ACE Issue 25 2019 | Page 6

Nace: Corrosion costs $2.5 trillion annually Every year, corrosion causes an economic damage of more than $ 2.5 trillion worldwide. Therefore, the prevention of corrosion, is an issue that plays an im­ portant role in many areas. The new MMS® Inspection series that is optimized for corrosion protection reli­ ably supports the inspector in assessing corrosion-ex­posed components and in jobs that involve checking of corrosion protection. Corrosion is the deterioration of a metal as a result of chemical reactions between it and the surrounding en­ vironment. This leads to a functional impairment of the metallic component over time. Accordingly, rust forma­tion on a railroad track is not harmful, since the function of the rail is not diminished. However, a pipe which has become leaky due to pitting corrosion is clearly defective, since the safe transport of liquids is no longer guaran­teed. The same applies to the maritime sector, where material surfaces attacked by corrosion on ship walls can quickly become a safety risk. There are serious con­sequences caused by corrosion in engineering structures such as bridges. If the steel structure corrodes without any control, a bridge can quickly become a threat to those who move on it. Furthermore, there are economic advantages to implementing proper corrosion prevention methods. In order to protect metallic materials against environ­mental influences and thus corrosion, in most cases coating with suitable corrosion protection material is sufficient. The expense for this – passive – corrosion pro­tection is relatively low in relation to the costs caused by corrosion such as loss of value, downtime, dismantling, etc. 6 MMS® Inspection DPM (Dew Point Meter) MMS® Inspection SPG (Surface Profile Gauge) For companies and institutions saving The MMS series offers a third model, the MMS on Inspection corrosion it usually SPG. protection, This gauge measures according to the “Peak to Valley” method, meeting ASTM the D 4417-B and becomes expensive to repair US Navy NSI 009-32 standards. The surface profile damages afterwards. depth influences the amount of paint needed. If the peak to valley distance is too big, the applied paint layer may not be thick enough on the peaks. Additionally, the pro- This is especially so for structures file infuences the adhesion of the paint on the surface. that are very difficult to access after The MMS series is offered as a set of three to enable installation, such as offshore wind better corrosion protection. They are the only device on the market that meet IP 65 protection requirements turbines. which include dust protection and water proof. Corrosion protection The MMS Inspection offers involves one-handed regular operation and provides immediate feedback for by means of light, vi- inspection and checks proper bration and sound. The auto rotate function allows the functioning. corrosion inspector to view measurement results at all important angles. This means that inspectors and service personnel need to use targeted measurements to inspect if the quality of the corrosion protection coatings still meet specified standards. With regard to coating thickness gauges used here, both magnetic induction method and eddy-current testing have established themselves as standards worldwide. 1) NACE International, impact.nace.org (2016) Rusting, the formation of iron oxides, is a well-known example of electrochemical corrosion. Magnetic induction is the method of choice for measur­ing the thickness of non-magnetic layers on magnetic base materials, e.g. layers of paint, plastic, MMS® Inspection DFT (Dry Film Thickness) galvanized or hot-dip galvanized layers A big advantage of the MMS® Inspection series is the on intuitive steel user and interface iron. The cur­ rent for all eddy systems. The software guides the is user step by step the individual method suitable for through electrically non- mea- suring programs and shows him how to proceed with conductive layers on the non-ferrous each measurement. Thus, devices can be metals, handled reliably untrained personnel. such as even e.g. by paint, lacquer or plastic on aluminium. Helmut Fischer has designed this series of gauges to make corrosion protection inspection considerably eas- ier. This enables many companies around the world to Depending on the version, modern avoid corrosion damage and the resulting loss of value. gauges such as the newly developed MMS® Inspection series from Helmut Fischer offer both measuring methods. Helmut Fischer has made every effort to ensure the con­venience of the user. For this reason, international mea­surement standards such as SSPC PA2 (Level 1-5), IMO PSPC, ISO 19840, Australian AS 3894.3-2002 or Swedish IS 1841 60 are firmly integrated as pre-configured batches or measurement specifications via the software. The dew point measuring device MMS® Inspection DPM, which belongs to the same series, measures the dew point before the corrosion protection paint is applied. This helps to ensure that the coating is applied under proper environmental conditions. If the conditions are not suitable, premature corrosion may occur or the paint may peel off as a result of poor adhesion. www.fischergb.co.uk