pontiac Grand Prix. The cars were sold east of the Manitoba-Ontario border. It is not known how many are on the road. Transport Canada says corrosion can cause frame or cradle retainer bolts to pull through the retainers. If the frame drops, the intermediate steering shaft may separate from the steering gear. Dealers will replace the front and rear frame/cradle bolts and retainers. In April, 2000, GM recalled thousands of these models from 1990-93 to repair or replace engine cradles. Those cars were sold in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, P.E.I. and New Brunswick.

THREE PORT ARANSAS FERRIES WILL BE AT WORK TODAY. ONE BOAT WAS DOWN MAKES THE COMMUTING TIME LONGER FOR SOME  top

Commuters and tourists who were delayed up to 40 minutes this week waiting for a ferry to Port Aransas may not have to wait much longer. The Texas Department of Transportation lost one of the three operating ferries Wednesday night because of engine problems, but expects to have all three in service today. An engine on one of the ferries had to be replaced Monday night because of damage to the camshaft and water in the oil. These boats are made of steel and in salt water, corrosion is a major problem. No matter how much cleaning is done, corrosion is always a factor. Becky Kureska, district spokeswoman for the transportation department, said losing another boat is unfortunate, but it is better that it happened during the week when traffic is lighter.

FAA ISSUES TWO NEW BOEING AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES  top

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a document proposing the supersedure of an existing airworthiness directive (AD) applicable to certain Boeing 747 series aircraft. The current AD requires inspection of the after trunnion of the wing landing gear for cracks and corrosions, and corrective action if necessary. The proposed document would require new repetitive inspections for cracks or corrosion of the aft trunnion outer cylinders of the wing landing gear, follow-on actions, and repetitive overhaul of the wing landing gear. The new actions would also apply to aircraft not included in the applicability of the existing AD. Comments are to be received by 11 June 2001. The FAA has also issued an amendment adopting a new AD that is applicable to all Boeing 737 series aircraft. This AD requires revision of the Airplane Flight Manual to prohibit extended operation of the centre tank fuel pumps (with no fuel passing through the pumps). This AD is effective 10 May 2001. Comments on this story may be sent to aii.feedback@m2.com.

WARNING TO FLOOD VICTIMS: REPLACE ALL GAS CONTROL VALVES, ELECTRIC CIRCUIT BREAKERS, GFCIS, AND FUSES THAT HAVE BEEN UNDER WATER  top

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is warning flood victims that all gas control valves, electric circuit breakers, ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs), and fuses that have been under water must be replaced to avoid explosions and fires. Even if these safety devices appear to function after being submerged in a flood, they are unfit for continued use and cannot be repaired. They may eventually fail, causing explosions or fires. Other parts of gas and electric appliances that have been submerged such as fans, motors, electric circuits, and venting systems should be evaluated by a qualified technician for continued safe operation. Entire appliances may need to be replaced. Gas control valves on furnaces, water heaters, and other gas appliances that have been under water must be replaced. Silt and corrosion from flood water can damage internal components of control valves and prevent proper operation. Gas can leak and result in an explosion or fire. Gas control valves that have been under water cannot be salvaged; they must be replaced. Electric circuit breakers, GFCIs, and fuses that have been submerged must also be replaced because water and silt inside the devices prevent them from performing properly as safety devices. Flood water and silt trapped inside circuit breakers or switches can cause electrical shorting or mechanical malfunctions. The only safe action is to discard and replace circuit breakers, GFCIs, and fuses that have been under water.