ABSTRACT

JOHN H. MALLINSON J. H. Mallinson PE & Associates, Inc. , Front Royal, Virginia

INTRODUCTION AND HISTORY [1-3]

One of the great steps in human development was the discovery that we could change the nature of materials. Slowly at first, we adapted materials to our use and, then, as the Industrial Revolution produced a much more complex civilization, the problems of material preservation changed together with the emphasis. Economic competition is the driving force that compels engineers to provide the lowest-cost unit over the service life of equipment. Practically all engineering materials are composites of some sort. Cannons made of wood were bound with brass. Steel is painted to withstand corrosion. Today, the corrosion engineer is constantly looking for materials that are lighter, stiffer, stronger, and more corrosion-resistant than their predecessors.