Abstract

The use of metallized coating on bridges in New Hampshire years ago was limited to small special strategic steel locations. The metallizing option was severely limited by lack of shop applicators. Rhode Island pioneered duplex metallized bridges, research, and interest. The past two decades have seen a rapid growth of industry facility investment for application and Owner selection of the metallizing coating. This paper presents signature New England bridges and several New Hampshire bridges with metallized coating representing the growing popularity of thermal spray coating for steel bridges.

Introduction

Bridge Owners are always on the lookout for a coating system for steel bridges that will perform for the longest time, and at a reasonable price. Metallizing has long been considered one of the best coating systems but the lack of qualified applicators simply has not made it available as an economical option. The success of early metallizing encouraged the investment in metallizing for Owners and bridge fabricators, and spurred on its significant growth over the past decade.

Pioneers of Metallizing

It is the author's view that the seed of the growth of metallizing in New England was planted in Rhode Island during a meeting of the RI DOT with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in the early 1980's. In that meeting FHWA pointed to the success of metallizing in a 19-year American Welding Society (AWS) study (1) published in 1974, and recommended metallizing to RI DOT.

In 1987 Rhode Island DOT implemented that recommendation by metallizing their first steel bridge, Acorn Street over the Woonasquatucket River, a small beam bridge (Figure 2) located out of sight a few blocks from the heart of downtown Providence. The growth of metallizing steel bridges in Rhode Island all started with that Acorn Street bridge.

In 1993 a metallizing and paint duplex coating was selected for two pedestrian bridges (Figure 3) in a highly visible location at Providence Mall Waterplace Park, in the center of an important shopping venue and in the shadow of the State Capitol Building.

Keywords:
pipeline corrosion, flowline corrosion, materials and corrosion, ground transportation, corrosion inhibition, oilfield chemistry, riser corrosion, ampp, production chemistry, well integrity
Subjects:
Production Chemistry, Metallurgy and Biology, Pipelines, Flowlines and Risers, Materials and corrosion, Well Integrity, Subsurface corrosion (tubing, casing, completion equipment, conductor), Corrosion inhibition and management (including H2S and CO2)
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