CIM Fellowship
2012CIM Distinguished Lecturers
Sergei Shipilov is a research professor of materials science and engineering at the University of North Texas. After completing his PhD at the Institute of Physical Chemistry of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1987, he worked at the Institute as a research scientist, was founding director of the Laboratory for Physical and Chemical Research in Fracture of the Russian Academy of Sciences and taught at Moscow State University. He moved to Canada in 1999 and served as faculty member at the University of Calgary, Ryerson University and most recently at the University of Minnesota Duluth as 3M McKnight Distinguished Visiting Professor.
Sergei is internationally known for his groundbreaking studies on crack-tip hydrogen embrittlement and fatigue crack growth mechanisms in advanced structural materials exposed to chemical environments. Among the awards that he has received are the Morris Cohen Award from the Metallurgical Society of CIM, the Technical Achievement Award and the Distinguished Service Award from NACE International, and the G. MacDonald Young Award from ASM International. Sergei is a Fellow of NACE International. He was selected by ASM International to deliver the ASM-Indian Institute of Metals Visiting Lecture in India in 2007 and the M. Brian Ives Lecture in Canada in 2005.
Distinguished Lecturer 2012-13
Lecture Abstract
Materials Degradation and Corrosion in a Sustainable Society
The annual direct cost of metallic corrosion ranges from 3.1 to 4.2% of the gross domestic product in industrialized countries. The cost encompasses the degradation of highway bridges, gas and liquid pipelines, waterways and ports, gas distribution, drinking water and sewer systems, electrical utilities, hazardous materials storage, buildings, airports, and railroads. Metallic corrosion is also a major contributor to environmental pollution, including when it results in the leakage of hazardous materials from pipelines, vessels and nuclear reactors.
Some 100 serious accidents caused by the corrosion of infrastructure and transportation systems, which killed over 2,500 people and injured over 10,000, will be referenced. The aging of infrastructure and utilities is one of the most pressing problems faced by our society currently. Corrosion control is critical to the safe operation and to ensure that engineering structures and high-risk technologies continue to function throughout their design life, it is important to address corrosion-related problems before they become failures."
