Economic and Environmental Impact of Corrosion

Abstract

Most of the metals and alloys are unstable in the Earth's surface and will always be susceptible to corrosion. Over the past 150 years, corrosion has been the focus of scientific study from both a scientific and a technological viewpoint. It is a phenomenon that occurs naturally and is defined as the degradation of a material, typically a metal, due to its reaction to its environment. Looked at in this way, it leads to enormous economic losses for the whole world. Apart from the economic consequences, corrosion has resulted in several structural­ failures that had serious consequences for human health and life and the surrounding environment. Safety and environmental concerns tend to be very difficult to define in terms of cost. Therefore, corrosion problems must be addressed for safety and to minimize environmental pollution. There are, however, still many problems that corrosion scientists and engineers need to solve through improved corrosion management. The aim of this chapter is to cover an outline of the corrosion chemistry and economic and environmental impact due to corrosion.