Tribology of Advanced Materials and Coatings

Pipelines in the petroleum industry are exposed to harsh corrosive and erosive conditions, which could lead to catastrophic failure. The global cost of such failure is very high, in addition to the permanent damage to life and the environment. This has necessitated the search for superior protective coatings. The traditional method for protecting oil and gas pipeline steels is the use of epoxy-based coatings. However, to satisfy the ever-increasing demand for energy, today's transmission pipelines are operated at higher pressures and temperatures, under these sever conditions, traditional protection methods do not provide adequate results. The objective of the present proposal is to develop and evaluate novel coating having high hardness, high erosion-corrosion resistance, and excellent thermal and chemical stabilities at elevated temperatures. Such coating is expected to provide outstanding protection to oil and gas transmission pipelines. In this application I propose to develop a novel electroless Co-P-nano-tribaloy composite coating on API X-120 pipeline steel. The proposed coating is expected to provide exceptional protection against erosion-corrosion damage in harsh environment and at elevated temperature. To my knowledge, this is the first time that such coating is proposed. The proposed coating is not limited to oil and gas applications but is also suitable for other applications that require protection under harsh tribological conditions, i.e., aerospace and automotive applications. The expected thermal stability of this coating makes it suitable for turbine blades for gas turbines and aircraft jet engines. The proposed coating may also be used in automotive valve seats and guides as well as for other components in the drivetrain requiring enhanced wear performance at elevated temperatures. The proposed novel coating may potentially be applied in oil and gas pipelines to provide the necessary protection. The applicant has vast knowledge and expertise in pipeline degradation and protection against sever environments. The coating synthesis process will be tailored to produce the optimum protection of API pipe steels. To ensure high quality and integrity of the coatings, full and comprehensive characterization of the new composite coatings will be conducted. To support the research envisioned in this proposal I will oversee the training of 2 PhD and 2 undergraduate co-op students. They will also have access to state-of-the-art analytical tools. The Canadian petroleum industry is known for its commitment to the highest standards for health and safety throughout its operations. The present proposal will strengthen Canada's position in preventing pipeline failures and their catastrophic effect on life and environment. In addition, the proposed research would provide economic benefit by preventing down-time. The proposed research is expected to result in new technology that would be available to the oil and gas and other relevant industries.