Analysis of Atmosphere Corrosion in Cold Arctic Climate

Arctic environments subject metals and materials to unique challenges, primarily due to extreme temperatures and extended snow or ice coverage. Very little scientific research has been conducted to characterize corrosion in arctic regions, particularly in coastal areas where corrosion rates are higher1. Due to factors such as climate change, coastal arctic regions in Alaska are of increasing strategic importance2 and expanding aerospace activity3 (Figure 1). Targeted investigation of corrosion factors unique to arctic environments is key to improving design of structures and aerospace ground support equipment to mitigate corrosion, a core goal of the NASA space technology roadmap4. The angle of exposure (AOE) of a surface affects the accumulation of snow, and surfaces with increased snow accumulation typically experience faster corrosion rates (Figure 2). This relationship is the subject of ongoing research at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) supported by Alaska NASA EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Development (RID) grant. A test rack designed to place corrosion samples at three AOEs and collect environmental weather parameters has been built and installed at UAA. The scope of this proposal is the processing and analysis of collected weather data and correlate it to corrosion rate for better understanding of atmospheric corrosion in cold arctic climate as a function of AOE.