Offshore Industry issue 3 2021

Page 38

COATINGS & CORROSION PROTECTION

A balancing act IT IS SIMPLY A GIVEN FACT. AT SEA, THE STRENGTH AND LIFETIME OF STEEL STRUCTURES ARE CONTINUOUSLY AFFECTED BY FORCES OF NATURE LIKE WIND, WAVES, WATER, SOIL, TEMPERATURE, AND SALT. THIS OFTEN RESULTS IN A COMBINATION OF CORROSION AND FATIGUE. ALL IMAGES COURTESY OF TNO, UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.

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orrosion, even the smallest spot, can negatively affect the fatigue strength of steel structures. Although corrosion in itself is not immediately threatening, in combination with the changing load and tension on steel structures caused by the circumstances at sea, it can accelerate the process of weakening steel as it acts as a potential fatigue crack initiator. Research organisation TNO (Delft, the Netherlands) has ample structural knowledge in the field of offshore oil & gas, offshore renewables,

o ffs h o re -i n d u s tr y. e u

26-05-2021 15:18


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