Matergenics – Pittsburgh has created a specialized market in soil corrosivity, corrosion risk assessment and identification of corrosive hot-spots for underground assets and infrastructure that is not considered by traditional Close Interval Surveys (CIS) and circumvent functioning cathodic protection (CP). Our dedicated soil lab has rapid turn-around times and is supported by a multidiscipline team of soil specialists, NACE certified materials and corrosion engineers, CP design and installation specialists, coatings specialists, chemists, and and certified lab and field technicians. The combination of field and lab analysis provides essential data for soil mapping verification, geotechnical, asset management, site surveys, CP installations, and failure analysis.
Soil Testing
| Determination | Soil Corrosion Performance Parameters | Comments |
| Simple Soil Chemistry | pH, Resistivity, Chlorides, Sulfate, Sulfide, Moisture, Redox Potential | Based on ASTM Techniques |
| Corrosion rate based on LPR/ER for: Steel, Zinc, SS Cu in given soil | Mils /year (mpy) Instantaneous Corrosion Rate | Based on ASTM G96 |
| MIC Study | SRB, APB,… | Total Bacteria, SRB, APB, IOB,.. |
| Predictive Modeling | Long Term Corrosion Behavior of the Asset and Corrosion Mitigation Recommendation | Provides corrosion penetration as a function of time (long term,10, 20, 30, ..50 years) |
Standard Soil Tests by Matergenics
- AASHTO T290: Sulfate Ion Content in Soil
- AASHTO T291: Chloride Ion Content in Soil
- ASTM C1580: Sulfate Ion Content in Soil A
- STM D1498: Redox Potential of Water A
- STM D2216: Moisture Content of Soil
- ASTM D2487: Soil Classification
- ASTM D421: Dry Prep SOIL SAMPLES
- ASTM D4318: Liquid Limit, Plastic Limit, Plastic Index of Soils
- ASTM D422: Particle Size Analysis of Soils
- ASTM D4972: pH of Soils
- ASTM G102: Corrosion Rate
- ASTM G51: pH of Soil for Corrosion
- ASTM G57: Soil Resistivity
- ASTM D4658: Sulfide Ion in Water
- ASTM G162: Conducting and Evaluating Lab Soil Corrosion Tests
- ASTM D512: Chloride Ion in Water
- MIC Tests
The construction of our corrosion and agricultural assessment maps consists of two phases:
- In Phase I, the relevant data will be collected, categorized, and analyzed with respect to the project objectives. The information will consist of several distinctive sets of data related to the project.
- In Phase II, a knowledge-based approach along with adequate and accurate equipment, and advanced techniques, will be used to collect, analyze, and verify the Phase I corrosion mapping at statistically representative selected sites.