China has completed a 537-day deep-sea material corrosion test, setting a new global record for the longest such experiment, said the China State Shipbuilding Corporation Limited (CSSC) on Saturday.
After more than a year and a half of exposure at a depth of 11,000 meters, retrieved deep-sea samples show varying coating performance, offering valuable data for future long-term marine material design.
"This is a sample we retrieved after conducting tests for 537 days at a depth of 11,000 meters on the seabed. These are all coating-protection experiments. Based on the current condition of this sample, we can see that many materials have very poor corrosion resistance in the deep sea. A lot of the coatings have already started to peel off, while some others still remain intact. We'll conduct further in-depth analysis in the lab to draw more definitive conclusions," said Sun Mingxian, deputy chief engineer and researcher of the CSSC's 725 Research Institute.
The test was designed to evaluate the long-term corrosion resistance of materials and coatings in the 10,000-meter deep-sea environment.
"These authentic deep-sea data allow for more precise design in terms of corrosion allowance. They provide accurate guidance for coating formulations while enabling improvements to cathodic protection parameters, directly boosting the reliability and safety of equipment," said Liao Zhiqian, deputy head of the 725 Institute.
China's 11,000-meter deep-sea corrosion test sets new global record for duration
