Sustainable salt paste revolutionizes corrosion testing

A newly developed salt paste for corrosion testing delivers comparable results to the traditional salt spray test, but minimizes the environmental impact. It can be customized for various test scenarios.

Corrosion is an everyday process that significantly affects the service life of materials, especially metals. This process affects the stability and properties of metal products and poses a major challenge in various industries. Although there are numerous methods to slow down corrosion, thorough testing of components remains essential to assess product durability and reliability under real conditions in advance. Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability LBF have created a new salt paste. It can be customized for various test scenarios and delivers comparable results to the traditional salt spray test, which has some disadvantages.

Salt spray tests, which are carried out in controlled environments, simulate the effects of salty air on materials. These tests are particularly important in the automotive and aviation industries to assess corrosion resistance. The products are placed in a chamber in which a salty solution is sprayed as a mist to create accelerated corrosion conditions. The results of these tests under real conditions are crucial for predicting product life and reliability. However, these tests require large amounts of salt solution and lead to complete corrosion of the entire component and test stand. In addition, factors such as pH value, temperature and concentration play an important role.

Researchers from the Fraunhofer LBF have created a new salt paste. It offers precise adjustment of various parameters for the respective application, can be adapted to a variety of test scenarios and delivers comparable results to the traditional salt spray test. The new salt paste is well suited for rapid screening in material selection and development. This enables efficient and targeted evaluation of new materials and their corrosion resistance. In addition to classic salt corrosion, acidic or alkaline conditions can also be simulated, for example.

The salt paste consists of proven ingredients such as a superabsorber, wool wax, fatty alcohols and salts. By using established raw materials and natural components such as wool wax, as well as the significantly lower amount of material required, the salt paste reduces the consumption of resources and energy and therefore minimizes the environmental impact of corrosion tests.

The Fraunhofer scientists are looking for partners from industry who see areas of application for salt pastes in their company and would like to further develop the possibilities of the newly developed salt paste. Applications are conceivable in corrosion testing of plastics and metals, for example in maritime technology, in desert climates, on PV systems or on coatings on wood in outdoor areas and many more. (OM-10/24)