The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is reviewing the challenge by the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League that two AP1000 nuclear reactors from Westinghouse Eletric Co. are subject to corrosion. Read more here.

The Tennessee Transportation Department has found corrosion during an inspection and shut a bridge down. Read more here.

Like a great deal of the overall United States’ infrastructure, pipelines as far back as the early 20th Century are still in service.

According to federal data, 56% of oil pipelines and 60% of gas transmission lines were laid before 1970.

The Enbridge Energy Partners pipeline that burst near Marshall in July is 41 years old, and its line crossing the Straits of Mackinac was laid in 1954. Some pipelines in the state are older.

Yet oil and gas companies say that age is not the key to whether pipes are safe — it’s maintenance.

Read more here.

Following suit, India is looking to perform a pan-industry corrosion audit much like the corrosion audit performed in the United States in 2001 by CC Technologies. (see the study here) Read more about the potential legislation here.

Recent article in the San Francisco Chronicle discusses the possibility of internal corrosion (microbially enhanced corrosion). Read the article here.

Doug Caruso writes about the 25 year, multi billion dollar project for Columbia Gas of Ohio to replace aging steel gas lines. Read the article here.

The National Corrosion Center and Gamry Instruments would like to announce the 21st Annual EIS Short Course.The 2010 Short Course, “Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy: Theory, Applications, and Laboratory Instruction”, is a week long course taught in Houston from November 8-12, 2010. In this course, a team of experts will provide the attendee with a working knowledge of this powerful method and integrate theory with hands-on laboratories that cover many important applications. The student will learn about the hardware and software for experimental control, data analysis, and model fitting.

For further information, please visit http://www.eiscourse.com/.

The National Corrosion Center has lost one of our beloved board members and friend, Matt Simmons.  He passed away on Sunday night at his home in Maine.  Matt had become one of our staunchest supporters and saw the NCC as a critical component and partner in the Ocean Energy Institute, which he started three years ago.  He would often tease me about if I wasn’t at Rice I would call corrosion for what it really is- “RUST”.   He was a giant in the energy industry and I will very much miss my great friend and mentor. 

Our sympathies go out to his family and colleagues and in lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the Ocean Energy Institute (http://www.oceanenergy.org).

Read Josh Garrett’s article.

Emil Peña

source: NewsOK

Tulsa-based North American Galvanizing & Coatings Inc. has agreed to be acquired through a cash tender offer for $7.50 per share in cash or about $126 million. That news, issued before markets opened Thursday, sent North American Galvanizing shares to $7.49, a 34.7 percent gain. More than 4 million shares traded, about 80 times the average daily volume. North American Galvanizing shares were the second-biggest daily gainer on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange.

Under the agreement, North American Galvanizing would be merged with a subsidiary of Fort Worth-based AZZ Inc., a major competitor in the galvanizing industry. The tender offer from AZZ is scheduled to commence April 30. The companies expect the transaction can close by the end of August.

Read more here.

At a recent gathering in Houston, Texas, hosted by Emil Peña, Congressman Edwards discussed policies and issues in Washington D.C.

Mr. Peña talked about the National Corrosion Center and the myriad of technologies that are poised as “game changers” for the US economy – creating jobs and dramatically enhancing the environmental posture of the energy industry.

Pictured below: Congressman Chet Edwards (US Representative, 17th Congressional District), Emil Peña (Founder & Executive Director, National Corrosion Center) and John Nixon (Fightin’ Texas Aggie Class of ’92).