Expert Witness Testimony

Dr. Mehrooz Zamanzadeh: Dr. Mehrooz Zamanzadeh is known worldwide as an expert witness for corrosion. His research established the minimum cathodic protection requirement for stainless steel. Never before had NACE recommended criteria. His findings were presented to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in May of 2002.

Well-known as an expert witness and investigator in corrosion, coating systems and materials selection cases, Dr. Zamanzadeh currently holds 21 patents and has authored 58 papers on corrosion related topics. Some of the cases that he has testified in involved galvanizing defects in sports stadiums, corrosion of roofing and sidewalls and more.

Dr. Donald L. Gibbon: Dr. Donald L. Gibbon is well known as a microscopist and materials characterization expert witness. He has addressed problems in a broad range of fields including reverse-osmosis filtration, electric power generation, many surface-preparation applications (cleaning/phosphatizing, etc.), deposit analysis, biofilm studies and corrosion control. Dr. Gibbon also has extensive experience in the paper industry.

Geoffrey O. Rhodes: Geoffrey Rhodes has an exceptional background of experience as an expert metallurgical witness in both alloy development and production of stainless and specialty steels in sheet and pipe form. He is also a metallurgical expert in evaluation of welds and welding procedures, powder metallurgy, and advanced melting techniques.

At MATCO, we specialize in failure analysis and corrosion investigations. We will determine if a failure is caused by inappropriate material selection, design, fabrication or operating conditions. Major corporations that rely on MATCO expertise include US Airways, Allegheny Energy, Follansbee Steel, General Electric, Southern California Edison, Sony Electronics, ABB Power and many more.

Some of the components for failure analysis that we look at in a typical day included mechanical equipment; superheater & boiler tubes; wire cables; pipelines; pressure vessels; forgings; castings; welds/brazes; tools and dies; gears; FRP/PVC pipe; and rebar.

Determination of the root cause of failure of systems or components can be very complex, and may require multidisciplinary testing and analysis. The first requirement for success is having a full-equipped modern laboratory. MATCO’s labs include light and electron microscopy (SEM, AES, TEM), mechanical and corrosion & electrochemical testing, environmental testing, chemical characterization, FTIR, X-ray diffraction, electronic testing, and fracture mechanics/FEA analysis capabilities.

On-site Inspection & Investigations

Our certified team of inspectors can perform non-destructive testing on project sites to evaluate the integrity of large structures. Our team has performed such analyses nation and worldwide, and will travel to your project site at a moment's notice for emergency evaluations. Such large structure evaluations have included off-shore oil platforms, wind power generation towers, concrete domes and stadiums, large underground cooling systems, and large elevated water towers. Our projects have taken us from Aloha Stadium in Hawaii to Alyeska Ski Resort in Alaska; from bridges in Pennsylvania to titanium structures in Tokyo, Japan.

Corrosion Failures

The investigation of corrosion failures can be very complex, and usually requires multidisciplinary testing and analysis to determine the root cause of failure. The end determination must be able to be made with a high degree of certainty to ensure that proper replacement materials are selected and that the most effective corrosion control methods are used. Experience is surely the most important ingredient to look for when choosing a materials firm to handle your corrosion control and failure analysis needs.

Corrosion Engineering & Failure Analysis

Experienced PE, PhD Scientists, NACE Certified in Corrosion, Coating, Design, Materials Selection & Cathodic Protection Specialists who will solve your corrosion problems at both initial design stages and in service. MATCO provides corrosion evaluation and failure analysis investigations for: (a) underground facilities (b) above ground facilities and (c) structures in marine environments. MATCO can investigate corrosion or corrosion related failures using state of the art techniques. Reports will be generated detailing corrosion failure causes and recommended means of prevention.

• Corrosion evaluation, life expectancy determination and cathodic protection of underground pipe lines, water mains, electrical poles and transmission lattices
• Corrosion mapping, detection of "Hot Spots", cathodic protection of reinforced concrete structures
• Coating/Paint Investigations
• Electrochemical EIS , DC and AC Testing - Determination of cathodic protection criteria for non-ferrous alloys and stainless steels
• On-site Evaluation of tanks and corrosion mitigation by protective coatings and internal or external Cathodic Protection
• Corrosivity determination of soil, water and determination of corrosion mitigation techniques
• On-site coating evaluation and selection of coatings for specific corrosive environments by EIS

Typical Projects

Although MATCO's work is vital to its clients, it is rarely seen by the public. Here are some examples of recent jobs in which MATCO provided the timely, competent, customer-oriented engineering analysis that made the difference.

Failure Analysis: Metallurgical support for a major commercial airline fleet that includes failure analysis investigations, corrosion investigations, and quality control testing. Bridge and construction failure investigations are also routinely performed at MATCO.

Corrosion Engineering: Cathodic protection system design and installation for a submerged ocean tunnel for the off-loading facility of the largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) process facility in the United States. Our certified team of corrosion investigators can perform testing to evaluate the integrity of pressure vessels. These include refineries, underground and above ground oil, gas and chemical process facilities. Our team has performed such analyses nation and worldwide, and will travel to your project site at a moment's notice for emergency evaluations.

Paint/Coating Analysis: On-site and laboratory investigation of paint delamination failures (flaking and peeling) on galvanized structural members of several major stadiums in the United States.

On-site Inspection: Our certified team of inspectors can perform non-destructive testing on project sites to evaluate the integrity of large structures. Our team has performed such analyses nation and worldwide, and will travel to your project site at a moment's notice for emergency evaluations. Such large structure evaluations have included off-shore oil platforms, wind power generation towers, concrete domes and stadiums, large underground cooling systems, and large elevated water towers. Our projects have taken us from Aloha Stadium in Hawaii to Alyeska Ski Resort in Alaska; from bridges in the Bahamas to titanium structures in Tokyo, Japan and damage evaluation of hurricane in Florida. This project included roofing, siding, paint and internal water damage for a large structure.

Environmental Testing: Comparative testing of the resistance of pharmaceutical labels to environmental stresses (MFG, Humidity, and QUV testing) for a major drug company to determine what labels held up the best.

Fire Investigation: Same-day analysis of the effects of a truck fire on the superstructure of a major highway bridge to determine whether or not the highway could remain open.

Explosion Investigations: Failure analysis of a gas main explosion that caused causalities.

Power Plants: Failure analysis and remaining life determination of boiler components in the power industry.

Implant Materials: Electrochemical corrosion evaluation and failure analysis of implant materials such as hips, knees, stents, etc. to improve products and performance.

Galvanized Steel: How its microstructure and galvanized layer chemistry affect its appearance and corrosion resistance. Prevention and evaluation of storage rust, cracking of galvanized layer, failure of painted galvanized steel. Cabinet salt spray testing, EIS testing of painted galvanized steel and metallurgical characterization tests are routinely performed for galvanized and painted galvanized steel panels.

Utility and Light Poles & Lattices: Inspection and evaluation of galvanized, Cor-Ten (weathering steel) and painted carbon steel utility, light poles/lattices. Failure analysis, fatigue investigations, protective coating evaluation, life expectancy determination, corrosion evaluation, underground, ground level and above ground were included in this investigations

R&D: Research and development of new materials, coatings and sensors for the pipeline, construction, manufacturing, aerospace and chemical industry.

Failure Analysis Team

Our team is comprised of certified and experienced personnel from a variety of technical disciplines including: mechanical engineering, cathodic protection, paint inspection, chemistry, metallurgy, and materials science. We also have a vast array of laboratory and field testing equipment. All of MATCO's testing equipment is calibrated on a routine basis in accordance with both national and international standards, and is ready to be put to use at a moment's notice.

Our team includes professional engineers, mechanical engineers, chemists, coating specialists and NACE Certified Materials Selection/ Design / Corrosion/Coating Specialists (*) includes:

Dr. M. Zee(*)                                           Mr. Geoff Rhodes (*)

Dr. Don Gibbon                                        Mr. Kevin Groll (*)

Dr. George Bayer                                     Ms. Debra Riley (*)

Mr. Ed Larkin                                           Mr. Ed MCcann, PE

Mr. Walter Gretz, PE                                Amy Drabant

Dr. Huping Xu                                           Dr. Bavarian

Marty Latona

An illustrated formal report documents the results of the investigation. If necessary, MATCO personnel can usually be on site almost immediately when requested during emergency situations.

Welding Engineering Expertise

1. Weld Procedures

MATCO can provide a full-time Welding Engineer at your facility to develop and document required welding procedures. Documentation will be on your company letterhead, as required by code. MATCO will arrange for full testing and evaluation of the welded test plates, including chemical, physical and non-destructive means of study. Typical means of testing:

• Radiographic, ultrasonic, magnetic particle, dye penetrant inspection.

• Microscopic and metallurgical examination.

• Corrosion and stress-corrosion testing.

• Tensile tests, bend tests, charpy impact tests and hardness tests.

• Prepare Procedure Qualification Records (PQR's) and Weld Procedure Specifications (WPS's).

2. Welder Testing

MATCO can provide a full-time welding engineer at your facility to test welders to the applicable code. Test plates will be evaluated by destructive and/or non-destructive methods.  Results will be documented on your company letterhead as required by code.

3. Failure Analysis

MATCO can investigate weld or weld-related failures using state of the art techniques.  Reports will be generated detailing failure causes and recommended means of prevention.

4. Vendor Audits

MATCO can provide personnel to conduct audits of vendors and/or sub-contractors regarding weld- related activities or projects. For instance, compliance with ISO 9000 could be ascertained.

Macroetch of a Weld Structure

Partial list of Services Available for Welded Components

• Failure analysis of welded components .
• Corrosion failure analysis of welds and welded components
• Metallography/On-site metallography
• Hardness testing/On-site hardness testing
• Microhardness testing-Vickers and Knoop
• Macroetch inspection
• Sensitization of austenitic stainless steels per ASTM A262
• Sensitization of ferritic stainless steels per ASTM A763
• Chemical analysis of base metals for weldability and selection of preheat and post heat temperatures
• Mechanical testing
• Scanning electron microscopy
• Chemical analysis of weld deposits
• Seven gage delta ferrite determination in 300 series stainless steel welds

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