cladding | Nanomaterials
Nanocomposite materials are being employed in a new pipeline cladding process to address corrosion resistance in hostile offshore environments. Mark Holmes fi nds out more
Nanotechnology targets corrosion protection
Main image: Nano-scale modifi cation and coating of steel surfaces promises improved corrosion and wear resist- ance
Nanocomposite and nanotechnology has been shown to impart improved corrosion protection and abrasion resistance to steel and other corrosion sensitive materials. One company that has been exploring the potential for the use of nanocomposites in pipeline applications is US-based MesoCoat, and it predicts the technology becoming cost competitive with epoxy coatings in the future. Spun out from Powdermet in 2007, MesoCoat began
operations in 2008 with seed funding from a local technology incubator, JumpStart. The company was originally incorporated to commercialise its PComP nanocomposite thermal spray coatings for the aero- space and defence industries. Further fi nancing from US investment group Abakan in 2009 accelerated this commercialisation process. “MesoCoat’s PComP nanocomposite coatings had
shown 6 to 80 times longer coating life compared with conventional coatings,” says Anupam Ghildyal, Vice President of Strategy and Corporate Development at MesoCoat, who explains why the company began to explore applications beyond its original aerospace and defence focus. “Although the US Departments of Defense and Energy were development partners, introducing a
18 PIPELINE COATING | September 2015
new material system into the aerospace and defence sectors is a time consuming process. So MesoCoat decided to pursue other markets as well, while continu- ing to work towards qualifying its coatings for aerospace and defence applications. After thorough evaluation we decided that oil and gas and the mining industries were the best fi t for PComP coatings,” he says.
Market focus Alongside this focus on wider markets, Ghildyal says the company also expanded the scope of its material development. “In addition to our PComP nanocomposite coatings, MesoCoat is now also developing a wear resistant cladding. This cladding uses nanocomposite Structurally Amorphous Metal (SAM) alloys for the inside diameters of pipelines used heavily in the transportation of oil sands and mining slurries,” he says. “The unique structure of SAM alloys provides good
corrosion resistance and excellent wear resistance in the same coating or cladding. The main reason why there is a big interest in the industry for the SAM alloy cladding is because it provides performance and life as good as currently used tungsten carbide cladding, but at one-fi fth of the cost,” Ghildyal claims.
www.pipeline-coating.com
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