WG 190 : Corrosion Protection of Lock Equipment

Published

In today’s competitive environment, maintenance costs are a crucial and very significant part of a structure’s life cycle cost and its ability to deliver value to its owner. Corrosion, whether stress induced and/or caused by the environmental conditions, can be a major degradation factor responsible for significant maintenance costs.  One of the most effective strategies to prolong the life of steel structures and equipment is thus a high performance corrosion protection system. There is currently very little research and documentation available for corrosion protection systems as they pertain to lock equipment such as gates and valves which operate in an aggressive aquatic environment and are subjected to hydro-mechanical forces. If such knowledge was easily available, it would allow facility owners and operators to make durable and sustainable decisions, from original construction of lock equipment to long term maintenance strategies that prolong the life of the assets.

Whereas

• operating equipment such as gates and valves are critical to lock performance
• these assets are expected to perform throughout the life of the project which is typically greater than 100 years
• corrosion is the main cause of surface area loss and structural deterioration of lock equipment
• assets such as gates and valves are very expensive to replace and such works typically cause significant downtime
• corrosion protection systems must comply to increasingly stringent environmental regulations
• most aquatic environments are very aggressive for corrosion
• presence of foul and marine life on the surfaces compounds the issues

Therefore, it is recommended to set up a PIANC InCom Working Group on the state of current best practices in corrosion protection of lock equipment.

The goal is to create a reference guide for corrosion protection strategies for facility owners and operators, in order to inform decisions at the design stage and/or to extend useful life of lock equipment subjected to corrosion.

1. Objective of the Working Group

Although there is extensive literature on the topic of steel corrosion protection, specific applications to the aquatic environment are not well documented and difficult to obtain. There is a need for gathering and assessing the available body of knowledge specific to lock equipment, identifying advantages and limitations of each technique, and documenting relevant case studies.

The information provided will help facility owners and operators make informed decisions at the design stage and during the life of the asset by setting up long term maintenance strategies.

 

List of Members

USA

Rebekah C. Wilson (Chair)

Brooke A. Divan

Belgium

Kirsten Bortels

Germany

Dr. Matthias Schmid

The Netherlands

Carolien Nieuwland

Corresponding Members

Günter Binder (Germany)

Rick Huntley (USA)

 

Table of Contents

1          General Aspects

1.1       Scope

1.2       Introduction

2          Corrosion & Hydraulic Gates

2.1       Corrosion Overview

2.2       Forms Of Corrosion

2.3       Rate Of Corrosion

2.4       Acclerated Low Water Corrosion

3          Corrosion Mitigation Coating Systems

3.1       Selection Of The Correct Corrosion Protection System

3.2       Types Of Paint

4          Surface Preparation

4.1       Surface Preparation Overview

4.2       Details Of Surface Preparation Methods

4.3       Rust Grades

4.4       Hazardous Material

5          Coating Applications

5.1       Coating Application Overview

5.2       Brush And Roller

5.3       Spray

5.4       Coating Applicator And Inspector Certifications

5.5       Specifications

6          Case Studies

6.1       Belgium

6.2       Netherlands

6.3       United States

6.4       Germany

7          Recommendations & Conclusions

7.1       Recommendations

7.2       Conclusions

8          References