Marquette University researcher Qindan Huang is getting nearly $740,000 in federal funding to explore a method for protecting critical infrastructure from corrosion.
Huang is an associate professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering in the Milwaukee university’s Opus College of Engineering. She will use the U.S. Department of Transportation grant to evaluate a “cathodic protection” method used to shield pipeline metals from deterioration.
To protect the steel used in these pipelines from corrosion, another metal is used that breaks down instead of the steel. It provides electrons that are lost in the corrosive process known as oxidization, according to the university’s release.
Corrosion is “a time-dependent threat” that causes many of the pipeline incidents that occur across the country, Huang notes. While external pipeline coating is seen as the “first line of defense,” that material can fail over time, she said in the release.
“Cathodic protection is the second line of defense and has become a widely accepted approach in the pipeline industry,” she said. “However, managing cathodic protection systems is challenging due to uncontrollable environmental factors and possible current interferences.”
Alongside other researchers on her team, Huang will use pipeline survey and inspection data to evaluate the effectiveness of cathodic protection systems, focusing on factors such as likelihood of failure, associated costs and more.
Goals of the research effort include modeling corrosion growth, studying the impact of stray current on this process, assessing variables that influence cathodic protection effectiveness, providing decision-making tools for monitoring and augmenting protective systems and more.
“Dr. Huang and her collaborators are tackling an important challenge for the longevity of our infrastructure and the safety of our environment,” Kristina Ropella, Opus Dean of the Opus College of Engineering, said in a statement.
Funding for the project comes from the DOT’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
See more on the research: https://www.marquette.edu/news-center/2023/engineering-professor-receives-us-department-of-transportation-grant-to-evaluate-metal-corrosion-prevention-method.php
–By Alex Moe
